Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
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Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#2There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will):
- Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air)
- Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels)
- Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating the ability to operate a machine at speeds over 200mph and still having the capacity to understand the strategic situations unfolding around them, even gathering information from the crowd in the grandstands, or the tv screens that flash past them as they navigate the track
- Seeing an inter-disciplinary team design and operate a machine that fuses aerodynamics, mechanics and hybrid propulsion systems, driven by a human operator, monitored in realtime by a team of engineers distributed around the world
- On-the-fly risk/reward decision making in race strategy from observing current data whilst incorporating gut feeling based on past experience to great effect
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#3I read Adrian Newey's autobiography, "How to build a car", last year, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I'd recommend it to anyone with an interest in the engineering side of motorsport.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#4There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will): - Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air) - Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels) - Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating t…
> e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels
The Mercedes dual axis steering:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX0Laaj9_RA
Allowed this year, but already banned from next year.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#5There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will): - Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air) - Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels) - Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating t…
The balance of importance between driver and constructor is quite unique in sport. A sufficiently good car can make an average driver competitive (e.g. Bottas), but also a sufficiently good driver can make an average car competitive (e.g. Schumacher).
Plus everyone involved is such a drama merchant (or crook!) that the season often plays out like a soap opera.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#6There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will): - Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air) - Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels) - Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating t…
> e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels The Mercedes dual axis steering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX0Laaj9_RA Allowed this year, but already banned from next year.
And reportedly not particularly significant except in a few specific circumstances (i.e. to warm tyres in qualifying outlaps or behind a safety-car). Didn't seem to make much of a difference this weekend.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#7There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will): - Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air) - Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels) - Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating t…
The balance of importance between driver and constructor is quite unique in sport. A sufficiently good car can make an average driver competitive (e.g. Bottas), but also a sufficiently good driver can make an average car competitive (e.g. Schumacher). Plus everyone involved is such a drama merchant (or crook!) that the season often plays out like a soap opera.
After spending years trying to put myself in a position to work in the sport, now I mostly just follow F1 for the politics and gamesmanship more than the racing itself.
There are much more fun motorsports to watch, but rarely do they come so packaged with intriguing technical drama.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#8Earlier quoted context omitted.
> e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels The Mercedes dual axis steering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX0Laaj9_RA Allowed this year, but already banned from next year.
And reportedly not particularly significant except in a few specific circumstances (i.e. to warm tyres in qualifying outlaps or behind a safety-car). Didn't seem to make much of a difference this weekend.
DAS might make more of a difference at circuits like Spa and Monza.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#9There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will): - Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air) - Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels) - Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating t…
The balance of importance between driver and constructor is quite unique in sport. A sufficiently good car can make an average driver competitive (e.g. Bottas), but also a sufficiently good driver can make an average car competitive (e.g. Schumacher). Plus everyone involved is such a drama merchant (or crook!) that the season often plays out like a soap opera.
The balance is probably around 90% the car and 10% the driver. In the years of RB dominance, a subpar driver like Webber almost got the championship. OTOH Alonso lost a decade in Ferrari and McLaren while being, tied with Hamilton, the best driver in the grid.
The 10% of what the driver adds to the mix is what makes Hamilton champion instead of Bottas.
Re: Formula 1 2020: The secret aerodynamicist – are capes the key?
#10There are a couple of aspects of Formula 1 that make it very compelling to watch (my opinion of course, take as you will): - Accessible aerodynamics (it's on the road in front of you, not up in the air) - Technological developments (e.g. this year, one of the teams has a steering wheel they pull toward/push away themselves to change the geometry of the front wheels) - Watching high-performing athletes demonstrating t…
I agree completely with all points, though it's nowhere nearly as entertaining as it was up until ~2007. I mean there have been only a handful of GPs that were interesting over the last few years. Coincidentally yesterday's GP was definitely one of them. I mean it's not often you see almost half the cars break down.