Hi guys, since somebody is asking what I'm up to these days, I decided to drop in a word. I have started a blog which is intended for sharing my experiences in rally.
The link is the following:
http://wrcbehindthestages.blogspot.com/
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Hi guys, since somebody is asking what I'm up to these days, I decided to drop in a word. I have started a blog which is intended for sharing my experiences in rally.
The link is the following:
http://wrcbehindthestages.blogspot.com/
Thanks. It was me who asked. Any future drive? How is Gemma? :)
Great to hear your story! Not a big surprise. Unfortunately rallying is cruel business nowadays...Quote:
Originally Posted by Antony Warmbold
Nice to hear from you, do you still rally these days? Are you planning a comeback (I guess not with m-sport) ?Quote:
Originally Posted by Antony Warmbold
nice to have someone on here like yourself...Quote:
Originally Posted by Antony Warmbold
when you started rallying at top level and you saw that the results weren't there and that your future was not in an official team due to lack of skills, what kept you going and paying more ? was it the fact that you still had a small hope and didn't want to leave it? or you had too much fun and you were just spending the money like on a hobby ?
Welcome to the forum! And don't take N.O.T. too seriously ....Quote:
Originally Posted by Antony Warmbold
Edit: very nice blog btw :)
Yes, I thought I should share my story. I felt it's the right thing to do. Who knows if this might be helpful for others.
Not planning anymore driving, in competition anyway.
I am glad you guys appreciate the blog. I will update it often as I have a lot to tell.
Answers will be in the blog N.O.T.
keep reading...
ok thank you.
you really sound bitter in your blog (read it all) about how the ford team treated you.... its not fair to put all the blame on them in my opinion.... i am waitting for the next episodes, very nice writting.
By the way i doubt if any other person in the whole world bashed you any harder than myself about your driving...so i am really waitting to see if my "insults" were justifiable or not...so please try and give us the whole truth.
Your blog is bookmarked now by myself.
I have some pictures of you in large format if you are interested from the acropolis/GB rallies e-mail me if you are interested to have them.
I envy you (probably we all).
nice blog/reading mr Warmbold!
But some points you write are a little weird imho.it is difficult to believe that you was in wrc circus and you thought that your car would be equal with factory ones.Specially with your father involved at top rallying for years.Thats something known even by kids.
For me your writing at the blog leaves me a taste of....''the reason i was slower from McRae''
Maybe i get this taste by false...maybe.Don t think that you ''have'' to explain to somebody the reason you were slower from wrc factory cars.Its something totally phisical.
Nice to have you here,keep writing at your blog,and i d like to say that i liked your sideways driving. ;)
ps some forumers mention about Warmbolds speed in his days....much faster than todays B class drivers imho.
Hello Antony and welcome here :wave: I've moved your post and started a new thread...you deserved it ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Antony Warmbold
Thanks, I did not expect that at all!
Noted, thanks
Noted, thanks
Quote:
Originally Posted by dimviii
Welcome on the forum and thanks for the link to your blog. It is nice to read.
Thanks for the blog. Really interesting to read it.
I've been years in this forum and one thing that many members here ask time after time is why do the privateers bother? Currently guys like Räikkönen, Block, H. Solberg etc are being kept under the lens all the time. The motivation, desire to win and passion for sport are being questionized. Would be nice to hear your thoughts on this.
Nice to see you writing on the forum. Hopefully you'll stay here for a long time.
Very interesting reading Antony. Nice to see how that big circus is running behind the scene... Great job man, really bold action from you! [attachment=1:1zwemkl1]thumbup1.gif[/attachment:1zwemkl1]
Noted, I will make a post with my thoughts about that on my blog.Quote:
Originally Posted by Woodeye
Thanks to everyone for taking time to read my story.
Welcome Anthony,
I hope you'll find this forum as useful as we'll find your knowledge!
Guys I can sympathise with Anthony here, I've just read the 1st part of the blog, and what he says was different with the cars......not him making excuses for his pace. I think we all know that 'M2' or 'privateer' cars all have differences on the 'world' or 'factory' cars. I had a stint at M-Sport on trial (I was offered a permanent position but I didn't take the job as it wasn't as interesting and exciting as I though it would be), and from the time there many people told me about the way things work with the M2 cars, but I just saw this as the offset due to the lack money being injected by that person, i.e 2.5 mill rather than 3.5 mill as Anthony explained. Did they not explain this to you Anthony?
I don't think anyone expects privateers to be quicker than works drivers, and Anthony was certainly driving in a more competetive era of the WRC, but sometime people don't realise how different the Works and Privateer cars are. According to FIA rules (so i've been led to believe on this forum) all ECUs are the same this year, so how are they different, weight? Think i've asked this question in another topic but with no response.
Again I sympathise with Anthony for spending all that money on a weaker, slower car, but I honest don't think any other supplier of car would be any different, Prodrive etc..
Was they young Finn Hirvonen by any chance ;)
thanks for this blog, keep it coming, i´m looking forward already :)
I will talk about this in my blog further down the line. You asked if they explained this to me. Answer is no. All the technical stuff was secret. You can bet I was not going to throw 2.5 mil to their faces per year if I knew my car was disadvantaged right from the start, and to that extent...Quote:
Originally Posted by Doon
I remember some tires issue.. When Garde retired on one rally only then you got works tires.
i don't remember exactly but it's possible I got some new compounds which were in limited numbers only for works drivers.Quote:
Originally Posted by Barreis
and people were wondering why Petter was going on about equality of cars, what he acheived with that 2001 model Xsara and C4, until middle part of 2010 was amazing. OK last part of the year the C4 was almost equal.Quote:
Originally Posted by Doon
What a pleasant surprise to see a past WRC driver here! And that you share your adventures...must have been awsome at times and painfull in others.
One of my clearest memories was the 2003 New Zealand incident with Duval and Prevot... :)
Welcome!
Noted.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sladden
I shall give my side of the story on this one in a future blog entry.
Interesting reading, but nothing exactly new in the big picture, favoritism has been always in rally, Audi did favor some driver same did Lancia Ford did favor McRae according to Solberg Subaru did favor Burns.
Good point was the advise to young drivers to stay in smaller classes long as possible to gain experience of the stages they use in WRC, its no point to burn money without to have some chance for reasonable result.
They 'privateer' cars have probably not been equal for a number of years.....I think we all know this. Why would a Team want their paying drivers beating the ones they have chosen for a full WRC assult!?Quote:
Originally Posted by MJW
My father worked for Marshalls East Africa in Kenya in the 70's, he was the workshop manager for the rally team for a while when they were building the Peugeot 504's for the Safari, and he reckons that all the cars were exactly the same, same parts, same time spent on each. He also ran a Mazda RX-2 in '74 in the Safari, and when all other Mazda's run from Japan were out, they help my old chaps car......it's just what manufacturers do and we have to accept, like Anthony say...it's never going to be an equal playing field!
Anthony, did your old man ever rallying Africa? Maybe our old fella's crossed paths?
I've just been checking out Antony's stage times from 2005, and to be fair, he be the 6th or 7th quickest driver in 2011. Meaning he'd be in 4th or 5th places now with DNFs on some events. Not bad for a chap who many have slated over the years! Either the privateer cars have become worse of the quality in the WRC has? I think the latter, in 2005 WRGB after the first day 16 drivers were within 2 mins of 1st place.....that is unheard of now!
Great blog mr. Warmbold ! Keep on sharing these stories with us !
BTW the fact that you had 140 kg more really sound fascinating ...
Do a search.....you will find that one of the current Ford works drivers had his first full season in 2003 in the third works Focus.Quote:
Originally Posted by Doon
Now this is interesting reading, Anthony. I have been waiting for something written that reveals the "inside" of a world rally team. Unfortunately todays WRC-journalists have decided to be "mates" with the teams, instead of producing good, investigative and critical journalism. The WRC has turned out to become too much of a friend club, where no one dares to reveal the negative sides of the sport. Much appreciated!
Forgot to ask you, did you have any manager? And do you think that professional rally drivers should have competent managers.
Pity to hear that Anthony! IRC would maybe much better for you, is a championship with alot of nice rallies and with not so much Factory drivers with better cars than the car u can buy. I can believe for sure your story, not a surprise for me that it goes like that in WRC.Quote:
Originally Posted by Antony Warmbold
Welcome Antony!
Loved the blog, a big insight to what goes on behind the scenes.
I look forward to your next update in the blog:-)
I'd still like to know who this young finn is:-)
Great to read your blog... Thanks Antony...
this car was always beautiful ... My favorite in the Rally of Argentina 2003,,,,
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-43XfSav59V...workshop_2.JPG
Hello
Your blog is an interesting read. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achim_Warmbold
Hopefully you will write on the Toyota Corolla WRC sometime.
Did you get a comparative quote from Subaru/ Prodrive for a car at the same time ?
Have you taken up golf ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doon
A very interesting comment, can you provide us with further details of life at M-Sport? How do you think Block and Kimi fair as "private" drivers in comparison to Loeb, Mikko etc???