Is F1 really as dull as I believe that it is....

gtvlusso

I watched recent 'Senna' film this week, rather good I thought - particularly watching the late 70's early 80's Monaco GP, with drivers taking a hand of the wheel to use a 'real' gear change and a really vicious battle between drivers.

I was so invigorated by my viewing experience of the film, that I sat and watched the Australian GP, which was dull as ditch water and an insult to my backside.....

So, in conclusion;

Films about F1 - good,
F1 coverage - boring same old sh*t.

Am I wrong?!

rick_chasey

Film about charismatic good looking man who dies tragically and publicly? Good film.

A sport you don't like? Boring.

TheStone

Enjoyed the Senna movie.
But F1 has always been boring. Posh kids and their toys.

cje

It isn't dull if you like it. But it is if you don't. Same with any sport really, including pro-cycling. I know a few people who wouldn't dream of watching a Grand Prix but still loved the Senna film. It's a human interest story really.

iPete

It can be a bit like pro cycling, a lot of time spent waiting for a move to be made and tactics to play out. You only really appreciate it when you get into everything that's going on beyond the track action and follow teams/drivers.

It was bit of a dull one mind. Same with every sport; your going to get boring games and as it's generally the best of the best your not going to see as many overtakes or crashes as say the Renault Clio Cup.

thiscocks

TheStone wrote:

Posh kids and their toys.

Pretty much like cycling then..

TheStone

cje wrote:

It isn't dull if you like it. But it is if you don't. Same with any sport really, including pro-cycling. I know a few people who wouldn't dream of watching a Grand Prix but still loved the Senna film. It's a human interest story really.

Can fully understand people finding pro cycling dull. It can be hard to get into.
But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems even at the lowest carting level, money is everything.

veronese68

Gave up on F1 a few years back. Got more into the Moto GP, even that got a bit dull last year. The only excitement was Simoncelli, unfortunately no more. He is a huge loss to the sport. Until Rossi is back on a competitive bike I fear it may remain a bit dull. The current crop of front runners don't seem to enjoy close racing.

TheStone

thiscocks wrote:

TheStone wrote:

Posh kids and their toys.

Pretty much like cycling then..

Definitely the weekend warrior mamils, but I'm of the impression the pro scene is and always has been open to all. With the right genetics and hard work, anyone could make it.

Football more so.

rick_chasey

TheStone wrote:

thiscocks wrote:

TheStone wrote:

Posh kids and their toys.

Pretty much like cycling then..

Definitely the weekend warrior mamils, but I'm of the impression the pro scene is and always has been open to all. With the right genetics and hard work, anyone could make it.

Football more so.

Indeed. Professional bike racers are traditionally a bunch of provincial farmers.

Some great quotes from riders in the 50's and '60s after a tough stage in 35 degree heat "Yeah, it was tough, but it's never as tough as a day in the harvest so I am grateful".

Monkeypump

TheStone wrote:

cje wrote:

It isn't dull if you like it. But it is if you don't. Same with any sport really, including pro-cycling. I know a few people who wouldn't dream of watching a Grand Prix but still loved the Senna film. It's a human interest story really.

Can fully understand people finding pro cycling dull. It can be hard to get into.
But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems even at the lowest carting level, money is everything.

That's probably true of any sport where a lot of kit is required. Kicking a ball around a park requires no money, and can be set up in any space. Anything with an engine will (generally) cost a lot to get into in the first place. Even skiing, tennis, golf, etc. are generally reserved for kids from more well-off families.

edds

thiscocks

TheStone wrote:

cje wrote:

It isn't dull if you like it. But it is if you don't. Same with any sport really, including pro-cycling. I know a few people who wouldn't dream of watching a Grand Prix but still loved the Senna film. It's a human interest story really.

Can fully understand people finding pro cycling dull. It can be hard to get into.
But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems even at the lowest carting level, money is everything.

Admittedly money talks more in motorsport but there are undoubtedly the 'top' drivers and the 'average' ones (all relative ofcourse). Alonso, Button, Hamilton,Vettell are all very much class drivers. Alonso would be one of the greatest all-round cyclists if you could swap his driving talents to cycling.

Same as any sport, to know who is the best you have to understand the sport and what is involved in it. His 5th place in the Ferrari last weekend would look like an average drive to most people but to those who knew how hard that Ferrari was to drive it was an absolutely brilliant drive.

cje

TheStone wrote:

But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

I can totally see your point. The law of averages says that the most naturally talented F1 driver in the world has never even been near a racing car, because the costs of even competing at the lower rungs of the sport are prohibitively expensive to most people.

There isn't even a definitive way of proving who the best current driver is, as F1 is effectively a team sport and it's the best driver / car package that wins.

But I try not to get hung up on that - F1 is what it is really.

rick_chasey

edds wrote:

stuff

Why the name change?

rick_chasey

cje wrote:

TheStone wrote:

But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

I can totally see your point. The law of averages says that the most naturally talented F1 driver in the world has never even been near a racing car, because the costs of even competing at the lower rungs of the sport are prohibitively expensive to most people.

There isn't even a definitive way of proving who the best current driver is, as F1 is effectively a team sport and it's the best driver / car package that wins.

But I try not to get hung up on that - F1 is what it is really.

Depends what you watch it for.

It's nice seeing how different cars behave under different conditions with different drivers - the tactics, the strategies, driver styles etc etc.

Not particularly into cars but the engineering side of F1 is fascinating.

Mercedes' latest DRS system which seems to stall the front wing without any other moving parts - that's seriously clever, and a great interpretation of the rules.

thiscocks

cje wrote:

TheStone wrote:

But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

I can totally see your point. The law of averages says that the most naturally talented F1 driver in the world has never even been near a racing car,

You have obviously not watched enough of Jim Clarks, Ronnie Petersons or Ayrton Sennas driving!

cje

True. There's plenty to keep you interested, if you're interested. Before I got into cycling, I couldn't see why on earth anyone would want to watch cycle racing, but now I'm quite into it.

Cycle racing and F1 share one similarity - if you don't know the ins-and-outs it can be quite confusing. An hour or so into the World Championship road race last year my Dad said "Where's our lad (Cav) then?" and I said "37th at the minute", to which he replied "What a load of rubbish. I thought you said he might win!"

cje

thiscocks wrote:

cje wrote:

TheStone wrote:

But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

I can totally see your point. The law of averages says that the most naturally talented F1 driver in the world has never even been near a racing car,

You have obviously not watched enough of Jim Clarks, Ronnie Petersons or Ayrton Sennas driving!

I'm not sure how you reached that conclusion from what I said.

Massive fan of Jim Clark, as it happens. I actually visited his final resting place last year.

thiscocks

cje wrote:

thiscocks wrote:

cje wrote:

TheStone wrote:

But, at least it feels like a real sport. You believe that Cav probably is the quickest cyclist in the world right now. When you watch Messi, you can be fairly certain he's the best footballer in the world right now. But then I watch F1 and I'm left feeling I'm watching the best 20 of maybe a few hundred rich kids that get a chance.

I can totally see your point. The law of averages says that the most naturally talented F1 driver in the world has never even been near a racing car,

You have obviously not watched enough of Jim Clarks, Ronnie Petersons or Ayrton Sennas driving!

I'm not sure how you reached that conclusion from what I said.

Massive fan of Jim Clark, as it happens. I actually visited his final resting place last year.

Cool, well I just meant the 'rule of averages' doesnt really apply as there have obviously been alot of massively talented drivers in F1.

Where is his grave again?

SimonAH

Now one of my office colleagues is mad into watching professional darts........THAT is a pointless sport for television if ever there was one IMO. Seriously now - a game of arra's down't pub with a few jars of foaming - fine. Watching two fat blokes in shiny nylon tops and lots of gold necklace action doing the same thing in a pit in Sheffield?

F1, meh, never got into it - but I could see the attraction.

Senna movie now, that was great.

cje

He is buried in the churchyard at Chirnside. You can easily spot his grave because it is normally covered in flowers and memorabilia. Quite odd to see a world champion and indy 500 winner's grave in such a small village.

Greg T

TheStone wrote:

With the right genetics and hard work, anyone could make it.

Football more so.

Actually . . . . not . . . .

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell has some excellent if second hand research about why some people appear to be excellent at something and the rest of us just proles...

The one thing that professional footballers have is a massive clustering towards having birthdays in the 1st qtr of the school year and to a lesser degree its 1st half. if you are born in Sept you'll be almost a year older than someone born in August and when it comes to picking the footie team when you're six that makes a big difference...

the big more physical kid gets picked - his younger peer doesn't and therefore gets less practice, doesn't get spotted playing for school etc...

The next determinant is time spent doing something 10,000 hours to be excellent . . If you aren't getting picked you don't get the practice so you fall behind...

It's a cool book.

prawny

Greg T wrote:

sense.

I agree with this, not read the book but in my old sport canoeing, the age groups went by calendar year, the majority of the better paddlers had January birthdays at the time, national champs would generally be won by someone pretty much a year older than me, get spotted by the national squad, coached by proper coaches and end up doing even better, poor old December has had a life of being fairly sh!t at everything.

Motorsport is for rich people, my old mate who to me was minted raced karts in the 90's couldn't afford to compete in the local club championship let alone super1 or European races.

jonginge

Read about those findings before. It made a lot of sense. Good summary here:
http://www.sportsscientists.com/2009/01 ... ffect.html

PBo

Yes. Next......

roger_merriman

I personally like racing cars that are cars, but I watch very little sport.

Some rugby and TdF though only highlights for most parts since I like the shots of the hills.

rick_chasey

roger merriman wrote:

d TdF though only highlights for most parts since I like the shots of the hills.

Sharkyssurfers

the biggest problem with F1 now is that they use the latest technology/driving aids, so its not about the drivers abilities anymore, its about that processor in the engine, i used to love watching f1 in the old days senna, prost and mansell have great battles, but now days its a bit like some speedway races you get to the corner first and that's it you've won. I watched the senna film last week and didn't realise that there were 5 crashes where senna died, but if you watch it again, you can see in senna'e eyes that something wasn't quite right in his head and he shouldn't of raced that day

rick_chasey

Sharkyssurfers wrote:

, you can see in senna'e eyes that something wasn't quite right in his head and he shouldn't of raced that day

I doubt Senna knew his car was going fail and crash in a way that would kill him...!

Sharkyssurfers

i didnt mean he could see into the future, just that in his mindset he didnt seem right