Ecclestone to buy Ferrari?

[nichosnz 0]

You are right Jens we put day before month here so 12-9, but as America dominates the would and make themselves and their issues so big it is still refered to as the 11th over here.

PS. I'm not saying this particular issue isn't big. But even small issues are made big.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

I also use day before month, the Americans are really the only ones who go month before day anymore. Do you use metrics in NZ and Aus? I know of no other country except the US that still uses feet and inches, and they still call it the English measurement units even though its been almost a decade since the Brits changed over to SI.

[nichosnz 0]

Officially we use Metrics, but I find an inch easier to judge than a centimetre for example, but kilos are better than stone as it gives a closer comparison. But my cars Odometer and Speedometer are in miles so I think in miles rather than kilometers. A real mixed bag of metric and imperial.

I read in the newspaper about 6 months ago of a grocer (or butcher) in the UK who was taken to court for still marking pounds on the product rather than kilos.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

I read that story as well on a Finnish news website. They really like to laugh at court cases like that

[nichosnz 0]

I think it prompted an ammendment to the law. Allowing sellers to display the weight in pounds, as long as the kilos were more prominent. The ammendment makes the most sense as people can use the two to learn what the Metric is. Some of them will have been talking pounds for many years.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

As in Finland with the switch to the Euro, the original price in the Finnish mark is still always somewhere on the price tag.

[nichosnz 0]

In NZ our last currency change, from NZ pounds to NZ dollars was in 1967 (+ or - a year or two, but I think 67 is right). Long before I was born so wouldn't have a clue if we used to do that here.

[daz 0]

Over here we only use Metrics. Needless to say - when somebody starts talking pounds/stones etc... I get totally confused

Normally end up resorting to my conversion tool on the PC just to get a figure I understand.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

I have been around fahrenheit, pounds, and stones for years now and the only one im getting close to understanding or getting comfortable with is the pound weight, that is to say I know how much 10 pounds weighs roughly. But Im still a lot more knowledgeable of kilos and so forth, and I tell you I will never figure out fahrenheit.

[nichosnz 0]

I have trouble with farenheit as well, I hear people in American programmes talking about 80 degrees. And before I think "that's farenheit" I have already thought "s##t that's hot, we don't often get 30 here".

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

I find it hard to think that something in the 30 range is almost freezing or freezing, it makes no sense to me. To me anything 30 or more is extreme heat!

[nichosnz 0]

0 to freeze water 100 to boil, makes a lot of sense.

Also I beleive the meter is an exact fraction (can't remember which fraction) of the measurement of the equator.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

"The meter was originally conceived as 1/10 millionth of the distance from

the North Pole to the equator. So you're partially right about its origin (answered in an interview), just not about the fraction. It has been re-defined several times, to bethe length of a standard metal bar held at a controlled temperature, then a certain number of wavelengths of a specific atomic emission light, and finally, to be the distance light travels in a vacuum in a certain length of time. Interestingly, the meter is now a derivative unit. The second is standardized, and the speed of light is defined; any more accurate measurement of the speed of light will change the length of the meter, not the speed of light."

>Richard E. Barrans Jr., Ph.D.

Found this online just a sec ago.

[nichosnz 0]

Interesting. And I also heard (although you may prove this wrong too) that the speed of light is slowing down ever so slighly. So it it was measured again it WOULD be more accurate than what we have now.

[daz 0]

That is very interesting. On the topic of farenheit - I got a crash course on it a few years back when I visited the States. The day I got there I watched the forecast and it said it would be in the low 50's the next day. There I was expecting an absolute cooker of a day and needless to say it was #$$^ing freezing. Give me centigrade any day - at least that makes sense...

[rodders47 2]

Bernie did lead Brabham to 2 DWC's in the early 80's but it is a very different arena now!

Hi Nichos,, well that is not totally correct mate . I seem to recall an Aussie mechanic by the name of Ron Tauranac having a big part in Brabhams wins .. and later on Ron developed his own workshop producing RALT cars.. :-)

As for all that talk about metrics etc, consider this :-) Most commercial aircraft are produced in the great ole US of A which have different meanings and measurements for liquids and weights. OK so if an aircraft lands in the UK for instance, which is METRIC and the captain says well put 50 tons of fuel on board, is that in US tonnes, the old British tons or the American tons !!! would mean the difference of either making the destination or floating about in the ocean :-) in a sinking aircraft

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

Boeing I think is making their plane in metrics, because they are very much aware that they are just about the only country still using the Imperial system. At least this is what I remember my uncle telling me.

[nichosnz 0]

By led, I mean't he was the team figurehead, I know Ron Tauranac had significanly more to do with the actual car at a single race than Bernie did in a whole season. Ron had a major part to do with all Brabhams wins, pre From the day Jack Brabham decided to build a car till the day of the teams final win in France, July 7 1985.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

I have no idea of what is being talked about as this is way before me, but I imagine as team boss Bernie still had something to do with it...

[nichosnz 0]

Yes he would have but Bernie was on the Managerial side of the team, Ron was on the technical side.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

So something like Dennis/Newey?

[nichosnz 0]

Yes something like that. Not the same though every situation is different even if it looks the same.

[rodders47 2]

LOL well Ron was the Mechanic/designer I guess for Sir Jack and bernie ummmmmmmm I guess he watched over the dollars/Pounds :-)

Hey not wishing to do the NAME dropping thing but I remember well when I was working for RALT in the UK, Sir Jack came in to the workshop and said he had been stopped by the police for speeding on the motorway.. The speed limit was 70 MPH and he was clocked at 100 MPH, the motor cycle cop said to him " Who do you think you are ? Jack Brabham ? " to which sir jack produced his drivers licence.. This is a true story straight from Sir Jacks mouth.. The poor Motorcycle Policeman just gave up and said well " Have A Good Day " LOL

Just some light hearted Trivia :-)

[daz 0]

Also heard a similar story about Senna in the UK. Apparently he got stopped for speeding on the motorway just before the British GP. The cop got up to the car and asked him if he thought he was bloody Nigel Mansell, to which Ayrton simply replied "No, Senna actually".

Don't know whether its true or not. Just remember reading about it way back.

[TotalF1 Jens 0]

Yea, the race car drivers tend to drive too fast on public roads! More recently Colin Mcrae and his teammate Carlos Sainz got a hefty fine when both were speeding in Finland before the Finnish rally last month. Button also got one in his rookie season, probably set a speed record for a diesel car!