| Thursday, July 29, 2010 2:24AM |
Well, Hockenheim didn't go exactly how I'd liked. No Points is No Good! I've put that behind me, with 100 per cent of my focus on Hungary this weekend.
I enjoy the Hungaroring, having success there in 2009 International Formula Master finishing 3rd. It has lots of technical, slow corners and a few quick ones too, with changing cambers and a very distinct groove of grip. You also feel really close to the fans and the marshals in Hungary. Partly because the whole track is in a sort of natural stadium and partly because Budapest is such a great city. It's usually hot; the Danube river flows right thru downtown; and you feel all the time as if you're in the middle of a big motor sports party, with race fans everywhere you go. See a crowd of people on the sidewalk and almost certainly it's because they've found or think they've found, a race driver. That's a big difference from some of the places in which we race.
The drive to the track is fun, too. The locals do a good job with special lanes for the race teams, so I don't have to tell you about the makeshift chicanes that some people (who shall remain nameless) make of the lines of cones. Some of the big stars look for police escorts, so it's good fun with them as well, tucking in behind them for a tow.
Most everyone stays downtown. There are some good restaurants, the Hungarian Goulash is my favorite. The drive to the track is only about 30 minutes, and that's a big welcome change from Istanbul, where the commute can take one - two hours!
My team (ART Grand Prix) is by far the most detailed and organized team I�€™ve ever been with and, as ever, there is a lot of work to do in the build-up to the weekend. After Hockenheim I drove with the engineers back to the team base in Paris, went through the data with them, put together our game plan for Hungary, then flew to Budapest.
Thanks for logging on, and stay tuned for more updates!
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