Tardiness has a price at Ferrari

f1.racing-live.com ^ | 12/31/03 | Mich FOSTER

[Andy from Beaverton]

Tardiness has a price at Ferrari
Team members fined for being late for meetings [31/12/03 - 09:14]

Michael Schumacher

n their constant battle to be the best of the best Ferrari have looked at every aspect of their team, including personnel and punctuality. And in order to ensure that all team members are on time for meetings the Scuderia have implemented a fining system.

According to Ferrari's six-times World Champion, Michael Schumacher, all the team members are expected to be on time for technical briefings, and should they arrive late they are fined. The fine is monetary, ten Euros per minute late. And no one is exempt from the rule.

"Of course!" Schumacher told F1 Racing when asked if he's also subject to the rule. "But I'm not the biggest contributor to the scheme. Every part of an F1 car has to be perfect, and to achieve that level of excellence, it's first things first - like being on time."

Mich FOSTER
CAPSIS International

[Andy from Beaverton]

This would never stand in the USA, even though it is a good idea.

[coloradan]

The Dilbert book has a "true" story from a reader that one middle manager implemented this policy at his company, with the fee being something like $20 per minute for every person kept waiting. He then showed up to a meeting with many attendees something like 20 minutes late ... and quietly cancelled the policy.

[Benrand]

I don't tihnk they'd have many that would *be* late. How caould anyone be late to go to work on a Ferrari F1 team?

[joesnuffy]

Act one MOnty Python
Eric Idle dragging himself to work after being run over- stabbed -blown up- and run through a wood chipper....

[IYAS9YAS]

I don't tihnk they'd have many that would *be* late. How caould anyone be late to go to work on a Ferrari F1 team?

I know I'd be on time for work every day. I really should have concentrated on mechanics in school, instead of accounting. Follow your heart and work your butt off in a career you love. Can't get any better than that.

Of course, if I work on it, I gotta get a chance at lapping the sucker. That'd be my only requested bonus. Ten laps, any F-1 Track.

[Benrand]

I hear ya, there was a great Monster Garage the other day with Jay leno's mechanic...THAT looked like a fun job!

Well, if you are wealthy enough, you can actually PURCHASE old Ferrari F1 rides, yes, the car itself, from Ferrari.

Put it this way, you could buy one of Schumi's old machines...

I doubt the mechanics get to drive those things, but I bet the employee purchase plan is ok.

[IYAS9YAS]

I pit-crewed on a Fuel Injected 383-powered (stroked 350 not Mopar) asphalt winged sprint car. The local track was 1/4 mile (on the outside wall). I planted the bug about hot-lapping it. The owner/driver let me in it for about 20 laps. I outran his best time (he was good, but not the most agressive or fastest driver) in my test drive. He didn't let me in it again. LOL!

[VANHALEN2002]

Gotta love sprints! My home town track is in Calistoga...NARC Association.

[Benrand]

I bet the power/weight is prolly close to that of an F1. I went to see them for the first time at Indy this year. NEVER have I heard anything as friggin LOUD. It's hard to relate just how loud those cars are. I had no idea from watching SpeedTV that the Mercedes' traction control sounded like that, like the car was going to explode in a thousand pieces...and at full tilt, it's like a million dentist's drill hearing any one of those cars scream by you.

But I'm gonna go again next year. That was a lot of fun. I can see why those guys get paid the big bucks. Maybe people like jackie stewart should have been paid more, as those acrs were much more dangerous, but the new cars are ridiculously fast.

[IYAS9YAS]

I love the Calistoga track! Been there for a few WOO races and a NARC race...the NARC was a blast! WOO is good, but I'd rather watch the home-town racers.

We don't have a full size dirt track here (SW Idaho), but we have a really nice 3/8 miler that just reopened last year and a really fun 1/4 miler that's been around since the fifties and was dirt until the sixties that are both within a short drive. We also have Magic Valley Speedway that is a 1/3 mile NASCAR sanctioned track.