Comments on: My name is Duncan, and I am a motorsport fan

By: Ethics and Formula 1 « doctorvee

Ethics and Formula 1 « doctorvee — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:04:42 +0000

[...] My name is Duncan, and I am a motorsport fan [...]

By: Opinion: Campaigning for F1

Opinion: Campaigning for F1 — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:19:53 +0000

[...] jobs – lots of them. This is about the British brand in global commerce and industry. And, as Scottish Lib Dem blogger Duncan Stephen argues, it is about technical innovation with relevance to [...]

By: Nick Griffin let loose on TV, and other surprises – Scottish Roundup

Nick Griffin let loose on TV, and other surprises – Scottish Roundup — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:20:44 +0000

[...] at Doctor V’s place, Duncan is on the verge of starting a support group for motorsport [...]

By: Five things you can do to support the British Grand Prix | Brits on Pole

Five things you can do to support the British Grand Prix | Brits on Pole — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 17:47:56 +0000

[...] efficiency, run-flat tyres and KERS, or its potential to promote tourism and regional growth. Read this excellent post by Duncan ‘Doctor Vee’ Stephen for more ideas on presenting F1’s achievements [...]

By: Duncan Stephen

Duncan Stephen — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:50:43 +0000

Duncan2,

You are of course right about the number of competitors. But I brought it up because it is counter-intuitive. Motorsport is supposed to be dangerous, but running is supposed to be safe or even good for you. Which it is. But the point I was making is that there are very few activities where the risk of death is zero, and motorsport is perhaps closer to zero than many believe.

By: duncan2

duncan2 — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 12:13:43 +0000

“more than 2½ times as many people have died while competing in the Great North Run than have died in F1″

This year I think there were 54,000 competitors in the Great North Run. How many people compete in F1? Even when you add up all the races and practice sessions, I suspect the figure falls somewhere below that.

By: Kathryn S

Kathryn S — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:08:47 +0000

Count me in as another liberal F1 fan. Some good points about the comparison between F1 and other sports…and I honestly don’t think working to address global warming means we need to lead a joyless life. When I’ve attended the US Grand Prix we’ve always driven rather than flown…and go as a family so there are four of us in the car…thus reducing our carbon footprint while attending :- ).

By: Duncan Stephen

Duncan Stephen — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:27:23 +0000

Andy,

Truth be told, I’m not too sure about the FIA Foundation’s carbon offsetting scheme. Reliable outlets ran with the story in 2007. But there has been little mention of it before or since and I haven’t been able to find anything about it on the FIA Foundation website. It’s also interesting that the FIA itself now feels as though it needs to have its own carbon offsetting policies.

Nitpicker,

You are quite right about a marshal dying. In fact, two marshals have been killed since Ayrton Senna’s death — Paolo Ghislimberti in 2000 and Graham Beveridge in 2001. I hate myself for neglecting to mention that.

Thanks also for the clarification re the unsuitability of F1 materials in road cars.

By: Nitpicker

Nitpicker — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:01:40 +0000

“the last fatality in Formula 1 was in 1994.”
Um, that was the last driver fatality. A marshall was killed since then (2001 or 2003 I think).

The crash structures that make up an F1 car are not unsuitable for road cars because of the exotic materials, but because F1 structures are designed to withstand one impact only. A road car in a motorway pile-up must take several bumps without allowing the occupants to become injured. It is less about choice of fancy materials, more about how they are designed.

By: Andy

Andy — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 01:11:00 +0000

Well, count me as another one!

I have no idea how they managed to carbon offset the Singapore race – is Brazil big enough to hold all the rain forest they’d have had to plant? And some things like the green wristbands last year are just silly. But it’s good to be reminded of all the genuine advances and advantages.

However I fear this one, like Ming’s Jaguar, is not something that can defended with logic, strong though the logic is.