Fondness for 1994?

[entropy]

If you take away the events of the San Marino GP and the perhaps some of the controversies does anyone still have a fondness for 1994?

This came about mainly through staying up all night playing Grand Prix 2 and remembering the excitement of Senna driving for Williams, Senna vs Schumi at Brazil; MTV and Russel Athletic sponsoring Simtek; not to mention it was a formative time for me with music listening.

[Muzzer79]

I don’t remember that year particularly fondly tbh.

Senna and Ratzenberger’s deaths, obviously

But then the knee jerk safety reaction into hastily designed car modifications which were ugly and not particularly efficient

Benetton cheating

And, finally, Schumacher robbing Hill of the title with the first of many dodgy moves.

[Sandpit Steve]

Muzzer79 said:

I don’t remember that year particularly fondly tbh.

Senna and Ratzenberger’s deaths, obviously

But then the knee jerk safety reaction into hastily designed car modifications which were ugly and not particularly efficient

Benetton cheating

And, finally, Schumacher robbing Hill of the title with the first of many dodgy moves.

All of that, plus Jos Verstappen getting roasted in the pit lane. Not the best of years.

They did sound better than the current cars though.

[FourWheelDrift]

Karl Wendlinger's nasty crash at Monaco, the race straight after Imola, that essentially finished his career.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6MAzJLMNaM

[HardtopManual]

Not particularly. Schumacher cheating his way to the title by taking out Hill being the crowning turd on a stty season.

[FourWheelDrift]

And not forgetting the 4 car crash that could have killed Martin Brundle in Brazil - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1imC4RvJg80

1994 was a terrible year and could have been a lot worse.

[LaurasOtherHalf]

1994 was the year I fell out of love with F1, so no, not for me either.

I watched less and less races from 95/96 onwards and practically gave it up (maybe watching a couple of races a year or some highlights) up until 2007. I also didn’t attend a race in that period.

I know it marks me down as a Hamilton fanboy but since 2007, I’ve watched every single race and I believe I’m right in saying all but two were watched live on TV or at the race itself (the one where Webber flipped and Spa 2017).

[entropy]

FourWheelDrift said:

And not forgetting the 4 car crash that could have killed Martin Brundle in Brazil - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1imC4RvJg80

1994 was a terrible year and could have been a lot worse.

And Pedro Lamy flying into the pedestrian tunnel at Bridge - caused by the diffuser cutting off the rear wing mount.

OK, maybe I've been playing too much Grand Prix 2 on my old 486 during lockdown! I remember we got satellite TV that year and I used to run back home from school to watch quali on Fridays during lunch break, re-watch taped races from the night before on Monday lunchtimes. They were good times.

[LaurasOtherHalf]

entropy said:

OK, maybe I've been playing too much Grand Prix 2 on my old 486 during lockdown! I remember we got satellite TV that year and I used to run back home from school to watch quali on Fridays during lunch break, re-watch taped races from the night before on Monday lunchtimes. They were good times.

Us too! Well I think it was '92 as I remember Mum saying she would divorce Dad if he got Sky as it would mean I'd fail all my GCSEs, pah what did she know, I actually got 4 of them!

[entropy]

Eurosport was my favourite sports channel. F1, Indycar, NASCAR, GP bikes, WSB, occasionally Aussie V8s, BPR GTs, IMSA, TVR Tuscans, Rover GTI Championship, BTCC, tractor pulling!

There's nothing like it today, sports rights all over place.

[markcoznottz]

entropy said:

FourWheelDrift said:

And not forgetting the 4 car crash that could have killed Martin Brundle in Brazil - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1imC4RvJg80

1994 was a terrible year and could have been a lot worse.

And Pedro Lamy flying into the pedestrian tunnel at Bridge - caused by the diffuser cutting off the rear wing mount.

OK, maybe I've been playing too much Grand Prix 2 on my old 486 during lockdown! I remember we got satellite TV that year and I used to run back home from school to watch quali on Fridays during lunch break, re-watch taped races from the night before on Monday lunchtimes. They were good times.

Lamys wing failure caused by the hastily introduced modifications after Monaco. Leapt over a 10 foot fence. Serious leg injuries. Some nasty accidents that year that weren’t reported in all their grisly detail (maybe that’s a good thing). When JJ lehto injured his neck at silverstone he was knocked unconscious and temporarily lost the use of his hands! Crushed a veterbrae. I can’t find any info about alesi’s back injury, but apparently he was ‘temporarily paralysed’ , you can only imagine what that’s like psychologically. Interestingly mika salo broke his neck in an almost identical fashion as lehto, he was in Japanese 3000 at the time, and he wasn’t operated on, he thinks lehto was affected by surgery. Thankfully, these injuries don’t seem to happen now.

[LaurasOtherHalf]

entropy said:

Eurosport was my favourite sports channel. F1, Indycar, NASCAR, GP bikes, WSB, occasionally Aussie V8s, BPR GTs, IMSA, TVR Tuscans, Rover GTI Championship, BTCC, tractor pulling!

There's nothing like it today, sports rights all over place.

Not forgetting Screen Sport and Tutti Frutti on RTL on a Saturday night

[Derek Smith]

LaurasOtherHalf said:

1994 was the year I fell out of love with F1, so no, not for me either.

I watched less and less races from 95/96 onwards and practically gave it up (maybe watching a couple of races a year or some highlights) up until 2007. I also didn’t attend a race in that period.

I know it marks me down as a Hamilton fanboy but since 2007, I’ve watched every single race and I believe I’m right in saying all but two were watched live on TV or at the race itself (the one where Webber flipped and Spa 2017).

Up until '94, I was a nerd, but that year, everything seemed to change.

It wasn't only Imola, although that stopped me watching for a few races, in fact I didn't watch another live until the British, when I went. Then the German, with the pit fire. I knew there'd been a fiddle as so did everyone else. The Schumacher pit stops were notorious for their rapidity, and I stayed glued to the various news outlets as the scandal gradually unfolded. Benetton's defence brief, non other than the every-trustworthy Gorgeous George Carman QC, and the prosecutor having friendly meetings, discussions and agreements before the hearing - it was back to the day of the City of London firm within a firm. And the prosecutor as chair of the panal. Talk about stink.

It was all but a whitewash. It was also repugnant. Benetton slapped on the wrist for setting alight to the pitlane where refuelling rigs had gallons of high octane fuel. After that, we had Schumacher/Hill incident. Sort of summed up the season for me.

1995 seemed to come and go without generating any interest, although I went to the British again. That was the year that I camped at the circuit and on my return to my tent there was a queue for my toilet tent. The state of it as well.

In the 2000s I ran a series of online F1 fanzines and I was told that there was a certain bitterness in many of my posts, but the fun had returned a bit. I got to know a number of people in the sport, but I fell ill, and that put a stop to the websites. My interest stayed for a while, but the management of F1 was appalling. Like Mr Laura, my interest was sparked again in 2007, mainly because I was getting better. Since then, I reckon it has been a golden era for the sport.

94 was the nadir. Nearly, so nearly, put me off F1 for good.

[entropy]

LaurasOtherHalf said:

Not forgetting Screen Sport and Tutti Frutti on RTL on a Saturday night

Free 10 minute preview of certain channels!

[LaurasOtherHalf]

Derek Smith said:

LaurasOtherHalf said:

Stuff...

More stuff...

Always enjoy your posts DS and that's an interesting view. I came at it from a different point, I was only 16 when Imola happened and I'd supported Senna since 1985 (our teams back then was JPS Lotus and McLaren) when I was 8 or 9 years old. I'd got to very briefly meet him in '92 and without a doubt he was (and still is a bit) an utter hero to me.

Driving to Newcastle for dinner with my sister who was at uni there after the accident was utterly traumatic. We heard the news on the way home but it was merely a confirmation.

We were watching the European feed and they kept the cameras on Senna after the accident somewhat. What we saw meant we knew what had happened.

After watching your childhood hero die in front of you on TV, that was it basically. I completely loved F1 back then and after Imola it sucked out all the joy of the sport for me. I liked Damon but if I'm honest, I didn't like Williams at all before Senna and didn't think any better of them after.

I'm so grateful that Hamilton got me back into the sport, 2007 and '08 were such a rollercoaster it instantly hooked me back in. The sport has given myself and my family so much joy and good memories since then.

[thiscocks]

FourWheelDrift said:

Karl Wendlinger's nasty crash at Monaco, the race straight after Imola, that essentially finished his career.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6MAzJLMNaM

That Monaco race was particularly grim. I don't think one person in the pit lane really wanted to be there! Was also a bloody boring race.

[Derek Smith]

LaurasOtherHalf said:

Always enjoy your posts DS and that's an interesting view. I came at it from a different point, I was only 16 when Imola happened and I'd supported Senna since 1985 (our teams back then was JPS Lotus and McLaren) when I was 8 or 9 years old. I'd got to very briefly meet him in '92 and without a doubt he was (and still is a bit) an utter hero to me.

Driving to Newcastle for dinner with my sister who was at uni there after the accident was utterly traumatic. We heard the news on the way home but it was merely a confirmation.

We were watching the European feed and they kept the cameras on Senna after the accident somewhat. What we saw meant we knew what had happened.

After watching your childhood hero die in front of you on TV, that was it basically. I completely loved F1 back then and after Imola it sucked out all the joy of the sport for me. I liked Damon but if I'm honest, I didn't like Williams at all before Senna and didn't think any better of them after.

I'm so grateful that Hamilton got me back into the sport, 2007 and '08 were such a rollercoaster it instantly hooked me back in. The sport has given myself and my family so much joy and good memories since then.

Thanks for that. It should come as no surprise that I enjoy your posts and read them all.

We are a bit similar, although the age gap is a bit depressing, in that I went Lotus first – I had a California King snake that was black and gold, but my wife wouldn’t let me call it JPS – but I went with Brabham before fixing on McLaren at the start of MP4.

I can understand the depressing effect of seeing the crash live. I’m glad I didn’t.

I know what you mean about memories. What has confounded me is that I used to watch with a group, alternating our homes (apart from one really stroppy wife) for each race. They’ve gradually dropped off and I’m down to just two now, but from a distance even before lockdown.

There’s me, an ex-colleague and a lawyer – she’s a bit knowledgeable – and that’s it. Since LH started with McL, the three of us have continued to take the mickey out of each other. The fun’s back and so’s the racing.

[LaurasOtherHalf]

Derek Smith said:

LaurasOtherHalf said:

Always enjoy your posts DS and that's an interesting view. I came at it from a different point, I was only 16 when Imola happened and I'd supported Senna since 1985 (our teams back then was JPS Lotus and McLaren) when I was 8 or 9 years old. I'd got to very briefly meet him in '92 and without a doubt he was (and still is a bit) an utter hero to me.

Driving to Newcastle for dinner with my sister who was at uni there after the accident was utterly traumatic. We heard the news on the way home but it was merely a confirmation.

We were watching the European feed and they kept the cameras on Senna after the accident somewhat. What we saw meant we knew what had happened.

After watching your childhood hero die in front of you on TV, that was it basically. I completely loved F1 back then and after Imola it sucked out all the joy of the sport for me. I liked Damon but if I'm honest, I didn't like Williams at all before Senna and didn't think any better of them after.

I'm so grateful that Hamilton got me back into the sport, 2007 and '08 were such a rollercoaster it instantly hooked me back in. The sport has given myself and my family so much joy and good memories since then.

Thanks for that. It should come as no surprise that I enjoy your posts and read them all.

We are a bit similar, although the age gap is a bit depressing, in that I went Lotus first – I had a California King snake that was black and gold, but my wife wouldn’t let me call it JPS – but I went with Brabham before fixing on McLaren at the start of MP4.

I can understand the depressing effect of seeing the crash live. I’m glad I didn’t.

I know what you mean about memories. What has confounded me is that I used to watch with a group, alternating our homes (apart from one really stroppy wife) for each race. They’ve gradually dropped off and I’m down to just two now, but from a distance even before lockdown.

There’s me, an ex-colleague and a lawyer – she’s a bit knowledgeable – and that’s it. Since LH started with McL, the three of us have continued to take the mickey out of each other. The fun’s back and so’s the racing.

And the fun's back in the racing!

Covid has really scuppered our F1 Sundays although today I received a video from a good friend who was working in a kitchen and had his laptop set up to watch the race while preparing Sunday lunches! The get togethers are still rare though although my Father's part of our childcare bubble so we can swing things that way.

It was rather upsetting last year however when I realised that 2020 was the first of Hamilton's championship wins that we hadn't watched together.

We text each other today while it happened but you miss the elation of shared joy and to be honest, the withering judgements on performance really don't translate as well when there's a delay while you type. As long as my faculties are with me I'll never forget the despair of Brazil 2007 (while watching in Barçelona with disparaging Alonso fans), the jumping on the sofas of Brazil 2008, the champagne cork going off in Brazil 2009 (Brazil has provided some great memories!) as Jenson sang, the list goes on...Singapore 2017 my Dad actually had to tell me to calm down

I am regretful I missed out on the 10+ years that I didn't watch. I'm sure I missed out on some absolute belters but it probably worked out that by missing all those races it made it even sweeter picking the sport back up in what we both think is a golden age. This time, when Hamilton goes I've already got Verstappen lined up as my favourite so I should hopefully stick with it. Not even to mention Russel and Norris either.

[KR158]

I'm going to be in the minority here, but yes. For some bizarre reason I have a fondness for the '94 season. I can't tell you why, I don't know myself! It was such a terrible year, not just Imola but the other events mentioned above. For some reason I decided to buy a full season of 1994 Autosport Magazines a few years ago ('93 too) oddly, although I knew the events contained within each issue, it felt "fresh" some how.
The Cars looked and sounded great, each team had a real indivduality & very distinctive liveries, you could tell who had designed each Car just by Eye (Barnard, Newey, Oatley, Murphy, Byrne) plenty of Trackside sponsorship, lots of colour, multiple Engine manufacturers, a new wave of Drivers what with the 80's stars having moved on or retired, Mansell's "return", a tight run in to the end of the championship, Hill's astonishing Suzuka Drive, Minnow Teams. In many ways a really good era.
Imola & the immediate repercussions were felt for the best part of a decade afterwards, probably more, certainly in terms of Track & Car design but somehow, for reasons I simply cannot fathom, I do have a fondness for '93 & '94. I've no idea why.

Edited by KR158 on Sunday 2nd May 23:39

[anonymous-user]

Grand Prix 2 used driver/constructors from the German Grand Prix so Senna and Ratzenberger were never featured. Coulthard and Gounon replaced them.

Whilst 1994 will always be remembered for the tragedies, the cars were stunning to watch and that era of technology was at its peak, there was a wonderful mix of V8, V10 and V12s competing, some really good new drivers were emerging, there were 28 cars going for 26 grid places so qualifying really mattered at the back... De Cesaris, Morbidelli, Martini and Comas all scored points finishes in the early part of the season so there was a randomness to the results too

Finally the season long Hill vs Schumacher battle was just fascinating. Remember Schumacher got screwed al season (other opinions are available) and was denied points in four races, Hill winning every one of them....

Edited by anonymous-user on Monday 3rd May 09:41