F. Woman... A femenist triumph!

[Lawson Purdie]

Hi folks
As one who watched today's programme re Formula Woman, I was both amused and intrigued. There have been reality shows covering practically every aspect of life, but this one really takes the biscuit. I have to declare an interest. I am the father of Neil Purdie who took part in Channel 5's "Be a Grand Prix Driver" last year (finishing runner-up), which I believe had a serious intent in trying to find the next Jenson Button or David Coulthard. That programme didn't feel the need to put the participants through tests in water and fire, or psychology - what was that all about? Maybe it's just the female phsyche. What they did have to do however, after extreme fitness testing, was to start with karting, going through the various disciplines from BMW Saloons - to single seaters including Formula Zip, Formula Renault, Formula 3, at a variety of major circuits, sometimes in the most appalling weather conditions, until the final two rounds at Donington and Monza racing in a Ford Tyrrell F1 car. The final produced two drivers of great talent - Mark Johnston, the winner and my son. Both are pursuing careers in motor sport with some success, as indeed are others who took part - notably Stratton McKay. Can I ask, is this the intent of the producers of today's programme? I doubt it. I really believe it is intended to be light Sunday afternoon entertainment, with a few laughs along the way. After all, my son didn't blurt out between sobs "I love you Mummy, I love you Daddy, and I love all my work mates." Neil, being a JCB driver would have had some unrepeatable comments from his work mates.

[posty]

the program was a joke, seemed the whole theme was to show women’s strength, but they seemed to bitch crash and cry a lot

the things said here, whilst in part intrigue me (the conspiracy theories) do get me thinking

i have some girl - friends who love driving/motor sports as much/more than some of my male mates, and that’s cool

so i'm not really opinionated/biased against girls or women in the sport, bring it on!!

but that program done the cause no favours, i just hope that some good does come from it, either giving someone a chance they technically deserve, or inspires girls to throw away their barbie dolls and go get in a cart

either way, i'm sure this aint the last of it

lets see how it unfolds

[ricardo g]

In my eyes there are no barriers to women drivers and if anything they have the advantage of being a woman and this seems to make getting sponsership and publicity a lot easier.

I think its a bit like trying to get someone to go out running when they don't want to. No amount of pestering is going to make them do it and if they do there will be no drive or commitment there.


'O and that programme was a joke right?

[speedway]

And, if they were looking for the best women to race - why didn't they get them doing some racing? Even in karts? Surely, showing you can drive fast around a track is one thing but racing is completely different. I also know Mark and he's in Formula Palmer Audi doing really well.

[prussianblue450]

Lawson Purdie said:

I really believe it is intended to be light Sunday afternoon entertainment..

Oh no, apparently the women taking part were doing so because the felt it was important to reverse decades of discrimination against women in motorsport demonstrated by the lack of top class female racing drivers

>> Edited by prussianblue450 on Sunday 11th July 18:25

[D-Angle]

What's happened to Tim Harvey? He used to be quite respectable as a BTCC driver, and also a good journo IMO. Now here he is doing a Simon Cowell! Sad sad sad

Motorsport is open to all, and in that way it is as fair as it can be(money to be spent aside). I mean let's look at this rationally, as an industry motorsport is very much in the marketing sector, and a good female driver gives lots of marketing opportunities, thus lots of nice sponsorship money to keep racing. Also as I recall we had a cracking, quite well-known female racing driver - one Vicki B-H.

Also, has no-one looked at drag racing recently? Plenty of the top drivers are women, in both the US and Europe.

[speedway]

Motorsport in this country and around the world is open to anyone who is competent and safe behind the wheel. I find the whole series quite offensive as it discriminates against men. Men are more than happy to race against women. On the track everyone is equal!
If they really want to encourage women in to motorsport then they would choose women who have real ability and help them get a foothold in the many existing series that are already available to anyone.

[jamesc]

Lawson Purdie said:

Hi folks As one who watched today's programme re Formula Woman, I was both amused and intrigued. There have been reality shows covering practically every aspect of life, but this one really takes the biscuit. I have to declare an interest. I am the father of Neil Purdie who took part in Channel 5's "Be a Grand Prix Driver" last year (finishing runner-up), which I believe had a serious intent in trying to find the next Jenson Button or David Coulthard. That programme didn't feel the need to put the participants through tests in water and fire, or psychology - what was that all about? Maybe it's just the female phsyche. What they did have to do however, after extreme fitness testing, was to start with karting, going through the various disciplines from BMW Saloons - to single seaters including Formula Zip, Formula Renault, Formula 3, at a variety of major circuits, sometimes in the most appalling weather conditions, until the final two rounds at Donington and Monza racing in a Ford Tyrrell F1 car. The final produced two drivers of great talent - Mark Johnston, the winner and my son. Both are pursuing careers in motor sport with some success, as indeed are others who took part - notably Stratton McKay. Can I ask, is this the intent of the producers of today's programme? I doubt it. I really believe it is intended to be light Sunday afternoon entertainment, with a few laughs along the way. After all, my son didn't blurt out between sobs "I love you Mummy, I love you Daddy, and I love all my work mates." Neil, being a JCB driver would have had some unrepeatable comments from his work mates.

Hi Lawson,

Hope all is well! Do you remember the our conversation at dinner about this? I am hopefully having surgery on my spine this week.

regards

James

[D-Angle]

speedway said:

If they really want to encourage women in to motorsport then they would choose women who have real ability and help them get a foothold in the many existing series that are already available to anyone.

Actually I think you've hit on a much better idea for a show to encourage women into motorsport. Find 5 women fitting the description above, sponsor them for a year in 5 different UK-based series (be good exposure for grass roots racing too) and follow them through a season. I'd watch that!

[speedway]

Or, alternatively, help out some women that are already racing but finding sponsorship difficult.

P.S. James - Hope the surgery goes well.

[ehasler]

Eric Mc said:

As far as I can tell, there are no barriers to women partcipating in motorsport. They just need to have the same drive and ambition as anybody else if they want to succeed in it at a professional level. I would like to see more girls taking part in motorsport at club level - or even taking part in track days and sprints.

Abso-fg-lutely.

I've just sat through this with my girlfriend. Now, like many of these women on the show, she really wants to race, so a few years ago, she got off her arse, applied for her ARDS licence and passed it 1st time round.

She was on the verge of buying her own race car, but this fell through as she was made redundant the week after viewing the car. 2 years later, she has bought her own TVR S3, which she has already taken on a track day, and will also be driving my Tuscan S on another track day later this year.

She's now saving to buy a race car with a friend of hers, who is also a female TVR owner, so will hopefully be on the grid within the next 12 months.

If women really want to race, then all they need to do is get off their back sides and go out and do it.

Watching these women moan about how unfair it is that they've lost the only chance to fulfil a life-long dream really ps me off. I've had to work bloody hard to race myself, and I think this series is an insult to everyone out there who spends countless evenings and weekends preparing their car, towing it to events themselves, and living out of a tent at a wet and cold circuit just to be able to get on the grid.

I fully support more women racing, and am 100% behind my girlfriend in her efforts (albeit hopefully not on track! ), but this series is not going to help this at all as far as I can see.

[delalio]

Count me in as one of those five guys, how bout Martin Donelly, Jonathan Palmer..etc come guys it would do your reputation huge credit to give us girls a chance which our hubbies usually take leaving us holding the babies!!

[ehasler]

Oh - and another point, I was very surprised to hear that some of the final 16 took several goes to pass their ARDS test. I would have thought that after the amount of instruction and selecting that they went through, they would have breezed this...

[Eric Mc]

What is ironic is that in times past (particularly the 1930s) there was a much higher level of female participation in motor sport than there seems to be today.

What happned?

[speedway]

And my Mrs has also got off her arse and passed her ARDS test first time. She got through to the last 50 of Formula Woman but declined the invite to the boot camp as she thought it was becoming a PR exercise and wanted to do it properly. Thank god she did! She has now taken part in three Formula Ford races and tested two or three cars to find out what she wants to race. She's on the verge of securing a drive for a top team in a very good series. It's been hard work for both of us - not least financially! But, I feel that if you want to do something that badly, then you'll make it happen.

[delalio]

I agree theres masses of opportunity out there for women and huge sponsorship potential with no barriers in the sport but plenty in our persoal lives where the guys generally put their hobbies first and leave us holding the babies as quoted previously - realistically, can you see the guys doing the picnic bit in the grandstands whilst we do our thing, being excluded from the pits and pit wall with the minors.... no didnt think so!!

[ehasler]

delalio said:

I agree theres masses of opportunity out there for women and huge sponsorship potential with no barriers in the sport but plenty in our persoal lives where the guys generally put their hobbies first and leave us holding the babies as quoted previously - realistically, can you see the guys doing the picnic bit in the grandstands whilst we do our thing, being excluded from the pits and pit wall with the minors.... no didnt think so!!

I don't see why not.

If I had to take a step back to enable my girlfriend to do something she really wanted to do, then I'd do it without a moments hesitation.

[delalio]

Ehasler - your post is all very well and commendable to your wife but as the whinging whinnie who tearfully said how unfair it was to excluded on the first day , may I say that not all of us are able to go out and buy a racing car of our own and take on the cost of a hobby in motorsport. I have subsequently taken my ARDS and passed with 100% first time round - some of us need opportunities in life to fulfill our goals no matter how determined we might be. I work my arse off day in day so its not a matter of having to get of it to succeed.

[delalio]

Sorry ..your girlfriend not wife!!

[ehasler]

delalio said:

Ehasler - your post is all very well and commendable to your wife

Don't give her any ideas!