I just watch my first Craftsman truck race the other day , and marvelled at a few things they seem to understand far and away better than Bernie , the marketting genius .

Bernie got closest to the model when the circus went to Indy , with Scott Speed on board . They ran most of the drivers across the stage , showing us personality and faces to relate with the helmet colours .
At the truck race , the drivers were all out there lined up , ready to qualify , and still yacking and joking with fans and engineers alike , mugging for pix , glad-handing the public .

Jacques got loads of accolades for his acheivements , and never once did I hear F1 denegrated during the whole telecast .
Both JPM and JV have lots to say about how the other drivers are respectful and welcoming , and how tight and controlled F1 is in comparison .

They even made a big deal of how Jacques has brought in an international sponsor with him in Sonax .

JPM was fast-tracked into the Cup show through the Busch series , but JV , after only his first race in Trucks , has been given the green to also race with the cup guys at Talledega on the Sunday .

Bubba gets it . Strike while the iron is hot .
They sign on Jacques at the moment that F1 reaches an all-time low in consumer confidence .


Bernie should be paying close attention here .
The public wants to have heroes with which they can identify , not frustrated whiners who must make constant excuses for why they can never be competitive .
They want to meet them .
They want to hear how they feel and react to situations on track from the heart , not the corporate speak manual .
They want to hear about all the drivers feeling they are in with a chance .

Jacques left because , in his own words , "I am done with F1 , and F1 is done with me ."

He left because of all the things of which the public complains .

F1 is out of touch .