Blake wrote:
stevey wrote:
For me its making the sport too safe. I agree a lot of changes have made it safer where very much needed but making it too safe takes away from the sport as well.
A lot of people will criticize that point of view, but every single one of those drivers has watched the sport over the years and has accepted that it may end their life. If they are willing to accept that and drive regardless then I don't see why we have to force measures of this nature.
Your life is your life, what you are willing to risk with your life is your and only your decision. The rewards in the drivers eyes must be enough to warrant them to take the risk. The drivers that aren't willing to risk it simply don't have to drive.
I recommend all of you watch "Closer to the edge" about the Isle of Man TT and you will see riders with the same attitudes of Formula 1 drivers. They know it could kill them but not doing it is like death to them.
Part of the attractions to the sport is partly the risk for me, getting to watch the best of the best (in some cases) pushing themselves and the machines they drive to the limit and sometimes beyond.
It is so easy to say that it is "too safe" while tucked safely behind the protection of a monitor.
If the sport had followed your brave philosophy, drivers would still sit tall above the the body of the car with no roll bars, no seat belts, no HANS device, wearing leather helmets, wjth maybe a 50% chance of being killed.
Where does it say that it takes unnecessary high risk for a driver to "drive to the limit"? Throughout the history of the sport of racing, they have worked to make it safer... and most often faster... be it F1, WEC, NASCAR, et al. You do realize that drivers, who knowingly take their chances, do expect to go home to their loved ones at the end of the day... because of the safety measures taken previously. Those loved ones also expect the sport to make it as safe as they know how to do... so should we.
If you watch the sport for the purpose of seeing the drivers to "push to the limits and sometimes beyond", maybe seeing a disaster that perhaps could have been prevented, then i'd suggest you watch for the wrong reasons... or should put yourself in their situation... on a track. I bet you would be wanting things as safe as possible as you race. Bravery behind a monitor may not be enough.
I'm sorry Blake you seem to have missed the point entirely. As I stated some changes that have been made regarding safety were absolutely a necessity and rightly done but I feel this change is a step too far and the majority of the drivers are willing to take the risk. If we keep on going and going in the pursuit of safety where do we draw a line? Technology allows it that we dont even need drivers in the car at all?? so would you be happy with that.
Also in my original post I did emphasise those drivers not wanting to take the risk
dont have to drive, they can go and do a safer and different series. They have free will and no one forces them to do it.
There are lots of other professions in the world that have a much higher mortality rate than racing driver and to everyone that chooses those jobs they are made abundtly aware of the risks involved and they accept them and do the job for the added reward that risk brings them. Why not in F1 as well? Hell MotoGp is much more dangerous and you dont see them suggesting they go to 4 wheels instead of 2 and put a structual housing around the driver oh wait that would make it a car.......
I just dont agree with the halo in this instance. If you look at the last 2 fatalities - if charlie whiting had stopped the race then Bianchi wouldn't have died or if there was a rule about JCBs being off track behind tyre wall until all cars are stopped during a rain hit race he would of still been alive. Look at María de Villota she hit a truck in a service area. Both of these deaths could have been avoided with better procedures.
The only reason its not procedural is because if its procedural F1 is responsible and if its component based the team is - so just a way for f1 to move the penalty onto someone else.