| Author | Message | ||
| Jack (Gilles27)
Intermediate Member Username: Gilles27 Post Number: 1460 Registered: 3-2002 |
There was a great article about this recently in either Autosport, F1 Racing or F1. Yeah, they kind of blur together. Anyhoo, the writer basically takes you around a lap, describing the strains and forces on the body at each moment. Unlike my posting, it's very well written and interesting. One team (Renault, I think) has a guy who trains triathletes to work with their drivers, and he says this is harder on the body than triathlons! | ||
| Jordan Witherspoon (Jordan747_400)
Intermediate Member Username: Jordan747_400 Post Number: 2267 Registered: 12-2002 |
And once DES moves out to CA, he and Sunny and I are going to start our own race team as well...Of course they dont know that yet  | ||
| Byron Faber (Adrenln328)
Junior Member Username: Adrenln328 Post Number: 71 Registered: 9-2003 |
DES, free medical advice!! NEVER give up chocolate, but DO lose the smoking. We need you around for a long time to enjoy your comments here. Your passion for high performance F cars is a real kick. It is a delight to have your enthusiasm. | ||
| DES (Sickspeed)
Senior Member Username: Sickspeed Post Number: 7309 Registered: 8-2002 |
Does this mean i have to cut out chocolate and soda...? Do i have to quit smoking, too...? | ||
| Jordan Witherspoon (Jordan747_400)
Intermediate Member Username: Jordan747_400 Post Number: 2262 Registered: 12-2002 |
Good analogy with the board Tazio! | ||
| Tazio Nuvolari (Nuvolari)
Member Username: Nuvolari Post Number: 317 Registered: 9-2002 |
In addition to huge physical stresses, racing drivers undergo huge mental strains. None the least of which is that the price for error is not that of missing a ball or falling down but rather of firing into a wall at 100+ MPH. Anyone can walk a 1ft wide board all day and night if it is lying on the floor. Put that same board 200 feet in the air and all of a sudden walking it is all the harder. | ||
| Jay Grande (Jay)
Intermediate Member Username: Jay Post Number: 1541 Registered: 10-2001 |
The same thing happened to Alex Wurz a few years ago. Very violent accident, Big pile up, and the guy runs out to get to the spare car...amazing! Speaking of Go-Kart racing, I go regularly and it never fails, when I bring someone new along they are dead after 10 laps, arms, neck, back. I can only imagine the strains on your neck in an F1 car! These guys probably lose about 4 or 5 pounds after each race. I heard that was true of Irvine. | ||
| Andy Falsetta (Tuttebenne)
Member Username: Tuttebenne Post Number: 309 Registered: 3-2003 |
Mark, You're on it ! Thanks for keeping me honest and for having the picture. Andy | ||
| Mark Langfield (Ferrari_co_uk)
Junior Member Username: Ferrari_co_uk Post Number: 106 Registered: 4-2003 |
Hi Andy, it was Derek Warwick in 1990, and it was a BIG accident! Best Mark  | ||
| PSk (Psk)
Intermediate Member Username: Psk Post Number: 1032 Registered: 11-2002 |
Many years ago ... and I cannot remember the source they did a comparison of different atheletes and Alain Prost came out as the second fitness of them all. The only athelete that beat him was a soccer player! Pete | ||
| Andy Falsetta (Tuttebenne)
Member Username: Tuttebenne Post Number: 305 Registered: 3-2003 |
IMO there are no athletes like race drivers. I recall a race at Monza 8 or 10 years ago when Johnny Herbert(?) lost his Lotus in the Parabolica at 160+ mph on an early lap. The car rolled at high speed and landed wheels up. Johnny climbed out from under the car and without a moment's delay sprinted all the way back to the Paddock at least a mile away because he felt he had a chance to restart the race in the spare car. It was an impressive display of mental toughness coupled with physical strength and agility. | ||
| James Dunne (Audiguy)
Member Username: Audiguy Post Number: 311 Registered: 6-2003 |
I have not raced cars professionally but I did have the opportunity to race professional motocross for Kawasaki years ago. The conditioning that the factory required was painful sometimes. Although, once you were in good condition it did not require quite as much pain to maintain it. I beleive that Arthur will tell you about the same thing. The F1 and Indy drivers have to maintain a very high degree of conditioning to stay competitive. The days of going out drinking the night before a race and then jumping in a racecar and doing well are well in the past. There are some real stories about the old days and some of the guys who drove back then. I know Greg Ray personally and I do not think he has an ounce of body fat on him at all. Every time I see him he is either on his way to the gym or just getting back from it. He was the 1999 IRL national champ for those who do not know. He seems to have a problem with crashing the past few years. | ||
| Ira Schwartz (Iraschwartz)
New member Username: Iraschwartz Post Number: 38 Registered: 5-2003 |
I read someplace recently that some racer was quoted as saying that serious racing was more or less the equivalent of facing a 90 mph fastball or shooting a game-winning free-throw with a loaded gun pointed at your head. I've never been more than a dilettante, but in my very limited experience it takes a real athlete to race at the pro level when the consequences of screwing up are so profound. If you strike out in the seventh game of the World Series, you might get sent down to the minors, but at least you're not splattered against a wall. Maybe that's why these guys spend hours a day in the gym . . . | ||
| Rob Lay (Rob328gts)
Board Administrator Username: Rob328gts Post Number: 6480 Registered: 12-2000 |
I'm very sore after a weekend of racing a Rx7 that can only pull about 1.1-1.2 G's. Granted I haven't kept my endurance training up like I did before getting into car racing, but I've raced 100+ miles on the bike, ran several marathons, and did several Olympic distance triathlons. The stress on your body is comparable in many respects. Like any sport, if you're sore or have lost flexibility then you simply won't be able to perform as well. The better physical shape you are in, the more you can concentrate and be mentally strong too. | ||
| Frederick Thomas (Fred)
Member Username: Fred Post Number: 832 Registered: 2-2001 |
There is a go kart track we go to a lot here in Indy. The first few times you drive them you are beat at the end. You can feel your self getting sloppy when the session is about over and its only about 10 minutes. You get used to it after a few times but it never fails the first time you take a new guy they complain how tired and sore they are when its over. One guy even vomited. To drive at the level the professionals do you have to be in top shape. | ||
| Byron Faber (Adrenln328)
New member Username: Adrenln328 Post Number: 24 Registered: 9-2003 |
Recently I've had a few experiences that show me some of the athletecism of these drivers. 1- At Indy last week, Michael came out for the installation lap & parked his Ferrari on the grid a few yards from our seats. He got out & trotted back to the garage. On the way, there was a 2' wall to cross. With the easy grace of an athlete, he easily hopped to the top without breaking stride or seemingly even having to exert himself. Just put a foot on top & continued righ on as gracefully as an Olympian. 2- At Seattle Raceway a few months ago, I had the opportunity to ride as a passenger for a few laps with a Club member in his 360 F1. This is a guy who drives open wheel racers, so he really knows how to get around the track. Even though he says he was only going about 7/10 of capability, my neck muscles were sore for the next 2 days from the G forces in the corners. 3-While waiting in line to board the plane in Indianapolis on Monday, Justin Wilson came to the same gate. Not only is he pretty tall, he doesn't look like there is an ounce of fat. |