January 1, 2010
To be perfectly honest, tonight could have been so very different.
As it turned out, it was quite rubbish for me in a number of ways which I won’t trouble you with.
Still – Happy New Year and all that. Here’s to 2010. New year, new start. My year, hopefully.
December 23, 2009
Recently, I’ve been getting motivated in making myself a better person. For the most part, that’s what my 2010 List is all about – trying to put myself in a better position this time next year than the situation I’m in now.
I’m someone who loves things that really inspire you. Things that really get you fired up and feeling like you can go the distance and do what you want to, even if people say you can’t or you won’t. Little lessons of life that can help you along the way. What I want to do here is share a few things which give me the drive to keep pushing myself and hopefully can do the same for you as well.
I’m gonna start with Formula 1. Now, regarding this subject normally I would just compose it on my other blog, Zero Downforce, which is for all things motorsport. But I want to share a couple of quotes from one person – Ayrton Senna. For those who have no knowledge of him, he was a Brazilian F1 driver who was World Champion 3 times and tragically died in a fatal accident in 1994 while racing. What I like about him is not just his phenomenal skill behind the wheel of a racing car, but some of the quotes he has come out with. I feel that while they may have been meant to be about racing, I personally think they can be applied to life as well. Here’s a couple of examples, one of which is my favourite from the man himself:
I have experienced a lot of pain while I was driving many times but you can’t give up. Once you’re in it, you’re in it. You gotta go all the way to the end. Because you commit yourself to such a level where there is no compromise, you give everything you have. Sometimes you find even more because it requires more if you want to be ahead and win.
The main thing is to be yourself and not allow people to disturb you. To be different because they want you to be different. You gotta be yourself. Many times it’s through a mistake due to your own personality, your own character or interference that you get on the way that you learn. The main thing is you learn from your mistakes and get better."
And my personal favourite:
On a given day, a given circumstance, you think you have a limit. You then go for this limit and you touch this limit and you think "OK this is the limit". As soon as you touch this limit, something happens and you suddenly can go a little bit further. With your mind power, your determination, your instinct and the experience as well, you can fly very high."
All 3 are very powerful, very true to life quotes from a truly great man. If you don’t like Formula 1, then of course I understand it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you could learn some simple words of wisdom from it, listen to them from Ayrton. He was a great a philosopher off the track as he was a genius and a master on it.
Next, I want to talk about the Rocky films. The reason for this is because I feel that they are all inspirational in their own way. I recently got the boxset of all 6 films in the series and I think the main storyline behind it is great. An unknown part time boxer trying to get by and earn a living suddenly gets the chance to become Heavyweight Champion of the World. He trains, he gets knocked down along the way but somehow he always managed to get that motivation back and win. Personally I enjoy the first 4 films, especially Rocky IV as it features some great training montages and the music which accompanies it is fantastic. Tracks like Training Montage, Hearts on Fire and No Easy Way Out all do their own bit to get you fired up and pumped.
But if there’s one part out of all of them that I had to choose as being the most inspirational, it has to come from the last movie, Rocky Balboa. There’s a particular scene where Rocky and his son get talking and it becomes a verbal onslaught from his son telling his father that going back into the ring will only see him fail and hurt his reputation more. What’s worse is that it’s going to affect himself too. But Rocky comes back with a simply stirring piece of dialogue from which I have learned a valuable lesson in life. Rather than me quote it, I’d rather let the man himself speak it.
Yes, it’s a quote from a film, but never a truer word has been spoken in my eyes.
Finally, I want to talk about a guy called Dr. Randy Pausch. I literally discovered him yesterday and his story is amazing. In late 2007, he was found to have pancreatic cancer return to him and that this time it had spread to his liver in such a way that he had just months to live. Upon hearing this, he decided to give what is known as “The Last Lecture”. In it, he talks about how you can achieve your childhood dreams and how he went about trying to accomplish his too. But he also brings about a few pieces of advice that you can really take on board and use. Again, I’d rather let him say it for himself rather than just writing it here.
Some might find it a little boring, but if you take the time to listen and take in all that he says, you can come away thinking about stuff a different way.
What I’m trying to say is that anyone can get motivated and inspired if they know how. I hope that some of the things I’ve brought up here can help towards that if you want to. All I know is that this is what helps me out, and I hope that it will continue to do so for years to come.
December 16, 2009
So, it was just last week that I made a list of 24 things I wanted to do before the end of 2010. Incredibly, it’s not even the new year yet and I can already cross off one of those things. I can now proudly say that I am now currently working on a voluntary basis for Classic Team Lotus in Hethel, Norfolk.
CTL is looked after by Clive Chapman, the son of the legendary Colin Chapman who founded Lotus and oversaw the F1 team right up until his untimely death in 1982. It is their job to look after and maintain some of Team Lotus’ most famous, successful and iconic Formula 1 cars. With some team members having been around in the team’s finest days, the team really is full of heritage, history and prestige.
This voluntary work came about after I sent off a copy of my CV and a covering letter to 9 race teams around my area, CTL included. Only them and Litespeed F3 managed a response and it was the former that I met with and came to an arrangement. Right now, I’m working there on a voluntary basis, just generally helping out but mostly with the merchandise side of the company. I assist with making sure the orders from the team’s online store are properly processed, packaged and sent off whilst at the same time helping out wherever possible, not matter how mundane the task is. Doesn’t matter what it is, I will do what I can to help out around the place. It’s the least I can do after offering my services.
I started on Monday and was given a team fleece to wear, so that I would look the part and also keep warm as we are getting close to Christmas and it being rather cold! I was then told that I would be helping out with a tour that was taking place in the afternoon followed by a visit from Martin Brundle! How’s that for a first day? Tagging along for the tour really did help me get an insight as to what it involves and what knowledge is required to inform guests. Also, meeting Martin and his son Alex, who was there too, was a privilege in itself. It’s not every day you get to meet a racing driver. Well, I guess it kinda is if you work in a race team!
Today was just as exciting as we were visited by none other than newly signed Lotus F1 Racing driver Jarno Trulli! He’s a really nice guy in person and he seemed genuinely happy and honoured to be part of a team that had so much history and heritage in F1 as Lotus does. We also had a visit from some schoolkids who came along for a quick tour and they sat in the infamous Lotus 79.
This is the thing about CTL – working in a role like mine is amazing because there’s nothing special about it but walking through the workshop, you’re sharing building space with such iconic Lotus F1 cars – the 25, the 49, the 72, the 79 and others. It is simply incredible to be so close to machines that are sat there and you’re able to look at them and touch them and really appreciate their magnificence up close and personal. Members of the general public would probably only be able to get as close as I have maybe at a show or an event. But the fact that I can be around machines such as these on a day to day basis is really awesome and I’m very lucky and honoured to have to chance to work with these guys at CTL.
Clive did say to me that they do want to try and get Lotus F1’s other new driver Heikki Kovalainen to come down for a visit. He did also say that he’d try and arrange it “on a day that I would be there”. Now that would be something else.
I don’t mean to brag or boast about all this, because that’s not the intention at all and if it seems like it, I do apologise. I just consider myself a very lucky person to get the opportunity to work for this team, and I am going to do everything I can to work hard and make the best impression possible. I’m only on a two month trial doing unpaid voluntary work. Whether anything happens afterwards is of course down to them. I’m not getting my hopes up, since all that matters is the here and now. This is a big chance for me and I’m going to make sure I do all I can to not mess it up.
Consider goal #7 crossed off my list. 1 down, just 23 to go…
December 11, 2009
I remember reading a blog post by Jon Waldock, a friend of mine from Sidepodcast. In this post, written at the beginning of 2008, he outlined 45 things that he wanted to do before the end of the year. He subsequently followed that up with a post less than a month ago, this time stating things he wanted to do before he was 30, as unfortunately he had not been able to accomplish most of them before the end of 2008.
Inspired by this, I started thinking to myself about what I want to accomplish next year. So, that’s exactly what I’m going to do right here, right now in this blog post. Think of it as me making my new year’s resolutions about half a month early. So, without further ado, and in no particular order, here goes:
There are a couple which I left out, such as go to the Nurburgring and drive a lap around the old Nordschleife, or go to Le Mans for the 24 Hour race, but I feel that these will more likely be accomplished in a few years time rather than by the end of 2010.
So there we have it, my list of things I want to do/achieve in the next 12 months. This is my challenge – to try and accomplish as many things on this list as possible. And yes, I choose to accept it.
How will I get on? Let’s see.
November 30, 2009
If there’s one thing which I cannot stand, it’s people who think they’re better than everyone else and just ignore you.
It’s not a perfect example, but when I’ve gone to talk to someone on Facebook just recently, I’ve sent a message just saying “Hi, how are you?”. This is in the live Facebook Chat function by the way. Some 2 hours later, the person goes offline without even saying anything. Yet checking their profile, I’ve spotted that they’ve still got time to post comments on status updates.
This is what really pisses me off and confuses me – how can just saying “Hello” be such a taboo these days? What is it about trying to start a conversation that some people just find so hard or so intimidating? And anyway, even if they weren’t able to talk at the time, would it not just be common courtesy to just say “Hi, sorry I can’t talk right now, message me later, OK?” That would be just fine! At least I know this person has actually acknowledged me and does want to talk, they just can’t at the moment. I haven’t got a problem with that.
What I can’t stand is arrogant so-and-so’s who think just by ignoring someone it’s perfectly OK and they can just get on with speaking to their regular friends. It’s rude and uncalled for. I don’t understand myself what is so wrong about trying to have a conversation with someone and getting to know them. It does make me wonder.
November 30, 2009
It’s been a while since I did one of these, so if I seem a little rusty then bare with me.
For years the Gran Turismo franchise has ruled the scene of racing games and its culture. Since it’s first incarnation hit the Playstation in 1997, the driving game genre as a whole has been revolutionised. A whole host of simulation racers such as GTR, Live For Speed and rFactor, as well as obsolete console gems like Enthusia, can all in some way trace their inspiration and their motivation thanks to GT and the father of it all, Kazunori Yamauchi.
But for a few years now, the “Real Driving Simulator” has had some competition. This has come in the form of Dan Greenawalt and Turn 10 Studios with their version of virtual motoring nirvana, Forza Motorsport. The first two titles were well received, even though they did have their flaws. But now there’s a new one. Forza Motorsport 3 is here and there’s not a GT game in sight. Well, not yet anyway. That’s to hopefully come soon. But it’s Forza we’re here to concentrate on, so let’s get cracking.
This game has taken Dan and the T10 boys 2 years to develop. Compare this with Gran Turismo 5, which is now coming up to the end of its 5th year in development and you could probably tell which of the two teams have worked more efficiently. The end result brings up over 400 cars and 100 different circuit layouts in total across some 20 odd locations. They range from the confined cobble streets and winding tarmac twists of the Amalfi coast to the mountain passes of a fictional Japanese road called Fujimi Kaido, and all the way to legendary race tracks such as the Circuit de La Sarthe at Le Mans, France and the mighty Nurburgring Nordschleife nestled deep in the Eifel mountains, concealed by a mass of forest and hills.
Vehicle wise, there’s plenty to choose from and keep every petrolhead happy. Your traditional Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Porsches and McLarens are here, as is the Bugatti Veyron. There are purpose built Le Mans prototypes, classic muscle cars, JDM cars perfect for tuning. All the way down the automotive scale this game goes right down to small domestic cars such as the Mini Cooper, Ford Fiesta and Toyota Yaris. There’s a car in this game for everyone. The best thing is all of them have been accurately recreated, with working gauges inside and realistic interiors for that authentic feel.
Let’s now focus on some of the main parts in a game review, and in particular a game of this genre. First of all – graphics. You have to admit this game looks gorgeous. Yes, some will argue that at the moment GT5 and GT5 Prologue looks more realistic and I would agree to an extent. But with FM3 everything seems to have more colour and is more vibrant and vivid. The main menu scene, which shows a camera panning round the car at certain angles, shows off the incredible amount of detail in these car models. Every headlight, every wheelnut, every wing mirror, every line and curve in the bodywork has been accurately and authentically recreated in game. The visuals are a step forward from FM2, where they seems to have a bit of cel shading in some ways. That’s kind of what it felt and looked like in a way.
What about physics? Well, again they are a step up from the 2nd incarnation. This time, they did some major re-development, mainly in tyre physics. They now feature tyre deformation and tyre flex, which realistically recreates the way a tyre moves and stretches around the wheel rim under acceleration, braking and through the corners. To make sure they got it right, T10 worked with tyre technicians from Michelin and also engineers from McLaren in order to get the data just right. My opinion is that they certainly have done a good job. Switch to one of the many replay cameras near the wheel and you can evidently see the rubber moving across the rim. Also, I find that when trying to drift or powerslide, it feels as though the cars is more planted which helps when trying to control a car whilst it’s going sideways. FM2 felt like you were kind of on a knife-edge when trying to drift, but in this game it does feel better. You can hold long slides at 45 degrees provided you know how to balance the countersteering and throttle, with the brake and handbrake all thrown in for good measure. All the cars have a unique feel to each other too. Muscle cars will feel big, heavy and cumbersome while the Le Mans racers will feel nimble, precise and sharp. FM3 really does a great job in distinguishing each car’s own characteristics.
On to sounds, now. As they have done with their other games, T10 used a dyno to record the engine notes of the cars. Again, they are a step up from FM2’s. A Skyline sounds more like a Skyline with its gruff inline 6 cylinder. The Corvette C6.R does sounds more raspy and aggressive. The Toyota GT-One sounds almost pitch perfect and I love the way they’ve got its blow-off valve spot on, as well as the engine’s tendency to sound like it’s stuttering when under acceleration. V8s sound authentic and rough, while the heavenly V12 roar of the Ferrari FXX, along with the awesome gear change sounds makes the hairs on the back of your next stand on end.
I’m gonna split this up into two parts before this gets too big. Stay tuned for part deux…
September 30, 2009
I listened to the latest Aside with Joe show on Sidepodcast where Joe Saward of GrandPrix+ fame and his own blog and was intrigued to find that he used to work for the BBC as a ghost commentator for Murray Walker and James Hunt during the F1 coverage in the early 90s. This has got me thinking about my profound interest in being a commentator myself.
I remember when younger, I used to watch video tapes of F1 and Le Mans etc, and as I did come up with my own commentary. I also used to do this a lot when playing my racing games on the Playstation. I remember when I played Formula One 2001 on the PS2, put the game on TV mode and tried my hand at giving a running commentary to the action that was going on on-screen. It did used to drive my parents crazy sometimes!
I was also fortunate to win the Puma Motorsport F1 competition and become a fan reporter on behalf of them at this year’s British GP at Silverstone. It .was a great experience but also gave me a chance to be my own person in front of the camera, when a video was filmed for the report using a HD video camera. Unfortunately the video was removed after a while because of FOM not taking to the inclusion of on-track action of F1 cars included. It’s a shame since I felt that I did a good job. Tim, the guy who was with me over the weekend to look after me and help me out, said he thought I was a natural in front of the camera. I took this praise with great dignity.
My dream has always been to become a racing driver but unfortunately I never had the opportunity and my parents never had the money. Now I have racing games and a wheel to fill that void and with driving lessons coming on nicely, things are looking up. But I still dream of being in a single-seater, winning a race, jumping out of the cockpit and celebrating, arms aloft and punching the air with joy. But alas, opportunities like this are hard to come by, and so in all fairness I’m pretty sure this will remain a dream.
But my other interests are things to do with the media, like writing blog posts, editing videos together and using photo-editing tools to create pictures. I feel I have creativeness flowing through me but I just need the right tools and an idea to unlock it. Thankfully racing does help with this. There’s always a news story regarding F1 and there are plenty of sites to find them, namely Autosport. But there are also the bloggers who raise great opinions, like Joe Saward. I have read a few of his recent articles on matters in F1 such as his prediction on the 2010 driver line-up, Toyota’s slump in form and Massa’s quick recovery from his Hungarian GP qualifying accident. I left comments on all 3 of these expressing my own views, to both show my appreciation for his work and also share my own opinions on the subject.
But getting back to the commentating thing for a second, I suppose working as a racing commentator would be an awesome job. I think I’d be pretty good at it, although maybe my voice would be a bit fast for it. I’ve been told I do talk rather quickly and it’s not unusual for some people to ask me to slow down when speaking. But this is only because when I get excited about something or I know what I want to say, it kinda just comes out! I don’t think about the speed in which it does because I’m more focused on sharing that thought.
The Puma weekend at Silverstone gave me a great taster of being a reporter in a world in which I thrive in and enjoy. If I were able to get a hold of that video, maybe I could assess it and develop my skills. Maybe start somewhere like YouTube, post a few videos of me displaying commentating skills or displaying views on certain subjects. Maybe it could get me noticed. But there’s a lot to think about regarding that.
At the moment it’s just an idea. With more thought, it could go somewhere. We’ll see.
September 28, 2009
I find myself here in our living room late at night, listening to music on Spotify and watching Family Guy on BBC Three. And the urge to write a blog post has come over me.
So I found out at work that the No Fault Found project, where I was part of a group of people in the call centre allocated to test mobile phones for faults after they’d been across the road, was dropped last Monday while I was off work on holiday for a week. So no myself and my colleague who was part of the project with me have been moved now onto the main call centre team. It does mean our jobs are a little easier but there’s more calls to deal with so our responsibilities do go up a bit. My supervisor informed me about this morning and everything seemed fine. At the end of the day, I’d rather have A job than no job at all.
I reckon my driving lessons went well last week. I have my theory test this coming Saturday so I really need to revise for it. When sitting in on the theory lessons at 5DAY, I learned quite a bit and also found doing the mock exams on the computers helped me to memorise the right answers. The hazard perception test is one where you have to be alert as well. It does what it says on the tin and tests your perception of potential developing hazards on the road. Every test that I did I passed, but the theory part I know I still have to keep revising, despite all the bars on the performance analysis bar chart being over the green line, which is the percentage you need to be at or over to pass. I feel somewhat confident but I know it won’t be a walkover. Still, it brings me one step closer to being on the road.
I’ve found recently that it seems I’ve been doing too many favours for people. I know there’s nothing wrong with doing good deeds, but there can be such a thing as doing too much. I think it’s gotten to the point where they look to me to help them and assume I don’t need anything in return. OK, that’s fine for a bit, but after a while I found that I needed to start expecting a little something back. It seems that no-one’s realised this. I don’t mind helping out for nothing for a while but I’m not going to be taken for a mug who does everything for everyone. I’m not mentioning specific people or names as that’s not fair. But I think I’ve taken all I can. From now on, I’m going to start looking out for myself a bit more. Of course, I’ll still help but only those who are prepared to help me out in equal measure. I think that’s only fair.
I don’t know what it is about writing posts like this. I guess it helps get things off your chest and in some ways it’s therapeutic. It helps putting fingers to keyboard and typing out what’s on your mind since you can say matters that need to be said but don’t necessarily want to speak out loud. Sure, people can still read it but I find it works.
I guess that’s it. So, until the next set of random thoughts…
September 17, 2009
Next week I have a week’s holiday booked off from work, mainly because we were told to get used up before we lost it at the end of the year. So I decided to do that because tomorrow (Friday) the long awaited UK release of Need For Speed: Shift comes about, and I’ve made sure I have a week off to get to grips with it. But there are a few events happening on the 24th during my time off that are significant for me. They are:
Ok, so it’s only 3 things but I just wanted something to write a blog post about, so there you go? Do you have anything of note happening on this day? Random, I know, but hey!
September 16, 2009
So, today I finally did it. This car-mad 18 year old finally did what I should have done a long time ago. Well, a year ago actually. Today, I had my first driving lesson and I’ll be honest – it was chuffing magic!
My instuctor Steve turned up at my work at about 5:30pm in a Toyota Yaris. So my first drive would be in a Yaris…nice, I think. He drove me to a particularly quite part of suburban Norwich, and on the way we discussed how the clutch pedal worked the clutch plates and how to find the “bite point” of the clutch, which is effectively the car’s signal that you’re ready to move off. Now, I’m supposed to know about cars, and I do, but when asked questions like “How would you move off?”, my brain went all confused and what came out was “Erm…..”. Yeah.
Pulling up at the side of a street, Steve told me about positioning the mirrors, adjusting the seat, etc. Then came the big moment – my turn to take the wheel. We started by attempting to move off. All I had to do was get the revs up to 1500rpm, hold them there, find the bite point in the clutch and release it very slowly to move off. And you know what? I managed to…yeah, I stalled it. And again. And again. And again. This driving lark is tricky when you do it for the first time.
Eventually I got it going and instantly a smile came across my face. I was driving at last! Throughout the rest of the 2 hour lesson I was able to practice, changing gear, turning and feeding the wheel, how to let the car creep forward at junctions and just generally driving and putting them all into practice. Granted, there was a point where twice in two successful manoeuvres I stalled the engine by giving it a bit too much brake. But it’s all part of the learning process.
Cars, motorsport and F1 and the like are my biggest passion in life. I’ve loved them since I was 2 years old, and now finally being able to practice driving for real is an awesome feeling. I guess it’s just the sensation of being in control is what makes it feel so good. I’m used to playing driving games with a wheel at the moment, but even I’m not that stupid to know it’s a whole different ball game in the real world. I think there’s still room for improvement and that should hopefully come on Friday, which is when my next lesson is.
It’s something I’ve wanted to do my whole life, and now finally I can say I’ve done it. It might seem trivial to some, but to me it’s a massive achievement, and it makes me feel proud.
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