The Golden Age of F1: Right here, right now!

Ok, personally I think the golden age of F1 was 1975-1985 but "Whazza behind us, we donna care!".

Seriously, I think maybe 10 years from now we will look back at this time right now and lament the golden years of F1. Why? Because for one we have it perfect as it is and two it will only go downhill from here:

A) Reasons for why this is a remarkable time
- fantastic competition with close results
- lots of WDCs in the field
- DRS that causes lots of passing
- real F1 (for what I mean by that, check out B1)
- coverage of the races on TV, the internet, the iPhone

B) Reasons for why it only goes downhill from here
B1) The Safety Apostels will win eventually and mandate
- cockpit covers
- covered wheels
- no more standing starts
- more SC as soon as it gets wet
- massive fines for any kind of trouble caused by a driver

B2) The Environmentalists will win eventually and put enough pressure on F1 to
- use fuel regulations
- use hybrid engines
- move from hybrid to electric engines
- move from electric to Hydrogen engines
- keep F1 out of countries, that could actually afford F1 (e.g. Switzerland)

B3) The world economy will slow things down
- more and more GPs will move from bankrupt Europe to up coming Asian nations
- teams will have to use 1 engine per year
- teams will have to use 1 gearbox per year
- teams will have to use 1 set of tires per weekend

B4) Bernie will croak and the team managers will break the whole thing apart

For all those reasons I think right now is the time to enjoy F1 and not complain. The end is near. You'll see me next at the Silverstone GP with a sign in hand run across the track. Nott.

Hopefully I'm wrong on all of this.

 

Hopefully not about the "Nott" part!

 

I actually think F1 is in a bit of the doldrums right now.

As much as the effect of DRS is cool to see, the whole thing is a sham. It's really no different than having a rule that makes the gas pedal only go down 80% of the way when a following driver is within a given distance. It's totally fabricated drama that doesn't really do all that much for me.

I don't think the safety nazis are going to be around F1 anytime too soon - there haven't been any major accidents in quite a while.

I wouldn't mind cockpit covers. I don't really see that it takes anything away from the show, and should make the cars faster due to aerodynamics.

As for the transition to hybrid or electric - that's where the real fun will be. The cars will be faster than ever, and it will be a whole new realm of technological opportunity for the teams. Not to mention electric motors would be smaller, lighter and offer better packaging and allow all sorts of innovations. It would be like the turbo era all over again!

The big thing will be what happens when Bernie keels over. As much of a bastard as he is, it takes a real bastard to keep everyone else in line.

 

+1 to everything about the cockpit covers.

the last few years have been good (from 2007-2010), but now it's another one-team freight train, and the KERS/DRS stuff is NASCAR-esque in its manufactured racing.

things will get very interesting when Bernie kicks the bucket.

 

DRS is artificial but it compensates for another artificial problem: The impossibility of passing a car because of the disturbed air behind the lead car. So you add two negatives and out comes a positive: Passing. It is as artificial as the rule of having to use two different tire sets, which bothers me actually because it confuses the running order. I see DRS as just another strategic tool as it is available to everybody. If the passee is truly faster then he'll gain the position back. If he doesn't, then it was disturbed air that would have kept his position intact.

If Weber had been killed in his Valencia fly-over the Safety apostels would be out in full force demanding the wheels to be covered. Those accidents can happy any time and it would bring out the folks who would not hesitate to sacrifice the core of F1's formula on the altar of "better being safe than sorry".

Titled: Silent running

It would be as "exciting" to watch as seeing Audi win Le Mans with their industrial lawn mowers. Worse actually, a Diesel engine still has a tad of sound.

Take out the boss of a Mafia family and you'll end up with a bunch of thugs fighting each other for territory ending up with nothing. I truly hope Bernie has a succession plan in his top drawer, but I doubt there will be another "bastard" strong armed and clever enough to keep the unity amongst the team managers.

As I said, I hope my predictions don't come true. It just makes me sad when I hear such nonsense like electric engines and cockpit covers being discussed. And that's when I pinch myself and remind myself that this great time we have right now might end just a few years down the road. So enjoy it while it lasts.

 

The trouble is I can't find a good argument against you or Mikes point of views, both are excellent.

So I tend to agree with you both, strange as it seems.

However I do think we have some great top flight drivers at the min, and it makes for some great racing.

 

Great field of drivers right now. Regardless of the regs this makes it interesting. Both views are certainly palatable though

 

There are no "hydrogen engines" - either it's an internal combustion engine burning hydrogen, or it's an electric machine powered by a fuel cell that produces electricity from hydrogen and oxygen!

 

Damn.

I want to be wrong. I don't want my prophecy of approaching doom to be right. Invalidate my arguments, please.

 

I think by the time some of things you mentioned, I might be passed caring.

I have to say I'am very happy Mosley is out of the sport that was great moment.

Bernie meeting his maker bit. and the aftermath, well the teams and F1 need each other and hopefully they can and will realize that.

Todt wants clean and green, give and take will be needed from both sides.

Engines and the like will IMO, continue in a similar vane as we see now, smaller and more effective, the speed is still there though it is amazing, they restrict and still, I actually like that aspect of F1.

World money problems, not a lot can be done about that, no quick fix it seems, right now.


"I think right now is the time to enjoy F1 and not complain" yes certainly glass half full time is the way I see it.

 

Agree with most except for cockpit covers and the engines. The covers are unnecessary, IMO and if F1 moves to electric the show will be SEVERELY compromised.

 

EVERYBODY has their own opinion as to what the 'golden age' of anything is, and the nice thing is, nobody is right, and nobody is wrong. It's all a matter of what you liked the best.

 

Why didn't we have this 'dirty air' problem 10-20-30-40 years ago (to the point that they need a silly 'DRS' fix for it (to supposedly encourage more passing)?

 

F1 will die with silent engines. The sound is a major part of motorsport.

Closed cockpits? This will make the drivers anonymous and take away the last bit of discernable action in the car (it is bad as it is with the high cockpit sides). And how are they gonig to wave their fist to backmarkers that don't get out of the way?

DRS: this takes care of the symptoms, not the root of the problem. I see it as a stop gap solution. They should have a really good look into the root of the problem. If it makes the cars harder to drive even better!

As for Bernie - I wouldn't be surprised if his place will be taken by....Max Mosley!

 

No this will start the Golden age

 

Because the cars were not as aerodynamically efficient as they are today.

It doesn't happen often but for once I agree 100% with you.

Not to sound too dramatic but you saw what happened in Iraq when we got rid of Saddam? I have zero faith in the team managers to find consensus on a way forward unless there is somebody holding everyone of them on a strong leash. Did I say leash? Hmm, Max might just be the right kinda guy for that...

 

I appreciate each season but I'm kind of a no limits or limited restraints person so for me the 'Golden Age' is still the early turbo days. I hope the new turbo cars will bring back some of the glory lost but I am highly skeptical so now I just thank God I still get to watch F1.

 

What you define as the "early turbo days" has a nice overlap with my golden age of 75-85. IIRC Renault started in the late seventies with the first turbo powered car. And by 85 the turbos were on their way out due to fuel starvation rules.

 

Yes Renault was the first as I'm sure you know and you are also correct that in the latter years the Frankenstein fuels were banned aswell a loads. I want to believe that since the new turbo era will already be a 'fuel alotted' scenario certain issues will be addressed before the season starts and not mid or late in the era.

I would also like to see the cars more downforce inspired. I like change so I'm excited.

 

I'd stretch my Golden years past 1985 (maybe to 1991) as I loved prequalifying. When that returns, I'll rejoice but not until.

As minnows continued their decline (or become completely irrelevant) and we suffered endless years of complete dominance by one team, my patience was tested, culminating with my attendance at the mindless and gutless 2005 Indy, the inexcusable F1 nadir for the next few decades.

I'll doubt I'll consider the present as the Golden Age 20 years from now and this particular season was totally forgettable due to the nice young man.

The manufacturing of the Massa/Hamilton WDC, SCs used for all rain races (seems to be with us already) and wonderful venues left vacant because Petra might need to buy Branson's island (after a no limit rebuild), leave me little doubt fans will remain underneath the bottom of the food chain in the foreseeable future.

There are trickles of hope though. I have no problem with DRS as a means of improving the show, the addition of three hapless teams was welcome and now and then a phoenix rises from the ashes (Brawn). Good news.

Hopefully the economy, fan support, manufacturer support and Bernie's requirements will take care of each other to create something better. Somewhere else.

I'd bolt to another series in a heartbeat if the cars were as quick, the competition close, the venues more fan friendly and there was more technical diversity. Alright, make that if the cars were as quick, I'm reaching for the sky with the other requests.

Closed cockpits, covered wheels, exorbitant costs to host and pay per view, bring it on . I'm betting someone else (likely they're already part of the circus) will come up with something better and F1 will either be forced to adopt similar policies or become irrelevant. Is this the golden age ? I hope not.

 

In my opinion F-1 's golden years were from 1966 to 1995. 30 years of amazing cars, racing and growth of the sport. I think today its so sanitized, and boring.

While its nice to have a bunch of World champions racing against each other, the cars are so tame, and contrived its just not the same sport. I truly feel for the "younger" guy who never were able to experience F-1 of days long ago. while it was not as "rich" a sport, it was still a sport, and you had yearly ground breaking technology emerging... while to day its all so controlled there is no innovation. F-1 today is like NASCAR with open wheels. I'm sure there will be those that completely disagree, but if you were around in the 80's there is almost no comparison with how exotic, and fun F-1 was....

The Pic below is from 89, at Montreal down in the Ferrari pit... perhaps I'm just reliving all the past fun!
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

It isn't often that I disagree with you but this is one of those rare occuations.

IMHO, Formula One just isn't Formula One without an open engine formula. FIA can limit the number of engines or whatever, but they need to open up the engine formula to the manufactures. They can also enforce the rule that each engine manufacture must supply at least one other team on the grid to compete. Just limit fuel type, displacement and either FI or NA but let engineers and evolution do the rest.

 

+1

 

At least with aerodynamics, it's up to the ingenuity of the engineers. The DRS systems are all the same. If the engineers were free to innovate, they could solve the aero-passing problem. They are not, so they can't. Thus, DRS is totally fabricated, whereas the aero problem is one of ingenuity of the designers, exacerbated by foolishness of the FIA.

But he wasn't, so they won't. Safety becomes an issue when stuff happens. Cockpit covers after Massa's incident. If someone is seriously hurt/killed in F1, all sorts of stuff will happen. Until then, it won't.

Electric cars would have sound too - it would just be different. I am about the racing... I want speed, technology, performance. Gotta get with the times... I am sure when steam engines started losing favor, there were a bunch of old geezers saying how the rub-a-bub-bub of gas engines sounded horrendous and the whooshes and choo-choo's of steam engines were manly sounds

 

The covers are probably unnecessary but I don't see how they detract from the show? If F1 survived the loss of V12's and turbos and slicks (before they came back) and refueling and <insert beloved F1 characteristic here>, it will certainly survive enclosed cockpits.

Why would the show be "SEVERELY" compromised if they moved to electric? There is no basis for such a statement. The teams have taken gas and aero technology so far that it's extremely difficult to make major gains, and when small gains happen, it gives a team a huge jump on others that is usually very hard to overcome.

A radical change to the formula would inject a whole new dose of competition. Everyone would be starting over. The better funded teams would still have a huge advantage, but aspects of an electric car can be much more quickly changed than with a gas car where the engine is immensely complex and has dozens of castings and machined components that all interrelate with one another and the overall packaging. A lot of that would be simplified with electric power. People said removing turbos would kill the show - it didn't. They said driver aids would kill the show - it didn't. They said the same about push-button gearboxes, grooved tires, refueling (then lack of refueling). Actually, pretty much every major change was claimed to be the death knell of F1. But it keeps growing every year regardless.