Robert Daley wrote a wonderful book on Formula 1 titled, “The Cruel Sport” and a more appropriate description of motor sports has never been written. We love the speed and grace of racing cars, marvel at the skill of the drivers and mythologize their exploits. And sometimes we are shocked by the violence and cruelty that can befall a person for the simplest mistake on a racetrack. Sadly, this past weekend was one of those times.

I spent this Saturday at Mosport Raceway near Toronto, Canada watching the 29th annual VARAC Vintage Festival. I have become very fond of vintage racing the past couple of years because it’s so accessible and it’s so fantastic to see, hear and touch some legendary cars. This year was no exception and a “Can-Am” theme brought out a number of cars from that famous series.

Near the end of a day of snapping photos track side and wandering the pits and admiring the machinery I met up with Toronto Star columnist, Norris MacDonald. While chatting, we got onto the subject of the ‘old days’ and what is missing from modern racing. We spoke briefly about how the safety of the cars has removed much of the sense of danger from the publics perception of motor sport.

The irony of that conversation left me numb today as I learned of the death of driver Dino Crescentini who was killed Sunday at the wheel of a vintage Walter Wolf Racing sportscar. Only a day earlier I had seen Dino chatting with fans who no doubt shared his passion for racing. My thoughts go out to his family, friends and the racing community.

We’ve seen some devastating accidents in Formula 1, NASCAR and Indy Cars in recent years. Drivers have not only survived but often joke on TV only hours later about their crash. Modern safety standards have sheltered us from a very important fact: racing is dangerous and it will never be completely safe.

Like every race driver, Dino absolutely knew the risks and drove with the knowledge that any moment could be his last.

Mario Andretti remarked after the death of his friend and teammate, Ronnie Peterson, “This also is motor racing.”

It’s a lesson we have too casually forgotten from the safety and comfort of our living rooms.

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There’s been a bit of chat this week about a driver’s strike in Formula 1 - something that hasn’t happened since 1982 when the drivers got together, locked themselves in a bus and decided they weren’t going to race because of proposed clauses in the driver licensing system.  The license system is once more the source of the controversy but this time it’s strictly about money.

The driver’s are facing a 600% increase in the license fee, unilaterally imposed by the FIA.  The driver’s say they have on two occasions attempted to initiate a dialog that might result in a compromise. The FIA has refused to talk but the governing body insists they have not received a firm date from the drivers.  With the process going nowhere, idle chatter has turned to a potential driver’s strike at the British Grand Prix

However, does the Grand Prix Driver’s Association actually have the right to strike?  The short answer is no, but the legal reality is more complicated.

Generally, the right to strike is only available to trade unions.  Professional associations are not labour unions, they are more like special interest groups.  In the case of the GPDA, their primary interest is in safety and in lobbying the FIA to insure cars and tracks meet safety standards and that adequate medical response exists at all venues.  Unlike a union, the GPDA does not negotiate driver contracts, terms of employment or represent the driver in a grievance process with an employer.

Based on this explanation, the GPDA has no legal right to strike because it is not, by definition or actions, a trade union.

If the drivers refuse to race in protest of the licensing fees (as opposed to a safety issue) then they could be terminated by their employers for breach of contract.  Fortunately for the drivers, Formula 1 is a performance based business and the fastest pilots are always in demand. The overpaid or over hyped might find themselves on extended holidays.

The more complicated reality is that the FIA has the ability to act unilaterally with respect to licenses and rules. This situation is not really proving all that helpful to the sport.  The current unrest (this time by the drivers) is yet another sign that the system needs to be changed so that all parties have a say in the governance of the sport.

Sadly, autocratic institutions and their leaders rarely compromise without threats and unrest.  The history of unions is full of such people.

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Santa Claus; The Easter Bunny; musicians who can sing. These are just some of my long held beliefs that have been shattered over the years. Today, another one of those tenets was destroyed (unintentionally) by Dean McNulty of the Toronto Sun.

Dean, who probably mingled with plenty of folks this weekend in Montreal, reported today that a couple of the ‘celeb’s in the paddock were paid for their appearances! My first reaction was shock since I have grown up believing in the glamor and glitz of F1. I bought the story hook line and sinker that Formula 1 was an elite sport for an elite crowd. How wrong I was.

Even more hurtful was the identity of these paid ‘A’ listers - though in my opinion such a term flatters this pair. Montrealers didn’t get Tomkat or Brangelina. Nope, they got Pam Anderson and P Diddy! Apparently they were a steal at $100,000 and $200,000 respectively.

So, is this what F1 has been reduced to - buying tacky celebrity endorsements to perpetuate the illusion of glamor? Is the sport spending good money on cheesy celebs because it can’t draw the A-list? I’m totally disillusioned but a few thousand bucks and a VIP pass to the next race might make me feel just a bit better.

Are you listening Bernie?

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A year ago BMW driver Robert Kubica sat in the wreckage of his car awaiting an airlift to hospital. Today he stood atop the podium, winner of the Canadian Grand Prix. What a difference a year makes.

Kubica has threatened to win several times this season but the overall pace of the McLaren and Ferrari cars has denied BMW and left the team looking to take advantage of a mistake from their rivals. Today, McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton handed them just such an opportunity on a silver platter.

When the safety car was deployed on lap 18 so Adrian Sutil’s car could be removed, the front runners all pitted for fuel and tires. Hamilton, who had led from the start, found himself third when exiting his pit box. In his eagerness to catch up he failed to see the red light at the end of the pit lane that instructs drivers to wait until the safety car has passed before proceeding. He slammed into the back of the stationary Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen. Both drivers were unable to continue.

The melee left Kubica in a great position to win if he could avoid any drama for the rest of the race. Fortunately for Kubica, his only real threat on the track was teammate Nick Heidfeld who was operating on a different fuel strategy.

Predictably, the safety car jumbled the field, putting several faster cars behind slower drivers but both BMW drivers were able to take advantage. Heidfeld stormed off into the lead, able to pit and rejoin the race ahead of his teammate with help from slower cars positioned between them on the track.

Kubica, driving with a lighter fuel load and able to find a faster ultimate pace around the Montreal track jumped past his teammate during his second pit stop. Once the stops were completed by all the drivers, Kubica moved up to first, followed by his teammate to complete a perfect 1-2 finish for BMW.

The race proved to be an opportunity for midfield teams as well. With so many front runners failing to finish, the smaller teams doggedly fought to the flag to the delight of the fans. Red Bull, Toyota, Honda and Torro Rosso all walked away with unexpected spoils.

BMW scored their first win in style with a strong 1-2 finish which catapulted them into second place in the Constructors Championship, three points behind Ferrari. Kubica now finds himself in the lead of the driver’s standings with a third of the season completed.

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Once more, the Canadian Grand Prix produces an historic race and an incredibly unpredictable result.

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Max Mosley rose to power thanks to the support of the smaller FIA Clubs.  It was a canny strategy and completely blindsided then FIA President Jean Marie Balstre who believed his position was secure.  It’s highly probable that the small clubs have once again been there to propel Max past this current political crisis.  Such support usually comes with a price and it seems that the FIA might be paying the bill - literally.

To shed some light on how Mosley got the backing he needed to survive a vote of non-confidence, consider the comments of Dutch motoring body President, Guido Van Woerkom:

• “Corrupt is not the way, I won’t say it. But when you look at the McLaren fine, that is a lot of money, and when you get something from that you are more or less in favour of the people giving you that bread.

What Van Woerkom is talking about is the system whereby national clubs are allocated money by the FIA from it’s coffers for local programs.  Small clubs in particular generate little money on their own and depend on these funds to organize races, promote safety and in some cases, just to survive.  How much money is distributed and to whom is decided by the FIA - in other words by Max.

It’s not difficult to imagine that over the past few weeks many calls we made to these smaller clubs.  The sort of calls that contained a message about the well running dry for them if Max isn’t President. Undoubtedly some got the message.

Others might have been more politically astute and sensed an opportunity to prosper from the situation. Maybe they held out for a political appointment or maybe it was something more basic, like cash.

Interestingly, the FIA just happens to have recently found itself 100 million dollars richer thanks to the McLaren fine.  They even formed a committee to consider how to utilize the money so arguably it can still be used for anything.

In the weeks and months ahead we might well see a number of interesting projects in some obscure parts of the globe.  We’ll never know how each member voted but we do know that 103 of them voted for Mosley.  No doubt he has a few favors to return. And make no mistake, Max would savor the irony of using Ron Dennis’ money to underwrite his own political future.

Funny world where this is not considered bringing the sport into disrepute.

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