Libre Ireland 2008 - Mondello 40th Anniversary Races

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by MagnetON

I thought turn 6 on the international circuit was "Parabolica" at one point.

You're right it was. I would reckon that someone (Birrane possibly) thought it a bit unimaginative to copy other circuits corner names and hence we have 7a and b and Birranes bends, Lola etc. Turn 6 on the national circuit is and always was Dunlop. Its the only part of the circuit to maintain its identity since Mondello opened in '68.

[MagnetON]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

Turn 6 on the national circuit is and always was Dunlop. Its the only part of the circuit to maintain its identity since Mondello opened in '68.

Wonder how much they are paying..... hmmmm....

Personally I'd like to see the unimaginatively named "Turn 2" renamed "Hennessy" after Fiona, who flagged it for cars/bikes/rallyx/karts... etc. etc.

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by MagnetON

Personally I'd like to see the unimaginatively named "Turn 2" renamed "Hennessy" after Fiona, who flagged it for cars/bikes/rallyx/karts... etc. etc.

Good idea. Why should'nt corners that have no names be used to remember people who have given so much to our sport? You should bang an e mail to John Morris and see what happens.

[MagnetON]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

Good idea. Why should'nt corners that have no names be used to remember people who have given so much to our sport? You should bang an e mail to John Morris and see what happens.

Unfortunately it's a commercial reality that corner sponsorship is a revenue center for circuits, so it's very hard to name a corner as a memorial to someone and then have to turn around and say "Sorry, can't name it after them any more as XYZ have offered €Plenty for it", circuit owners would be in the preverbial gap between a rock and a hard place.

[stealth1]

Originally Posted by EvilPumpkin

D12 - Delta 12 - no idea what it's called in driver speak!

Drimnagh ... in getaway driver speak!!

[Graz]

Originally Posted by EvilPumpkin

*sigh* and the moral of this story is that it's perfectly ok to put people's lives in danger provided you get the result you want

That is odd - there were so many indiscretions I lost count between the incident at the start, drivers lining up incorrectly when the race was stopped (should have been original grid positions right cos the race hadn't run a lap?), driving standards when cars were littered around the track, Alan Kessie stalling just before the restart and being pushed back into position backwards down the track and Jim H jumping the rolling restart.

Bloody 'ell, is there a CoC down there at all and if so what do they do?

How should this work, do marshalls radio in to the control tower or are you relying on one or two individuals spotting something?

Just out of curiosity and I always wonder about this, the safety car in Mondello has a habit of coming out and not picking up the leaders. When the non leaders are waved by and the leaders eventually picked up, are the guys behind allowed to go at a reasonable clip to catch back up to the back of the train? This is what you see on tv when safety cars are deployed but in Mondello generally not (although Simon McKinley did make an effort to get back with Douglas/Hutchinson during the safety car period). Surely this is ok once caution is excercised at the spot were the marshalls are sweeping people away? Otherwise you tend to get two distinct groups tooling around for the rest of the race half a lap apart.

[EvilPumpkin]

Originally Posted by Graz

Bloody 'ell, is there a CoC down there at all and if so what do they do?

Yep - and several DCoCs as well and I believe they were kept very busy over the weekend!

Originally Posted by Graz

How should this work, do marshalls radio in to the control tower or are you relying on one or two individuals spotting something?

With regard to incidents in general, the marshal on radio for the post will call it in, along with their recommendation. It's then up to race control to decide if they will go with that recommendation or not. I didn't hear the radio call for the incident at D12 (which was actually my post that weekend but I had gone to the loo which is why I was over at D27 for that race!).

Given the location of the stricken car and the FIV, it should have been relatively safe to tow it into rallyx 2 under yellows. But that is dependent on the drivers obeying the flags. It became unsafe when it was clear that certain drivers were not only not obeying the flags, they had no concern whatever for either the driver of the stricken car or the marshals trying to remove it.

Can't help with safety car procedures - Tom might be able to give you more info on that one!

[MagnetON]

Originally Posted by EvilPumpkin

Can't help with safety car procedures - Tom might be able to give you more info on that one!

From Appendix 40 of the Motorsport Ireland Yearbook.

Originally Posted by Yearbook

16.7 All competing cars, when notified of the Safety Car intervention (by the flag signals, SC boards, or by any other means) will reduce speed and line up behind the Safety Car, no more than 5 car lengths apart, and maintaining the same speed as it. Overtaking or overlapping of any other competing car during a Safety Car intervention is forbidden. Overtaking of a Safety Car is forbidden unless the particular competitor concerned is signalled to overtake the Safety Car by the Observer in the Safety Car.

16.8 When ordered to do so by the Clerk of the Course, the observer in the Safety Car will wave past any cars between the Safety Car and the race leader. These cars will continue at reduced speed and without overtaking until they reach the line of cars behind the Safety Car.

There doesn't appear to be any definition of what constitues "reduced speed".

[tkiwan]

The safety car was scrambled as soon as the request was made just made it out to pick up p3. as soon as we went by turn 4 we waved by all the field and has to stop on main straight to pick up leaders and then move around slowley by the time I was back down to 7a/b (tarzan) most of the field had caught up so lights out and power on and into the pits asap did not see restart as driving up pit road.

[Motormouth]

Great thread!! Dunlop wasn't always Dunlop though, it was briefly Barum Bend and then Cricket Hill (or something) before it got its proper name back?
How many names has Duckhams actually had?
Duckhams
Bridgestone
Budweiser
and some guys (usually northern visitors) call it Badgers??!!
Bikeworld is no more by the way, it's Paddock, apparently! It was briefly named Septica by the previous tenants but that was quickly changed......

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

some guys (usually northern visitors) call it Badgers??!!

Thats the bump before the "hole in the hedge" isnt it? Most noticeable in a kart eh Leo? Didnt it come about because of a badgers set that was disturbed or something when the circuit was re surfaced in the '90s?

[SAMD]

Originally Posted by Jennifer_ni

Known as the esses!

Also known as the 'UK Badger Mainland' apparently!
Honest!!!

[Motormouth]

Originally Posted by Peter Dunne

Thats the bump before the "hole in the hedge" isnt it? Most noticeable in a kart eh Leo? Didnt it come about because of a badgers set that was disturbed or something when the circuit was re surfaced in the '90s?

Now THAT rings a bell! Funny I have heard the first apex of turn three referred to as "going into Badgers". Maybe the family moved from their original home after the resurfacing??!!
And yeah, remember the bump in karts allright, used to toss my mullet!!!!!

[class1comp]

Originally Posted by Motormouth

How many names has Duckhams actually had?
Duckhams
Bridgestone
Budweiser
and some guys (usually northern visitors) call it Badgers??!!

And don't forget
Bridgeweiser

When I worked at the PDC the PDC course corners were known as Parabolica, Tarzan 1 and 2, the new esses and Honda

[Peter Dunne]

Remember when this was taken Leo? Ah we were happy then!!

[EvilPumpkin]

Holy crap - is that Nulty with hair???????

[mracing]

what a weekend did anyone not enjoy all that noise ?
it was a real action packed weekend.
well done to ed he done a great job with the formula libre
two great races.

[av8rirl]

Originally Posted by EvilPumpkin

Holy crap - is that Nulty with hair???????

Its Michael Schumacher... and KALIBER sponsorship??? Definitely not Leo!

[stealth1]

Thank you all for your generous comments, but I think its the drivers and crews who deserve the credit for the, in some cases, enormous efforts made to come out and support this special event. Well done also to the Mondello team and the MEC for a slickly run race meeting.

Ed

[Peter Dunne]

Originally Posted by av8rirl

Its Michael Schumacher... and KALIBER sponsorship??? Definitely not Leo!

That was 1989 and a rare pic of Leo preparing to test for Team Dunne while still under contract to Team Banzai!

At the time, my father was working in Guinness, hence the Kaliber sponsorship on the kart and Budweiser on the stand and at turn 3. I remember we used to pound around Mondello with the place to ourselves and when we were finished, we locked the front gate and left the key under a stone! That was back in the day before we became such a litigous nation. You sure wouldnt get away with it today. Great times though