Airport security.....or stupidity

I thought I would share this story, taken from an English newspaper. It highlights the absurdity of the most annoying part of my job which is having to pass through AIRPORT SECURITY. I could write so many words to express my feelings but it is probably better for you to read the story and draw your own conclusions.
The level of stupidity of these people who conduct the so called security checks is summed up beautifully in this story..........



QUOTE.......
It was supposed to be a birthday surprise for his son – but a Wiggles the Caterpillar cake led to an airport security alert as the surprised father was bundled away by armed guards.
Justin Barrett was asked to remove his clothing and was given a through  body search after security staff mistook the supermarket cake for a bomb.
The 41-year-old told yesterday how he was about to fly out with the cake for his son Freddie’s ninth birthday in Spain, where the youngster was on holiday with the rest of his family.
He said: ‘I had the cake in my hand luggage and customs asked to check inside after it had passed through the x-ray machine.
To the officer’s surprise there was a chocolate Caterpillar cake in the bag. He then swabbed the inside of the bag and put it into a machine.
That’s when it ended up going bleep and the customs officer said it had found traces of explosives. They took me to a room and began a thorough search of my body.’
When they realised it was just a cake, Mr Barrett was allowed to go to join his wife and children who had flown out to Alicante a week earlier.
The cause of the positive test was attributed to acetate in the plastic wrapping on the cake box, which can show up on certain airport sensors.

Mr Barrett, who works in the security industry himself, added: ‘I offered them a piece of the cake, but they said I could save it for my son. At least I didn’t have to explain a half-eaten cake to him.’
An airport security spokesman said: ‘While some completely innocent items can trigger the alarms, our overriding priority is to provide a safe and secure airport for passengers and staff.’

                                         YOU JUST COULD NOT MAKE IT UP !!!!!

WTCC Calendar 2013.......Version2.2

It doesn’t matter how many years you have been in motorsport, jet lag will still treat you the same as it treats someone who has just started in this business. It’s a silent voice in your head that wakes you up at 4am when you arrive at a race and tells your eyelids to start growing heavy at 4pm. Obviously that is not an option so you just have to work through it. I’m reliably informed that you get back one hour of time difference per day when you are abroad and the same when you get back home.
Despite my frequent travels, I now have very bad jet lag from my trip to the USA and also have a horrible cough and cold which I have brought back home with me, I am already useing my second box of tissues and my nose is very sore.

I have just seen a revised calendar for next year and it has put a smile on my face. Version1.1 was definitely not attractive to me and the other Truckies.

Please read this blog entry;  http://racetruckie.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/41300-kilometres-and-counting.html

I am praying that the first race in Spain will be at a different track, not Valencia, for the sake of the fans more than anyone else. And it looks like we will be doing 13 races rather than the 12 in this years calendar. Where we could possibly go to between Italy and Slovakia? I really do not know.
The gap between Portugal and Brazil does seem rather a long time but the Italian(organisers), do seem to like their holidays!
Also, Shanghai seems to be before Suzuka.?????? I think that this is a typing error on the FIA website which is where I got my information.
The present world economy is a major consideration when it comes the WTCC calendar. Spain and Portugal seem to be in the news everyday, concerning their economic status. The rest of Europe is not in a brilliant position either. The cost involved for the teams, the organisers, the circuits and the television company is HUGE. And whilst I know that the WTCC is still gaining momentum around the world, everybody is struggling to find the money to go racing. This has been very noticeable in the paddock this year. Teams have not been spending as much money on new equipment, wheel rims, bodywork, tyres for testing, boarding for the garages, etc. Motor sport is one of the last businesses to suffer when a recession happens and it is the last to get back on its feet when the economy picks up again.
Anything that the Truckies can suggest to help their respective teams save money for next years racing will definitely help. When it comes to the logistics of moving everything around, we have a much better understanding than maybe someone sat in an office in the teams factory.

10/03 SPAIN.....to be confirmed
24/03 ITALY Monza
07/04 ?????.....to be confirmed
28/04 SLOVAKIA Slovakiaring
05/05 HUNGARY Hungaroring
19/05 AUSTRIA Salzburgring
09/06 RUSSIA Moscow Raceway
30/06 PORTUGAL Porto
21/07 BRAZIL Curitiba
15/09 USA Sonoma
13/10 CHINA Shanghai    I SUSPECT THIS SHOULD SAY SUZUKA !!!!!!!!!
27/10 JAPAN Suzuka       
17/11 MACAU Macau

I am sure that the WTCC calendar, Version3.3 will not be too far away. In the meantime, I just want to get rid of my cold and cough with some pills and vitamin C.

Statistics do not lie.

There is a saying in English, "BLOW YOUR OWN TRUMPET"
If someone blows their own trumpet, they boast about their talents and achievements.
I started this blog with the intentions of giving you a behind the scenes look at the life of a Truckie in the WTCC. It was not meant to be anything more than a written journal of what we do for a living. But I have been amazed at the interest that you have shown. The statistics that I get from Google have shown that the interest has gathered speed as each month has passed. The readers of my blog come from all over the world with many of you signing up for email notifications, every time I post something new.
I can see that Internet Explorer is the No.1 browser that you use, closely followed by Firefox and Safari.
Windows is the No.1 operating system and Android is No.2. The amount of people using a smart phone to view my blog is increasing all the time. Iphone is No.3
Referrals to my blog seem to come from Facebook and Twitter. Hopefully this is because you are finding my blog interesting.
The UK is where most of my page views come from but I suppose this can be expected as I write in English. Surprisingly, Russia is No.3 so I can only say that there are many fans of WTCC there and if we race there next year, I think we will have many spectators turn up.
Recently, the amount of views coming from the USA, actually exceeded the UK. It will be interesting to see if these figures remain high now that we have raced there.
The Translator option does get used very often and I hope that the people using it can still get a good understanding of what I am writing about. A mechanical translation is never perfect but should enable the reader to understand 70-80%. I have found that in my years of travelling around the world that more and more people speak some English. In an ideal world, we should all be able to communicate in a single language but for those of you that use the translator, I hope that it helps you understand me.
As the WTCC is coming close to its end of season conclusion, I aim to show you more interesting aspects of what the Truckies do using more video and hopefully telling a better story than I can ever do with words.

THANK YOU TO YOU ALL.

Sonoma update and High Definition video.

Washing area at the side of the garages

I thought that I would give you all an update on this weekend,s race at Sonoma, USA.

The Truckies and teams had a hard job to get everything loaded and put back in the containers so that they were ready to be collected and taken to the port at 0600 hours on Monday morning. The next stop for the containers is a 5000 mile journey fom Oakland to Kobe, Japan.


A couple of irritating problems for the Truckies were the wash facilities and trying to establish a good TV connection.
An attempt was made by the circuit concerning the wheel washing issue. Large metal washtubs were placed at the side of each block of garages. Apparently, there were enviromental issues regarding allowing the water to go into the drain system so we were forced to use the washtubs. This was ok for the teams who were close to them but not very good for the teams at the far side of each garage block.

Another BIG problem was the live television feed and timing screen feed to the garages and the pit lane area. Considering we were racing in the land where TV is KING. it was diabolical. I do not know how the circuit normally provides TV to the other races that they hold here but if we come to Sonoma again, I think this will the first thing that they have to put right.
I was hoping that I could include some pictures of big American trucks but the support racers did not have the money for this sort of equipment. I did manage to take pictures of one truck that was there. This was wrapped in carbon fibre effect, vinyl graphics. The total length of the truck and trailer was 76 ft.(23 metres) in length. In Europe, this would have not been able to use our smaller roads. Our trucks and trailers are 16.5 metres long. Also, in some states in America, they can drive at 85-90 MPH(140 KMH) In Europe, we are limited to 90KMH. The rules regarding the hours that a driver can do are totally different to European rules. Here, they can drive for one hour, take a 15 minute break, and then carry on driving for up to a total of 11 hours. In Europe, we also have a digital or analogue tachograph to monitor our driving time. In America, it is just a hand written, log book.

The only American race truck at Sonoma

American truck drivers log book

Inside the truck, the driver has a much more spacious sleeping area but, in my opinion, the layout around the drivers seat does not look as well designed as the trucks we have in Europe.

On the Saturday, I spent a long time taking video, with the aim of showing you how far the teams were having to move all of the cars and equipment to the pit lane. Unfortunately, I am totally new to this and did not have the video set to record in HIGH DEFINITION.
WHAT A FOOL I AM !!!!
On Sunday, I tried again, and I have included this video of my efforts. I decided not to try and edit the video, in case I messed everything up again. My apologies if it looks rough and amateurish , but I think you will get a good idea of the distance that the teams had to walk and hard work that they had to do this weekend.

I spent a long time talking to Paul(GIGAWAVE) and also to Stephen(INFINITIS). They gave me some very good ideas of how I can use the video to produce some very different camera angles and hopefully, before the season ends, I will be able to post some better video clips for you to watch.

Next race for the Truckies will be in Japan and I will be updating my blog again from there. As I am typing this, I have just found out that my return flight home has been delayed. It is at times like this that I miss my truck and I just wish that I could get in it, start it up and drive home.

Sonoma Sunshine

The view towards the Sonoma hills

After arriving at San Francisco Airport, I have to catch the monorail train which takes me from the International Terminal, and  finishes its journey at the rental car desks. Whilst collecting the hire car that has been booked, I am already being asked whether I would like a bigger vehicle for the same price.  

OKAY....SUPER SIZE ME !

A pleasant drive from the airport, through the park area and across the Golden Gate bridge towards San Rafael and I arrive at my hotel, which is approximately 20 minutes drive from the Sonoma circuit. I have been trying to stay awake to avoid any jet lag. This seems to have worked as I managed to get a good nights sleep and feel okay when I woke up the next morning. The containers arrived at the back end of last week and are already on the ground, lined up and ready for the teams. Several teams have arrived before us and have started the arduous task of unloading the containers and setting up the garages.

Sidelifter container rig

Containers at Sonoma

As I expected, the team garages are some distance from the pit lane area and will mean that it is essential to make sure that everything is taken to the pit lane area when the cars are on track. i  measured the distance from the team garages to their allocated space in the pit lane and it was approximately 227 metres(745 ft).

THAT IS A LONG WAY TO HAVE TO MOVE SO MUCH EQUIPMENT AND TOOLS.

Also, the issue of electric power supply is currently being sorted out and the local electrians have been very, very busy locating large generators behind the garages and also in the pit lane area. They have managed to supply the teams with a 400 volt, 3 phase power supply, by turning down the output from the generators and they have also provided us with a 240 volt single phase. This single phase supply is making some equipment sound a little bit strange as it is running on a 60Hz cycle. Normally, in Europe, it is 50Hz. But.....everything is working as it should and the electricians have done an amazing job.

Generators being set up behind the garages

Pit lane area in front of the main grandstand

 One thing that is missing in the garage area is a water supply. How are the truckies meant to wash the wheels? The toilet blocks are some distance from the team garages and this means that buckets of water will have fetched and carried and just makes the job much more difficult.
This may seem like a silly point to make but presentation is very important at WTCC level and to have cars going on track with dirty wheels and rims is not good for the overall appearance of the car.
I think that European circuits have a much better layout than Sonoma. The concept of having garages that are some distance from the pit lane is strange. It obviously suits the different American racing formats but makes so much extra work for the WTCC.
With plenty of sunshine forecast, it will be interesting to see how many people turn up this weekend and appreciate all the hard work and effort done by the organisers, the teams, the circuit and everyone else involved.

Garages being set up at Sonoma

                                    Here is a video I took of the circuit from a golf buggy. ENJOY.

I have just received a video from Brent at Kiwi containers. They were involved in bringing the containers to Sonoma and it will give you a good idea of how their truck drivers move the containers around.

02/10/2012 N 07°06' W 080°42 Panama Canal

Gatun Lock, Panama Canal

Ships position 07/10/2012

As I am typing this, the WTCC containers have travelled through the Panama Canal and are on the last part of their journey to the USA.
I have managed to get a web cam screen shot as the ship passes through one of the locks.(it is the Hapag Lloyd ship in the picture). I spent a lot of time tracking this ship and constantly checking the web cam until I finally managed to get this.

I MUST BE MAD !!!!


Elsewhere in the world of the Truckies, various teams have been testing at Vallelunga, Brands Hatch, Slovakia Ring and Magny Cours.
Engine tests, suspension tests and for the new Honda WTCC team, testing a complete new car.
 
I would also like to thank Paul from  Racingage.com who helped us out by supplying one of his excellent tyre inflation cages at very short notice. This allowed us to meet the very strict Health and Safety regulations when working in the UK.
So as the season continues in two weeks time, I will have chance to update my blog more often and give you something interesting to read. Personally I am looking forward to seeing my Truckie friends again rather than just sending SMS and emails. I am also hopeing that we all get easily through the American immigration controls which I have experienced before.

Racingage.com inflation cage

UPDATE 12/09/2012
It looks like our containers have arrived in Oakland, USA.
HELLO AMERICA

Destination Oakland

Race Circuit Electrics....around the world.

Race truck office

Engineers area in race truck

On our travels around the world, the first thing when we arrive in the garages is sort out the electric power supply for our teams equipment and also for the trucks. I will start first with power needed for the trucks. Whilst some of the race trucks are fitted with generators, we cannot have these running all the time so we need to connect to a mains power supply. This is so that the lighting inside the truck can be used and also for office lighting(some trucks have lovely offices in them). Obviously there may be the need to use the race truck as a workshop so wall sockets for power tools, laptops, TV,s etc. will be required.

Portimao electrics with race truck supply plugged in.

You may have noticed that there is normally a thick electrical cable, on the ground, between the truck and the garage. This will be our power supply to the race truck.

Please try not to trip over it as many people do !!!!

Race truck tail lift and hand control

This will normally be a 3 phase cable, 440V ,32 or 64 amps and will have a large red coloured plug on it. Some teams will use a single phase cable, 220-240V 16amps which has a blue plug on it. This electrical supply can also be used to provide power for the tail lift at the rear of the truck

Once we have power to the truck, we can now
 turn our attention to the garages.

Tyre warmers need power.....and lots of it.

We need to find a way of dividing the electrical supply to provide enough power for additional lighting, laptops, mobile phones, TV,s electrical chargers for wheel nut guns, electronic set up scales, wheel aligning equipment, even fridges and water coolers and most important of all, tyre warmers. If the team has the money, they may have 3 sets of warmers for slicks and 3 sets for wet tyres. Some teams will even have 4 sets of each. And that is just for 1 car. When all of these tyre warmers are switched on, there is a very high current and if the electrical system is not suitable, too many amps can be drawn through the system and trip fuses in the main power supply boxes will shut the whole garage down.

NOT WHAT YOU NEED JUST BEFORE QUALIFYING OR A RACE.

It is the job of the Truckies to set up and distribute the power when it is needed most and in the safest way possible. Some circuits we visit, have very poor electrics and teams may have to use the generators which are fitted to the tyre trolleys. Or if there are not enough garages to give to each car, the teams may have to run 2 cars in each garage. THEN IT CAN GET VERY DIFFICULT. The Truckies will have to use every means possible to ensure that they have enough electricity. Sometimes, we will even have to plug electrics into another teams garage. Thankfully, this is rarely needed. There are formulae to calculate power requirements, Volts x Amps = Watts. But we do seem to find that plug it in, turn it on and see what happens works best. We can also encounter different voltages and amps in the countries we visit. The most common is 220-230V around European circuits but we also have to deal with 110V in Brazil, USA and Japan. Then we have to rely on big generators that the circuits will arrange for us.

Monza garage electrics

Curitiba garage electrics......no good

Generators at Curitiba......Yes please

Electrical boxes set up to provide power for tyre warmers

This job of adequate electrical supply is yet another unseen part of a race teams preparations and yet another job that is normally performed by the Truckies. Some circuits are great, there will be more than enough power supply for everything. But as you can see, at other circuits, we have to be innovative and manage as best as we can.

Fun with an electrical socket

WTCC 2013 Calendar - 41300 kilometres and counting....

A list of possible race tracks that the WTCC could be visiting next year means some forward planning for the Truckies. I have just added up the distance, and even travelling from circuit to circuit, it comes to approximately 41300 kilometres.
Obviously all the teams will have to drive to the 1st race in Monza and then the teams will return to their factories. This process will be repeated for all of the European rounds of the WTCC. Maybe some teams will not bother going back home between some events but I think you can see that we will do alot of travelling next year.

Provisional Calendar for 2013 WTCC Season
10th March - Monza, Italy
24th March - To Be Confirmed, Spain
7th April - Marrakech, Morocco
28th April - Slovakiaring, Slovak Republic
5th May - Hungaroring, Hungary
19th May - Salzburgring, Austria
9th June - Moscow Raceway, Russia
30th June - Porto, Portugal
28th July - Curitiba, Brazil
22nd September - Sonoma Raceway, USA
20th October - Suzuka, Japan
3rd November - Shanghai, China
17th November - Macau, China

From a personal point of view, I hope that the KSO (WTCC organisers) can find another venue in Spain, other than Valencia.
As for Morocco, I know that all the Truckies will be very upset when they see that we have to visit here again. I have already voiced my opinions, in my previous blog posts, about Morocco. If it was possible, I would like to see everything put in containers and sent there. Unfortunately, this is logistically and financially impossible. Maybe I could email the King of Morocco, get him to read my blog and make our lives easier.
After the Porto race, I expect we will load up the containers in Portugal to be sent by ship to Brazil. I think this will be a very tight schedule to keep as it is 8200 kilometres between the two circuits. If a container ship moves at 20-25 knots, that is 177 hours at sea or just over a week. I know that they travel even slower through busy shipping lanes. Add that to loading and unloading times, customs clearance and road travel. I will have to talk with DHL to get a clearer picture of this matter as my calculations could be wrong.

One of the better roads in Russia on the way to the circuit. M9 Riga Mototorway

Inside view of Moscow Raceway garage

Driving to Moscow could be interesting as I am certain that the Russian roads are going to destroy tyres and suspension units if the Truckies are not careful. At least the weather should be warmer in June when we go to Russia. Some fellow Truckies were in Russia this year for the Renault World Series so I will be getting as much useful information from them as I can. You can access the circuit from two directions(see pictures)

Sign from Volokololamsk Motorway direction

I highlighted in an earlier post about the distance we travel, using trucks, boats and planes and I can feel another massive carbon footprint happening in 2013. Can motorsport EVER be enviromentally friendly??

Sonoma paddock area. Good or bad??

I arrived back home with jet lag after a long, uncomfortable flight from Brazil. I would just like to thank Renate, who works for DHL, for being a superb travelling companion and making the flight time a little more enjoyable.

Cars under tents, Puebla

I have been trying to get some information on the USA race at Sonoma as I am having flashback memories of the races which were held at Puebla, Mexico, a few years ago. Due to the circuit layout, the garages were no where near the pit lane area. The cars, tyres, toolboxes, air bottles and everything else needed by the teams, had to be taken approximately 200-300 metres to the tents in the pit lane. The whole team was forced to carry something to the pit area, secretaries and team managers included. If a car came into the pits and needed a spare part during practice, qualifying or even the race, if you did not have it with you, the fastest runner from the team was sent back to the garages to collect it and get back as soon as possible. To try to bring enough spares for every eventuality was impossible and could potentially prevent the car from getting quickly, back on the track. And for the poor guy who has to do the running, a sweaty pair of work clothes was his reward !!!!

View from the garage area towards the tents in the pit lane, Puebla

Garages in Puebla.

Due to the American tracks normally having a NASCAR style pit lane, I think we will find ourselves in this same situation again. When the teams are so used to working out of garages, except in Macau, it can be a major challenge for everyone to adapt to this new situation. Macau is not so bad as it is only a short distance back through the paddock area to the team garages. And we also have access to some power supply for the tyre warmers. In Puebla, we had been provided with large generators and we also had the generators which are mounted on the tyre trollies to supply electricity. Will we encounter the same at Sonoma?
Hopefully, I will get this information back from the circuit when they reply to my email.

Due to the short duration of the WTCC races, the importance of speed when the cars are in the pit lane cannot be be emphasised enough. The Truckies will have to ensure that all of the necessary equipment is available. Also, the Truckies are the ones in the teams who act as store men. They should have a good knowledge of where everything is kept in the garages. So when the runner is sent back to the garage, he can be told exactly where to locate a nut, bolt or body panel.
The containers are now on their way from Brazil to the USA and August is a time for a longer break in the WTCC calendar. Although I have just heard that one team is already testing a car this week. I hope it all goes well guys! For everyone else, it is a chance to take some time off work, go on holiday or spend time with the family.

Changing into overalls, Puebla.

UPDATE..........................
Well, it looks like the team garages are a distance away frome the pit lane area so we will be forced to move everything like we did in Puebla. Apparently generators are available for electricity but I am sure that they will be 110-120v. This may cause us problems as the teams are used to running on european voltage which is 220-240v. It is possible to rewire a 110v, split phase generator to give 220v. We have done this in Japan.  But his will only work if the 110v live wires are out of phase.
This sort of problem is one that the Truckies encounter and once again, a good Truckie will be the one who can find a way to work round this.

WTCC Containers and Electronic Tracking Devices

When the cars and equipment are loaded in the race trucks, the teams can rely on the Truckies, to transport everything safely. ITS WHAT WE ARE VERY GOOD AT !!

Tracking device fitted to a container door.

But after we have loaded the containers in Antwerp and ensured that everything is safe and secured with ratchet straps, how do we know what happens next? The answer is the Electronic Tracking Device.
DHL have fitted these to the containers and everything is monitored in real time.
Maybe the truck driver, taking the container to the port, is driving like a maniac and does not realise that his hard braking and fast cornering can damage this expensive cargo. Or the crane driver, lifting and lowering the containers, is giving them a rather hard landing. Even the boat could hit a storm at sea, causing the containers to move violently.

This week, in Brazil, we have all opened the doors to our containers and hoped that nothing has moved or been damaged. DHL and Weitracon are there to help us assess and advise the teams if anything has happened.

When I started this blog, my first story was titled, "Stick it in a box, and open after Christmas"
This may have given you, the reader, the impression that we just load up and forget about what happens.

But all the Truckies ARE worried. When the

A damaged castor is repaired

containers are opened, something catastrophic may greet us. The tracking devices can be used as evidence if any insurance claims are necessary and have to be made.

Castor wheels, which are fitted to tyre trolleys, Lista cases and tool boxes, can be particularly vulnerable to collapsing. In an ideal world, you should put blocks of wood under everything so that the wheels are not touching the floor of the containers. But a limited space in the container means that this is not always physically possible.

The Truckies put a lot of love into loading containers and we would like all of that love back when we open them !!!!!!!

You can see from the screen shots, the sort of information that is recorded whilst the containers are being moved. After this weekends racing, the containers will be loaded again, travel by road to Paranagua,Brazil, put on to a ship and slowly make their way to San Francisco, via the Panama Canal.
And when the containers arrive in the USA, the Truckies will repeat this weeks process and get everything ready again.
 

The containers can take up to 3 hours to be loaded after the race. Most teams make a plan of how everything fits neatly inside and this is a chance for a Truckie to take charge and supervise the team members whilst the containers are loaded. It is no good if the Truckies are inside the containers. They should be outside, deciding which boxes go in first, where they are positioned and how they should be secured. I have seen the mayhem caused when this rule is not observed. Nobody knows which box to bring, where it goes and you just end up with a big, big mess.

To move the WTCC around the world, takes approximately 30 containers with over 200 tons of cars and equipment inside. WEITRACON and DHL are vital to the teams and highly respected by the Truckies. They advise the Truckies with regard to customs paperwork, dangerous goods and how they should be labelled and packaged, safe loading practices, and seem to be able to answer all of our questions, no matter how big or small.
They are also the ones who ensure that forklifts, car ramps, and additional loading personnel are always available at each race track. The Truckies know that their job would be much more time consuming, chaotic and extremely difficult without this help.

Personally, I think it is such a shame that we cannot bring the race trucks to all the races. The sight of a paddock, with all of the trucks lined up, is all part of the motor sport show. In Formula 1, Bernie Ecclestone knows the amazing effect that the trucks can make in a paddock. Most of the times, the hospitality areas look directly at the trucks, and that is where the "money men" and the "beautiful people" spend their time. But the logistics and costs to take race trucks to races around the world exceeds even the huge amounts of money which is available and is spent in Formula 1. And the WTCC, definitely........ doesn,t have the money. Some of the countries that the WTCC visits are denied this part of the "show" and it is such a great shame for motor sport fans, and the circuit owners. I would love to drive on Brazilian roads or even have to slow down to negotiate some of the huge potholes that exist on China,s road system. But it will never happen. All the Truckies can do, is try to imagine that the containers are like our race trucks and make sure everything inside, stays undamaged, while they are moved around the globe.

Checking the steel cables that will support the weight of each container when it is lifted

A crane in the Curitiba paddock, ready to remove the containers