The Blue Helmet

"Grand Prix racing is primarily a mental contest... it's a battle of strength of wills by the combatants and a magnificent contest, the arena to display and share unique gifts and talents. Perhaps in this F1 is a metaphor for life itself" - me"The driver is expected to explore the inner places of his desire by taking everything to this limit...to translate it into a sublime peak only he can reach; but the trouble is they're all doing it.... on a narrow ribbon of track, together."- fine...
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"Grand Prix racing is primarily a mental contest... it's a battle of strength of wills by the combatants and a magnificent contest, the arena to display and share unique gifts and talents. Perhaps in this F1 is a metaphor for life itself" - me"The driver is expected to explore the inner places of his desire by taking everything to this limit...to translate it into a sublime peak only he can reach; but the trouble is they're all doing it.... on a narrow ribbon of track, together."- fine writing by Christopher Hilton in his fascinating book 'Inside the Mind of a Grand Prix Driver')"Senna is a genius. I define genius as just the right side of imbalance. He is highly developed to the point where he is almost over the edge. It's a close call."- Senna's great rival for the British F 3 title in his early years, former GP driver and TV commentator, Martin Brundle"If your brain is strong enough and your concentration is good enough, you do the lap time first in the brain and then in your car and in your body. This is something the good drivers can do, but only Ayrton Senna made perfect."- former Sauber driver Karl WendlingerAnd here is four-time world Champion Alain Prost talking about his version of 'hitting the Zone'..."I did almost 200 races in Formula 1 and maybe only four or five times in my career did I really feel this magic experience that the car and you are as one. It s very difficult to explain and when you 're very demanding of yourself, you don't have this kind of experience very often. But at Monaco in 1986 I remember the whole weekend was like this, including the race. I was really flying and I could not see the speed. The speed meant nothing: to me it felt like I was driving at 50kmh.I wouldn' t describe it as a trance, because that implies that you're not in control of everything. In a way it was almost the opposite. Your mind is still focused; but it's really happiness. And you are fast. You know that both you and the car are really under control. Yet you are quick. Even if you decide to go a little bit slower, it doesn't make a big difference, because it is so easy. "- Alain Prost (four-time World Champion driver)From www.grandprix.com and/or www.overdrivef1.com/news.html * "The Zone could simply be a gateway to the divine, one of God's methods of reminding us of His - and our - glorious power. Omnipresence means that power must be everywhere, everytime. Including the racetracks. Including today."- powerful writing from Clyde Brolin in his great book 'Overdrive: Formula One in the Zone'Website www.overdrivef1.com"The untapped potential in every human being is limitless: we are perfectly capable of producing, all by ourselves, true magic."- more great writing from Clyde Brolin from 'Overdrive'14 May 1988 QUALIFYING FOR MONACO GRAND PRIXThe spine tingling spectacle of the late Ayrton Senna on a qualifying lap provided some of the most thrilling moments in the history of the sport. There has never been a faster driver over a single lap - his record of 65 pole positions is unlikely to ever be broken - nor has anyone thought so deeply about it. When he talked about his memorable lap, the one that left the most indelible impression on his exceptional mind, Senna's eyes shone with a faraway look and his voice quavered with intensity..."Suddenly I realised that I was no longer driving the car consciously. I was kind of driving by instinct, only I was in a different dimension. I was way over the limit; but still I was able to find even more. It frightened me, because I realised I was well beyond my conscious understanding."- "the late, great" Ayrton Senna* from 'FORMULA 1: The Autobiography 'Thanks for the great gift, dad. Bet you'd love to read my new book, this "true labour of love".I 've been studying, researching and writing about your intriguing book for the past few months. Thanks so much for sharing the inspiration, Clydecraig #