Real Racing!

You need to think you are the best but do not believe it.

It is said that the words above were spoken by Juan Manuel Fangio. If I did not know better I would think that he was Shakespeare’s brainstorming colleague! Who said race car drivers are brainless? What insolence!

SPEEDTV

I have an unwilling capacity to be the last to know and if this is one of those times please forgive me. Thanks to SPEEDTV, I stumbled upon a motor racing series which is a must watch for motorsports fans.

I love circuit racing, but nothing irritates me more than a race which becomes mundane because battles are rarely waged – the cars are too far apart and overtaking is almost non- existent. How excited can you get when overtaking only occurs when the cars are standing still – in the pits.

The series I was awakened to, the FIA GT1 World Championship is like Viagra to the limp! It creates life in an arena which is rapidly being consumed by the death of hardcore road racing. It is like a breath of fresh air in a smoke filled room, like the smell of burnt/shredded rubber to a drift fan. I can recall my nephew reacting after a race car driver did a ‘burn out’ before a drag race. “Hhhmmm, the sweet smell of tire smoke” he said. The tire smoke wasn’t sweet when it collided with my nostrils, but I understood his passion.

The modern race car is a minute representation of a lab in Silicon Valley. It is equipped with myriad programs which do a zillion tasks. The driver is a necessity merely to satisfy the rules! Despite the advances, the anticipated pleasurable sensations that close, competitive racing delivers, get lost somewhere in the software!

BTCC

The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) type races of yesteryear, which had your eyes as close to the tv as my eyes are to my pair of glasses, have faded like a fashion trend.

The FIA GT1 World Championship is a series of HID lights, illuminating what was formerly a horror scene-dark tunnel.  The 2010 season had 6 brands with 24 drivers. The cars, a delicacy, comprised of exotic hardware – Nissan Skyline GTR, Aston Martin DB9, Corvette ZO6, Maserati MC12, Ford GT1 and Lamborghini.

The rounds I have watched thus far, resemble a contact sport! The highly exalted machines made contact everywhere, as they tried to fit into rapidly decreasing spaces, banging doors and abusing front splitters. Carbon fiber components took flight in some instances, as the assault was overwhelming. It goes without saying, that incident causing events were commonplace. ‘Tin top’ racing just how I love it! Squint, blink, whatever, take your eyes away and in that instant, a driver loses 1 or more spots, leaving you in WT… mode!

As I sated earlier, if I am late to the party, I apologise.  So, if you are an early bird and you know all about this series, you are excluded from my – “Gleaner, Gleaner, read all about it”- news flash. To others, here is your present – http://gt1world.com and click GT1TV (on the right of the page). If you are not submerged in unimaginable fits of adrenalin while watching the races, let me know, so I can recommend the best psychiatrist there is!

Cecil Munroe Gleaner On-Line Writer