Sausage and Mash at Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi.

It's been quite some time since an F1 post. I don't even know whether I have posted this year.  And oddly I have just realised I was looking at the blog a couple of days ago and thinking I hadn't yet done a post in December... it's only now November 13th!

Anyway, think it's been a while since I have watched a GP live, which tends to increase blogging desire, and this is a nice lunchtime start.  And Vettel (double world champion as of a few races ago) pulled away from pole but then was off at second corner with a right rear puncture, leaving a McLaren one-two.  Vettel crawled back to the pits losing the tyre and the mechanic motioned slitting his throat and the world champion thumped his steering wheel and his the only retiree so far.  Sadly Button seems to be going backwards and is now just third, but Hamilton is holding the lead on lap 8/55.

Just checked and found German Grand Prix, Thank You, Pirelli and Last of the Late Breakers.  Think will read now.

Lap 16 Button has a KERS failure and apparently he has to shut down a lot of systems in order to reboot it - all while driving round this circuit and keeping Weber at bay??  Weber got him at one corner and there was real close stuff on the next few corners, but Button kept the lead.  And then all on the same lap Ham and Alo pitted from 1st and 2nd, a couple of seconds apart on the track.  Great stop for Mclaren which it had to be as Button pitted on same lap from 3rd.  Kinda shows how far behind Button has pitted but it was still only a 6 second regroup for the mechanics!

Lap 17 Weber pits this lap and it was a slow one for him which lets Button off and also lets Massa through ahead.  So its Ham, Alo, But, Mas, Web.

Well it was a Lewis win and Button in 3rd - woop woop!  Although I did close my eyes a little in the final laps.

I was super spoiled in that John arrived just before the start with the ingredients for some delicious sausage and mash and prepared and served it for me all while I got to enjoy watching the race - what a lucky girl!!

German Grand Prix

Just had to pause the recording of today's German Grand Prix to go upstairs and get my computer.  Had begun to wonder whether I should blog about it as I had been in an excited mood about the race today, and then (no, not a Martin comment) a great Hamilton overtake leapt me to action!  Hamilton passed Weber off the start into the lead, and then on lap 13 as the cameras had just gone back to the two of them and they were commenting on how Ham would have to extend his first stint, they said 'He's run wide' and it was barely noticeable but then it was tense as Weber got alongside him and was in the right place for the next corner but then it was the start finish straight and Ham managed to slip stream past him and just get him into the first corner!  Go Lewis!!  It was heart beating stuff.  Now I know I would have words with my children for writing a sentence that long, but I like it being that way.  I'm doing it for effect!  Now, I will resume, and if the race isn't too exciting I will fill you in on the rest!

Good replay, but it is still so close with Ham, Weber, Alonso in 3rd.  Phwooff!!!  Great fights all over the place!  They're coming in for tyres now.  Vetel was 10 seconds behind Alonso with Massa right on his tail.  Then Button has spent the race behind Petrov in 9th after a poor start but is getting closer to passing him.  Feel it's got to be any minute.

Lap 16/17 - Blimey!  that was a complicated moment.  Massa got Vettel into the last corner then Weber got past Vetel too, Vetel pitted then Weber (who'd pitted) was all over Massa (who'd not) into the first corner, as Ham closely followed by Alonso, came out of the pits and were just behind them.

Lap 18 so now Massa's pitted, it's Weber, Ham, Alonso (covered by 1.3 seconds) with Massa and Vetel a little further back.  It's not proving a good day for the World Champion who qualified in 3rd, first time off the front row in 14 races and he's now back behind all the main players.  Well, button is 4th but don't think he's stopped.

Lap 32 - Ham just gets Webber at the second pitstop.  Weber pitted first then there was some argy bargy on first couple of corners.  Ham keeps it for now.  What about Alonso on next lap?  Alonso gets Ham but Ham does what Weber didn't and went round the outside in turn two and gets the lead in the argy bargy!

Lap 36 - ooohhhh.  Was just going to write about Button's good move up to 6th, but then he had a radio message saying he had to 'box this lap' because they had a hydraulics problem.  Booo

Lap 60/60 Well it was nerve racking towards the end.  Especially wondering who would pit first and how near the end on to the less favoured tyres which were 1 and a half seconds a lap slower.  But victory was secured for Hamilton!!!  Woop woop!!  and Vetel only 4th so pretty good all round!

Funny incident.  During the race, Lizzie has been finding new apps for my phone in an entertaining and useful way.  With two laps to go she was reading headlines from the new BBC News App:  Greece secures debt deal; blah blah blah; Hamilton beats Alonso to... aghhhhhhh!!!!  It was funny!!  fortunately it was only 2 laps to go!

I haven't titled this post yet.  Poor one for Martin.  Think I might go conventional ;-)

Little about me

Post 200!!  Can I believe it??

A couple of things happened yesterday and made me think, blog?  But they didn't quite seem enough to blog about.  So I thought combine them into one post and maybe it will just pass the quality threshold.

The first was (in a entertainingly way) a defining moment of me!  I have had it well etablished in my mind and have even mentioned it on the blog, that the things that I'm passionate about and you ought to know about me are: love of musicals, Harry Potter, Formula One, family, then also ER, Anne, Scottish Dancing...  Well, I had a testing of these yesterday.  I was hurrying back to the car just after 1pm ready to put the radio on to hear how the Spanish Grand Prix had started.  I leapt into the car, turned the engine on and the radio came on.  But the radio had been left on Radio 2 and my hand went to the button to change it to 5Live but then it paused.  It was the start of the Elaine Paige show and the song was Me and My Girl.  What should I do???  The first few laps were under way - those that are most likely to be exciting, but this is one of my favourite musicals???  I ended up listening to the verse and music until it went into the tap dancing then switched over, thinking I could listen to it on iplayer - so I don't know what you'd say would have won!

The second occasion is about wellness.  I had been saying this weekend that it was like I had a cold, but without feeling really bad.  I wondered if it was like normal peoples colds.  My nose, throat and eyes weren't great, but inside my head itself I was ok... mysterious.  Then I was chatting to mum and lizzie and Lizzie said, 'isn't it hayever' and I went 'ooohhhhhh'!  I had been saying to people over the last month or so when asked if I suffer from hayfever, that I never really think that I do, but then I will be feeling unwell and someone will say is it hayfever and then it clicks that maybe it is a really mild form of it.  And that's what happened to me exactly again, and I was even kind of expecting it!  Doh!

So there are two little things about me, recorded for posterity!  Posterity, if you're reading this, do comment and let me know what you think!  Are you pleased I recorded it?

Thank you, Pirelli!

Not a Martin, but a DC one!

A strange story for me...  Sunday morning, I was leaving my friend's house at 9.30 who I had stayed the night with and we heard some noise from upstairs and she said oh, her boyfriend must be watching the Grand Prix.  Grand Prix, Grand Prix? There wasn't a Grand Prix this weekend... was there?  It was only a weekend after the last one wasn't it?  And I had heard nothing on 5Live about it.  But then I hadn't been listening to the radio this weekend, being with friends. Quick check on the iphone and discover yes, it was the Chinese Grand Prix!!!  Got to be the first time in years that I didn't even know a grand prix was going on!!

I decided to try avoid news, wasn't too hard, being a busy weekend with friends.  Back in my room at 10.30pm on Monday night, and to iplayer I go.  Oddly, and initially disappointingly, the race wasn't on there.  There was the 5Live race commentary, and there was the TV highlights show.  So I went for the highlights package which turned out to be brilliant as I didn't have much time and it only showed the best bits!  I managed almost the whole hour of the programme, before it started to buffer so I took my glasses off and went to sleep and saw the final 6 laps this morning.

And it was a good one!  Loads of overtaking thanks to KERS, DRS and Pirelli tyres, with a 3 stopper turning out to be quicker than a 2 stopper.  The team looking good changed so often during the race.  A bad bit for McLaren was when Button came into the pits and stopped at Red Bull!  Oh Jens!  In the end it was a great Hamilton win, Vetel second, Weber third, Button fourth.  good times that I almost didn't know about!

Haha - Jake has just said it's 3 weeks till F1 is back in Turkey.  Take note!

Last of the Late Breakers!

I was a little apprehensive this season when it transpired that Martin Brundle was now the lead man in the commentary box with DC as his side kick.  Would he still be able to make such great off the cuff comments while having to give the full run down of what was happening.  But with this post title classic comment I knew a post was on it's way!

Race number two of the season, Malaysia.  Bahrain was canelled/postponed (we shall wait and see which) after unrest in the country.  Australia was then promoted by default to season debut two weeks ago.  It started at 6am which I felt was quite late relatively even with the lost hour, but racing was in fact so uninteresting that my eyes closed just about every lap.  Vetel (world champion) win, with Hamilton a better-than-pre-season-testing-suggested second.

Here we go again at an even more civilised  hour.  After a natural wake up, I have in fact spent some time on internet during pre-show and then even vacuumed out the car before making it back to my room for the warm up lap.  Having been enjoying watching, and now blogging, while also starting a little room tidy - still more to be done.  Also need to go shower before end of race.  Think I may go now, while the little spitting of rain (in Malaysia) is over.  Current standings on lap 22/56:  Vetel, Hamilton, Alonso, Button, Heidfeld, Massa.

Back from shower - Lap 28:  seems that most people have now done a second pit stop.

Suddenly realised I could paint toe nails while watching - Spring has very much arrived here!  So will not be blogging necessarily much now.  Will just say though, that it's a good race with ever so much overtaking back and forth!

Lap 45: It's all turned to custard for D'Amrosio.  thank goodness we got that one out the way.  Oh Martin...

Lap 47:  Hamilton and Alonso just touched.  It really is a good one, without major incidents!

Ended with another win for Vettel and Button second!

Suzuka under duvet

Dropping like flies!

Exciting to set the alarm for 6am and get up in the dark for this Japanese Grand Prix.  Felt like it had been a while since I've done this and I had lots of flashbacks to the 'olden' days in Thornhill Road getting up and going down to the lounge, like looking into the garage to see if the rabbits are really asleep at 3am.  I think it's partly that I have actually got up and headed downstairs, where as in recent times I've probably watched on my laptop from my bed.  But here I am in the lounge having brought my duvet down.

This was an interesting race before it even started for several reasons.  There was no qualifying yesterday at all - it was deemed to wet!  How exciting and glad I hadn't got up!  It reminded of the time back in uni when quali was delayed till Sunday morning due to monsoon conditions.  So quali was 2am UK time and I actually rather confused myself by waking up and hearing grand prix commentary and wondered if I had overslept.  I remember hearing Buemi mentioned and working out it was qualifying when I checked the time.  Was awake from 5.50 and downstairs at 6.

And then, again before the race actually started, we lost one driver to quite a big crash at seemingly low speed as he was driving to the grid!  Poor Di Grassi.

Then Lap 1 - Off the line Petrov seems to do a left turn and straight into the pit wall...  made me realise there hasn't been a start crash in years.  And then it just kept showing cars parked in the run off areas and the safety car was out.

And then Martin and Jonathan started mentioning that Kubica, in 2nd, was falling a long way back from Vetel behind the safety car and I looked at the driver tracker to confirm it too.  And then it cut to him going slowly and pulling off the road.  Mysteriously, until a minute later and it showed a replay and this was Martin's observation:

Lap 4 - Missing the right rear wheel - that's where it's gone wrong.

So we're down to 18 runners...

interesting - there's now an 'original size' button when loading photos.  How nice! Hmm, turns out that original size is too big and doesn't really fit in the blog!  But I'll leave this one so you can see ;-)

Lap 7 - Safety car has come in and we're racing again!  Well, 'again', more like for the first time!

It's good being back at Suzuka.  though can't honestly say whether we were here lsat year or not.  But I do just love the old circuits that have corner names and its not just 'turn 8' - though actually turn 8 is the epic one in Turkey isn't it?  But hearing 130R and dunlop and spoon is good!  [whilst Wikipedia-ing to find out if the race was here last year - it was - I discovered that 130R was so called because the corner originally had a radius of 130m but that had to be changed for safety reasons into a double apex in early 2000s.]

So the restart has had the top five in the championship in the top five places:

Lap 23 - pit stops happening.  Hamilton first of the top 5.  Ed is saying it's looking good for McLarens but I'm not feeling convinced.  Button is on a different tyre but I'm failing to see how that helps!

Lap 25 - Alsonso comes out of pits quite a way ahead of Hamilton still.  Hamilton is storming and looks like he's going to take Button when Jens pits.  Fastest lap for Hamilton:

Lap 32/53 - It's 8 o'clock.  Eyes starting to close.  Weber and Alonso are putting in fastest laps.

Lap 38 - Jenson putting now from the lead and back out in 5th.

Lap 40 - Hamilton on radio saying he's lost some gears, but still seems to be going alright.  But ironic that he got a 5 place grid penalty because he changed the gear box!

Lap 44 - Jenson has just driven past Ham.

Lap 49 - it's all go in the lounge.  Picture froze for a bit and I just thought it was our tv being it's usual silly self!  and then the picture came back but no sound.  again, just thought it was silly tv.  But then sound came back but I thought it was odd and then realised it was the five live commentary instead.  Just as that happened Rosberg crashed off and there was talk of safety car but didn't come out.  Kobayashi is absolutely charging past people.  Martin and Jonathan back on lap 50.  Almost disappointed and tempted to switch to five live as they were so much more animated! 

Lap 53 - and there we go, Red Bull one two.  Looking like the champtionship is heading their way.  Three races to go!

I know I've noticed this in at least one previous race, but I was struck again by how entertaining the chair set up in the top three press conference.  They look so funny leaning back in the chairs with their legs open!  And they're wearing little mikes attached to their faces.

Spa Francorchamps

Watched at school and so with the first lap excitement started to type up my thoughts on word.  Here they are:

Oh my goodness its amazing!!!! So wantin to write but too brilliant!

It’s spa which is enough to make me love it!

oooh – safety car now too on lap two and theres so much already happened that I havent written about.

not going into pits while safety car out…

am also in school supposedly doing some sorting but now gripped to IWB!

there’s lots of talk of rain and though it seemed to start dry , there was a little shower on the first lap and it seemed whole pack went off at last corner in formation – caught out by wetness.  then barrichello went into Ferrari at that corner which caused safety car. 

weber in poll had terrible start (martin just said anti stall kicked in…) and went down to about 6^th.  Mclarens ultimately over the lap made it into a 1-2 and that’s where we are at this restart. 

hmm – why didn’t I go to the loo before it started…  well, guess I can use the children’s ones!

Lap 17 – well it had calmed down but with constant rain suspense (none quite come yet) but then Vetel (3^rd) slams into the side of JB (2^nd) and Button’s out the race L  Vetel manages to leap across the track back into the pit entrance and get a new nose.  But that’s big news for the championship!

Lap 28 – Poor Vetel – though it is his own fault.  He had to stop for a new nose so then started to climb his way back up, and then got a drive through penalty for that incident.  And so to climbing again.  And now he just got a left rear puncture when he caught Sutil when overtaking him so a crawl back to the pits and time to climb again!

Lap 35 – big debates now as to when to go for inters… think this predicted rain is really coming!  Mclarens telling Ham to not come in just as he goes off, but just misses the barrier – everyone else going into pits now but Ham (in the lead) has to get it back to pits…  come on.  Have actually hurt my head leaping up and down in classroom and hoping he didn’t hit the barrier!  He’s in the pits now.  Kubica overshoots pits letting Weber into second.  Ham out still in 1^st.

Lap 38 – Championship contenders dropping like flies – can’t think now if that’s my phrase or if I just heard martin or Jonathon say it!!  Alonso spins and leaves his car on the track at a perpendicular angle!  safety car is out!  it’s a case of surviving for the next 5 laps now.

Lap 41 – safety car gone in – everyone backed up and so tense seeing how bravely everyone treads on this wet track.

Lap 44 – made it!  Hamilton takes the victory.  Love it here – the marshalls marshall the drivers back up through the exit to the pit lane and they drive up it the wrong way rather than completing another lap of this longest circuit.

Driver Tracker!!

Last Sunday, 11th July, was the British Grand Prix.  I didn't write at the time, Martin obviously wasn't on full form!!  I was however excited about it and took quite a lot of screenshots.  There had been good build up to it on the radio and on Friday I heard Alan Cowey says many times on radion oxford about A43 being closed except to ticket holders!  Watched the race back at Mum's with a super duper roast - that's what sundays are all about! 

Mega excitedly, the BBC had introduced for the Driver Tracker for this race.  I can't decide which was a more momentous day: this, or the day I was introduced to livetimings.  I had heard about maps the teams had of the circuits showing where cars were on them and used them to know when to bring someone in for a pit stop.  And this was the day we got to see it too!!  Thank you BBC!  It was as fascinating as I had hoped, even watching the cars vanish off the screen when they went into the pits and then reappear at the moment further round the track.  It was interesting to see how long it took for the pack to spread out and how long it took to all bunch up again when the safety car came out.  Here are some screen shots (naturally, a static image isn't the best way to show how exciting this feature is!):

Weber 'lucky to be in one piece'

Was watching the European Grand Prix in bed last night on iplayer.  Very tired and fairly late and wondering how long I would stay awake.  Then this happened which I thought at the time surely had to be in the top 5 worst looking crashes I have seen in races - in light of day am now thinking maybe top 10.  BBC F1 article Weber 'lucky to be in one piece'.  So glad Weber so quickly moved in the car.  Such an awful flip.  That sure woke up for a bit then I fell asleep later, for 10 or so laps, then watched the remainder this morning. 

What a stopper!

Lap 8 - Hamilaton and Alonso both on very bad softer tyres pit and come out side by side racing out of the pits, sadly Ham loses out from the lead.  Red Bulls who were 2nd and 4th on harder tyres now 1-2.  They were all over the back of others and Weber had already overtaken Button.

Lap 12 - they are now a second a lap quicker than the red bulls.  More cars pitting all the time.  Oooh, will this be a more than 1 stop race.  Think that would be the first this year under the new no refuelling me thinks?  Schumacher and Kubica tussle out of the pits and over the grass.

Lap 13 - Weber pitting.

Lap 14 - Vetel pitting.  Buemi leading race - only one not pitting.  Vetel goes for softs.

Lap 15- Buemi, Alonso, Ham as close as anything.  Ham gets passed as Buemi pits so into lead!

Lap 17 - Ted just said 'tyre degradation gone through the roof'.  That's why theyre in pits so much and it might be a 3 stop race!!!!  Ooh, apparently, an engineer said it might be a 5 stopper!

Lap 20 - as Petrov's getting a new nose, ought to add that there have also been plenty of new noses this race so far!

Lap 23 - mildly calm now so i will give you an order update.  Ham, Alonso, Button, Vetel, Weber.  All pretty close, but can't quite see all 5 on the start finish straight.  Closest are probs Ham and Alonso.  It's a 1min 20 sec lap and we've got 70 of them in total.  Lots to happen....  They've been talking up safety cars so much in the build up to race, basically saying its a certainty and the 23rd car in the race.  But so far, not had it!  Someone mentioned earlier that the cars were actually underfuelled for full race distance as they were expecting safety cars!!  what a cool gamble!

Lap 26 - Ted giving updates that Red Bulls might only be 2 stopping but others 3...

Lap 27 - as Alonso is basically overtaking Ham, Ham pits and puts on hards again.  Ted says he's 3 stopping.

Lap 28 - Button and Vetel pitting and keep formation.  Alonso on fire in lead. 

Lap 29 - Alonso pits and out between McLarens - phewff.

There have been 3 drive through penalties for mid teams so far but in a race of this much excitement there's just not time to record it!

Lap 31 - Ted giving an updates on number of tyres teams have left - basically no new sets!

Lap 43 - Weber, still to have a stint on the softer tyres, having built up a lead of about 11 seconds, is losing a big chunk of time each lap back to Ham.  Down to 6.6 seconds.  Interestingly here you only need 18 seconds to do a stop.

Lap 46 - excitement, apparently, that Christian Horner himself has come on the radio to tell Vetel to overtake the cars in front of him.  Possibly related to the tangle last race.

Time to note, that it is currently 10.14pm, and I'm watching on iplayer having had a lovely day at Nirvana Spa.  Funnily it would have been a good one to have the live timings, primarily to keep track of how many times people have stopped.

Lap 50 - Ham passes Weber on track for the lead.  Alonso right behind.  Weber pits at last.

Lap 52 - Ted informs that the only reason Horner is communicating with drivers is because Vetel's race engineer, Rocky's radio is broken so to get messages to Vetel he has to lean over to Christian to relay them!

Lap 57 - Commentators just totally missed watching Button pass Alonso into second!!

Lap 62 of 70 - eyes a closing - will I make it??  Will there tyres make it, their brakes, their fuel... Three seconds between Ham, Button, Alonso. 

Lap 65 - I think this has been the worst weekend of the year for Schumacher.  as he edges Massa towards the wall as Massa is about to pass him.  Schuey has been on the soft tyres for 20 laps apparently and are totally shot.  Massa pits for new nose.

Ooh - in parc ferme, or wherever its's called after a race and Ham is the winner!!  ie I fell asleep!

That's his worst moment of the year by far

Whenever I am thinking I don't need to write an F1 post, Martin goes and says something that I feel compelled to record.

So at the end of Q2 7 times world champion Michael Schumacher goes across the chicane and out ends qualifying in 13th. Not making it into Q3 for the first time this year.

I am realising I am someone who holds a grudge. I have a long standing anti-support of Schuey, stemming back to taking Damon Hill off in 1994, my first F1 memory. It was dislike with a passion all the vs McLaren years. Kind of now it's hard to fully remember the reasons, and now the feeling of dislike is strongest. Especially as he is not doing well and I have revelled in that for quite a few races I can kinda let it go and not dislike him so much. Maybe... (i recollect one of the reasons I was anti him, supreme arrogance! and probably another reason was jealousy. I disliked the tifosi but probably really wanted to be part of them.

Into Q3 now. Ham's doing well, quickest in both sessions so far. Button not as hot. Red Bull's still good.

This Schuey reflection also stems from my recent re-entering of the boaty world. I was talking about RQ and remembering the feeling of hatred within me and was enjoying giving her evils - she had no idea, I was at a distance, but it still gave me great satisfaction. And then someone asked me why I felt this way and it was hard to remember the reasons, just the feelings! I did meet up with a fellow boaty of my era who was able to give me a few of the reasons. But maybe I should be taking back those evils... if i've forgotten maybe the forgiving is necessary.

Last minute of Q3 - lots changing over P1.

Phewff!! that's the most tension I've felt in a while, certainly qualifying. Ham just took pole away from Weber. Glad to have felt that, have been having a little low on emotion afternoon. Got to jazz it up for the first England match in half an hour...

Oooh, interesting. Ham has just got a radio message saying to stop on track as not enough fuel to get back to pits and they need a sample. So he sat on the car and coasted along. Then started pushing it from behind!  What a sight!

ps - tis Canada. circuit Giles Villeneuve, with the wall of champions!

Team-mate Tangle Turkey

This car really needs it.  It is barely quick enough to get out of its own way on the straight. About the Mercedes and their F duct on the grid walk.

Lap 1 - good start, well not, but yes.  McLarens 2nd and 4th on ditry side both dropped a place off the line but both got back up there by the end of the lap.

Something I discovered yesterday during quali:  the F-duct on the McLaren that the drivers block with their leg to disrupt the aerodynamics in a straight line to give them more speed and the other teams are copying, is so called because it was located at the F in Vodafone on the nose (monocoque?) of the car.  How technical!!!  And just heard engineer over the radio talking to Rosberg reminding him to use his F duct.  I do fine that funny!

Also something interesting about this race that I'm reluctant to write as I am trying to forget it...  I'm watching this delayed in the evening on iplayer as have had a nice day out with a friend.  But I received two texts about the race and one of them told me something that happened.  And it's quite funny knowing (although trying to forget) that with some of the things Red Bull have been saying about being a team...

Lap 14 - Hami's really on the back of Weber.  The top four are almost in formation. (see right: Weber, Hamilton, Vetel, Button all on the line)

Lap 14 - Vetel the first of the four to pit from 3rd - Button on the pace to try and pass him.

Lap 15 - Weber and Ham pit together and Web comes out ahead but Vetel gets out between them.  Ham loses a place.  Where will Button be?  So Ham will have to take them on the track now...

Lap 18 - Button rejoins in 4th. (coming out of the pits on the right as the top 3 go down pit straight)

Lap 21 - Jonathon has just noticed a black cloud and they have just shown a computer screen saying 'rain expected'.  And apparently Mike Gascoigne has just said on his twitter feed that rain is expected in 20 minutes.  (How hilarious that he's using twitter during a race - is he still a technical director somewhere??)  And Martin has said that's the first time he has heard rain mentioned this weekend.  It's gonna get exciting.

Lap 22 - apparently now due in 8 minutes.  Hehehe!

Lap 32 - What's surprising me today is how well the McLarens are holding on to the Red Bulls.   Surprising but pleasing :-)  (above right, all together on the pit straight) no rain yet.  Another 8 mins they are saying... (left on computer screens)

Lap 34 - spots of rain on the camera??

Lap 39 - Hamilton needs those two Red Bulls to start squabbling now.  They're not really going to start doing that are they? replies Jonathon...

Lap 40 - It's HAPPENED!!!!!  THEY COLLIDED!!!!

Lap 43 - McLaren 1-2 now with Weber in 3rd having pitted for a new nose and stayed ahead of Schuey.  Vetel out.

Lap 48-9 (right) I totally don't believe it at all.  In exactly the place the two red bulls took each other out, Button goes to overtake Ham...  did they not just see what happened between team mates??????  Button got him, but Ham then took him back.

Lap 54 - slight scare that the McLaren fuel situation is critical in that consumption has been too high and they are having to save fuel now.  4 laps to go.  I was just thinking that the radio message to Button was code for don't overtake Hamilton, but maybe there is a fuel issue. 

Lap 58/58  Hamilton wins with Button second.  Weber comes home in 3rd to increase his lead in the drivers championship.

Armco

Don't think I have heard the word armco so much in a short period of time.  How do you spell it, what does it actually mean??  29/5 just researched and I got the spelling right!  Also quite like www.armcodirect.co.uk

Lap 3 - Jenson out :-(  car seemed to blow up.  We've already had a safety car out in first lap after Hulkenberg lost it in the tunnel - into the armco!  Phewph!  Still out on Lap 4.

I'm watching this at 9pm at night having been out during the day and managing to avoid hearing result.  It's exciting that it's still light outside!

Lap 9 - Alonso crashed in free practice yesterday and damaged the car so much that he couldn't take part in quali, but was fixed to start from pit lane today.  He is all over the back of the little teams which is entertaining to watch, but it's Monaco so good luck!  (rereading 2 weeks later and realise this is the first mention that we are in Monaco, weird!  Am kinda tempted to removed the reference to see if people realise - surely the talk of the barriers and tunnel especially would enlighten most F1 followers.  Plus I'm about to put photos on so will hopefully give it away!) They have mentioned DC and Bernoldi which I remember well.

Lap 10 - got Di Grassi into the Nouvelle Chicane.  Smooth.

Lap 18 - fascinating bit of strategy.  Hamilton is the first of the front runners to pit and he has just emerged in front of Alonso who is charging up.  Alonso pitted in safety car so neither need to stop again.  So basically they are set for the race now.  Nice bit of covering by McLaren?

Lap 31 - sign signifies that safety car deployed but momentarily didn't know why.  Then see Reuben's Williams facing wrong way in middle of track missing some bits and wheels.  Car seemed to lose something and he bounced along track ricocheting off barriers.

Lap 33 - SC in - those marshals are good.

Lap 43 - well, that's a new one.  SC deployed again and again couldn't tell who it was.  Jonathan started counting through the cars you could see and then the notice came up 'drain cover loose at turn 3'.  Not sure what anyone's done but SC going in again!

The harbour - the yachts tell you your in Monaco

Best shot in the F1 calendar - love that hairpin

 Nice aerial shot.

Lap 76  so i fell asleep for what am guessing was about 20 laps!!  Weber won.

I screenshot a lot during the race but now 2 weeks later can't quite remember which were the good ones - missed quite a lot of the shots i was going for ;-)  actually, just looked and there are some fairly good ones.  will try add in along the post.

Catalunya

Lap 1 - "Good start for Red Bull, poor start for us as fans I think."  Do I need to even say who said that?!  Kinda sums up how I am feeling about the race.  It's the first European, lunchtime start, but I am underwhelmed by the prospect.  Wasn't sure whether to blog about the race, but when Martin said that, I thought it expressed my feelings so might as well record the ambivalence ;-)  Cool circuit name but it doesn't conjure up images of exciting races.  Lap 9 now and nothing to report.  Not much of a stat that the last 9 pole sitters here have won.

Lap 16 - mildly of interest.  Rosberg pitted and as he left his box his right front wheel started smoking on fire!

Lap 18 - Lewis nice overtake/ came out of the pits at the same time as Vettel.  Back marker hanging around to confuse things too!  Ham just in second now.  Button just lost out though in the stops losing a place to MSC down to 6th but is following him closely now.

Well, I was so little into it that I even invited a friend round who was in the area.  We sat with it on in the same room.  I was aware of Vettel having something wrong with his brakes so he dropped down a bit.  Then the biggest moment was Hamilton's left front blowing sending him off and into the barrier on the penultimate lap when he was in second.  There was mention of Hakkinen on the final lap in ??2001?  So it was a Weber win from pole with Alonso pleasing the home fans picking up second.

Only a week till Monaco!!

Shanghai GP - just gets better and better!

First lap - jump start from Alonso.  'Not had one of those in a while', was my thought  looking as Alonso leapt past the Red Bulls from 3rd on the grid and then Martin said he had seen it.  So it's a stop and go for him.  Then we had a crash at the back which resulted in the safety car and it was spitting/more with rain so most leapt into pits to put on intermediates.

Lap 4+ - Rosberg and Button didn't pit and stayed on slicks.  Hamilton had a late call for pits and only just made it in to the pit lane.  For a lap the inters looked like they had the best grip but as the deluge didn't appear, the inters gave up and so all those that had pitted had to pit again back to slicks.  Hamilton and Vettel seemed to be released from their stops at exactly the same time and were going down the pit lane side by side.  Surely a controversy that will run.

Lap 11 - So, it's Rosberg ... easier to screen shot!

Lap 13 - Sutil has dropped down the order - Hamilton overtaking him and Vettel in one hairpin.  Hami now on a purple charge to get to Schumacher.

Lap 17 - after 'nose to nose' racing for 3 laps, Hamilton got him in slightly unconventional means at the hairpin.

Lap 19 - Button gets past Rosberg for the lead seemingly from nowhere.  Oh, Rosberg has slipped off and it appears to be raining again and the dive for the pits commences!

Lap 20 - finally Ham and Vettel pit - and net lose a place to Weber for the lap delay.  Martin: 'it's clearly raining slightly harder than before, but it's not looking wet'.

Lap 22 - safety car out - why's that?

Lap 23 - replays show Alonso overtaking Massa on the pitlane entry - cheeky cheeky!  Seems like the safety car is out to allow Alguesuari's nose to be picked up.  Can it really be his as he seemed to lose it in the pit lane...

This is a top race, but computer has started buffering!!!!!  perhaps time to head downstairs...
comp said it lost internet connection so after 2 refreshes i grabbed dressing gown, phone and laptop and i'm in the living room now!

Lap 25 - eek, Button backed them up too much for the restart - all sorts of chaos!  Can definitely see the wet now.  Plumes of spray.  Mark Weber has said that Hamilton pushed him off in the restart.  Seriously not a good one for Hamilton.  It's the story of his season really - great racing (he just passed Schuey again) but full of controversy!

Lap 28 - "They all seem out of control and completely unruly today"  As always, Martin Brundle sums it up so well!!  This record could just be a transcript of his commentary!  Martin's view is that Button has broken the rules.

Lap 30/56 - we haven't had a boring lap yet and I have just modified the post title!  btw, internet is back now but am relatively happy down here!

Lap 31 - bizarre, the safety car line is before the last corner so they are able to overtake then... perhaps Hamilton is ok for that little bit!

Lap 38 - after several laps on the tail of Rosberg, Hamilton pits for new inters.  Ooh, the strategy is just so good and interesting!

Lap 39 - It's a McLaren 1-2 at the moment with both of them having pitted :-) 

Lap 42 - ok, so it's slightly subdued racing now but I am entertaining myself by colour coding the post!  What colour for Hamilton?  That was the colour I chose initially but am coming to on again to change as too hard to read.  How about Hamilton?

Lap 52 - Button takes a little excursion across the grass reducing his lead over Hamilton from 9 seconds to 5.  It's going to be a tentative last 4 laps as everyone's tires are gone!

That's it!  A great race but I wonder if they'll be repercussions from the incidents afterwards.

Another note - due to the volcano ash cloud (probs should get it's own post, if not, see photos of the week - though don't get excited - don't actually have a photo of the cloud!) the teams don't know when they will be leaving China.  And Bernie was joking about not making it to Spain in 3 weeks time and having the rest of the season in China!  Eddie Jordan didn't make it out to China before the no fly zone so he was adding his 2cents from a London studio.

Malaysia

Lap 13 - Not an epic so far.  Not like last week in australia and not wet (yet) like yesterday.  But there do seem to be a fair few cars just randomly dropping out - including Schuey!

Lap 20 - still not a lot to record.  The other Lotus just unobtrusively retires.  McLaren's winning the battle of carving through the field.  Hamilton up to 6th, Massa 7th, Alonso 8th, Button 9th but pitted once.

Lap 34 - 9.55 - bizarreness that we have just had to change to BBC2 becuase of the Easter service.  I have just eaten some lovely white Lindor bunny chocolate from the Southerns.  We also just gave ma some easter gifts that I think went down well.  Hamilton has come out of the pits ahead of Button.

Lap 39 - Massa is all over the back of Button in 7th.  Hamilton just up the road on the back of Sutil.

Lap 55 - penultimate - Alsonso goes for Button (Massa is long past) and he gets him but then runs wide and then loses his engine!  oops!


Lap 56 - Vettel finally gets the win after 2 poles.  And acceptable for the McLarens given their starting positions.

Tried to get a screen shot of the finishing list on TV but failed to get the first one.  So here's the formula1.com timing screens and page 2 of the TV coverage:

Aquaplaning

Malaysia Qualifying! Oh it's good again. Plenty of rain. All but the top 8ish drivers went straight out in Q1 while it was raining to get in a banker lap. And what a good choice. By the time the big men came out it was to slippery and we have had plenty of people aquaplaning - just love that word. They used to use it a lot in my early days, can remember Murray saying it plenty, but then it seemed to go out of fashion. But Button has just said over the radio that he aquaplaned off and he's ended up in the gravel trap and stuck. He's 13th at the moment but with plenty guys behind him hoping to improve. Alonso just 'pirouetted' according to Jonathan Ledger! Replay shows it was 3 times round!

"I love those races where the grid's all mixed up." Well said Martin!

Oh dear: it's Alonso 19th, Hamilton 20th, Massa 21st!! And Button is going to be 17th because he won't be able to take part in Q2!

Button and  Hamilton aquaplaning off. (I'm loving print screening)

Just had a shot of team principals (have tried spelling it both ways - I'm just not sure which one it is here...) leaning away from their computers on the pit wall and sticking their arms out to see if it's raining again - teehee!

"Race control - indefinite delay"  How epic!!

Was a good one - Weber got pole going out on inters for the last moment.  Looking forward to tomorrow morning!

Australia

Safety car out on first lap and ferrari facing backwards and msc in for a new nose and a wet track with more rain forecast...  worth setting alarm for 6am - which i had forgotten would feel like 5am with the hour change!

Lap 6 - all happening - Lewis overtakes button into P6 and Mass has a bad one in second losing to Weber and Kubica - oh no, Kubica doesnt make it...  Then Button pits for slicks - first man in - brave.  And through the gravel trap!

Lap 8 - they're all following him now.  i love the look of all the cars filing into the pits.

Lap 10 - it's paid off for Button - he's up to second!

Lap 11 - 7.25.  It's a good job I have a clever phone that's up for coping with time change as my other alarm has only just gone off... what was I thinking???

Lap 15 - Alonso making his way through the pack - up to 9th.  Still finding it hard to relate Alonso with the Ferrari - they are not 2 pictures that go together in my mind yet.

Lap 16 - woah - what a couple of corners.  Lap 22 it happens again!

Lap 27 - oh my goodness!!!  Hamilton charging now passing Rosberg for P4 which immediately becomes P3 as Vetel goes out from the lead leaving Button 1st and Ham 3rd!!!  im actually yelping with joy!!

Lap 35 - Ham gambles and pits for new tyres from 3rd, comes out 5th just in front of weber who has also made the second stop.  will the others follow suit with 22 laps to go?

Lap 50 - Alonso mechanic: "Hamilton is gaining on you.  3.5 seconds behind now." 
              Alonso "ok, I don't want to know".  Love it!

exciting note - have just accidentally again found how to change tabs on keyboard.  it's ctrl + tab.  horray!

Lap 57 of 58 - Hamilton on the back of Alsonso with Weber on the back of him collide and Ham and Web go off.

Lap 58 - Jenson Button - 'serenity itself', 'champion's drive'.

'I love all that skulduggery'

What a great quote. The legendary Martin Brundell.

We're two minutes from the end of the second qualifying and I haven't heard MSC mentioned once. In reality he seems to have had the most unnoticeable race return.

I woke up at 6am with my formula one clock. Somehow (well, through laziness) I didn't close my curtains last night. I don't normally close them on school nights but do at weekends to try and sleep in with it staying darker. But it was light enough for my clock to go off at 6am. I kept my eyes closed for 15mins and then realised that Australia qualifying might well be on. I hadn't checked the times but had thought I would just think about it if I woke up. And it was perfect. I put the radio on and they were just finishing the first qualifying. So computer on and am now watching from my bed. Thank you BBC for letting us watch online. Nearly time for Q3 now - without Hamilton.

DC!!!

Wow - I have just had a mega exciting experience for me!  I went to the Oxford Union to see David Coulthard as speaker!

My poor proof of it is this photo on the right taken on my phone as he was leaving!
More recognisable photos of him on the left taken from a google images search!

I couldn't quite bring myself to get too excited but when he walked in through the door I couldn't stop grinning :-)  I thought he looked mighty suave in his dark suit. I really felt he had a petite waist.  And when he started speaking I was just totally in love with his lilting scottish accent.  For more so I feel than I have ever been hearing him on television.

He spoke briefly on from a prepared speech.  I wonder now how much of it he had written himself as to be honest the tone of it was pretty different to when he was answering questions (which was the vast majority of the time - over an hour versus 10 minutes).  The speech was making comparisons with the Union (which I'm not a big fan of) and motor racing with a lot of tabloid type references to supermodels and the such.  He did start off by saying that he had been up ill all the previous night and was rather running on empty during the evening but he had wanted to fulfil his commitment (certainly something I admire).

The questions were the good bit.  I thought of two questions that I would have asked.  I never even put my hand up (being far too chicken) but I was getting closer to having my muscles respond to the messgae form my brain but then someone asked a similar question.   And then someone asked my other question later. Mine were:

• Which were your favourite circuits to go to as a driver and have they changed now you're a pundit? (he mentioned the word pundit now as being what he is on the BBC, but said he didn't really like the word as he didn't understand it)  His answer (paraphrased) was Monaco as it was a short walk home and major challenge to win - only the best can win there.  And Spa, because it's such a long circuit and because of Eau-Rouge - the change in altitude is greater than the height of the debating chamber and you come out of the corner blind.
• Do you regret letting Hakkinen past in Australia.  Yes, see his book for further details on why he did it.

The other thing I had been wondering about was team orders.  He answered a question about Nelson Piquet Junior and answered pretty much as my thinking was: there are too many variables to be able to stage a crash that would help your team mate to win.  Especially as (I didn't know this) there was no radio transmission telling Piquet to crash at that moment.  The only conversation had been before the race.

Some other interesting points that I happen to remember:

• The team mate he least got on with is Damon Hill.  He's not sure why but there was never much connection.  He has swapped helmets with all his other team mates and has helmets of all the world champions from his driving era except Damon.  He talked about the effect that Graham Hill's death had on the family and his belief that that had some effect on the way Damon was as a team mate.
• He said he got on with his other team mates and mentioned in particular Mika Hakkinen and having a drink with him now - he said Mika liked his vodka.
• He spoke highly of the Williams Team and Frank Williams.  When asked about his days at Williams he mentioned a time as a young driver when he wasn't sure whether to laugh or keep a dead pan expression.  Frank had been wheeling around the room where they had been meeting then came up to David and said 'Look at my shoes'; David did; then Frank said 'I've worn these same shoes for 20 years'.  When David looked rather scared, Frank explained that it was meant as a joke, because being a quadriplegic his shoes didnt get anywhere and he thought as a Scotsman David would like the thrift!

Am rather tired now, trying to fight off my second cold in a week and am going to head to bed.  Well, I am actually on bed but I will get in it!  Hopefully I will add more as it comes to me.

• update 11/2/10 He spoke about risk and safety.  He mentioned how the closest he came to death was in the plane crash.  He was knocked unconscious in testing in the early days of his career when a nut or bolt was loose and he lost steering and headed straight into the barriers.  He was pleased when he came round that his final thoughts before the crash weren't 'oh no i'm scared that i'm going to die', but he was trying to rectify the problem and work it out.  He told his mum this so that if he was ever to die in a race she was to know that his final moments hadn't been regrets or anything.  He also spoke about how he drove because he took steps to minimise the risk.  He then went on to talk about the children's cycle helmet company he set up and how he tried to get parliament to pass law for under 16s to wear cycle helmets as they do not necessarily have the ability to choose to minimise the risk.

 The evening also got me thinking about the season I kept a formula 1 diary.  Think it may have been 2002 - wow crazy to think it could have been 8 years ago.  I really enjoyed doing it and it got me properly involved in the race and was a snapshot of my life.  I wondered about starting it up again for this season.  Subsequently I wondered about doing it on the blog...  get's me thinking about the handwritten word versus the virtual.