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Old 1 Jul 2012, 10:31 (Ref:3100415)   #1
P38 in workshop
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P38 in workshop has a lot of promise if they can keep it on the circuit!
Why are there people on the pitwall?

After the European GP it occurred to me that all the teams have a group of people on the pitwall who can't see much and whose contribution could be just as effective if they were elsewhere.With a solid bank of monitors,they have no view of the track and with the noise of the engines they communicate using headsets.The only man who really needs to be there is the bloke wielding the pit-board and he is only really necessary when the radio gives up.
Is there really a need for the teams to expose the other personnel to the risk of flying debris?Or does a seat on the pitwall indicate a person's elevated status in the team hierarchy?I might be alone in believing the current arrangement is a relic of an age that passed when the switch to electronic communication took place.If there is a sound reason for the current arrangement I am willing to be persuaded of its merits.
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Old 1 Jul 2012, 11:53 (Ref:3100439)   #2
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They aren't called 'Prat Perches' for nothing.
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Old 1 Jul 2012, 12:27 (Ref:3100450)   #3
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Originally Posted by P38 in workshop View Post
If there is a sound reason for the current arrangement I am willing to be persuaded of its merits.

That's quite a bit of arrogance there.
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Old 1 Jul 2012, 14:07 (Ref:3100484)   #4
P38 in workshop
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That's quite a bit of arrogance there.
Your interpretation.Doesn't actually move the topic forward.
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Old 1 Jul 2012, 14:24 (Ref:3100496)   #5
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Well, whoop dee doo then.
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Old 1 Jul 2012, 14:28 (Ref:3100497)   #6
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They aren't called 'Prat Perches' for nothing.
I'm sure that the greatest minds in Formula 1 love being called prats
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Old 2 Jul 2012, 15:03 (Ref:3100933)   #7
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I'm sure that the greatest minds in Formula 1 love being called prats
It's the universal name for them, throughout motorsport.
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Old 2 Jul 2012, 15:15 (Ref:3100938)   #8
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Originally Posted by P38 in workshop View Post
The only man who really needs to be there is the bloke wielding the pit-board and he is only really necessary when the radio gives up.

If there is a sound reason for the current arrangement I am willing to be persuaded of its merits.
Teams always run boards as an added measure. You don't tell the driver the gap every lap unless you're urging him to push because you don't want too much radio traffic, but he likes to know certain things so the board is always used.

Jolly good of you to be willing to be pursuaded! I won't try to pursuade you, but I will tell you what happens. From a personal standpoint you 'feel' the race a lot more from the wall because, despite the GPS beacons on the cars and all the info from telemetry and live timing, there's nothing to beat being on the wall for the adrenalin kick, to gauge track position relative to other cars, watch other pit stops, look at the weather etc, etc. It's subjective, but I think it's true for everyone in road racing. At Le Mans a few years ago I was a backroom data and strategy bod and never once sat on the wall for the entire race, which left me with a strangely disconnected feeling, as if I wasn't really part of the action. Prior to and since then I have always sat on the wall, in the prat perch, drinking tea...
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Old 2 Jul 2012, 20:33 (Ref:3101048)   #9
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I think P38 in workshop raises a legitimate question. I suppose they can view the start-finish straight (a bit) and the pits from there, as well as being left alone in a mini team during the race, working as one unit and being able to speak to crew members where necessary by going into the garage.
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Old 2 Jul 2012, 22:37 (Ref:3101105)   #10
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Jolly good of you to be willing to be pursuaded! I won't try to pursuade you, but I will tell you what happens. From a personal standpoint you 'feel' the race a lot more from the wall because, despite the GPS beacons on the cars and all the info from telemetry and live timing, there's nothing to beat being on the wall for the adrenalin kick, to gauge track position relative to other cars, watch other pit stops, look at the weather etc, etc. It's subjective, but I think it's true for everyone in road racing. At Le Mans a few years ago I was a backroom data and strategy bod and never once sat on the wall for the entire race, which left me with a strangely disconnected feeling, as if I wasn't really part of the action. Prior to and since then I have always sat on the wall, in the prat perch, drinking tea...
I like the drinking tea part.
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 01:00 (Ref:3101139)   #11
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Frank Dernie?
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 04:16 (Ref:3101148)   #12
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It's the universal name for them, throughout motorsport.
You sure about that?

I've been in the sport for 24 years and never heard the term before.

Also, prat is a very English word, rarely used in other English speaking countries, let alone the rest of the world. Perhaps you meant to say "It's the universal name for them, throughout British motorsport"?
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 06:18 (Ref:3101162)   #13
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I've heard the term 'prat perch' used plenty of times over the years....
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 08:28 (Ref:3101182)   #14
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You sure about that?

I've been in the sport for 24 years and never heard the term before.

Also, prat is a very English word, rarely used in other English speaking countries, let alone the rest of the world. Perhaps you meant to say "It's the universal name for them, throughout British motorsport"?
Okay, I'll rephrase. It's a largely universal term, used primarily in Northern hemisphere-based road racing on both two and four wheels. And as Brits have infiltrated most forms of top end motorsport, we take our phrases and terms with us and the amused (and bemused) foreign folks eventually start using them too.
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 09:58 (Ref:3101223)   #15
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It's the universal name for them, throughout motorsport.
Really ? I never knew ?

But my point remains, i'm sure the biggest names in F1 (and everyother catergory for that matter) would rather be known as something else.
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 11:05 (Ref:3101243)   #16
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'Prat perches' they are. Martin Whitmarsh and Ted Kravitz even made reference to them at the Valencia GP. Another use of the phrase is for police patrol cars that can often be found parked at the sides of motorways on a raised up area of tarmac (allegedly).
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Old 3 Jul 2012, 11:16 (Ref:3101249)   #17
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Going back to the original question: It's all part of "The Show".

Sure, technology means that the cars could actually be monitored and run from the back of the garage or the factory tens of thousands of miles away (and in fact often are, I worked for a while for a company that provided BAR with their connectivity at remote races) but that's not much of a spectacle, is it?
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Old 5 Jul 2012, 07:26 (Ref:3102267)   #18
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It's not just F1 that derides the men at the top.

Those green overalls used by RAF pilots (you know, the best ones in the world) are often known as GroBags by the 'lesser' ranks*

Because they are full of, er, compost.

* you know, the ones who look after the planes so they don't fall out of the sky.
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Old 5 Jul 2012, 10:38 (Ref:3102339)   #19
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It's probably psychological as well I would think. Being close to the cars and action might give one more the mental-fix of hands-on involvement rather than being tucked away in some backroom watching the cars from some monitor and listening to roar of your engines at a distance.

But I must admit if I was a boss, backroom for me please. I don't like being pried upon by prying eyes of the world media in my most anxious moments. I'd have difficulty with that I'd think.
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Old 5 Jul 2012, 12:47 (Ref:3102396)   #20
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Ah! But then we'd miss out on the 'banana eating' Ross Brawn moments and the 'foot tapping' Christian Horner moments. Not to mention the 'head in hands' Adrian Newey moments, etc. It all adds to the drama, and the cameramen know exactly where to point their cameras.
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Old 5 Jul 2012, 13:11 (Ref:3102402)   #21
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I reckon this is just jealousy.

Could anybody, truly, hand on heart, tell me that if they were in a position to stand/sit on the pit wall at a race and look like they were providing some critical function for their team/driver, you wouldn't do it?

I don't believe you!
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Old 6 Jul 2012, 00:04 (Ref:3102639)   #22
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I was going to make a post but reading the above there is absolutely no need..
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Old 6 Jul 2012, 05:31 (Ref:3102710)   #23
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It makes them look imprtant and justify their exorbident salaries.

Also, if they were in the garage they might be in danger of having to mingle with dirty smelly bolties

Mind you, if they stayed home to do their job their is every chance of being distracted by their dog chewing the network cable or something.

The most useful function for being on the pit wall is that it is easier to find someone to blame when you lose if they are all in the same place.
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Old 6 Jul 2012, 19:04 (Ref:3102976)   #24
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It makes them look imprtant and justify their exorbident salaries.

Also, if they were in the garage they might be in danger of having to mingle with dirty smelly bolties

Mind you, if they stayed home to do their job their is every chance of being distracted by their dog chewing the network cable or something.

The most useful function for being on the pit wall is that it is easier to find someone to blame when you lose if they are all in the same place.
Okay thank you... mumble mumble..
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Old 6 Jul 2012, 22:58 (Ref:3103063)   #25
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Of some interest is the fact that many of the senior team members choose to start the race from inside the garages. Is this to talk to some of the engineers for the critical first few laps for some reason?
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