HMS F1 Ten Tenths Conformity - A ship I never jumped on when it left port

[I Ate Yoko Ono]

Since contributing to this forum, I have stood on the proverbial dockside of F1 debate, waving and shouting forlornly at sheep running up the gang plank, bording the ship and embarking on cruises to some very sad places, despite my futile efforts to persuade them otherwise. These are the ships and voyages all but a few of you jump on:


Too many people in this forum jumped onto the HMS Alonso as it left port.

These were the same prize winning breed of sheep who bleated their way onto HMS "Winge Winge We're Aussies and We Don't Like Ron Dennis as he is a winner unlike Paul Stoddart (who?)".

And then there was the great HMS "Montoya is Rubbish", which a suprising number of people jumpe on, mostly people who are not motor racing fans at all judging from their anti-CART comments.

Last but not least to leave port with an almost full complement of forumrs was the vessel HMS "I Was Too Young To Remember When Alesi Started So I think he Should Retire Now and Make Way for Younger Slower Drivers".

I was there standing on the dockside waving when all four of these ships embarked on voyages of sadness, conformity and lack of imagination, sailing in the opposite direction forever from the port of individuality, where I for one, and about two other people here from my judgement, still reside.

Have a nice voyage. I hope you keep to your schedule so you all reach the land of homogenous F1 fans in time to pick up your Ferrari and Michael Schumacher souvenirs. I'll pass up on the opportunity if you don't mind as I have opinions and a life of my own.

Dare to be different. Break the mould.

[botsquad]

block that metaphor...it's badly listing on the starboard barge boards.

[Inigo Montoya]

IAYO, what you wrote in your post is complete and utter nonsense. I disagree completely with everything you wrote and find your tone extremely arrogant and condescending.

Non-conformist enough for ya??

[Alan Jones]

yokoeater,
ever read how to win friends and influence people?

AJ aka Luke

[f1manoz]

I prefer the 'HMS Hakkinen is God' myself. I jumped on that in 1991. Geez, 10 years on that boat's a long time.

Difference is, our boat won't be going anywhere near Schumiland. We'll be sending cruise misslies there instead.

[Inigo Montoya]

Originally posted by I Ate Yoko Ono

Have a nice voyage. I hope you keep to your schedule so you all reach the land of homogenous F1 fans in time to pick up your Ferrari and Michael Schumacher souvenirs.

Yeah, real bandwagon jumpers the tifosi are... 20 years without a world championship, yet always present... cheering our team..
Yeah, we're real conformists...

[Raoul Duke]

Montoya is rubbish?, I think you'll find that the majority of people here think the opposite and to reiterate the famous quote, "Juan has Ralf pshycologically beat" .
Hey, I like Juan a lot, I was a big fan of him when he drove Cart and I do support him and hope he achieves a lot in F1. He has deafenitely prooved that he has the potential to become a big champion in F1 and I respect his no fear attitude towards racing. But do I think he's better then Ralf at this stage?, no way. It's going to take a lot more then a couple of flashy overtaking mouves to convince me that he's even as good, let alone better, then Schumi Jnr.

[BBKing]

Inigo Montoya thinks and feels too alluded on this brilliant piece of writing by IAYO. Sheep must be his middle name....LOL

Let me tell you this. Most of the forums are the same. They are certain people (specially Schumacher hardcore fans) that feel is their duty to convince people of his greatness. It has become a dogma. People have to believe what they are told if not they are Schumacher haters.

I have been long enough into F1 and have seen Jean Alesi do the ridicule many times. One or 2 great races in all those years is all I can remember from him. I frankly don’t believe there is an slower non paying driver out there. His time has way passed him and it is time to move on. Nothing against his enthusiasm, which is unquestionable.

[Bononi]

Uhn... Ono. Please, we are always getting aboard some adventures, aren't we ? Alonso's, Kimi's, JPM's and so on... Isn't that we want to do ?

Let's go for it. I challenge you. I'm sure we'll end the same side !!!

[Inigo Montoya]

Originally posted by BBKing
Inigo Montoya thinks and feels too alluded on this brilliant piece of writing by IAYO. Sheep must be his middle name....LOL

Let me tell you this. Most of the forums are the same. They are certain people (specially Schumacher hardcore fans) that feel is their duty to convince people of his greatness. It has become a dogma. People have to believe what they are told if not they are Schumacher haters.

I have been long enough into F1 and have seen Jean Alesi do the ridicule many times. One or 2 great races in all those years is all I can remember from him. I frankly don’t believe there is an slower non paying driver out there. His time has way passed him and it is time to move on. Nothing against his enthusiasm, which is unquestionable.

BB.. before you post your usual flame-bait, please at least check over your post to make it half comprehensible. I might 'feel alluded' if I knew what it meant. And I'm not quite sure what Alesi "do the ridicule" is - must be some new dance, I guess.

Ah, but you are from Detroit... that explains it

[RussianFriend]

IAYO!

I think everybody of us have the list of opinions he/she will never agree.

Mine is:

"xxxx" is GOD! - (don't like this word related to any person, because every dirver makes mistakes and isn't perfect)

[I Ate Yoko Ono]

Differences of opinions are great, that is what makes a competitive forum, I hav just been surprised by how few are willing to buck the trend. Talking of which, here is my opinion on the subjects I mentioned...

Alonso - I am more than willing to stand corrected when he starts winning championships, in the way AGGY probably would if JPM wins the WDC next year but I can't help feeling he is the most over hyped driver of the new crop.

Alesi - was within two thousandths of a second of Trulli's qualifying time at Indy. Not bad for someone who has only been driving the Jordan and working with the engineers of that team for a very short while indeed.

Ron Dennis - he is quite simply a brilliant winner. Admittedly I could do without the Ronspeak though.

Kimi - is a superb future prospect and a potential WDC but I can't help feeling that Heidfeld, although less fashionable and glamorous at the moment would have been a better bet for McLaren. It will be a travesty if he never gets a top drive in his career.

AlanJones - I'm more concerned with putting across valid opinions than saying something that I know everyone else will agree with just to win friends on this forum. You must have noticed that about a lot of my posts by now!

Inogo - sorry but I consider Ferrari to be the Man Utd of motor racing in that just about every casual fan, and a lot of enthusiasts support them because "I like them cos their cars are RED and RED is my favourite colour!".

I actually like BAR. Another team that just gets moaned about all the time. But why? They are the true renegades in F1. They came into the sport out of the blue with a good budget, a competitive attitude and a brilliant driver (who also likes to speak the truth sometimes when few others are prepared to), and didn't care for reputation or history in the ay TGF did about Senna, or JPM about TGF. And yet in those cases, the drivers are lauded for their attitude. Why not for a team?

Sorry if most of you don't agree here but that's how I feel. Here's another one. Would I be upsetting anyone if I said I attended the Rockingham race a few weeks ago and said it was better than any F1 race I've ever seen at the track or on TV?

[enemy-ace]

Yokoeater, I agree with everything you said except for the Alesi thing. I can't help but think that he is a poor development driver, which is integral to a modern F1 teams success. Sure he has a big heart but he also needs a big brain. Excellent post however, one of the better ones i have read in a while.

P.S. - what do you serve Yoko with?

I get the feeling you don't like Australians'.

[Wrex]

Originally posted by enemy-ace
Excellent post however, one of the better ones i have read in a while.

I'm not sure what drugs your on, but cool dude (Why is'nt the a druggie smiley? )

This is the worst, most pathetic, 'look at me coz nobody likes me' BS thread I've seen since Dooly Tilly graced us with his presence. Apart from obvious flame bait, whats your point?

I'll pass up on the opportunity if you don't mind as I have opinions and a life of my own.

Quick tip my friend, you need a new one.

[EERO]

Yokoeater, I have to disagree with your statement that we are all conformists.

Regarding Ron D: he's a pain in the butt, but he runs a tight ship, insists upon conformity among his team and runs a tight ship.

David Coulthard: About four of us here continue to support him and wince every time some one dismisses him. I still believe that he has a great talent, and that he is a decent guy whose persona has been corrupted by an unsympathetic press. (Re Autosport and it "This is my year" articles)

Alesi: I adore his spirit, but aside from Phoenix in '89. Montreal in '95 and Monaco '96, he hasn't lived up to the promise. He's a talented driver who had the misfortune to drive in F1 at the wrong time.

Heidfeld: BIG FAN here, and very p***ed that Raikkonen got the first shot at McLaren. Nick could be a great one. Surgical, precise, methodical and technical, a testement to the work ethic applied to raw talent. Raikkonen is possibly going to develope into the sort of driver whose immense talent willl enable him to drive around a car's problems. Heidfeld would work to fix them.

Ferrari: In the words of Liz, "I'm a fan of the red cars, just not of the twit who drives them"

I think the Schumacher battle will rage here long after he retires. The way I see it, its 50/50 right now supporters to non-fans.
Yet no one , to my knowledge, who is NOT a fan would ever say he isn't the finest driver out there. Right now.

Alonso: Okay, so he's blown off Marques and Yoong. Big Wup. Time will tell. He needs to work on his media presentation as well. (Stiff little boy)

Hakkinen: Since the Lotus days, my guy.

The only bandwagon I ever jumped on was the HHF bandwagon two years ago. You have to admit, there isn't a more charming and dry-witted guy out there.

I think a myriad of opinions exist here, there is no consensus.

[Inigo Montoya]

Originally posted by I Ate Yoko Ono
Inogo - sorry but I consider Ferrari to be the Man Utd of motor racing in that just about every casual fan, and a lot of enthusiasts support them because "I like them cos their cars are RED and RED is my favourite colour!".

Ahhh, I see, so you refuse to cheer for anything or anybody that is popular. Right, like saying REM or U2 sucks because they sell lots of records. Being a nonconformist for the sake of it...

Yeah, I used to think like that too.... in high school

[Red]

Originally posted by I Ate Yoko Ono
Here's another one. Would I be upsetting anyone if I said I attended the Rockingham race a few weeks ago and said it was better than any F1 race I've ever seen at the track or on TV?

That depends. If you say that you had a great time at Rockingham then I’ll be happy for you and thank you for sharing that with us. But if you turn it into a “F1 will be gone when [fill in a reason why]” thread then yes, I for one will feel offended. Or maybe not, maybe I’ll just feel even more fortunate for my ability to have a great time watching a Formula 1 race.

Perfectly agree with your points about Ron, Jean and Kimi. And Alonso, except for the “hype” part. But “Montoya is rubbish bandwagon”, that’s completely inaccurate. Actually even before Pablo set a timed lap in Formula 1 the tickets for “Montoya is the second coming” ship were all sold out. There are for example certain people that feel their duty to convince people that 11 DNF’s in 16 starts means imposing the rules of the game! Waitaminute, NOW I see it! They’re absolutely right! Countless failures = greatness IS indeed a new game and new rules shall be imposed!

The “Man Utd” thingy... well... kinda strange logic in it but I partly agree with you. I mean partly because I don’t understand what exactly is your point. Anyway, I hereby admit that I was such a casual fan. Twentyfive years ago. (By the way, my favorite color was blue then, but that’s not important right now)

BB wrote:
They are certain people (specially Schumacher hardcore fans) that feel is their duty to convince people of his greatness.

I might slightly disagree with the use of the word “specially”, since I don’t remember when was the last time that a non-Schumacher fan tried to convince people of Schumacher’s greatness ( “his” is Schumacher..:confused: I guess...); as a matter of facts I can’t remember when a Schumacher fan tried that anyway. Perhaps we’re too busy recording wins after wins.

[Bononi]

Well, I won't post again what I said in my previous post, and it's basically the same all other are posting here.

About saying that the CART race was the best you ever saw... I'm glad you enjoy it, but you can live with both with no hard feelings.

[bella]

Originally posted by EERO
Alonso: Okay, so he's blown off Marques and Yoong. Big Wup. Time will tell. He needs to work on his media presentation as well. (Stiff little boy)

and in i come to do my defending bit...
fernando is a very shy fella. all he wants to do is race. not everyone is a pr machine. and he's only 20! me and mark are at that age, and we certainly couldn't handle that.

sometimes conforming is the only way to stop a major fight breaking out. and bickering will get you nowhere....

[f1manoz]

Originally posted by EERO


Hakkinen: Since the Lotus days, my guy.

*bows at EERO's feet*

Finally, someone else who has supported Mika from the early days.

And I am too a big Heidfeld fan (he will be No. 1 in my books in 2002 because there will be no Mika *sobs* )

I was ****ed off myself when I heard Raikkonen got the seat ahead of him. How's that for a stab in the back from McLaren?!?!? Oh well, time will tell.

[BBKing]

Originally posted by Bononi
Uhn... Ono. Please, we are always getting aboard some adventures, aren't we ? Alonso's, Kimi's, JPM's and so on... Isn't that we want to do ?

Let's go for it. I challenge you. I'm sure we'll end the same side !!!

Spot on. I guess some of us can be in more than one ship and still be objective enough to stop when the believe is becoming a cult...LOL

2 or 3 members in this forum have questioned my claim of being Schumacher fan. Fact. Those were the ones I consider Schumacher hardcore fans. "Schumacher is GOD the rest are garbage" kind of Schumacher fans.

Inigo. I live in Detroit but I am Romanian. If you don't understand what I said you must be among the few dumb Canadians that I ever came across. They are usually bright...LOL

[Neil C]

I8YO

Of ships and sheep,
I lost count, and fell asleep,
But heed this note,
It will not fail 'ya,
If YOU board a boat,
Avoid Australia

You're not the only bad poet around here, you know!

[Inigo Montoya]

BBKing,

I'll let you have the last word to avoid a flame war that no-one else, I'm sure, wants to see...

[Liz]

I got on Alain Prost's bandwagon back before he had curly hair and have remained on it and will always remain on it despite the comings and goings of such upstarts as Lauda, Mansell, and Senna. Prost is wonderful. (And RussianFriend, to answer your 'every man has failings and is not perfect' suggestion: I would say Prost is not perfect. But Prost has an excuse. He's French.)

I have always loved the Two Red Cars, even in 1990 when Prost called them trucks and in 1993, after Prost had been fired and gone home to rest, and come back to win another WDC, when Berger and Alesi proved that, call them what you will, the Ferraris still WERE trucks. I loved them when Gilles referred to his Ferrari as a "hopeless fast red Cadillac." And I loved them when they turned Orange.

But I have never liked TGF and I never will like him, not since the day he lucked into a Jordan drive and exploited it and dumped Eddie in the dirt on the long path upward stepping on peoples faces and trampling on them (and ramming them off the road) ... and I still maintain that winning everything in sight when (1) you have no competition and (2) you cheat, is nothing to write home about.

Prost is still the greatest and Montoya is not rubbish (but Ralf would not agree) and Williams will never be Ralf Schumacher Grand Prix but it just might turn into JPM Grand Prix some day soon.

And when Alonso gets into the Benetton and leaves Bunsen to drive the Prost, we will see what Alonso can do.

But all that being said, I have no idea what the point of the original post was. Have a nice time on the dock, Yoko. And Please Don't Sing.