I like this layout,they seem to have taken an idea or two from Portimao.BTW its a bloody travesty that MotoGP hasn`t been there yet ! I feel a petition coming on.
Austin Texas GP Track Revealed
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Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
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I couldn't care less about complexes and huge grandstands. There's nothing wrong with self-contained teams who unroll a tent off the side of the trailer. Tilke-dromes are extremely dull and kill the visual appeal of the sport. I'll sit in the grass to watch drivers negotiate fast, sweeping tracks like Mosport and Roat Atlanta instead of in a huge grandstand, an acre of paved runoff between my seat and the track.
I thought it was weird enough people can justify F1, but there are even fans who want to sacrifice the track itself for some towers and covered bleachers?
I couldn't care less about complexes and huge grandstands. There's nothing wrong with self-contained teams who unroll a tent off the side of the trailer. Tilke-dromes are extremely dull and kill the visual appeal of the sport. I'll sit in the grass to watch drivers negotiate fast, sweeping tracks like Mosport and Roat Atlanta instead of in a huge grandstand, an acre of paved runoff between my seat and the track.
I thought it was weird enough people can justify F1, but there are even fans who want to sacrifice the track itself for some towers and covered bleachers?
Sitting in the grass watch the race
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
US
Sitting in the grass watch the race
Donny
Your country has an excellent collection of tracks, Roger. Brands Hatch, Silverstone, Donnington, Oulton Park, Castle Combe (status?). We should be proud of these exciting "natural" terrain circuits. (who wants a big tower overlooking Paddock Hill Bend?)
im with you mate, i love the old school circuits, my local being Thruxton. Trouble is the speed of the sport and the amount of spectators now are making these types of circuit redundant.
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
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As far as the speed argument goes, I can't bother myself to get up for, or even record F1 races at venues like Sepang and Yas Marinas. On the other hand I love watching 250-300-ish horsepower (?) BTCC machines hussle through some old track in the countryside. I think I saw one race with piles of chopped straw/grass in the infield along the back strait. ....... great!
As far as the speed argument goes, I can't bother myself to get up for, or even record F1 races at venues like Sepang and Yas Marinas. On the other hand I love watching 250-300-ish horsepower (?) BTCC machines hussle through some old track in the countryside. I think I saw one race with piles of chopped straw/grass in the infield along the back strait. ....... great!
You`de have loved Knockhill yesterday.
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
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You`de have loved Knockhill yesterday.
Knockhill is excellent! Love the first turn and the back strait!
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
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And the promoter, Tavo Hellmund, does this...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LV_QjwuOim4
Obviously it's just a bad attempt at humor, but people are going to over-analyze this and make a needless fuss. Very dumb Mr. Hellmund.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LV_QjwuOim4
Obviously it's just a bad attempt at humor, but people are going to over-analyze this and make a needless fuss. Very dumb Mr. Hellmund.
Hellmund is not a savvy PR person. Allegations of racism are serious business and he should never ever ever ever ever ever apologize unless he is resigning. Now he's in a hole, and people will not be so keen to jump into that foxhole with him. He should have played the role of the victim by saying that he is Kunta Kinte and that the press flog him relentlessly b/c he refuses to denounce his F1 project. He should remind everyone that the beatings can stop whenever the sadists in the media are willing to let him be who his is. Then have some prominent black members of the community accuse the TV network of being racially insensitive and exploiting cultural material to accomplish a political/commercial objective.
Crisis over. He is untouchable. F1 track is completed on time without opposition b/c now everyone who opposes him is racist.
Hellmund needs to learn how to swim before he drowns in the deep end.
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
US
I think your scenario depends entirely on accomplishing what I have bolded above. And then the public has to go along.
Also, comparing himself to a fictional slave character because his racing project has met opposition is even more insensitive than just cracking a stupid joke. He just needs to apologize and get it across to the public that it was a poorly thought out attempt at humor. No need to drag this out.
He's already compared himself to Kunta Kinte, and by apologizing people he's already declared to the public that it is impossible and racial insensitive for him to glean any message from a work of fictional literature. Now everyone believes that he is just another white guy who is inherently racist.
He can't back down b/c he's already compared himself to Kunta Kinte, and the reason he did it, if you haven't been following, is b/c the Austin press are out for blood. They were out to get Perry, but both he and Susan Coombs have slipped under the radar and out of sight. Tavo Hellmund is the Austin Press' whipping boy, and they flog him in the court of public opinion relentlessly simply for being a businessman who wants to bring F1 to Texas. They would use his favorite ice cream flavor to smear the guy. It's difficult to read. You pick up a paper anywhere in the state of Texas and it's just one brutal dressing down of Tavo Hellmund after another just b/c he wants F1. I have not read a single competent argument against the F1 track even though I can probably think of a half-dozen off the top of my head.
When the Austin press accused Tavo of robbing the state of $25m he scoffed at them when they actually had a right to ask what he was doing and why he needed state money. Now he falls on the sword b/c he assumed he was about to public ... whooping by the people at NBC Austin. It doesn't reveal anything about Tavo Hellmund, it reveals his view of the last 4 months which is the press mistreating him b/c he is who he is. If I'm correct about his motivation, it was a valid comparison, it was not the least bit racist, and he was stupid to have apologized for invoking injustice via a culturally understood symbol.
Seriously. Who tells the press to bugger off when they are asking about private use of public funds? Who apologizes for being a white man who relates to a black character in a well known slave drama? People who complain about his remarks being racist is guilty of setting back race relations by half century. Tavo has a VCR, he watches all kinds of important cultural movies, and he is allowed to identify himself and his struggle with whoever he damn well pleases.
Joined Oct 2006
25K Posts | 4K+
Your Mom's House
Mr. Shupe, is that you reporting?
Why do you say? "Very dumb Mr. Hellmund?" Did he do something wrong? What if he said "the color purple" would this be wrong too since it was a reference to a Black movie? I hate this mindfield White people are forced to walk while a black guy could have said "Cracker" in that sound check and we would have never heard of it. They asked him for a sound check on the fly, it didn't matter what he said, they just wanted sound coming from his mouth, he said whatever. He could have said Calligula, or Michael Jackson, or said Sacramento, or whatever. This is complete ........! If anything, that channel shouldn't get anybody interviewing because they sold this dude out and tried to make themselves the story.
Anyway, I saw this video and was waiting for the Saturday Night Live sign to appear as this whole thing sounds like a joke. I swear it looks like John Steward produced that segment. People are now fabricating news out of thin air. So the guy reference a movie and this is now racial because it was a movie about a slave. So if I say "Black" am I being racists now? This man's life is now in the ....... because news channels are out of ....... control. And nobody being interviewed is saying what? This is nothings, get over it. That politician's reactions is hilarious, "Its inappropriate...bla bla bla". Really? What did he say that was so wrong? Nobody is explaining that, not even the channel trying to make it a new item. This guy is now gonna be labelled racist and for absolutely nothing.
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
US
He's already compared himself to Kunta Kinte, and by apologizing people he's already declared to the public that it is impossible and racial insensitive for him to glean any message from a work of fictional literature. Now everyone believes that he is just another white guy who is inherently racist.
He can't back down b/c he's already compared himself to Kunta Kinte, and the reason he did it, if you haven't been following, is b/c the Austin press are out for blood. They were out to get Perry, but both he and Susan Coombs have slipped under the radar and out of sight. Tavo Hellmund is the Austin Press' whipping boy, and they flog him in the court of public opinion relentlessly simply for being a businessman who wants to bring F1 to Texas. They would use his favorite ice cream flavor to smear the guy. It's difficult to read. You pick up a paper anywhere in the state of Texas and it's just one brutal dressing down of Tavo Hellmund after another just b/c he wants F1. I have not read a single competent argument against the F1 track even though I can probably think of a half-dozen off the top of my head.
When the Austin press accused Tavo of robbing the state of $25m he scoffed at them when they actually had a right to ask what he was doing and why he needed state money. Now he falls on the sword b/c he assumed he was about to public ... whooping by the people at NBC Austin. It doesn't reveal anything about Tavo Hellmund, it reveals his view of the last 4 months which is the press mistreating him b/c he is who he is. If I'm correct about his motivation, it was a valid comparison, it was not the least bit racist, and he was stupid to have apologized for invoking injustice via a culturally understood symbol.
Seriously. Who tells the press to bugger off when they are asking about private use of public funds? Who apologizes for being a white man who relates to a black character in a well known slave drama? People who complain about his remarks being racist is guilty of setting back race relations by half century. Tavo has a VCR, he watches all kinds of important cultural movies, and he is allowed to identify himself and his struggle with whoever he damn well pleases.
That's the only way out of this mess. He's not going to bring anymore media heat than he's already got.
That puts it in perspective Lex, I am not from the area and was not privy to the media timeline.
Just to clarify, I never considered Hellmund a racist; I chalked it up to being a bad attempt at humor (a misstep, given the sensitivity of black history and issues in the US). He probably should have said, "I am Batman."
Jumkie: No, that is NOT me reporting.
Edited to add: I said "very dumb, Mr. Hellmund" because it was a dumb thing to do, not because it was morally wrong. A presumably rich white guy who is already under assault from the media should probably refrain from invoking cherished african american cultural icons. Yes, Kunta Kinte belongs to whites too, but this is a sensitive issue, right or wrong. Not a good idea to put yourself in a position where people could interpret you as making light of a slavery icon, fictional or not...
That puts it in perspective Lex, I am not from the area and was not privy to the media timeline.
Just to clarify, I never considered Hellmund a racist; I chalked it up to being a bad attempt at humor (a misstep, given the sensitivity of black history and issues in the US). He probably should have said, "I am Batman."
Jumkie: No, that is NOT me reporting.I am a grad student in Northeast Tennessee.
Edited to add: I said "very dumb, Mr. Hellmund" because it was a dumb thing to do, not because it was morally wrong. A presumably rich white guy who is already under assault from the media should probably refrain from invoking cherished african american cultural icons. Yes, Kunta Kinte belongs to whites too, but this is a sensitive issue, right or wrong. Not a good idea to put yourself in a position where people could interpret you as making light of a slavery icon, fictional or not...
Well, I reread my post. I'm sorry to maybe take the debate a step too far, it's just that I have experience with this kind of thing (probably not experience that qualifies me to advice Hellmund). One of my clients (no longer) was running for City Council and he asked me to endorse him to represent young voters and entrepreneurs. I was flattered and happy to do it. They gave me a script and said it was just a standard puff piece for the paper. But at the end they went off script and asked me if there was another politician I would relate him to. I said JC Watts, who was a black Congressman from Oklahoma. The comparison was brief, but I said the similarities were even somewhat physically similar. I don't remember me exact words, but I said something about how they both had an athletic build so JC Watts was a good comparison physically as well.
The idiots at the paper took this to mean that I chose a black man to make the comparison of athletic build, I meant that JC Watts was a football player
Anyway, the point is not to get into a he said she said, only to say that I know what it's like to be accused if this kind of crap. You attack their weaknesses and you skewer them with the knife they brought to stab you in the back, and then you accept the fact that they played you simply b/c they needed ratings, imo. It's unpleasant business.
Joined Mar 2006
1K Posts | 71+
US
Lex,
I agree that these conflicts are often unfair and result from over-analysis/over reaction. I'm sorry you had this problem and hope it hasn't caused you too much personal trouble or resulted in career setbacks.
When I watched the video for the first time, I couldn't help but laugh at the predictable response from the anchor. That same phrase that occurs every time one of these stories comes up.
Wait for it...wait for it..."This creates an opporunity for open dialog between both sides..." .....
Edited: I originally said the above cliché was from a college professor, I was wrong. I corrected it and said it was the reporter.
I agree that these conflicts are often unfair and result from over-analysis/over reaction. I'm sorry you had this problem and hope it hasn't caused you too much personal trouble or resulted in career setbacks.
When I watched the video for the first time, I couldn't help but laugh at the predictable response from the anchor. That same phrase that occurs every time one of these stories comes up.
Wait for it...wait for it..."This creates an opporunity for open dialog between both sides..." .....
Edited: I originally said the above cliché was from a college professor, I was wrong. I corrected it and said it was the reporter.
Lex,
I agree that these conflicts are often unfair and result from over-analysis/over reaction. I'm sorry you had this problem and hope it hasn't caused you too much personal trouble or resulted in career setbacks.
When I watched the video for the first time, I couldn't help but laugh at the predictable response from the anchor. That same phrase that occurs every time one of these stories comes up.
Wait for it...wait for it..."This creates an opporunity for open dialog between both sides..." .....
Edited: I originally said the above cliché was from a college professor, I was wrong. I corrected it and said it was the reporter.
No setbacks, just some warnings from various anti-discrimination groups about defaming based upon race. It was a really stupid thing to go through. All of a sudden people acted like I needed adult supervision in order to function in society. They didn't even understand what I was saying, and their own racial angst is the reason they thought I was insensitive. Still, they tried to make me pay the price.
Kunta Kinte is like FREEEDDOOMMM!! in Braveheart. It's a cliche from a very emotional part in a movie. If you're having a defiant dig at the people who you assume are getting ready to make your life hell, it would be at the forefront your mind. Race has nothing to do with it. He was laughing b/c he had just insinuated that the press were sadists whose thirst for beatings couldn't be quenched. The press tried to paint him as racist in response. Not acceptable.
heh, i guess time to resurrect this thread...just did a google search for the austin track and this popped up.
from the start, up a hill....a catastrophuck at the start lol...i hope pedbot can reach the tarmac as to not roll the bike backwards while waiting for the start
great elevation changes with some nice passing opportunities
from the start, up a hill....a catastrophuck at the start lol...i hope pedbot can reach the tarmac as to not roll the bike backwards while waiting for the start
great elevation changes with some nice passing opportunities
Joined Jul 2006
11K Posts | 291+
Texas
talk & plans are cheap...... i'll believe it when i see construction start.... & finished.........& then a race.
