RFM Front Page News

Motorsport Industry Association Holds Conference on Sport Sustainability
By Neil Chapel
Photos © Neil Chapel 2008
DETROIT (September 2, 2008) — On Thursday, August 28, the day before the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix weekend, UK based Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) held a conference on the issue of motorsports contribution to energy sustainability and its role in providing solutions to declining natural resources, pollution and a lack of renewable energy.

The official banner of the conference was: “Fuel economy and energy efficiency: How racing can deliver innovative solutions…fast!” The unofficial tag was “Relevancy” and that theme was raised throughout the daylong conference held on Belle Isle at the Detroit Yacht Club.

As a reflection of the current state of international motorsports, the conference spent no time addressing attacks against motorsport as wasteful and polluting. It was pointed out by Chris Aylett, the Chief Executive of MIA who acted as moderator and interviewer, that technological gains made by motorsports would help make all sports (and every other human endeavor) greener and more efficient. The millions of sports fans driving their cars many millions of total miles to football, baseball and other games will benefit from the gains made on the proving ground of motorsports.

Rather, the conference offered a forum for various participants in racing to address their contribution to innovation and efficiency, and how that contribution will address the need for efficient affordable transportation. Ed Triolo. V.P. of Marketing for ALMS, proudly proclaimed ALMS as the heir to a rich legacy of racing innovation to find more efficient uses of natural and sustainable resources. He pointed out that ALMS regulations follow closely the FIA Le Mans regs in order to encourage innovation. He reminds us that the early days of Le Mans racing included rewards for most efficient use of fuel over the 24-hour length of the race. With that, Triolo reviewed the ALMS “Green Racing Challenge” that was announced in January; points will be awarded to competitors in the 2008 Petit Le Mans for most efficient use of energy and petroleum displacement (the reduced use of fossil fuels in favor of renewable sources). “ALMS is quite proud to be the first racing series to embrace sustainable motorsport technology”, Triolo said. In order to qualify for the challenge, any energy source (fuel) must be in a form that’s available to the public, making it, therefore, relevant.

In contrast, Fred Nation, Executive V.P. of the IRL and Indianapolis Motor Speedway, offered only that all their cars operate on 100% ethanol. The remainder of his presentation focused on changes (or the lack thereof) to the IRL format following the “reunification” with CWS. For example, no one should expect to see less than 50% of their races held on ovals; the relevancy of which was lost on most conference participants. When asked if IRL was willing to become more radical, even in terms of chassis development, Nation remarked that there was “too much inertia in favor of the current evolution of Indy cars” to become really radical.

As the conference progressed, it began to take a different trajectory. It moved from the immediate future of motorsport to the more distant future.

Bobby Rahal kicked off the after-lunch portion of the symposium. He demonstrated an astute understanding of the relevancy of motorsport by pointing to tipping points in the history of motorsport that affected its contribution to innovative technology. When the entertainment value of series like NASCAR and Formula 1 began to dictate the technology of those series in the late 1960’s and early 70’s, innovation was curtailed in favor of close racing and media friendly regulations, according to Rahal. Next came the current phase of “spec” racing: an entire grid of cars using essentially the same chassis (NASCAR) or the same chassis AND engines (IRL). “Spec racing discourages innovation,” he observed. Rahal pointed to the groundbreaking Granatelli Turbine car that very nearly won the 1967 Indy 500 only to be banned from future races by USAC. “Sanctioning bodies don’t see the big picture”, he said, the implication being that innovation must come from a “non-spec” racing series.

This provided Rahal with a perfect opportunity to announce his first official association with BMW, and his upcoming BMW-M3 entry in ALMS (GT2). “What I love about ALMS is that it’s a manufacturer’s series”, he said.

ALMS drivers David Brabham and Lord Paul Drayson offered a panel discussion that often veered from racing and addressed a wider view. “How do I justify what I do (drive a race car) to my children who watch the National Geographic channel whenever they aren’t watching cartoons?” Brabham asked, rhetorically. Lord Drayson offered a glimpse into the politics of motorsport sustainability that only a British Government Minister could offer. On leave from his duties as Minister of Defense, Drayson’s team, Drayson-Barwell run a works Aston Martin (007, in British Racing Green, of course) powered by bio-ethanol fuel. Both drivers expressed a need for racing to be relevant to the development of clean and efficient fuels.

Closing the conference was perhaps the most controversial yet visionary participant. Azhar Hussain, a 34 year old Brit, is promoting a motorcycle race on the Isle of Man TT course (34 miles per lap). All participants will compete on motorcycles creating zero toxic emissions during the 1 lap race to be held in summer of 2009. Any propulsion system is welcome as long as it meets safety requirements and no toxic emissions are produced “from the tailpipe”. Hussain drew some stern lectures from the audience. An engineer lectured him about the safety hazards and the impossibility of managing so many diverse technologies. A marketing wonk demanded he not use the term “zero emissions” because all energy systems create waste whether at the tailpipe, the processing facility or somewhere in between. One can’t help but wonder what they would have told Messrs Daimler, Ford, and the Wright Brothers. Hussain was remarkably composed, however. It looked as though this wasn’t his first conference with a crowd telling him all that can’t be done.

The conference was well attended with a variety of participants and attendees from all aspects of motorsports, auto industry and journalism. Organized by Jeremy Burne, MBE and Director of North American Operations of the MIA, the conference balanced between industry insider technical expertise and the need to make technical innovation understood and appreciated by the general public. Chris Aylett performed his role as moderator with enough command to keep the agenda moving and enough good humor to keep everyone involved and interested.

Also presenting at the conference were: Bud Denker, EVP, Penske Corp., Peter Brown and Sandy Stojkowski, Directors, Ricardo Inc., Bill Griffiths, Consul, British Consulate General, Tim Holland and Steve Brueckner, Directors, Lotus Engineering, and Coleman Jones, Biofuels Implementation Manager, General Motors.