What era of racing are you from?

[Graz]

Guys, just trying to get a taster. My first F1 memory is G. Villeneuve in Zandvort in '79 on 3 wheels pressing on regardless. I have been a motorsport fan since I was a toddler and my father used to bring me to the Phoenix Park races from an early age (I have been attending the park for about 30 years now). I lament the lack of racing in F1 in particular and I get the impression since I joined the site in August this year that people feel it has always been thus. F1 (and racing in general) can be so much better and I'm curious as to other peoples thoughts on this and if the desire is there for racing to be improved? We can get in to the whys and hows as this thread develops but I'm initially interested in peoples eras and apathy to F1 today. Cheers.

[Bononi]

I'm from the future, the 2035 season will be awesome ! Wait and see.

[Graz]

Originally Posted by Bononi

I'm from the future, the 2035 season will be awesome ! Wait and see.

[Knowlesy]

Sort of felt my way into it around 1989, at the age of four watching the races with dad, but didn't have a reasonable understanding until about 1992 when I would get all the motor racing questions on "Question Of Sport" right, much to my dads annoyance! This was also Mansell-mania at its peak, and so there was a saturation of coverage really. Helpful, I found.

So I'd describe myself as an early to mid-nineties fan.

I don't remember the racing being so much better back then, it was still boring in that sense really, but it was spectacular which really did draw me to it. The different noises, the personalities, the elegant cars, the fact it looked and seemed very dangerous, very maverick. And I was at an age where the detail of the politics didn't really register - indeed much of it I have just read about in later years.

If I'm honest, I can well understand it if a young boy/girl has no inclination to get into F1. I do wonder at times how F1 must look to the youngsters. They probably wait for a crash or something and then doze off by lap three. I truly do not understand how a youngster could get into it now with the somewhat dull spectacle generated at the modern tracks as well as the bland commentary and presentation. It probably now requires someone to capture the imagination. A Lewis Hamilton figure for British kids for example.

[Marbot]

I can still remember watching little bits of footage of Jackie Stewart winning a GP on TV along with staying up to watch men set foot on the moon.Awesome times!

[Bononi]

And a Nakajima figure for the japanese.

[Knowlesy]

I bet you often reflect on them with in your rocking chair, slippers on, pipe in mouth.

[Marbot]

Originally Posted by Knowlesy

I bet you often reflect on them with in your rocking chair, slippers on, pipe in mouth.

I was in 'short trousers' at the time.

[Graz]

Originally Posted by Knowlesy

Sort of felt my way into it around 1989, at the age of four watching the races with dad, but didn't have a reasonable understanding until about 1992 when I would get all the motor racing questions on "Question Of Sport" right, much to my dads annoyance! This was also Mansell-mania at its peak, and so there was a saturation of coverage really. Helpful, I found.

So I'd describe myself as an early to mid-nineties fan.

I don't remember the racing being so much better back then, it was still boring in that sense really, but it was spectacular which really did draw me to it. The different noises, the personalities, the elegant cars, the fact it looked and seemed very dangerous, very maverick. And I was at an age where the detail of the politics didn't really register - indeed much of it I have just read about in later years.

If I'm honest, I can well understand it if a young boy/girl has no inclination to get into F1. I do wonder at times how F1 must look to the youngsters. They probably wait for a crash or something and then doze off by lap three. I truly do not understand how a youngster could get into it now and it probably requires someone to capture the imagination. A Lewis Hamilton figure for British kids for example.

Interesting point as I have a 5 year old son and he simply adores everything to do with cars and racing at al levels be it circuit, rally, bikes. I have been a lifelong fan but have'nt really pushed him into it. Lewis Hmilton is his hero which is good as Hamilton will be around for a good number of years for him to support. I bring him to Mondello here in Ireland and he loves it and has local heroes too. Like you say, he's at the age where he watches the first few laps and has no inclination of what's going on but he genuinely loves it.

[Bononi]

Originally Posted by martyn bott

I can still remember watching little bits of footage of Jackie Stewart winning a GP on TV along with staying up to watch men set foot on the moon.Awesome times!

I always knew you were an elder guy... Grandpa.

[skycafe]

Originally Posted by martyn bott

I can still remember watching little bits of footage of Jackie Stewart winning a GP on TV along with staying up to watch men set foot on the moon.Awesome times!

I remember the moon landing as if it was yesterday, saw the launch as well from right across the Indian River.

GP's were ultra rare on US Tv, except Monaco (I don't remember which was the first I saw), but we did have Indy cars and Can Am occasionaly, so not totally deprived.

robert, older then dirt

[Armco Bender]

The 1970's,the best era of F1 period.
Hop in the Tardis and have a look back..http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oXw6fXhHdI

[JohnSSC]

Knowlesy, I have shoes older than you!

I am with skycafe here, although I was not in Florida for the launch!

[Born Racer]

Sort of felt my way into it around 1989, at the age of four watching the races with dad, but didn't have a reasonable understanding until about 1992

I got slightly into it around a similar time, a few years older than yourself. That was back in the Senna/Prost/Cheeseberger era. (Myself and my sister found that nickname highly amusing as I recall). Funnily enough though, I remember Senna, Berger, Mansell and several less quick drivers before my first recollection of Prost. Well, people did say he had a quiet way of going about winning races, I suppose.

The first specific race that sticks in my mind is the 1992 Monaco Grand Prix, those last few laps.

Regarding the quality of racing, in terms of overtaking I used to wish for much more and find it frustrating when people would say to me things like "Motor racing is boring. When you watch Formula 1, there's no overtaking". I found myself telling people to get themselves to a kart meeting. Not much glamour, but overtaking galore. Anyway, I also wished for more in F1.

Yet this year I've noticed the lack of overtaking at times hasn't annoyed me so much. Maybe I've just instinctively lowered my overtaking expectations of F1, or maybe this year wasn't so bad for overtaking (it seemed readily possible in several races as I recall, and not just wet ones), or it could be a combination of these two things.

[Knowlesy]

Hehehe, must have been a kiddy thing, though it was Beefberger to me. Oh the times I had saying that.

Monaco 1992 is one of my very strongest early memories too. I remember it crystal clear actually, the smell of Sunday dinner being cooked whilst the battle was raging, the old man almost exploding with rage when Mansell pitted and then going into something approaching overdrive when Mansell battled Senna, the brother sitting in his high chair oblivious to it all. Was it really 5 years ago?

Then, at christmas that year, I got the Mansell & Williams 1992 tape (which came in a boxset with a 1/18 Bburago Williams model) and relived it all again and again. I must have watched that hundreds of times in the year that followed and amazingly it still works crystal clear. The whole video is practically burned into my memory.

Reminiscing like this is a bad idea once you snap back into the present.

[Notso Swift]

Originally Posted by Armco Bender

The 1970's,the best era of F1 period.
Hop in the Tardis and have a look back..http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oXw6fXhHdI

Yeah, great if you liked your hero's in a box
Then there is the Glamour of F1, Hunt being driven around on the back of a Princess!

No, I'm a child of the early 70's so the 80's are where I came in and F1 started basically when Senna started.
Seeing the death of the Cosworth V8, the excitement of the turbos' then banning and on to 3.5L lots of different technical solutions V, flat, IL, 4,6,8,10,12

[Knowlesy]

I truly regret missing the 70's and 80's. I know both eras were very dangerous, but they held something special.

The 70's was kind of where the sport picked up some momentum and there were some great cars being driven ever so gracefully round fantastic and still mental tracks.

The 80's just seemed excessive and crazy and great. So much horsepower, so much intense rivalry and not a hint of subtlety to be found.

[Oldtony]

Went to the first couple of meetings at Goodwood (Gerard, Bira, Parnell etc.) before emigrating to Oz in 1949.
Used to get out to Mt.Druit & Parramatta Park and watch one J.Brabham in the (front engined) Cooper Bristol Redex Special. Got interested in following F1 when JB got involved but really only saw the early races in Tasman guise.
Been following the sport for a long time and the only consitant thing is all the supposed fans who keep saying "the racing was better when XXXX was happening.
Absoloute B******t. If anyone can come up with a season that had more interest in it than 2007, please describe, because I must have been asleep that year.
F1 is the complete package, political, technical, spectacle and competition. At times one or other dominates, but it is the total package that is so good.
That said I worry about the future because of the dominance of interest in drivers as celebrities, and the proposed dumbing down of technical development in the interest of the survival of a few dinosaurs.
As long as that is not allowed to happn the best era of F1 is yet to come.

[Notso Swift]

Well said oldtony
Evolution is one of F1's assets
That ridiculous celebrity "cult" is everywhere, though, not just F1

[crozier74]

The late 90's, early '00s. The Hakkinen vs Schumi years. I'm a youngun yet, but there's still some good stuff to nostalgiasise about

[Robin_D]

My Story is pretty much similar to Knowlesy, late 80's early 90's. I remember I had been watching a while when fittipaldi did his back flip in 93.

I think I referred to him as beefberger also and sillyberger when something happened. Also I remember how much we used to take the mickey out of Shumachermachermachermachermacher.

Oh how young I am

[rbs]

I go back as far as Fangio in the 250F, Moss in the Vanwall and Hawthorn in the Ferrari. They were all great drivers and cars but for me the best races were for the DFV engined Hewland gearboxed kit cars.

[f1manoz]

Late 80s / early 90s is where I first started paying attention. First real season of watching was 1992. Before that it was mostly just the Australian and Japanese GPs. Didn't know when the rest were on when I was back in Sydney!!!

[brands]

70s

I used to watch national F1, F5000 and other series at my then local circuit (Thruxton) and started to seriously follow F1 when the BBC improved their coverage during the '76 season.

[Super Hans]

I can't remember exactly, but like many on here it would have been the late 80s. I don't come from a motorsport-loving family, but my Dad would often have the Grands Prix on of a Sunday afternoon, and the main things that stick in my from those days are a red & white car and the name Senna.