MEMORIES

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Tue Aug 15, 2006 11:55 am

A post by Jm Watt this morning got me thinking. Always dangerous.
I am sure that many of us have memories of special moments in motor racing where something out of the ordinary occured. It may be a simple as a driver going thru one particular corner on a given track. How about sharing them here.
While not strictly F1, I have an enduring memory of both Piers Courage and Rindt on a rain soaked Pukekohe, New Zealand, track during the Tasman Series years ago. I stood on a rise above the entry to pit straight and whatched, for lap after lap, unbelievable car control, with both of them on the absolute limit, as they both displayed perfect power slides time and time again.

jacfan · Post by **jacfan** » Tue Aug 15, 2006 2:20 pm

I remember the 1996 Melbourne GP. I was so excited to be there and watch JV in his first F1 race. We were sitting in the Fangio stand and watching on the big screen when Martin Brundel's car barrel rolled off the track and finally came to rest, upside down in the sandtrap (if my memory serves my correctly). The entire pitlane seemed to gasp when the accident first happened but then there was an eerie silence when everyone realised what a huge accident it was... then when Martin got out and jogged back along pit lane then crowd went totally beserk.
The race between Villeneuve and Hill was truly great and I was rapt to be there to see JV's F1 debut.

jacfan · Post by **jacfan** » Wed Aug 16, 2006 1:26 am

Seems we are the only ones who can remember anything.

Drinking must improve memory....... Must see if I can get funding to do a "study" on the effects of alchol on memory.....sorry what were talking about?
Oh yeah, memories.
Memory ... all alone in the moonlight.
Thanks ..... for the memories.
Darn.... I must remember to stick to the subject.....

I must remember to stick to the subject.....

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 12:28 am

The smell, and the feel of the Merc, after Fangio, in his 70s, gave us a demonstration of "4 wheel drift" around Sandown. To sit in the vehicle that "The Master" won a title in, just after he had done some hot laps in it

The Buggas had the sense to immobilize it before they let me sit in it

Redhead · Post by **Redhead** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 6:13 pm

Melbourne 2002, the year Ralf used Barra as a launching pad at the first corner (we were in the stands at the other end of the straight). The race was chaotic, when it settled down towards the end there was Webber steaming around in fifth place in a slightly off-song Minardi, and Salo in his Toyota quite a way behind but catching him at 3 seconds a lap. The tension building as Salo closed in was fantastic. When Salo caught him with three laps to go the atmosphere deflated a little, Webber held Salo at bay for a while and things started to get exciting again, then when Salo spun off the place went nuts.

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 6:22 pm

Ralf "caught some air" that day

I suspect my memories of Ralf will centre around broken cars

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 6:23 pm

jacfan wrote:Seems we are the only ones who can remember anything. Drinking must improve memory....... Must see if I can get funding to do a "study" on the effects of alchol on memory.....sorry what were talking about?
Oh yeah, memories.
Memory ... all alone in the moonlight.
Thanks ..... for the memories.
Darn.... I must remember to stick to the subject.....
I must remember to stick to the subject.....

Do you remember that

jacfan · Post by **jacfan** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 10:30 pm

To stick to the subject.... ????? not often enough.

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 10:44 pm

jacfan wrote:To stick to the subject.... ????? not often enough.

Thy name is woman

RE30B#16 · Post by **RE30B#16** » Thu Aug 17, 2006 11:28 pm

A few cool moments come to mind: Once while I was fighting my way through the crowd to get back to my grandstand seat at one of the USGP in Detroit, I came face to face with Ayrton Senna who had just taken pole position!!

A few years before that, in 1983, at another Detroit GP, Patrick Tambay stopped his Ferrari before entering a tunnel, waved at the fans and then did a drag strip burnout that would've made John Force proud!! Brilliant!

Speaking of Detroit GPs and Ferraris, I saw Stefan Johannson put in one of the drives of his career to come second in the race of 180 mph straights and 50mph corners with absolutely no brakes after about the 10th lap. Incredible!!!

There is nothing like this sport!!

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 9:41 pm

On a more sombre note I have never been able to shake from my mind the TV pictures of the crash that claimed Giles

gkaytaz · Post by **gkaytaz** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 10:49 pm

Julian Mayo wrote:On a more sombre note I have never been able to shake from my mind the TV pictures of the crash that claimed Giles

Senna's crash has the same effect on me...

Julian Mayo · Post by **Julian Mayo** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 11:56 pm

gkaytaz wrote:
Julian Mayo wrote:On a more sombre note I have never been able to shake from my mind the TV pictures of the crash that claimed Giles
Senna's crash has the same effect on me...

That I try not to think of. I was a fan of Ratzzy,.......that was friday.
Then the unthinkable.
Then the memory of someone doing a victory dance at race end.
Unspeakable.

gkaytaz · Post by **gkaytaz** » Sat Aug 19, 2006 12:06 am

Julian Mayo wrote:
gkaytaz wrote: Senna's crash has the same effect on me...
That I try not to think of. I was a fan of Ratzzy,.......that was friday.
Then the unthinkable.
Then the memory of someone doing a victory dance at race end.
Unspeakable.

Yeah that weekend was really sad. Funny but all these years I have never actually seen the end of the 94 San Marino GP. A victory dance after a race that claimed two lives is unacceptable

jacfan · Post by **jacfan** » Sat Aug 19, 2006 12:08 am

gkaytaz wrote:
Julian Mayo wrote:On a more sombre note I have never been able to shake from my mind the TV pictures of the crash that claimed Giles
Senna's crash has the same effect on me...

Me too. I couldn't sleep that night and when the news came through I couldn't stop crying. It was like losing someone in the family. I just could not believe he was gone. Even now I still get tearful when I think about that tragic weekend and loss of two drivers.. one a legend and the other an up and coming driver who may well have been a world champion. The whole weekend was a disaster from the start to the very end.