It’s been a wild ride all season long with the surprise success of Brawn and Red Bull, the fall and tepid rise of Ferrari and McLaren, the threat of a splinter series, and now the revelations of cheating (say it ain’t so, Flavio). So as far as newsworthiness, next year’s entrants are a blip on the F1 radar. But being that we’re one of those new entrants, it’s a topic near and dear to our hearts here at USF1blog.com.

One thing that’s starting to seem clear is that several new teams are approaching their involvement with a tinge – at least – of patriotism and national pride. So it’s worth the question, are we seeing shades of A1GP color F1 lately?

OK, so Force India is without question wearing it on their sleeve. And Ferrari is essentially the national team of my ancestral homeland Italia. And now they’ve even hired an Italian driver – bravo! (well, their second this season if you count Luca Badour).

USF1 is desperate to put a few American’s in the cockpit (all due respect to Michael Ramies and the other hopefuls, but I think they’re missing an opportunity in me). These intentions to rally around a fresh faced guy, or gal, who speaks ‘merican may or may not work out as planned, but it’s a guiding team principle and that says something.

Then, we hear about Malaysia putting a face on the sport with the revived Lotus team. In case you missed it, the Malaysian government has backed the bid and the entry was made by a company called “1Malaysia F1 Team”. 1Malaysia is an initiative of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, intended to promote unity among Malaysians. A statement from the government said: “The cars will be made in Malaysia, by Malaysians.” Doesn’t that sound familiar? If we’re worried about government involvement in health care in the U.S., what’s going on there? Lowest bidder on supplier contracts? Rationing of tires and Nomex? I know, I’m being barely humorous and borderline relevant…

USF1blog.com had the opportunity to sit down and interview one of the few U.S. drivers that have been offered a test drive from Team USF1 ahead of their inaugural Formula 1 season.  Michael Ramies is the name that everyone else had missed in the storm of questions about the 2010 lineup, and we are proud to bring you an inside look at the path of one USF1 candidate. We feel very strongly that Michael is truly the future face of American’s in International motor sports.

Michael thanks for taking the time today to talk with USF1blog.com.

Jeff: Let’s start from the top, how did you get started in competitive racing?
Michael Ramies: When I was 11, I started at the Jim Russell Karting Center in Sonoma. I did really well right away, in my first class, so my parents got me my own Kart which I drove as a hobby for the next three years. I have to admit that at the time I really wasn’t thinking that I was going to be racing competitively as a career. After that, my dad put me in the Skip Barber two and three day racing school and I did extremely well in that I went into the actual Skip Barber Race series.

J: So now you have progressed past Barber, what do you think the next logical step is for you?
MR: I’m working on a deal right now to start racing in the Pro1000 Racing Series in a Caparo T1000. Everything in the States, doesn’t really translate well to the different racing series over there, so right now it makes sense for me to move across the Atlantic.

OK, lots of talk from my post last week about the loneliness of being an F1 fan in the States. A number of you said that without a home race, interest will forever be limited. So for the next couple days, I control the universe and am willing to grant you a full-on GP race spectacle in the location of your choosing.

Tell me where. And why it would work there. Could be an existing track (what upgrades would it need?). Could be a street course. Could be the perfect location to construct a track that no one has considered. See? No real guidelines. But keep in mind success depends on getting people there, and continued success means a great race that comes back again and again.

All ideas appreciated, I’m looking for thoughts from sea to shining sea.

Below is an excellent video produced by Red Bull Racing/Technology which shows the design, manufacturing, testing, and maintenance that a standard “customer” team will go through to keep their car in the spotlight and atop the podium.

I was really impressed by the ‘Rapid Prototyping’ stereolithography. Amazing what liquid resin, lasers and CAD can do. There is no doubt that Formula 1 is progressive. I feel like at any moment the camera is going to pan across the room and you will see scientists in clean suits working on the next launch of the space shuttle. Maybe I am not too far off, considering the parallels between aerospace and F1 aerodynamicists. Enjoy.

photo credit ©jwbphotography

USF1blog.com is looking for writers for guest articles in all areas concerning Team USF1, Drivers, Gran Prix, F1 Technology, and of course the ‘Formula 1 Lifestyle’. Write about your favorite aspect of Formula 1, and have it published online.

Is it the Drama off the track or on that you love more? The attitudes or the atmosphere of a Grand Prix weekend? If you never miss a Friday practice and can’t get enough of Formula 1, we want you to write for us!

If you are interested please send us an email at info@USF1blog.com, or reply below (be sure to include your email address in the guest comment)! We will contact you within a week to discuss the guidelines for setting you up as a guest author on USF1blog.com

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USF1blog.com is looking for a graphic designer to showcase their design. Is that you?

We are looking for a unique website logo that incorporates the USF1 and Formula 1 progressive design, but stays away from stepping on any ‘copyright toes’. The logo, which will be used throughout the site will be incorporated into the website banner, as well as through various other blog posts, and the upcoming USF1 forum.

If you are interested please send us an email with some of your work at info@USF1blog.com, or reply with your ideas below!

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Welcome to the launch, and new home USF1blog.com. The web’s premier community for all things USF1 and Formula 1 related.

The site is set to launch August 1st, 2009, but please feel free to spend some time on the site in the interim, but please be kind as we are still getting the CSS and Wordpress back-end to work correctly.

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