The Wait Between Races

[no-FIAt-please]

Looking at the F1 calendar for 2011 I see that there is a 4 week break between the GPs in Hungary and Spa, and also a 3 week break between China and Turkey. The reason I mention this is because at the moment FOTA is looking to capture the occasional viewer and make them die-hard F1 fans, and yet I don't see how they can do this with such long breaks between races, especially when they're only on every 2 weeks on average.

F1 also has a reasonably long off-season too, however while other sports such as football have this football has the transfer season to talk about or every 2 years the Euro or World Cup which last around 3 weeks. F1 only has the car launches/testing, but my problem with them is the team show very little with these events because they don't release what their actually doing during these tests so the times we actually get mean next to nothing, and there is no footage of the tests.

While I acknowledge all the staff who work within Formula 1 need a break/more time to see their families I still think that F1 will still be viewed by most as 'cars going round in circles' by most until it because more 'viewable' to a person who has no existing interest in the sport. I think FOTA/ the FIA could remedy this by doing a non-championship race once in the off-season, however it would have to differ from the championship races, perhaps the drivers could all race the same car and the race could be held on a different track each year to keep it different?

(First thread so go easy

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[Brogan]

Couldn't agree more.

Two weeks is fine between races but when it stretches to 4 weeks in the middle of the season, it ruins the momentum somewhat. I've actually noticed the traffic on the site reduce after the mid season break as some of the more casual fans drift away.

As for the off season, it would be great if there was more active involvement between the teams and fans, instead of everyone just scrabbling around for updates on news sites and Twitter.

 

[Porceliamone]

I agree - 3 or 4 weeks between some races is too long for my liking. I also agree about the off season period too... we all scratch around for months surviving on tiny tit-bits of information coming out of the sport and never really actually know anything until the first race (if it happens at all this year) in Bahrain (Bore-ain as we like to call it), which is likely to be about as interesting as watching a toenail grow. I hope I'm wrong!

 

[snowy]

About your toenail?

 

[tooncheese]

I agree - 3 or 4 weeks between some races is too long for my liking. I also agree about the off season period too... we all scratch around for months surviving on tiny tit-bits of information coming out of the sport and never really actually know anything until the first race (if it happens at all this year) in Bahrain (Bore-ain as we like to call it), which is likely to be about as interesting as watching a toenail grow. I hope I'm wrong!

If Bernie gets his way and we get 25 races, long off seasons surviving on twitter/autosport will become a thing of the past.

 

[RickD]

Couldn't agree more.

Two weeks is fine between races but when it stretches to 4 weeks in the middle of the season, it ruins the momentum somewhat. I've actually noticed the traffic on the site reduce after the mid season break as some of the more casual fans drift away.

As for the off season, it would be great if there was more active involvement between the teams and fans, instead of everyone just scrabbling around for updates on news sites and Twitter.

I don't think it is just the casual fans, I think without much to talk about for 4 weeks, people find other things to do/work out they have lives (apparently [I wouldn't know])...

 

[no-FIAt-please]

I think if a non-championship event was introduced it should less formal, and allow fans closer to the cars, teams and drivers because at the moment F1 is just about the most restrictive sport on the planet I can think of. The cars should be simpler, a cool idea would for them to race in cars from other eras (I know it would never happen, especially because of safety) so we could make at least so sort of comparison to drivers who raced in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

As to where such an event could be hosted I have no idea, some venues which are seeking F1 races currently might not go for it because it wouldn't count towards both championships, but then other the otherhand it might recieve more attention due to the fact that it would drop right in the middle of the off-season when little else is occuring. I like to see a street race in London, Los Angeles or a mad dash around San Francisco with a Bullet-esque chase?

But saying that I don't like to see more than one race in the same country.

 

[Grizzly]

Although i agree with the long gaps creating a lull, the question has already been asked if the calendar is getting too long and most people on here agreed it was (or that it shouldn't be made any longer)! So to reduce the gaps would mean squeeze the season into a shorter space... leaving a longer off season.....

I think we are now enjoying the longest period of racing we've seen in recent years, so things are getting better (more full on if you like) IMHO.

One other thought if i may on comparing with other sports. Football teams don't generally tell us the ins and outs of their training program or how they have planned to beat Inter or Barcelona

. Tennis players don't go telling us about their latest racket and how its going to help them beat the opposition, so i don't see why or how any team would/should tell us anything about the millions they have just spent trying to get ahead, unfortunately.

I see your theory and sympathise with it, but don't really see any solutions. Off season racing would also hit a brick wall arising from the wake of this years off season rallying.........

 

[no-FIAt-please]

I see your theory and sympathise with it, but don't really see any solutions. Off season racing would also hit a brick wall arising from the wake of this years off season rallying.........

Kubica's accident? The off-season event would have similar safety specifications to the current F1 cars, although it would be nice to see drivers compete in a small series that takes place over 1 week and would be a mix of events such as F1 style, Rally, Kart and while I would love to see them on Motorcyles I realise that would be a step too far in terms of safety.

 

[Grizzly]

Yeah, its a shame but i think we might see drivers a little more restricted in the coming years. I actually think this is a shame because these people have spent their life racing and competing as much as they can, to get to F1, then when they get there they are wrapped up and protected for all but 3 days a fortnight. I reckon they get pretty

between races when not on the exercise bike...

 

[Enja]

I think shorter gaps are good, because it's a touch frustrating getting into a great season and having it disrupted by 4 four weeks of nothing happening.

Still, I think breaks and off-seasons are important in spectator sports and I don't think it gets enough attention from clamouring, slightly addicted fans. I don't like the over saturation of sports. It's partly what put me off football, that and a million other things. Constantly going on. Constant games. Constant news. I hated it. It's good to have a break from these things IMO and I appreciate the spectacle and the sport more by having 3-4 months of no news or action. Without that distinction between season and off-season I think sport loses it's spectacle, and then what does it become? Like an ongoing clone of Eastenders? That is not what sport is about to me. Yes we get great entertainment from it but just because we do, doesn't mean we should demand it 24/7, at least I don't. Weather is seasonal. Food should be seasonal, but because of demand and availability, it has become the opposite, it is widely available and we take exotic fruits and foods for granted, we don't appreciate them enough. I think it's the same with sport, if we don't have these breaks then how else can we truly separate different years, different sporting climates, different occasions? It all blurs into one if we let it go on it's current course of saturating our screens with it's constant blend of drama and intrigue. It ceases to become sport at that point and purely entertainment, and personally, I don't want that.

I agree with you that the sport should do better in handling the viewers and how they come and go from the TV screens, surely the drop-off on CTA goes for a certain amount in viewing figures, surely it must translate.

 

[snowy]

The four week break is so the engineers and ancillary staff get to have a summer holiday. I wouldn't begrudge them a holiday just because a few drongos might forget how to change channel on their TVs.

The fewer numpties watching F1 the better as far as I'm concerned.

 

[no-FIAt-please]

The fewer numpties watching F1 the better as far as I'm concerned.

But by watching F1 more and increasing their knowledge of the sport they will become less numpty-like?

 

[snowy]

Perhaps they too will appreciate the four week break they get to digest the season so far...

 

[Pyrope]

Personally, I think the off-season gap is about right. However, I do think we need a metronomic approach to the season itself. One race every two weeks should be the way. I can see what you are saying about summer holidays, but many other professions don't get that luxury and these folk work in an industry that many would kill to get involved with (and I used to work with quite a few mechanical engineers, so I know of what I speak!). The lack of regularity (gaps of anywhere between one and four weeks) is irritating and messes with my non-F1 schedule (yes, there is such a thing...).

 

[sportsman]

I have very few complaints about the calender and breaks between races.These breaks give me ample time to arrange to do things with my family without missing any live action.
I do record races so I can always watch them when convenient.But unless you go into a monastery for the weekend, its almost impossible to avoid knowing the race outcome, which rather spoils my enjoyment.
And my family certainly enjoy not having me stuck in front of the TV every Sunday watching a race.

 

[Pyrope]

I get round that by cunningly living in Canada... Most races start at 8am so I watch them over breakfast with the family, then we still have the whole day to use as we please!

 

[Chasz]

I have very few complaints about the calender and breaks between races.These breaks give me ample time to arrange to do things with my family without missing any live action.
I do record races so I can always watch them when convenient.But unless you go into a monastery for the weekend, its almost impossible to avoid knowing the race outcome, which rather spoils my enjoyment.
And my family certainly enjoy not having me stuck in front of the TV every Sunday watching a race.

That is a good point mate. My other half always gets fed up of me watching the F1, so it was even more frequent then...

 

[Andrea_Moda_Rules]

I have a life outside of watching F1 so i think its ok

I started a similar-ish thread when Max Moaned about that the F1 calander is getting too long, I think if F1 was lets say on every week even if there was the same number races, It could get a bit repetive. The big 4 weeks break we tend to get a couple of times a season I like also. Its nice to do something else on a sunday instead of watching F1 all day. As a motorsport fan and not just an F1 fan, Its also gives a chance of watching other stuff without it clashing, Moto GP BTCC etc. and not end up recording it all, avoiding the results until i get a chance to watch it and then, finiding it out anyway n getting pished cayuse of it and watching a week later.

 

[MCLS]

2 weeks is fine. 1 week is too short and 3 is too long. remember that they have to travel all the equipment, the drivers have to have some private life instead of 24/7 plane travel