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Post by Jamie on Aug 2, 2018 16:39:42 GMT
Hi all, Got home today to find my copy of Jim's 'At the Wheel' book has been delivered - I'm a happy chappie. This is the 1965 updated version that Ive been looking for for a while, I already have the 64 version but really wanted this one to see what he has to say about Indy. Managed to get it for a good price on ebay, I've been looking for quite some time but its always been ridiculously expensive.....this one wasn't đ I know what I'm doing this evening
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Post by chrisb on Aug 2, 2018 21:03:33 GMT
nice one Jamie, i don't think i realised there was an updated version - enjoy!
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Post by René on Aug 3, 2018 8:30:02 GMT
Nice find Jamie! Probably with an original 1960's musty smell by the looks of it!
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Post by Jamie on Aug 3, 2018 14:51:17 GMT
Nice find Jamie! Probably with an original 1960's musty smell by the looks of it! Absolutely right RenĂ©.....Iâm surprised my wife lets me have it in the house đ
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Post by charleselan on Aug 3, 2018 15:01:41 GMT
Bet you didn't pay 3/6d for it though Jamie . Great find however and really smashing to get something like this book.
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Post by robmarsh on Aug 4, 2018 6:36:25 GMT
Great find Jamie, I never knew that book existed until now.
My copy of John Barnard's book arrived this week. It looks good and I was quite surprised at how thick it was. Looking forward to starting it.
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Post by Jamie on Aug 4, 2018 7:09:14 GMT
Hi Rob,
I thought the Barnard book was very good and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Itâs written by a chap with no real racing background so some of the wording is a little âfleet streetâ at times i.e. John is cast as the Brit against the world sometimes where his being a Brit is irrelevant...,itâs more John and his peculiar ways clashing with anyone and everyone. That doesnât detract from it at all though and is a minor criticism.
It doesnât shy away from discussing Johnâs somewhat abrasive nature and makes it clear that it has probably prevented him from achieving his ultimate potential in terms of results, which is good I think - I donât think the book would have been anywhere near as good if it was just a John Barnard love in. It doesnât discuss the drivers he worked with in great detail although you are left in no doubt that Prost was his favourite. Some of the barbs directed towards De Cesaris are unwarranted and unnecessary in my opinion. Sure, JB and Ron Dennis did not rate him and didnât want him but I feel the author was harsh on Andrea in the book......calling his record for the most starts without a win âembarrassingâ for instance. Having a long lived GP career is hardly embarrassing and I found some of the language used disrespectful where it wasnât at all warranted.....the âfleet streetâ part again. I know the author was trying to give JBâs perspective but it was a little tasteless in light of Andreaâs passing.
Anyway, not to dwell on that part it was a very good read. Blimey though......genius as he was, I could never of worked for him...the people who did deserve sainthood đ
The periods about working for Ferrari were really interesting. Itâs interesting to see that he and others admit that trying to run an Italian based operation from the UK wasnât going to work long term but Johnâs desire to go home and be with the family for lunch was such a strong compulsion that they had to cede to his wishes if they wanted his expertise. Thatâs got to be admired in my book - he really did it his way and it ultimately hampered his efforts but there was never any compromise...... Really good to hear Ron Dennisâ take on things as well.
Iâd be interested to see what you think Rob đ
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Post by chrisb on Aug 4, 2018 10:56:21 GMT
thanks Jamie, an excellent review that provides a pretty good understanding of this book, that i haven't rushed to buy and am still reluctant to look at getting, the team at that stage and the personel were not my cup-of-tea and i never took to Barnard but i am intrigued nonetheless
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Post by Deleted on Aug 4, 2018 12:20:30 GMT
Really good to hear Ron Dennisâ take on things as well.
No books on Ron Dennis. I suppose nobody is brave enough to tackle that. A shame.
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Post by Carl on Aug 4, 2018 21:27:53 GMT
Really good to hear Ron Dennisâ take on things as well.
No books on Ron Dennis. I suppose nobody is brave enough to tackle that. A shame.
Although presented as about human delusion in general, "Facing the Dragon: Confronting Personal and Spiritual Grandiosity" by Robert Moore and Max J Havlick may have been written with Ron Dennis and libel laws in mind.
"Ron Dennis is marvelously grandiose. Nearly as deluded as Donald Trump, he lacks only a great hairstyle."
- Boris Johnson
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Post by Deleted on Aug 5, 2018 0:59:55 GMT
The periods about working for Ferrari were really interesting. Itâs interesting to see that he and others admit that trying to run an Italian based operation from the UK wasnât going to work long term but Johnâs desire to go home and be with the family for lunch was such a strong compulsion that they had to cede to his wishes if they wanted his expertise. Thatâs got to be admired in my book - he really did it his way and it ultimately hampered his efforts but there was never any compromise...⊠I found this morning on another forum this interview to Jean Alesi, with an interesting passage on Barnard, which I have translated. champion-magazine.fr/projet/jean-alesi-legende-urbaine/His comment on Brunnerâs contribution, that is how I recall it was reported at the time.
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Post by chrisb on Aug 5, 2018 5:59:58 GMT
sorry Carl, are we saying Ron or Boris the Bodger Johnson are as deluded as Mr Trump - that is whilst we await the Bodger's attempt to sieze power in the UK, emigration from the UK is rapidly gaining momentum
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Post by Carl on Aug 5, 2018 6:09:34 GMT
sorry Carl, are we saying Ron or Boris the Bodger Johnson are as deluded as Mr Trump - that is whilst we await the Bodger's attempt to sieze power in the UK, emigration from the UK is rapidly gaining momentum Chris,
Although others may be as destructive of national unity and civil discourse, no-one on earth is as deluded as Donald Trump, Boris Johnson's opinion notwithstanding.
A wave of incredible stupidity as absurd as low-budget 1950s science-fiction with Trump as a pompadoured Godzilla has swept across much of the democratic western world and may get worse before getting better.
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Post by Jamie on Aug 5, 2018 8:14:43 GMT
The periods about working for Ferrari were really interesting. Itâs interesting to see that he and others admit that trying to run an Italian based operation from the UK wasnât going to work long term but Johnâs desire to go home and be with the family for lunch was such a strong compulsion that they had to cede to his wishes if they wanted his expertise. Thatâs got to be admired in my book - he really did it his way and it ultimately hampered his efforts but there was never any compromise...⊠I found this morning on another forum this interview to Jean Alesi, with an interesting passage on Barnard, which I have translated. champion-magazine.fr/projet/jean-alesi-legende-urbaine/His comment on Brunnerâs contribution, that is how I recall it was reported at the time. Yes, there is a piece on this in the book and it was indeed Brunner who modified the car to fix it. This was a classic example of why trying to run the technical department so far from Maranello would ultimately fail. The original car had a small neat sidepod that was supposed to be zero drag (or something) and the engine kept overheating, Todt tasked GB with modifying the car to sort this out with Barnard agreeing as they couldnât find the problem. Apparently the problem was something to do with engine coolant flow which was only found out later when they actually measured it. JBâs fault really because, had he been in Maranello, he could of got in there and found the problem but he was very reluctant to get involved with the tech teams over there. It was a failing and the book doesnât shy away from that. I think his second period at Ferrrai was just a marriage of coveiniance after the Benneton debacle and it was never going to work with him baseing himself in England. His opinion was that all the technical support and expertise is around me here in southern England and I can go home for lunch đ That may of been a better way back in the late eighties when he changed things and made them better against much resistance but to assume that he needed to do it again for his second stint was a cock up in my opionion. To have made his second stint work he should have based himself at the factory and intergrated better with the team but his stubbornness meant this was never going to happen and the 1994 car is probably a prime example of that decision making the car less competitive than it should have been. The internal politics of the team at the time ensured that this was doomed to fail. Itâs hardly surprising that the tech teams in Maranello bristled at the disrespectful way Barnard dealt with them. What were the Ferrari management thinking of as well? They wanted Barnardâs expertise sure, but when he insisted on operating far away from the factory they should have forced his hand and made him relocate or walked away and found someone else. The whole thing was a mess, but itâs intersting to read nevertheless. Obviously Jean wasnât a fan and I think it mentions in the book that Todt had to stop him from going to the press complaining about the car. Something about the suspension âflexuresâ I recall. It really is a good book because it doesnât just propose that Barnard was always right and always the best. His errors of judgement and abrasive nature are given equal billing with his undoubted brilliance. I think from reading the book that both of JBâs periods at Ferrari were poorly handled on both sides, it was never going to work long term that way. On the flip side he did get the engineering side of the team back on track in his first stint and made Ferrari the innovator again, the 640/641 must surely be regarded as one of the best Ferrari cars of all time. On a side note, Jean Alesi was an enigma wasnât he? I remember well his breakthrough season at Tyrell when he was simply amazing and everyone thought he would be a definite World Champion, he looked fantastic. And then it all just sort of stalled and he was mediocre for most of his career?? Strange.
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Post by René on Aug 5, 2018 10:00:34 GMT
no-one on earth is as deluded as Donald Trump There must be someone Carl? Someone, somewhere? No?
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