Lotus v Lotus - in a different guise

This past Sunday night, the prettiest Freak threw out the comment ‘bout why is the Lotus F1 concern so HOT! With Thee ‘Kimster, nee Kimi Raikkonen being on top of the time sheets - while the Lotus IndyCar concern is so far off the pace? Whale, I’m paraphrasing Crash Gladys’s exact comments here, but you get the jist of it, right?

To which led me wanting to “TWEET” the following; Oh Yeah, that’s right I DON’T FREAKIN’ tweet; Crikeys Mates!

As I wanted to point out the following Tiny Bubbles here... Like I hope that most of us do realize that there’s a reason they call F1 Pre-season testing the Winter Olympics, right? Hmm? Lotus had to cancel running in the second test due to design issues regarding the chassis front rear wishbone apparently having a ‘Wee bit too much weight whittled off of it - being repaired back at Enstone before last week’s final test outing.

Then Shuhzamm - was magically fastest in round-3 - Tuh Duh! Just sayin’ - sure sounds like some good ‘Ol fashion Damage Control or PR-speak to Mwah. Like do you really expect the Red bulls to be that far off the pace, come Melbourne?

Although I’d be most happy to see thee REAL Iceman & his Oomphlatts; Hya! Defeat Master ‘Zebb (Vettel) and the entire grid somewhere this season, say either Spa-Francorchamps or Austin - preferably Austin, since it’ll most likely be my only Grand Prix this year; whilst I’m certain Kimi, Eric Boullier and the whole Lotus F1 concern will be hoping victory comes much earlier in the season.

And the more I thought about it, the more I began wunderin’ if Crash was just simply trying to wind-us up? As I’d like to think most Open Wheel Racing devotees easily realize the difference between the Lotus (“V4”) Formula 1concern vs. the “Lotus-by-Judd” IndyCar engine start-up program.

As after all, Lotuses F1 roots go all the way back to the Toleman F1 team which made its F1 debut in 1981 before morphing into Benetton 26yrs ago after being bought out by the Italian clothing concern, who installed some character known formerly as Flavour Flav, and more recently as “HMS Monogram,” who Y’all may know better as the instigator of the Singapore CrashGate, none other then Flavio Briatore.

Yet for ALL of his faults, nevertheless Flav did indeed guide first Benetton to two World Championships and one Constructors title with some chap named DER TERMINATOR, aka Michael Schumacher before being dismissed from his Team Principal role. Then Briatore was reinserted to his post when Renault bought the team and led them to a “Double-Double” en route to winning the Drivers & Constructors titles back-to-back with Fredrico Suave, a.k.a. Fernando Alonso in 2005-06.

As the reason the Lotus chassis is named E20 is to signal the Enstone base’s twentieth year of design - and their existence, while the team is propelled by the past two year’s winning French engine Renault, which should theoretically make it a potent weapon in Räikkönen’s hands, provided the Finn hasn’t lost any of his legendary speed - as I’m certain ‘Ol ‘Hobbo, aka David Hobbs would proclaim his “Attachments” are still extremely large; Hooha!

Meanwhile, when I think of Lotus, I NEVER ever consider them as an engine manufacturer; Hmm? Guess that makes me one of them forlorned “Purists,” eh? As I will forever envision the British marque as the Team Lotus winning concern of Colin Chapman - which perhaps has something to do with Dany Bahar’s penchant of hiring everyone ‘N their cousins to be running around thee globe in black & gold John Player Special (JPS) paint schemes, w/the exception of “Symona-Symona” (de Silvestro) running the ‘Loti green in order to make her Glow-in-the-Dark IndyCar sponsor happy...

Lotus up for Sale again?

Thus with all of the turmoil over who’ll ultimately control the Lotus Cars concern, is it any surprise that this first year late to thee party “Lotus-by-Judd” brigade, which is “Badge Engineering” at its finest. Has been behind the eight ball since its surprise announcement to become an engine supplier for the 2012 Indy Car Series campaign. Especially since we don’t know all of the ins ‘N outs of their engine supply deal, albeit Randy Bernard has had to occasionally press the Lotus concern for answers, as it now appears there’ll be five Loti badged entrants at St Pete.

The real 2.2-liter V-6 turbo ‘lump maker is Engine Developments Ltd, originally a partnership founded between JohnJHudd and Sir ‘JackBlack (Jack Brabham) in the early 1970’s - with this original engine concern having first set up doing work with Repco and Cosworth ‘lumps in Formula One, along with manufacturing an IndyCar winning engine with Bobby Rahal as its pilot at  Pocono, while also having produced both V-8 & V-10 Formula 1 variants during the late 1980’s to mid ‘90’s during the 3.5 & 3.0-liter eras.

Yet unfortunately it seems the common theme for all of Judd’s single seater powerplants seems to be a lack of propelling thee “B-I-G” teams, having run with Williams as a stop-gap measure, Brabham in its waning days and the Minnowesqe Leyton House March team to name just a few. While this season’s Indy Car teams are  currently Dragon, Dreyer & Reinbold, Bryan Herta and HVM with Mike Shank and possibly Eric Bachelart waiting in the wings; as with NO disrespect, but, these are theoretically not the teams one conjures up when thinking of Indy Cars powerhouses, eh?

Yet the Judd V-10 has been a winner in the American Le Mans Series and I still think le ‘Hamburgular (Sebastian Bourdais) and “Suitcase” Servia - Oh-Oh-Oh Oriel! Along with ‘TAG (Alex Tagliani) shouldn’t be counted out. Yet you’ve just gotta put this ‘lil “Privateer” engine concern vs. the might of Chevrolet and Honda into perspective, especially when unfairly comparing it against a three decades-plus F1 championship winning concern... So let’s give the “Lotus-by-Judd” Boyz a chance!

2012 F1 Rule Changes

Otay, so this came out awhile ago, and I’m certainly NOT gonna try recapping every detail rule change the FIA has implemented for the upcoming season, albeit the most noticeable change is apparently the squashed beak treatment the majority of the teams have flocked too in order to comply with the new minimum front nose height requirements. For a quick rundown on what’ll be different this year, you may wanna check out the following.

WMSC confirms F1 rule changes for 2012

Formula One Season Starts March 16-18

The upcoming action for 2012 with the F1 betting odds promises to be as exciting as ever with the opening race from Melbourne on March 16^th through 18^th as the Australian Grand Prix will take place.  The F1 season runs through November with the 20^th and final event taking place on November 23-25 in Saul Paulo with the Formula 1 Grande Premix Do Brasil 2012.

Last year’s Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel beat the F1 betting odds with a win in the Australian Grand Prix.  Vettel is from Germany and has 36 career podiums. Last year he drove for Red Bull and became the youngest double world champion in F1 history. 

Vettel has had an intense rivalry with teammate Mark Webber.  Webber is coming off a frustrating season in which he finished third in the standings and was outshone by Vettel.  Webber, who hails from New South Wales, won just one race last year but he has 30 career podiums.

Jenson Button from the United Kingdom finished 2^nd in the F1 standings last year driving for the famed McLaren team.  He has 43 podiums and 1 world championship. Last year he became McLaren’s top driver as he eclipsed teammate Lewis Hamilton with 3 wins and 9 podiums. Lewis Hamilton finished 5^th in the standings last year and has 90 podiums with 1 world championship.  Hamilton had three total wins last year.

Fernando Alonso from Spain finished 4^th in the F1 standings last year and has 73 career podiums with 2 world championships.  Alonso drives for Ferrari with teammate Felipe Massa and clearly outperformed Massa last year. He trailed Red Bull’s Mark Webber by just 1 point.  Massa finished 6^th overall in the standings last year and has 33 career podiums.  The Brazilian failed to make the podium last year which was his 10^th season in the circuit in which he had his 100^th start.

Michael Schumacher, who was the dominant win machine a decade ago, has 154 career podiums and 7 world championships.  Schumacher led marked improvement for the Mercedes team as his fourth place finish in Canada was the team’s best result in a year.  Schumacher retired after narrowly losing the title to Fernando Alonso but launched his comeback in 2010.  He made is fame with Ferrari and has found driving for Mercedes a more difficult challenge than anticipated.  His teammate Nico Rosberg finished 7^th, one place ahead of the legendary German...

Insuring a High-Speed Vehicle

Sports cars are built for performance. They're generally small, with sleek lines and fine details. They're built for driving, often with only two doors, and sometimes with only two seats. They are not passenger vehicles, where the focus is on the ride. Instead, they are designed to be fierce, fabulous, and most importantly fast.

Unfortunately, all those features - the very things that cause our sports coupe cravings in the first place - are the same factors that contribute to a higher cost of insurance. Actuaries and estimators look at our spiffy little speed demons and see oversized engines, non-existent crumple zones, and a dearth of safety features. Sure, some sports cars have front air bags, but since many of these cars are also convertibles, side-curtain airbags are a rarity. Even worse, the average sports car driver is more likely to engage in daring - even reckless - driving behavior, taking hairpin turns at top speeds because they can.

The good news is that it's still possible to reduce the cost of insuring a sports car. A few tips for obtaining the cheapest auto insurance available are:

Shop Online: Studies have shown that people who purchase their auto insurance online save up to 25% more than those who buy their policies the old fashioned way. Remember, also, to get multiple quotes and compare them line-by-line before committing to any one company.

Take a Defensive Driving Class: Not only will a hands-on defensive driving class help you learn to drive your sports car in a safer manner, it will also earn you a discount on your insurance. Most insurers discount policies up to 3% for up to three years, and when that three-year term expires, drivers can take another class and re-instate their discount.

Consider a Multi-Car Policy: You can save money on your auto insurance by bundling the coverage for your sports car with the coverage for any other cars in your family - even if one of those cars is a minivan, SUV or sedan. Most insurers will discount the less expensive car, but it's still cheaper to have two cars on one policy than maintain separate coverage. If you own a home, you can maximize your savings by also bundling your home insurance with your auto policy.

These are just three of the ways that the cost of insuring a high-speed vehicle can be reduced, but there are many others. The best advice when shopping for coverage is to ask the agent directly, "Are there any other discounts that apply to me?"

KVRT finally confirms BIG Names to its 2012 roster

While I know that many will most likely already know this; nonetheless - this is 'GURR-REAT!!! News for IndyCar, as 'Rubino, aka Rubens Barrichello will contest this year's entire Indy Car Season w/KV Racing Technology whilst chasing R.O.Y. (Rookie Of the Year) honours against Thy Leggy ‘Juan, (Katherine Legge) Joseph Newgarden and “Symone Pagenoe (Simon Pagenaud) whilst getting invaluable pointers from his brother TK “Follow-your-Schnoz” Kanaan. Just Hope Rubens doesn’t pay too much attention to EJ “What, Me Worry?” Viso’s antics; Hya!

Yet according to Curt Cavin last night on Trackside - Rubino won’t be running for Rookie Of the Year honours except for Indianapolis; Huh? I mean if reigning F1 Champion “Il Lione,” aka BLOODY ‘NIGE (Mansell) was a rookie, then how come Rubens wouldn’t be? Although it’ll make the rookie battle that much more interesting, right?

Hmm? Perhaps I'll haveda somebody else besides Danica to talk about now, eh? Oh Never Mind!

KVRT Confirms Barrichello, Kanaan

Monty’s Inferno...

So I know this is OLD news; but - have Y’all ever seen such a bizarre incident ever before? As in when Juan Pablo ‘MAC Montoya instantly spun out “N careened into a Jet-dryer truck - as it was FLAME ON; YIKES!

As the funniest part ‘bout all of this was that I’d just hung up the phone after the voice on the other end of the line had inquired: Is Juan Pablo still racing in ‘RASSCAR? As we were discussing how nobody’s names get mentioned anymore unless you’re either a Champion, i.e.; “SMOKE,” ‘JJ or Gordon; NO! NOT Robby “Dirtmann” Gordoun - thee other Gordon, uze know Pretty Boy Jeff. As I mentioned the only NON winners mentioned in the same brevity are Tuh Duh! The NEW Face of ‘RASSCAR; Danica-Danica-Danica, or Ironhead Junior; Err, ‘lil E, aka Dale Earnhart Jr.

Thus the irony was immense - sortta about as large as the ensuing Fireball that upon hanging up the telephone and returning to my dinner’s soothing soundtrack... I heard the TV Announcers go all Uh-flutter over that most amazing carnage, i.e.; ‘Monty’s Chebbie pinballing into an unexpecting Jet-dryer truck containing 200 gallons of Jet-grade kerosene; HOLY MARSHMELLOWS BATMAN!

Did somebody say Marshmallows; Err, Sprinkles? As the ensuing fireball and gushing of 200 gallons of jet fuel racing down the track’s 31-degree banked surface was indescribable... Actually having to agree with ‘Ol DW for once about it being the MOST bizarre thingy he’d ever witnessed!

And I did actually see the other oddity a zillion years ago, Y’all know when ‘Ol Super Mario, nee Mario Andretti decided to  RAM into a stationary safety truck parked alongside the wall with its lights  flashing at Detroit’s Belle Isle when I believe it was aiding none other then his son “Mikey?” As I’m told it was the 1991 event which Y’all can find upon Youtube if so desired.

Yet as we all know, the good news towards both of these incidents are that all parties involved - including a very shaken Jet-dryer truck driver, who was from Michigan International Speedway’s crew and a veteran of 24yrs were all ok...

Danica AIN’T NO First Lady of ‘RASSCAR!

For some strange reason, I decided to watch the February 20^th edition of Speedcentre and was immediately bowled over when I heard Adam Alexander boldly proclaim that Danica Patrick was the FIRST Lady of ‘RASSCCAR; WTF? You’re FREAKIN’ kidding right Adam? I mean C’mon, this ceaseless frothing over Queen DannaWho has really gotta STOP!

As Yo Adam - Newsflash! For the record, Danicker is NOT 'RASSCAR's First Lady... As that honour belongs to none other then Janet Guthrie - who was not only the FIRST female driver to contest the Indy 500; BUTT! Ditto for NASCAR! Becoming the first woman to contest a Superspeedway event in 1976, along with being the FIRST Femme Fatale to compete in the DayToner 500 where she finished 12^th in 1977 after losing two cylinders in her engine with 10-laps remaining...

While I'm not certain 'bout Lyn St James, the first female Rookie Of the Year at the Speedway in 1992, albeit I seem to recall seeing her in a Ford Thunderbird racecar 'Summe-wearz, right? Perhaps what she used to set a closed course speed record in? Or just publicity shot with Awesome Bill (Elliott) from Dawsonville? Although I do know that St James done ‘Somme-thun Princess Perma-pout HASN’T! Can you say le 24 Heurs du Mans? Which St James contested twice in 1989 & 1991. Along with WINNING the Rolex 24 twice and Sebring once whilst kicking the Big Boyz tails in those Narly Roush Mustangs...