Joined Sep 2005
4K Posts | 3+
Lancashire UK
One of the most difficult jobs in any team is that of Operations Manager, a role that is fulfilled for the Kawasaki Racing Team by 37-year-old Belgian, Michael Bartholemy. As you can imagine, the logistical problems of moving a team of 28 people and ten tonnes of equipment around the world are many, but it's all in a day's work for the former racer and World Supersport team manager.
Q: How long have you been with the Kawasaki Racing Team?
A: I joined Kawasaki at the end of 2003, so this will be my third year with the team.
Q: How would you describe your job, and what are your main responsibilities within the team?
A: I'm the Operations Manager for the team, which means I'm responsible for everything - or at least that's what it feels like sometimes! I guess you could say that I'm the person who has to ensure that everything runs smoothly. I have to make sure that the guys working in the pit box have everything they need to do their job during a race weekend. I'm also responsible for making sure we have the right people in the right job at the start of the season, and that these people continue to perform throughout the year.
Q: How did you become involved in motorcycle racing?
A: My first involvement was as a racer myself for four or five years, but racing costs money, which I didn't have. What I did have was an impressive list of crash induced injuries, so it didn't take me long to figure out that maybe managing a race team would be a safer occupation for me. So, from 1992 to 2003 I was the manager of my own team in the World Supersport and World Endurance Championships, and then I joined the Kawasaki Racing Team.
Q: What is the biggest difference between running your own team and working for a factory MotoGP team?
A: When I was running my own team I was able to make my own decisions about everything, without having to justify those decisions to anyone else. It is different in a factory team; many people are involved in the decision making process, and sometimes that forces you to compromise in certain areas. When I first joined the Kawasaki Racing Team this was a difficult change to make, but now I can see the advantages of involving more people in important decisions.
Q: What is more important in your job; qualifications or experience?
A: Experience, without a doubt. You cannot learn this job in a school; you can only learn this job through years of working in racing paddocks, picking up information as you go along.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?
A: By far the best thing is the feeling you get when everything goes to plan; when everyone has what they need to do their job and they are enjoying doing it. This is when we see our best results, because everyone is motivated, and it's good to know that you've played a small part in achieving this.
Q: And what is the worst part of your job?
A: The worst part of my job is the time, or rather the amount of time that is wasted explaining and justifying decisions to people who have only a limited understanding of what racing at the very top level entails. This slows down our decision making process. When a quick decision is required then we make it, but then we waste valuable time afterwards, as people outside of the team invariably revisit the decision with the advantage of hindsight. This loses us more time, as we then have to either justify the original decision, or adapt to a different approach imposed on us by someone outside the racing paddock. It's difficult, because the problem of lost time applies to every part of the job, from decisions about the team, to working with outside suppliers, and sometimes, even the development of the bike.
Q: The Kawasaki Racing Team boasts members from every corner of the globe. Is it difficult to coordinate such a varied group of people?
A: Although the official language of the team is English, it's sometimes difficult to get your message across when, like me, English is not your first language. Having said that, communication in the team is pretty good, because everyone makes allowances for differences in language. Such a wide range of nationalities and languages does sometimes make for some very funny emails though!
Q: If you weren't involved in motorcycle racing, what do you think you'd be doing instead?
A: I think I'd be doing the same job I have now, but maybe in a completely different field. The administration and organisation of a race team requires certain skills, and I think those skills are transferable to a non-racing environment - or at least I hope so, otherwise I'll be back fixing peoples roofs when I finish racing!
Q: What, in your opinion is the most important attribute a rider needs if he is to be a World Champion?
A: The most important attribute is self-motivation. Without this a rider will never be World Champion. In fact, if he can't motivate himself, without having to rely on other people to provide incentives, a rider will never make it to Grand Prix, never mind a world championship title.
Q: Who do you think is the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time, and why?
A: He might not have won as many world titles as people like Agostini, but for me the greatest ever Grand Prix rider is Valentino Rossi.
Q: Who is the man to beat in this year's MotoGP World Championship?
A: Again, it has to be Valentino. He had a bad start to the season, and we know he's struggling with a bike that doesn't work as well as others on the grid, but still he came back from a crash in the first round to win the second quite convincingly. He is going to be very hard to beat this year.
Q: You race all over the world, but can you name the capital city of Argentina?
A: I have absolutely no idea. Is it Puerto Rico? No? Okay then what is it? Buenos Aires? Never heard of it.
Q: How long have you been with the Kawasaki Racing Team?
A: I joined Kawasaki at the end of 2003, so this will be my third year with the team.
Q: How would you describe your job, and what are your main responsibilities within the team?
A: I'm the Operations Manager for the team, which means I'm responsible for everything - or at least that's what it feels like sometimes! I guess you could say that I'm the person who has to ensure that everything runs smoothly. I have to make sure that the guys working in the pit box have everything they need to do their job during a race weekend. I'm also responsible for making sure we have the right people in the right job at the start of the season, and that these people continue to perform throughout the year.
Q: How did you become involved in motorcycle racing?
A: My first involvement was as a racer myself for four or five years, but racing costs money, which I didn't have. What I did have was an impressive list of crash induced injuries, so it didn't take me long to figure out that maybe managing a race team would be a safer occupation for me. So, from 1992 to 2003 I was the manager of my own team in the World Supersport and World Endurance Championships, and then I joined the Kawasaki Racing Team.
Q: What is the biggest difference between running your own team and working for a factory MotoGP team?
A: When I was running my own team I was able to make my own decisions about everything, without having to justify those decisions to anyone else. It is different in a factory team; many people are involved in the decision making process, and sometimes that forces you to compromise in certain areas. When I first joined the Kawasaki Racing Team this was a difficult change to make, but now I can see the advantages of involving more people in important decisions.
Q: What is more important in your job; qualifications or experience?
A: Experience, without a doubt. You cannot learn this job in a school; you can only learn this job through years of working in racing paddocks, picking up information as you go along.
Q: What do you enjoy most about your job?
A: By far the best thing is the feeling you get when everything goes to plan; when everyone has what they need to do their job and they are enjoying doing it. This is when we see our best results, because everyone is motivated, and it's good to know that you've played a small part in achieving this.
Q: And what is the worst part of your job?
A: The worst part of my job is the time, or rather the amount of time that is wasted explaining and justifying decisions to people who have only a limited understanding of what racing at the very top level entails. This slows down our decision making process. When a quick decision is required then we make it, but then we waste valuable time afterwards, as people outside of the team invariably revisit the decision with the advantage of hindsight. This loses us more time, as we then have to either justify the original decision, or adapt to a different approach imposed on us by someone outside the racing paddock. It's difficult, because the problem of lost time applies to every part of the job, from decisions about the team, to working with outside suppliers, and sometimes, even the development of the bike.
Q: The Kawasaki Racing Team boasts members from every corner of the globe. Is it difficult to coordinate such a varied group of people?
A: Although the official language of the team is English, it's sometimes difficult to get your message across when, like me, English is not your first language. Having said that, communication in the team is pretty good, because everyone makes allowances for differences in language. Such a wide range of nationalities and languages does sometimes make for some very funny emails though!
Q: If you weren't involved in motorcycle racing, what do you think you'd be doing instead?
A: I think I'd be doing the same job I have now, but maybe in a completely different field. The administration and organisation of a race team requires certain skills, and I think those skills are transferable to a non-racing environment - or at least I hope so, otherwise I'll be back fixing peoples roofs when I finish racing!
Q: What, in your opinion is the most important attribute a rider needs if he is to be a World Champion?
A: The most important attribute is self-motivation. Without this a rider will never be World Champion. In fact, if he can't motivate himself, without having to rely on other people to provide incentives, a rider will never make it to Grand Prix, never mind a world championship title.
Q: Who do you think is the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time, and why?
A: He might not have won as many world titles as people like Agostini, but for me the greatest ever Grand Prix rider is Valentino Rossi.
Q: Who is the man to beat in this year's MotoGP World Championship?
A: Again, it has to be Valentino. He had a bad start to the season, and we know he's struggling with a bike that doesn't work as well as others on the grid, but still he came back from a crash in the first round to win the second quite convincingly. He is going to be very hard to beat this year.
Q: You race all over the world, but can you name the capital city of Argentina?
A: I have absolutely no idea. Is it Puerto Rico? No? Okay then what is it? Buenos Aires? Never heard of it.
