May
4
Rupert Svendsen-Cook: Barcelona and all that
Hello everyone and welcome to my first blog for Motors TV. I will be doing one after each of my races this year as I compete in Formula BMW Europe in 2009.
It has been a very long winter for me with my last race in early September last year…. But now my season is about to start this weekend in Barcelona. Last year was my debut year in Formula BMW Europe so it was an incredible challenge for me. I was with Raikkonen Robertson Racing and it was a very clear decision for me to want to stay at Double R for 2009. The relationship I have with the team is very important for me and, 12 months on, it is stronger than ever. I feel wanted and very comfortable within the team and that helps me a huge amount because I know they want exactly the same thing from this year’s championship as I do.
I had to sit down at the end of last season and really be honest with myself about all of the very good things that happened and then some of the mistakes and bad things. I have done everything possible to make sure these bad things are removed now and that, as far as I know, I am the best prepared I can be. I have improved my fitness by a big margin with a very strict training program over the winter along with days with my driver coach and some very relevant testing. We spent a good amount of time getting me more comfortable with the car and its feeling along with the set-up to make sure that both myself and the team are the best prepared we can be.
I am now just back from a short break in Spain which has just been ideal because there is so much stress and just ‘stuff’ happening in the build-up to my first race that it was important for me to get away, clear my head and completely chill.
I now feel very relaxed and calm which for me is important because when I am relaxed I am fast and I have to keep myself in that zone all of the time. I often practice coming up to a racing weekend by playing some golf and some long bike rides on my own just to keep myself away from everything and in the best place I can be.
I feel very confident going into this season as now I am much more the package together with myself and the car. I know that we both could not be better prepared which counts a lot for my mental strength, because when I sit on that grid in Barcelona ready for my first qualifying there will be no doubt whatsoever in my mind.
I will fly out on Wednesday evening with my manager Dennis who accompanies me to most of my races and tests. Dennis is a very important person to me because he not only manages my career but manages me as a person and who I am. He keeps me in the right place mentally so I am ready for my races and that is very good. I do not know anybody more relaxed and laid back than Dennis and that definitely rubs off on me! I prefer to fly out on Wednesday evening because that way I can relax and there is no stress on Thursday from getting up at 4am for a stupidly early flight and everything else that goes with it.
The format of the race weekend for me is fairly well spread out except on the Friday morning when free practice is at 8.45am!… so the circuit is usually pretty dusty and the temperature is cool. Then qualifying is at 1pm… GP2 and F1 have had sessions and all of a sudden the temperature is very high and the circuit is super grippy and we just have to get on with it because you only have a 25 minute session. Qualifying is also made tougher in the respect that your fastest time from the session is where you will start Race 1 but your second fastest time will be where you start Race 2. So you really have to nail two mega laps and not just the one. I know the format of the weekend though from last year’s experience and know everything to expect so once again I feel well prepared.
My parents will join me later on in the weekend and will arrive Friday evening to just see my races. It is best they just come for the races because so much is happening on Friday. That way they can relax in the members lounge and enjoy themselves. My parents are very supportive of me and without them I would not be where I am now. They would certainly never be able to help me out financially but they always support me and keep me on track. Whether it is giving me the right food every day and taking me on holiday to just giving advice and help when I need it.
Well, there is not much more for me to say right now but I’m sure after my first race weekend there will be! I hope you have enjoyed this and I look forward to writing to you all again soon.
RS-C