On Thursday afternoon and Friday, I attended the 2014 Autosport International Show. I have attended the event in the past, but always as a fan.
This time, I was there on the trade days for RichlandF1. It was a new experience for me, but it was a great one nonetheless. Here is a blog of my experience.
I’m a big fan of the show and, as I mentioned above, I have visited it on a number of occasions. The stands and features that you get there are pretty standard each year, but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable and of course there are always new things to take a look at.
However, I have only been as a fan. So this year, I was working at the show and that was a good challenge for me. I had a lot planned and some of the things didn’t quite go how I wanted, but I will try and make up for that. I was pleased with the work done and the work planned for future feature pieces though, there is a lot left to do.
My journey to the show started on Thursday morning, with a bus ride to my nearest town and then an hour-long wait in a café before heading off to get my train to London.
London? Well, because of where I live, I had to get a train into the capital before then tubing across to my second train, which took me to Birmingham. I’ve never been the type of person to relax when travelling, but I managed to navigate London and get on the correct trains, so it was all good.
When I arrived in Birmingham, I waited for friends Daniel Puddicombe and Katie Grimmett – both official bloggers for the show – to arrive at the station and then we headed for the media centre. By this time, it was almost 4pm, so we were just looking to have a wander around the show and see where everything was.
Once we got to the media centre, we were given our passes – an exciting moment for any aspiring journalist – before then meeting up with some of the RichlandF1 crew. One of the real highlights from the show was the people that I met. Some I had already met before, but others I had not. But I was a fan of their work and had spoken to them on the likes of Twitter, Facebook etc.
It was great to see my RichlandF1 boss and good friend Luke Smith again, who was there for NBC Sports, and see Dan Paddock – my colleague at the site who I had first met at the British GP FOTA FORUM – as well as meeting the likes of Alex Goldschmidt, Phillip Horton, Rebecca Zeitlin and many more.
My time at the show on Thursday was mainly spent wandering around – one of the things that I do very well. I love nothing more than taking a look around at my own time, taking in all the beautiful motoring machinery and looking at the stands and displays.
One particular highlight for me was the John Surtees display, celebrating 50 years since his 1964 F1 title for Ferrari. They had some stunning cars and bikes on display and it was great to read about their history. I also saw John on a number of occasions, although he was busy with media work so I didn’t dare interrupt.
Following the walk around, we decided to head to a bar and catch up. It was great to chill and chat after a long day of travelling. We then decided to find somewhere else, but being the NEC, everything was shut. So instead, a bunch of us took the monorail across to the airport for some food.
Following a night at the Hilton Hotel – one of the nicest hotels I have stayed in – it was an early start to get to the media centre. I completed a few pieces and then it was off to one of my highlights of the weekend: Charlie Whiting giving the 16th annual Watkins Lecture.
It was a fascinating hour and a half long interview, with F1 Racing Magazine’s Stuart Codling asking the questions, and covered a variety of topics, from how he got into F1 to the current safety standards, DRS and double points. You can see some of his thoughts here.
Following that, Crash.net’s Katie Grimmett and I went to see the McLaren AUTOSPORT BRDC finalists on the Autosport Stage, in the hope of catching some of them for some interviews. However, food was obviously on their schedule so we decided to get some as well.
Following that, we went for another wonder and I did some research for some feature pieces and took some photos. I must say that when I last went to the show, I was disappointed by the array of F1 cars on the F1 Racing stand, as quite a few had pre-2009 regulation wings. This year, all the teams did a much better job, which was good to see.
By the time I had got back to the media centre, it was almost time for my interview with Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft, who had spent the day rehearsing for the Live Action Arena.
However, I had to wait a little while as he was running late. But when he did arrive, we had a great chat about F1 in 2013 and the season ahead. It was great to see him, I have met him a few times and he is such a nice and funny chap. Keep an eye on RichlandF1 over the next week or so for the interview, which will be split into two parts.
I also got the chance to meet his co-host in the Live Action Arena, The Gadget Show’s Pollyanna Woodward who Dan Puddicombe got to interview for his blog. Following my chat with Crofty, I just had time to get the audio onto my laptop and it was time to go get a drink before the journey home, which was a long and tiring one to say the least.
Overall, the show was a great experience but the best part about it was the company, getting to meet so many people that I have known, but never met, and to talk with everyone and discuss motorsport. Hopefully next year will be even busier, better and I will get to meet even more people from the world of motorsport. If you went to the show, I hope you all had a great time.
For images from the Autosport Show, go here.
I’m a big fan of the show and, as I mentioned above, I have visited it on a number of occasions. The stands and features that you get there are pretty standard each year, but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable and of course there are always new things to take a look at.
However, I have only been as a fan. So this year, I was working at the show and that was a good challenge for me. I had a lot planned and some of the things didn’t quite go how I wanted, but I will try and make up for that. I was pleased with the work done and the work planned for future feature pieces though, there is a lot left to do.
My journey to the show started on Thursday morning, with a bus ride to my nearest town and then an hour-long wait in a café before heading off to get my train to London.
London? Well, because of where I live, I had to get a train into the capital before then tubing across to my second train, which took me to Birmingham. I’ve never been the type of person to relax when travelling, but I managed to navigate London and get on the correct trains, so it was all good.
When I arrived in Birmingham, I waited for friends Daniel Puddicombe and Katie Grimmett – both official bloggers for the show – to arrive at the station and then we headed for the media centre. By this time, it was almost 4pm, so we were just looking to have a wander around the show and see where everything was.
Once we got to the media centre, we were given our passes – an exciting moment for any aspiring journalist – before then meeting up with some of the RichlandF1 crew. One of the real highlights from the show was the people that I met. Some I had already met before, but others I had not. But I was a fan of their work and had spoken to them on the likes of Twitter, Facebook etc.
It was great to see my RichlandF1 boss and good friend Luke Smith again, who was there for NBC Sports, and see Dan Paddock – my colleague at the site who I had first met at the British GP FOTA FORUM – as well as meeting the likes of Alex Goldschmidt, Phillip Horton, Rebecca Zeitlin and many more.
My time at the show on Thursday was mainly spent wandering around – one of the things that I do very well. I love nothing more than taking a look around at my own time, taking in all the beautiful motoring machinery and looking at the stands and displays.
One particular highlight for me was the John Surtees display, celebrating 50 years since his 1964 F1 title for Ferrari. They had some stunning cars and bikes on display and it was great to read about their history. I also saw John on a number of occasions, although he was busy with media work so I didn’t dare interrupt.
Following the walk around, we decided to head to a bar and catch up. It was great to chill and chat after a long day of travelling. We then decided to find somewhere else, but being the NEC, everything was shut. So instead, a bunch of us took the monorail across to the airport for some food.
Following a night at the Hilton Hotel – one of the nicest hotels I have stayed in – it was an early start to get to the media centre. I completed a few pieces and then it was off to one of my highlights of the weekend: Charlie Whiting giving the 16th annual Watkins Lecture.
It was a fascinating hour and a half long interview, with F1 Racing Magazine’s Stuart Codling asking the questions, and covered a variety of topics, from how he got into F1 to the current safety standards, DRS and double points. You can see some of his thoughts here.
Following that, Crash.net’s Katie Grimmett and I went to see the McLaren AUTOSPORT BRDC finalists on the Autosport Stage, in the hope of catching some of them for some interviews. However, food was obviously on their schedule so we decided to get some as well.
Following that, we went for another wonder and I did some research for some feature pieces and took some photos. I must say that when I last went to the show, I was disappointed by the array of F1 cars on the F1 Racing stand, as quite a few had pre-2009 regulation wings. This year, all the teams did a much better job, which was good to see.
By the time I had got back to the media centre, it was almost time for my interview with Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft, who had spent the day rehearsing for the Live Action Arena.
However, I had to wait a little while as he was running late. But when he did arrive, we had a great chat about F1 in 2013 and the season ahead. It was great to see him, I have met him a few times and he is such a nice and funny chap. Keep an eye on RichlandF1 over the next week or so for the interview, which will be split into two parts.
I also got the chance to meet his co-host in the Live Action Arena, The Gadget Show’s Pollyanna Woodward who Dan Puddicombe got to interview for his blog. Following my chat with Crofty, I just had time to get the audio onto my laptop and it was time to go get a drink before the journey home, which was a long and tiring one to say the least.Overall, the show was a great experience but the best part about it was the company, getting to meet so many people that I have known, but never met, and to talk with everyone and discuss motorsport. Hopefully next year will be even busier, better and I will get to meet even more people from the world of motorsport. If you went to the show, I hope you all had a great time.
For images from the Autosport Show, go here.
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