Bye Bye Schumi...

Yesterday he told everyone that he will quit at the end of this season. Enough to get my attention back to a sport which I had stopped following like crazy (obviously I keep in touch with the results and stats). For the 37 year old it was the ride of lifetime in his home country. For this 21 year old writing this, he has got to learn from Schumi that life can be a ride.

I have been following Formula One from the days when I thought racing was all about two guys- one named "DIAMOND" Hill in his blue car and the other some SHOEMaker in the red car. Actually I related much more because earlier when I was a kid, I had two Hot Wheels- One red another blue. Though those were the days when all of European Football was ManU for me and the only player from Brazil was Ronaldo. It was maybe sometime around 98-99.

My Grandfather once asked me what excites you about some silly cars going round and round for 70 laps (this is what actually the F-1 fans instead ask to the NASCAR guys). I said most of them watching don’t know it why they are watching it for. But as I know it most of it throughout the last decade watched it for Schumi.

Just today I was discussing it one of the German guys visiting my company and he said that no one at least in Germany will watch it now, don’t know about the rest. Rest will be chucking it soon now I think. It’s another case of the sport loosing its importance vis-à-vis the sportsman. I read somewhere that F-1 will die when Bernie Eccelstone dies (he is some 93-94 may be). But for half the world F-1 is almost over now. Anyway it was never a sport in any sense, and things like these needs icons like Senna first (poor guy died in '94 at Imola Grand Prix) and later Schumi to put some sense into it.

Germany has always given the world Sports Icons to look up to. 70’s was Beckenbaur era and in 80's and parts of 90's we witnessed Boom-Boom Becker. The bestest Tennis player ever on this planet Steffi Graf came from Germany and then came Schumi. Nowadays the Germans are running into a deficit it seems, with no one to look up to now as a sporting icon (though there Chancellor is quite something, as President Bush should everyone by giving her a backrub.)

While I college I lost touch with F-1 but now I will definitely see the last races. I want him to win. Infact everyone wants him to win. And everyone knows he will do it.

Anyway remember the one sided schumi domination from 2000 to the 2004 season. Only Coulthard came anywhere close to beating him occasionaly. Have a look at what all did Coulthard try to beat schumi.