Let the preparations begin!

It is heartening to see more

of our volunteers making

their way to overseas

race meet as part of their

vacation package.

Off-­TrackSingapore Grand Prix

Issue

01May 2011

Off-­Track welcomes letters to the Editor and will be selecting few best letters each month to be published in the next issue. If your letter is selected and published, you will receive a gift from us. Each letter must carry the sender’s full name and contact number. Off-­track also reserves the right to edit the letters. Send your letter to: newsletter.offtrack@gmail.com

Well, we actually never went away, just

took a little break from writing during

the off season months. We are very

excited that the new Formula 1 season

has commenced and this means we need

to get you back to training in preparation

for our most anticipated September race

weekend. By the time you read this, you

should have already witnessed three Formula 1 races

around this region.

All of the preparations have come through beautifully

so far. The Race Operations department of the SGP has

been ticking like clockwork and personally I could not be

more pleased with where we are today. In this edition,

you will notice the number of changes to the senior

process is well under way with several changes to the

key posts. Also, let’s not forget to welcome the new

The year also started off with the senior’s training program

to the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide and the Australian GP

were selected for the training tour to equip themselves

with experience as part of the GP preparation. Also

surprisingly, the spirit of voluntourism has catches on

our volunteers making their way to overseas race meet

as part of their vacation package. We will also bring

you a feature story on voluntourism.

this year. All 200 of them will be initiated at the General

BIG

WARM WELCOME from all of us.

It’s nice to see the preparations are well under way.

With more than 5 months of preparation ahead of us,

there are a number of small projects like the National

Karting Championship and the Formula Drift Asia

coming our way. But what’s new for 2011? There are

some exciting new things on tap for 2011, but I’ll keep

most of them under wraps for now. Call it a tease! Well,

expect an exciting year ahead. Thanks again for all

your support!!!

Raziff Hamid

Chief Editor

We’re back!

The comprehensive exercise of identifying and

can be accepted has been relatively small this year

commitment of all of you.

welcome. Whilst at times it may be hard work and quite

a tough learning slope, I am sure that you will both

It was well recognised that the quality and performance

match or was better than a number of the circuits. The

worst that can happen to us is complacency. We have

particular we have been lucky that the rain has held off

in the previous years. All of us need to continually learn

and upgrade our knowledge. In particular to practice

for any situation that may happen.

to under emphasise the importance of attending all

the relevant training sessions. Motor Sports requires

need to be able to react quickly and competently.

As we currently only have a few motor sports events in

Singapore, much of the knowledge has to be obtained

in the classroom. On this note, you are encouraged to

participate in other events whether it be Go-­kart or Drift

events in Singapore or other races overseas.

May I again, as for every year, emphasise the

importance of punctuality and reliability, both of

you are absent from either the training or the event

without informing us with a credible reason, you may

be excluded from future events. Being either late or

being absent from your position at the event can have

for travel. Get into the right habit now. Turn up when

required and be on time.

This year the Confederation of Australian Motor Sports

(CAMS) will only be providing a very small number of

purely advisory. Use them as necessary but remember

you are responsible for running the race.

It is unlikely that there will be any changes to the track

two support races and these are similar to last year.

There have, been some changes to the FIA rules and

some of these are summarised below.

F-­DUCTS AND DOUBLE DIFFUSERS

Both F-­ducts and double diffusers have been banned

as have any systems, devices or procedures which

use driver movement as a means of altering the

aerodynamic characteristics of the car. The F-­ducts and

double diffusers were meant to promote overtaking

but not achieve their objective.

Secretary’s desk

Message from Secretary of the Meeting for

emphasise the importance of attending ALL

the relevant training sessions.

ADJUSTABLE REAR WINGS

In the place of F-­ducts and Double Diffusers are the

adjustable rear wings. The idea behind the adjustable

rear wing is that in certain parts of the circuit a following

driver will get a signal that he can momentarily activate

the control that opens the gap between the upper

and lower wing planes, in order to boost straight-­ line

speed by reducing drag. This can only be activated

when the driver is less than one second behind another

at pre-­determined points on the track. The driver in

front cannot activate his rear wing, thus conferring a

this system were noticeable at the Australian GP but

could be even more effective at other circuits

KERS IS BACK

Whilst KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems that

takes the waste energy generated under braking and

scrapped in 2010 season, the teams did not use it. For

2011 most of the teams will be using KERS. The system

will be essentially the same as in 2009 with no increase

in maximum permitted power.

effect on the procedures for track marshals and any

F1 car. The KERS procedures will be included in the

training modules and will be reintroduced into the

2011 Marshals handbook. Please make sure that you

become conversant with KERS

RETURN OF PIRELLI

Pirelli has replaced Bridgestone as the supplier of tyres.

The Pirelli tyres have been designed to degrade much

quicker than the Bridgestone tyres that have been

used for the last 13 years. This could result in up to four

pit stops for some races, which will make for a busy time

there.

OTHER CHANGES

The 107 per cent qualifying rule has been reintroduced…

other changes include the removal of the ban on team

orders… In addition drivers are only allowed to move

once to defend themselves in a corner

The 107 per cent qualifying rule has been reintroduced.

This means that the slower cars will not be able to race

chance of slow cars holding up the leaders is reduced.

Other changes include the removal of the ban on

In addition drivers are only allowed to move once to

defend themselves in a corner thus reducing the act

of crowding, which was seen at some races last year.

I am sure that you are all looking forward to this year

and I look forward to working with all of you.

Secretary’s desk

KERS gloves used at the Australian GP

Mike Gray

Secretary

of the

Meeting

As the plane trundled down the runway and the

passengers quieted down to catch some Zs, I smiled

Barely 6 months prior, after our volunteer marshal stint

with the Singapore Grand Prix ended on a high (as it

usually tends to do), a bunch of us decided we were not

content to wait a whole year for more action. By end

October, we had registered ourselves for the Australian

GP and the CLIPSAL 500 race meet. By November, we

wait, which was bearable only because we each had

hectic jobs to distract us.

The redeye got us to Melbourne where we then caught

to wrangle 2 weeks off work, allowing us a minimum

of 4 full days of pure holidaying fun, other than the

scheduled 4 days on track for each race. Adelaide

is the capital of South Australia and its population

numbers about 1.2 million, spread out over an easy-­

to-­explore grid system that is 45% greenery. It is also

known as “The City of Churches” and was immediately

apparent why once we entered the city.

With only 1.5 days to explore, we managed to ascend

Mount Lofty for expansive city views, explore the

parklands around River Torrens on bicycles from the

city’s free-­for-­hire program, visit the Central Market for

freshly-­baked breakfasts and organic munchies, get a

grid layout helped a lot and most of the city sights

were easily accessible on foot plus there were free

trams going round the city centre. We also spent a fair

amount of time at Rundle Mall for some -­you guessed

it-­ shopping. It is actually a long street right smack in

the city centre, lined with big-­name department stores,

quaint shopping arcades and hundreds of retail and

F&B outlets.

Just when I thought our fun had ended and we had to

start our 4-­day “work” stint, I was proven entirely wrong!

True, the marshals/rules/organisation there was no less

professional than at any other race worldwide but

they certainly knew how to put together a race! The

Clipsal 500 (named for sponsor Clipsal Electronics) is

the largest domestic motorsport event in Australia and

is just 1 leg of the V8 Supercar Championship Series. Its

venue, the Victoria Park Racecourse, started off hosting

the Australian Grand Prix in 1985 and continued for 11

years until the GP moved to Melbourne. In 1999, the

V8 Supercars took over this track and have not looked

back since.

I was struck by how the atmosphere could be so laidback

and casual, what with jaunty mascots, sheer choices

of food and beer, open garages encouraging public

viewing of the racing vehicles, classic car exhibits, and

even a couple fairground rides! And yet when it came

Voluntourism

A Rip Snorter* Time in Oz*Rip Snorter -­ Aussie slang for great/fantastic.

Enjoying the after race dinner with her travelling mates

Time spent while volunteering for a good

cause can be more than a break from your

daily lives. Voluntourism is the new trend of

vacation which is catching on rapidly among

Elaine Chan

to crunch-­time, I could see it in their eyes: a burning

passion and serious pride in every individual, regardless

of their role. It was seriously the most memorable race

for me, ever.

we couldn’t afford to dally. The Great Ocean Road

was waiting! After picking up our rental car early the

next day, we made our way south to Port Campbell,

water’s edge. A short drive in the coming morning

brought us to the famous limestone stacks a.k.a the 12

Apostles and we stopped often for breathtaking photo

the ferry to Sorrento. From there, it was just another 1.5

hours to Melbourne.

With a population of 4 million, Melbourne, the capital of

Victoria, has a more big-­city vibe and being larger and

more spread out than Adelaide; we greatly relied on

the trams to get around. Fortunately, our hostel was just

across a tram stop and mere minutes from Albert Park,

the AGP venue. We had, again, 1.5 days to run amok

in Melbourne, which we did. Typical Singaporeans that

we are, we just had to hit the factory outlets, namely

Harbour Town and DFO. Thank goodness for the races

or we would have been plenty poorer.

nothing short of amazing as well. Like the Clipsal 500,

there was a certain party atmosphere in the air and

we were swept up in another round of wildly exciting

V8 Supercar races. And like before, we met grizzled

veterans with a gazillion patches on their coveralls

who thought nothing of imparting nuggets of marshal

wisdom and the occasional Aussie catchphrase to us

visitors.

In essence, the 2 racetracks and the 2 cities couldn’t be

more different, and yet we all thoroughly enjoyed it all.

My travelling party had Aussie contacts from when they

came to Singapore for the GPs plus we made many

more friends in our time there. They were all fabulously

generous with their time, good cheer and warmth. It

greatly touched us that even newfound friends thought

their car boots so they’d have enough space to give

us rides to and from the racetracks, or sharing their only

jacket with a sunbaked foreigner unused to the chill.

With so many positives, there is, however, a huge con

to consider. If you don’t have the money or time to

spare to do this again the next year (and the year after,

and so on), then you might just regret having done this

to relive again and again. And that’s dinky-­di (Aussie

slang for the truth).

Voluntourism

If you don’t have the money or time to spare

to do this again… then you might just regret

This is the fourth year that Singapore will be hosting

the Grand Prix. It also brings about key changes within

the race organization. It is understood that this is part

of SGP’s succession planning effort to identify and

develop talent to ensure leadership continuity for key

positions in the organization.

Chairman of the Race Organizing Committee, Gabriel

Tan commented, “We have started this succession

planning process in our effort to ensure leadership

continuity and individual advancement.”

been promoted to the senior ranks. This year, we also see

rotation between Chiefs and Deputies in various roles

responsibilities with guidance and mentorship from

2010 Chiefs.

According to Janette Tan, SGP’s race operations

manager, “Changes are important to any organizations

as we need to adjust according to the requirements

of the business, as well as the development of the

individual.”

Janette herself will assume the role of Assistant Clerk of

the Course (Operations) this year. Her 2 previous roles

were Deputy Sector Marshal (2008) and also Chief

Marshal (2009 & 2010). This year, Koo Ping-­Tsien will take

on the Chief Marshal role with Janette acting as mentor

to him.

All the appointments are shown in the following table.

The 3rd column indicates the individual’s previous role

prior to 2011.

Senior appointments

Raziff Hamid, Chief Editor

Succession planning is important to ensure

leadership continuity and individual

advancement.

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Gabriel Tan Clerk of the Course

Anurag Avula Deputy Clerk of the Course Assistant Clerk of the Course (Emergency-­Coordinator)

Janette Tan Asst. Clerk of the Course (Operations) Chief Marshal

Daniel Yong Asst. Clerk of the Course (Emergency Coordinator) Chief Track Marshal

Ernest Kong Chief of Communications

Desmond Seah Deputy Chief of Communications

Benedict Cho Deputy Emergency Coordinator

Simon Ng Chief Observer Loop

Connie Ng Deputy Chief Observer Loop Newly appointed

RACE CONTROL TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Michael Gray Secretary of the Meeting

Kate Yeung Deputy Secretary of the Meeting (F1) Assistant Secretary of the Meeting (Support Categories)

Lim San San Asst. Secretary of the Meeting (Race Admin)

Suji Thampi

Song Jing Asst. Secretary of the Meeting(Compliance / Marshal Safety)

Seetoh Cheng Kuok Deputy Asst. Secretary of the Meeting(Compliance / Marshal Safety)

Lynn Tan Secretary to the F1 Stewards

Errol Goodenough Deputy Chief Editor (Newsletter) Dy Sector Marshal

SECRETARIES TEAM

Senior appointments

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Harold Netto ASN F1 Steward

Stephen Yong National Steward

Nish Shetty National Steward

Eddie Keng National Steward

Leslie Goh National Steward Sector Marshal

STEWARDS TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Catherine Low Asst. Secretary of the Meeting (Sign-­On) Newly Appointed

Richard Yin Deputy Asst. Secretary of the Meeting (Sign-­On) Newly Appointed

MUSTERING TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Kumar Singam Chief of Equipment Dy Chief of Equipment

Lim Chun Kiat Deputy Chief of Equipment Newly Appointed

EQUIPMENTS TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Raymond Cheong Deputy Secretary of the Meeting (Support Categories) Deputy Secretary of the Meeting (F1)

Christina Tong Asst. Secretary of the Meeting (Support Categories) Newly Appointed

Knight Liew Chief Support Paddock Dy Chief Support Paddock

Joon Hurh Deputy Chief Support Paddock

Johnson Wong Deputy Chief Support Paddock

Ahuja Ghanshyam Deputy Chief Support Paddock

SUPPORT PADDOCK TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Thamodharan Krishnan C hief of Recovery Dy Chief of Recovery

Patrick Kok Deputy Chief of Recovery

RECOVERY TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Winson Ow Chief Course Marshal

Bill Low Course Marshal

Stephen Low Course Marshal Sector Marshal

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Dr. Kelvin Chew

Dr. Lim Kay Kiat

Dr. Adrian Ng Chief Pit Lane (Medical)

MIV Specialist

Dr. Julian Ong Medical Chase Car Doctor

Dr. Jim Lee Extrication Specialist Newly Appointed

Dr. Lee Ser Yee Medical Communication

Yap Soon Ghee

Tan Siew Choo

MEDICAL TEAM

COURSE MARSHALS TEAM

Senior appointments

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Mohammed Salleh Chief Fire Marshal Deputy Chief Fire Marshal

Mohamed Salleh Bin Ali (Agayle) Deputy Chief Fire Marshal

Sivaraja Marimuthu Asst. Chief Fire Marshal Newly Appointed

FIRE FIGHTING TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Ambat Ramesh Menon Chief Grid Deputy Chief Grid

Karl Daruwalla Deputy Chief Grid

Jac Tan Chief Pit Deputy Chief Pit

Daryl Yeo Deputy Chief Pit

Colin Chua Assistant Chief Pit & Grid Newly Appointed

PIT & GRID TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Jacobo Fernando Garcia Gil Chief Starter

Vaithilingam Yogalingam Starter / Finisher

Isabella Chong Starter / Finisher

Wang Yew Liang Starter / Finisher

Isaac Hoon Assistant Starter / Finisher Sector Marshal

STARTERS TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Gordon Lit Chief National Scrutineer

Lim Teow Guan Deputy Chief National Scrutineer

Ian Porteous Chief Scrutineer (Support Categories)

Timothy Brown Deputy Chief Scrutineer (Support Categories)

Paul Khoo Assistant Chief Scrutineer (Support Categories) Newly Appointed

SCRUTINEERS TEAM

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Koo Ping-­Tsien Chief Marshal Chief Flag Marshal

Emily Goo Deputy Chief Marshal Asst. Secretary of the Meeting (Marshal Services)

Jonathan Chen Chief Track Marshal Sector Marshal

Raziff Hamid Chief Flag Marshal Sector Marshal

CHIEF MARSHALS TEAM

Senior appointments

Name Role in 2011 Role in 2010Ankur Bhandari Sector Chief

Arnout Mostert Sector Chief

Aron Ang Sector Chief

Azher Khan Sector Chief

Claudio Bizzoni Sector Chief Deputy Sector Marshal

Dave Parker Sector Chief

Dennis Christopher Ramachandran Sector Chief

Eike Torsten Merz Sector Chief

Frederick Wong Sector Chief

Ganesh Radhakrishnan Sector Chief

Goh Hian Jin Sector Chief

Jackson Lim Sector Chief

Jefri Masri Sector Chief

Jovin Tan Sector Chief

Keith Chang Sector Chief Deputy Sector Marshal

Nor Azam Ahmad Sector Chief

Patrick Phua Sector Chief

Patrick Tan Sector Chief Deputy Sector Marshal

Randy Ang Sector Chief

Suppiah Ramachandran Sector Chief

Tng Soon Huat Sector Chief

Zavier Han Sector Chief

Ahmad Jeffri Saat Deputy Sector Chief

Kenneth Choa Deputy Sector Chief

Lucas Stefano Karatzas Deputy Sector Chief

Robert Chua (Bob) Deputy Sector Chief

Shahrul Nizam Mohamed Hassan Deputy Sector Chief

Tan Yoke Yew Deputy Sector Chief

Anton Johnson Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Charles Kwek Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Chua Chern Yi Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Kenneth Lui Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Lian Choan Kiat Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Mark Toh Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Monish Peswani Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Ng Geng Whye Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Shanmuga Kumar S Kalugasalam Deputy Sector Chief Newly Appointed

Sector Chiefs Team

Editorial CommitteeChief Editor -­ Raziff HamidDeputy Chief Editor – Errol Goodenough

Photographer – Sean KohDesktop Designer – Jacqueline TangAdvisor -­ Gabriel Tan (Clerk of the Course)Advisor -­ Michael Grey (Secretary of the Meeting)

Reproduction of this newsletter, in whole or in part, is expressly forbidden except by written permission of the Editor.

Off-­Track