It’s Only Make Believe
Last year, we ventured into the world of Fantasy F1 by taking part in a competition on Batracer. I say “we” but of course, I didn’t have the patience to put in the hours of effort required, and I certainly wasn’t impressed when we only managed twelfth place after all the time invested. It’s not that I was taking it too seriously, but I just wanted to see more of a result for all the hard work.
Since then, I’ve been thinking about Fantasy F1 and its many different forms, and wondering whether there is one out there that takes minimal effort and simply adds that little extra element to watching a race. Just as I was about to mention it on the show and solicit opinions, Dan Cross beat me to it and posted details of a Sidepodcast league he had set up over on FantasyRacers.com.
Of course, we had to go and check it out, and I immediately set up my team “Sidepodcast Racers”. It was incredibly easy to do, sign up (email and name required only), pick a team name, pick your drivers. There’s a limited budget, obviously, but you can recruit a couple of good names to your team. My team at the moment consists of: Adrian Sutil, Sebastian Vettel, Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso and Robert Kubica.
Yes, I did just pick the drivers I like, and that in turn means my team is subject to change at any moment. Thankfully, it’s really easy to do.
Joining the Sidepodcast league is easy too. Here’s Dan’s instructions:
Those looking to join the Sidepodcast league on Fantasy Racers will need the following info (it’s dead simple!):
League Name: Sidepodcast
League Number: 118
League Password: franckAny players wishing to join the league need to create a team in the main competition using the link below, and then follow the ‘Join New League’ link beneath your name in the menu.
Coolest.Password.Ever.
We’ve had some wonderful people signing up already, but there’s plenty of room for more. Let’s get a friendly competition going. You can already sense the competitiveness between him and me. What kind of a team name is “Longitudinal Inertia” anyway, regardless of whether you can say it or not?
February 25th, 2008 at 10:18 pmDank said:
Or I (Dan Cross) did. Damn those Dans!
February 25th, 2008 at 11:20 pmDan (Brunell) said:
Sorry, if it makes you feel better… I work at a family company where my dad and brother are named Don. My fellow editors is named Danielle, and there is another Dan who works in our accounting department.
February 25th, 2008 at 11:33 pmme said:
hehe, ahh bless. have fixed now.
February 25th, 2008 at 11:36 pmme said:
btw: have you seen how many teams there are registered already?
love it.
and longitudinal inertia is a great name for a formula 1 team and i stand by it… even if i can’t pronounce it after 24hrs of trying.
February 26th, 2008 at 12:41 amDan Brunell said:
It’s on…
February 26th, 2008 at 12:51 amDan Brunell said:
BTW: Have we thought of some trophy or first place prize?
I would be willing to chip in for something.
February 26th, 2008 at 4:28 amF1Wolf said:
OK, I may be little dumb today, but where exactly on the FantasyRacers site do I enter the sidepodcast league ?
February 26th, 2008 at 5:03 amJordan Allen said:
Christine and M.E.
I am not sure if “Longitudinal inertia” is a great name for an F1 team as I would be more interested in how fast an F1 car goes as to to whether the car rolls along its longitudinal axis la a Kubica in Montreal(non-inertia) or just slides along the wall that it crashes into (a la Ralfie in Indianapolis…) (inertia
February 26th, 2008 at 7:49 amDank said:
Login to the site. Underneath where it says your name in the top-left it should reveal a drop-down menu when you put your cursor over it. Click on ‘Join Private League’ and input the details from above.
February 26th, 2008 at 8:16 amme said:
the explanation didn’t need a screenshot, i’m just obsessed with pictures this week
February 26th, 2008 at 8:26 amme said:
a fine idea, i know a certain lady who’s handy with an ice pick. maybe she could knock us up a mini-sculpture?
failing that, a traditional trophy would probably work.
February 26th, 2008 at 8:31 amJourneyer said:
Let’s do this! I took a risk in hedging my bets, but I hope it works out.
19 days to go!
February 26th, 2008 at 10:41 amF1Wolf said:
now it is official, I am dumb …
thanks for the hint “Login to the site”
February 26th, 2008 at 11:55 amme said:
yeah, but if you win, we’ll end up regretting it.
do remember this during your thankyou speech, eh?
February 26th, 2008 at 12:06 pmChristine said:
That’s all very good, except I’m going to win.
Just because everyone else has been sensible and picked Kimi Raikkonen, makes no difference.
February 26th, 2008 at 2:26 pmF1Wolf said:
So the speach would go: I would like to thank to ehm… “me”
…
February 26th, 2008 at 7:37 pmDank said:
Anyone noticed a slight ‘blip’ on the league table? Go to page two of the Sidepodcast league and F1Wolf appears to be in 1st place!
February 26th, 2008 at 7:40 pmme said:
i knew it. he’s so sneaky, lowering our expectations and making us think he was all so helpless.
just like super aguri in fact.
February 26th, 2008 at 7:51 pmAuryn said:
Why do the rankings only go to 25 and start anew on the second page? Why not continue with 26,…?
February 26th, 2008 at 8:01 pmDank said:
Contacted the site admin and it’s been fixed. His moment of glory gone in blink of an eye! Hehe
February 26th, 2008 at 8:07 pmDan Brunell said:
Christine, I hardly knew ye…
February 26th, 2008 at 8:14 pmme said:
jean todt taught you well.
February 26th, 2008 at 8:18 pmChristine said:
He can’t possibly be talking about me, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an ice pick in my life.
I certainly wouldn’t choose to work with ice, I feel the cold!
February 26th, 2008 at 8:44 pmme said:
that’s what they all say!
February 26th, 2008 at 10:09 pmAlenyaa said:
Sensible picks by the contenders in our league. I reckon it will be very close.
February 26th, 2008 at 10:55 pmme said:
you’ve clearly overlooked christine’s choices
February 26th, 2008 at 11:37 pmAlenyaa said:
I was being nice ^^
February 26th, 2008 at 11:48 pmme said:
in that case you forgot to mention what great name longitudinal inertia is for a formula 1 team (despite jordan’s misgivings).
easily done, i’ll overlook it this once
February 26th, 2008 at 11:57 pmAlenyaa said:
By not mentioning that name and what I think of it I think I’m being nice enough.
Are you sure, if at all, your team is that much better than Christine’s, by the way?
February 26th, 2008 at 11:58 pmAlenyaa said:
By NOT mentioning…
Edit button!!!!!
February 27th, 2008 at 12:06 amme said:
i was. what’s wrong with my team… did something change today? i’ve not correlated the testing results against my choices yet.
in the works, i promise. have updated your comment. it’s a bit more complicated than i originally thought though, but we’ll have something working as soon as poss.
February 27th, 2008 at 1:22 amJordan Allen said:
Greetings Sidepodcast members and Alenyaa.
I just think that naming a F1 team after something that it is supposed to do to work properly is not very confidence-boosting. I would be more concerned about a team being called “We have four tires and an engine”.
But then again, I think “We have four tires and an engine” translated in Japanese is “Super Aguri…”
Jordan (F1)
February 27th, 2008 at 1:40 amAlenyaa said:
Not that much really, I’m just trying to scare you a bit :p
I’ve joined the league as well actually. My team name is MustBeatSidepodcast. And I will! I think… hope…
February 27th, 2008 at 2:18 amF1Wolf said:
OK, am 26th now. But not for long !
March 2nd, 2008 at 4:44 pmDank said:
The Sidepodcast league has now reached 50 teams!
March 5th, 2008 at 6:44 pmEpisode 54 - Don’t Mention Fuel Burn Again | Sidepodcast : Your Weekly F1 Podcast said:
[...] of people signing up to the Sidepodcast league on FantasyRacers.com - if you haven’t yet, now’s your chance to join in the fun. Sidepodcast Diaries are back on YouTube, and F1 Minute turns 100! Written on [...]
March 9th, 2008 at 12:58 pmEpisode 55 - Do You Think They’ve Got a Better System this Year than a Guy with a Felt Tip Marker? | Sidepodcast : Your Weekly F1 Podcast said:
[...] Fantasy Racers Sidepodcast league update, loads of teams, plus a fun game from Dan Brunell on Facebook - match the driver to the song. No voicemails this week so don’t forget to call us after the race to share your thoughts, good and bad, about the winners and losers - +44 121 28 87225. [...]
March 11th, 2008 at 2:46 pmvee8 » Blog Archive » Fantasy F1 competitions and strategies said:
[...] years since I entered a Fantasy F1 competition. I was looking around for competitions to enter when a Sidepodcast league was announced. The league now contains an astonishing 84 entrants, with a few familiar names to the F1 [...]
March 12th, 2008 at 8:36 pmWhere Are We All Coming From? | Sidepodcast : Your Weekly F1 Podcast said:
[...] that it would be wrong to not push it over the century mark. Information about joining can be found over on the original post, and the comments might help if you’re stuck. If you have any questions please comment below. [...]
March 13th, 2008 at 5:08 amPeter said:
Yeah!
102 competitors last time i checked… joined up..
Can’t wait. it’s going to be very hot in Melbourne on Fri, Sat Sun.
Weather Report from the local Melbournian (Me.. not ME.. Me as in I)
Fri - 37C (98F)
Sat - 38C (100F)
Sun - 37C (98F)
I guess it will help them for the Malysian Grand Prix, just not as humid
Good luck everyone!
March 17th, 2008 at 3:50 amEpisode 56 - Formula One Management Finally Giving the People What they Want | Sidepodcast : Your Weekly F1 Podcast said:
[...] Fantasy Racers Sidepodcast league update, a request for a new tagline, and an Alonso / Hamilton [...]
March 24th, 2008 at 6:58 pmEpisode 57 - It Was a Long Seven Minutes in the Renault World | Sidepodcast : Your Weekly F1 Podcast said:
[...] Fantasy Racers Sidepodcast league update, some new tagline submissions, and proof that there’s no rivalry [...]