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I think one point that really separates drivers from cricketers (to go with that comparison) is that drivers are 100% ON and working for the entire duration of the event, heart rate through the roof, millisecond reactions, huge leg strength in braking, huge neck strength so their head doesn't fly off, confined space, strong but not bulky builds, very high temperature, 220 mph, 5Gs of force, next to a dude doing the same thing, all the while being an instant from death. [color:purple]But yeah, very similar to cricket.

Nope. I say it because I've followed the sport for a long time and have seen what the drivers do to prepare. If you did some research you might agree. I'd put tennis players and boxers up there above hockey and football players too as far as fitness goes. Here's 2 articles I quickly googled now that will give you an idea of the athleticism of F1 drivers. Think of what a driver is going through for 90 minutes with 0 seconds of downtime next time a baseball player picks his nose, a hockey player ends a shift or period, etc. are f1 drivers considered athletes? who says f1 drivers aren't athletes? You may not think that F1 is a sport and that's a fair debate I suppose, but to deny that the drivers are some of the most elite athletes in the world is plain wrong.

What is necessary for you to consider something a sport? Guaranteed every F1 driver is a better athlete than most baseball, hockey, football even tennis players. But that might not come into your idea of what makes something a sport.

Korea didn't attract many fans last year because it was doubtful the race would go ahead, and the track is in the worst possible location in the country. Nobody shows up in Turkey and that GP will be scrapped soon. Melbourne will be off the calendar soon due to local politics. You're right, *some* GPs have attendance issues for sure. But some are insanely popular - Montreal, Silverstone, Monza, Barcelona, Monaco, Brazil, Spa, etc etc. It's a strange balance. Some older tracks can't hold GPs anymore due to outdated infrastructure. New GPs are key for international growth and sponsorships. Yes, certainly interesting to see how Bernie works things out and especially when he moves aside for whoever is next on the throne.

Bernie wants the market to grow in India, China, Korea, USA, the Middle East and Russia. That's why they all have a race or multiple races. Not too sure what the debate is here.

1. I often find qualifying much more exciting than the races. 20, 15, and 10 minutes to bang out the absolute best lap possible. There are fuel and tire considerations too if you make it to Q3. Definitely exciting. 2. Losing GPs - They've lost some races, but they're adding GPs and tracks too. Korea debuted last year, India debuts this year, new GP in Austin debuts next year, Russian GP in Sochi debuts in 2014. Turkey has got to go, and some classic tracks are nearing the end of their F1 life, but for now Spa, Monza, Silverstone, Monaco, Interlagos are still on the calendar. The tracks need to be built by someone other than Tilke though, as my original post said. His tracks bring about boring processional races. (But qualifying is still exciting). 3. New questionable races - Well, Singapore is a street course at night and it's pretty awesome. Bahrain has a shit track as does Abu Dhabi, but the spectacle is amazing and there's so much money for Bernie and the teams due to airline sponsorships and huge advertising revenues (same for Malaysia and others).

oh, sorry.

to others save the double-click, here's the real link http://www.blogto.com/music/2011/03/a_rock_and_roll_apology_from_plants_and_animals/

Are there other ways to engage the muscle(s)?

Well OK, but... 1. Regarding different mounds - They're professionals and they've been pitching from different mounds their whole lives. Deal with it. 2. Injuries possible from sitting dormant - So don't sit dormant, be an athlete and keep limber for an entire game.

I think you're mostly wrong about F1 and suspect you don't know what you're talking about but there is room for improvement for sure. 1. No more Tilke tracks 2. Bring back in-race refueling 3. No more blue flags As for other sports, I thought of another one. Baseball - the reliever has been warming up in the bullpen for 20 minutes, why does he need another 8 warm-up pitches on the mound during the game? And why do they need to throw the ball around between innings?

1. NHL - Shootout losses should not get 1 point. The game ended, one team won (2 points) the other team lost (0 points). It's logical and fair and eliminates both 3-point games and the notion that losing in a shootout is half a win. 2. Cricket - Scoring should be somewhat understandable by highly educated people. 3. NBA - Not really a rule change, but consistently call travelling and 3 in the key. 4. Soccer - Some kind of rule change to eliminate diving.

I don't think Harper had any say in the policing of the event. It's completely outside his realm. I think the buck stops at the police leadership in this case, be it Blair or whoever was 'in charge' of the Integrated Security Unit. There should be a public inquiry (enquiry?). But I doubt there will be. Hopefully the people suing the police will get a lot of disclosure in their cases and we can connect the dots from there.

i think you just need a wand, open the webpage and snap three times.

no no no, it's been circulating the interwebz

When I saw him in September he had more than enough good material, probably the 2nd or 3rd best comedy set I've ever seen. His standup career is fine - selling out theatres is pretty good I'd say! TV career dead, sure.

[color:purple]Records sound superior to everything

Norm would have made a funny joke out of your last sentence.

That would be the super-hot Jocie Adams. She just put out a solo album too, pretty folky and quirky.

I like Pizzaiolo in Toronto. No idea where it stacks up (pizza is generally late-night fast food for me when I'm in Toronto) but I've never been disappointed.

Feel free to post them here. Or a link to them. Or something.

I'm going to stand at the front. Fuck all you gala sitters

Need a cheap but nice and clean hotel in Montreal for a weekend getaway, is Priceline still good or have other sites stolen their thunder? It's been over a year since I've booked anything through a website so I have no idea what's going on these days with discount / name-your-own-price hotels. Thanks!