Are you fit enough for Formula One?
SINGAPORE — It might not seem like it, but driving a Formula One car is tough work. So don’t be fooled by the typical F1 driver’s slender build.
“These guys are some of the most elite athletes in the world,” says Paul Haines, who runs his own high-performance consultancy in Australia for top-level athletes from various sports. “What their bodies go through and the different demands put on them throughout a race are extreme.”
Haines (pictured above) has intimate knowledge of what it takes to be fit to race in Formula One. “I used to train Daniel Ricciardo when he was with Toro Rosso a couple of years ago when I lived in Europe,” he says.
A top driver like Ricciardo, now with Red Bull Racing, needs plenty of endurance and has to be extremely fit, explains Haines. “During a race these guys are spending the majority of the time at 90 percent of their maximum heart rate, so it’s quite intense,” he says.
If you’re still sceptical about how athletic the blokes in F1 really are, you can have a taste of their training yourself today.
Singapore GP is hosting the Fit For Racing challenge at the pit building of the Marina Bay Circuit, near the Singapore Flyer. The event is part of the Rev Up Singapore promotional outreach for September’s Grand Prix.
The action kicks off at 8.30am today, with Haines co-hosting the event with Claire Louise Jedrek, Singapore’s only female racing driver.
The competition is free to enter, and sees participants go through six competitive challenges that simulate the training plan of a Formula One driver.
The top 12 male and 12 female participants will compete in another round of workouts that test their reaction times and reactive skills, with more than $24,000 worth of prizes up for grabs.
Hundreds of people have already registered, but the organisers are accepting walk-in entries from 11am till about 2.30pm. If you make it through all six initial workouts, you get a limited edition Fit For Racing finishers pack.
“Most of the tasks are pretty challenging, but it’s a great way for people to come down and experience what it’s like to train like a Formula One driver,” says Haines. “Just come down, have a bit of fun and have a go. That’s what the day’s about.”
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