The idea of imposing a two-stop requirement for Formula One in 2014, mooted last week, appears to be just that: an idea that won’t be implemented.
Autosport reported Tuesday that teams are outright rejecting the proposal. It would have needed unanimous support from the 11 teams to be implemented this late in the year.
Implementing two in a race could present something of a slippery slope for F1. One is required anyway due to the requirements of running both of Pirelli’s prime and option tire over the course of a Grand Prix, but as we’ve seen in some instances this year, Austin in particular, that’s led to dreary and processional races.
Two could open up the idea whereby a driver at the back of the field, for example, could make both of his pit stops within say, the first six laps or so and be good to the regulations. It could include further tire saving in an effort to go the remaining distance.
However it would penalize opportunities for drives, though, such as Paul di Resta’s at the Canadian Grand Prix this year, who went 56 laps on Pirelli’s prime tire, the medium, before a switch to supersofts for the duration. Under the new idea, he’d need to pit twice in that remaining distance, and thereby lose any advantage he’d have gained by running that long a first stint to begin with. Of course, knowing he’d need to pit twice anyway, he probably wouldn’t plan to run that long in the first stint.
What the two-stop proposal would more likely do down the road is set up designated pit windows, thereby removing any strategic element of the race with cars needing to stop anywhere from say, laps 19-22 in the first cycle and 28-32 in the second.
The mandatory window cycle was used in the CART series, the precursor to IndyCar, in the early 2000s but met little critical support. It reared its ugly head most at the water-logged Surfers’ Paradise race in 2002, when several cars needed to pit for a mandatory second stop three laps before the race was declared finished, and Mario Dominguez was declared the race winner despite starting 18th and last and not passing a single car on track. All overtakes were done in the pits.
Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.
At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.
Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.
Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.
“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”
805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”
Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.
The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.
“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”
Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer
While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.
“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”
Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.
Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.
Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer
“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.
“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”
The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.
“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.
“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”
