Short Video Clips (from Youtube, etc)

[fragger]

I don't know if any of you guys get the British program QI in your countries, but we do in mine and I really enjoy this show. It's kind of like a very loose, ad-libbed quiz show, only the "contestants" are comedians. Hosted by Stephen Fry. Each show usually has a theme of some sort, and it can be quite funny. Some of these guys are pretty quick-witted, with classic Brit humour, which I love. But it can also be surprisingly informative.

There are tons of snippets from the show on Youtube that generally run for just a few minutes. Here is one example:

[Dweller_Benthos]

Haha, that's pretty funny, and Stephen Fry is hilarious in anything. I don't think BBC America has that on over here, I'll have to check.

[PZ]

I love Brit shows/humor! 

[Art Blade]

yeah, they're actually funny Over here, we need to label a show "funny" so we know it is.

[fragger]

It's been running for quite a while, since 2003. Fry stopped hosting in 2015, which was a shame as I thought he was the perfect host for something like this. It's not the same without him.

Alan Davies (who always sits to Fry's right) is the only regular. The other three panelists change from one show to another, though many appear in multiple episodes.

Always good for a laugh, and entertaining. Most questions asked have popularly-conceived "wrong" responses, and if any of the panelists give that answer, sirens go off, that wrong answer appears on the screens behind them and the panelist forfeits that question. It's not like any of them take the scoring seriously or are desperately trying to win though, they're just there to have fun.

Their philosophy is, "Anything boring can be made quite interesting if looked at the right way". QI, incidentally, stands for "Quite Interesting"

[Art Blade]

I remember having watched a few of those snippets. We must have come across QI on the old forum some time ago.

[fragger]

Now that you mention it...

[fragger]

I got an adrenaline rush just watching this - once around the circuit at the Isle of Man TT. These guys are certifiable. Nerves of titanium required...

[PZ]

Dang, I don't even drive the vehicles in driving games that fast. All I could think of when watching was "those guys sure are lucky someone's cat or dog wasn't crossing the street at the wrong time"

[Art Blade]

That was great. Man, fist thing I thought was THAT is what a gear shift should be like, proper and responsive and fast. Nice gear ratio and what a fast clutch, too. The next thing I thought was THAT is what a proper engine should sound like. Low when slow, and like a siren when going at speeds. WHOA And I was amazed at how well those two know the track. They knew every meter that was coming. Otherwise you just can't go THAT fast and -- didn't you wonder -- slow down on a straight in the middle of nowhere just to turn around a bend you didn't know was coming. Perfect technique when slowing down before and speeding up out of a bend. VERY COOL riding

And you should watch this one. It's Guy Martin again, this time in a Ferrari FXX and a teenager called shotgun.

[fragger]

When an Isle of Man TT veteran says something is fast and exciting, you can take it as gospel It's crazy that a car like that is street-legal. You'd never get out of third gear without breaking the law

To see an IoM TT has long been on my bucket list (incidentally, the "TT" stands for "Tourist Trophy", not "Time Trial" as some think, even though that is indeed what it is). It has a long history, going back 110 years or so. There is hardly any prize money - competitors take part for the thrill and the prestige. It's also one of the most dangerous motor races in the world - 251 riders have died on it since it began (as of 2016) and even a number of spectators have bought it there (you can see how close some people are to the circuit in the clip). If I ever do get to see it, I'm going to make sure I'm positioned safely... like on a rooftop or something

The riders have to know every inch and every nuance of the circuit intimately as obviously there is zero margin for error in many places. Apparently it takes about a year of solid training and practice to get to know the 61km circuit well enough to compete. At the actual event there is one week of practice followed by one week of racing. They only do one lap at a time* as it's a time-trial, but because the riders begin at ten-second intervals they often end up close to one another. There are other clips of the TT on Youtube and some of the footage is heart-stopping. There are a number of places along the circuit where the bikes actually get airborne for a second or two. At around 300 kph, that is definitely not for the faint-hearted - especially when you're only a few feet away from building facades and stone walls You can see in the clip too that there are a lot of places with overhanging trees and foliage, so the sudden contrasts of light and shadow can be visually problematic (especially on a sunny day) and is another reason why the riders have to know the lay of the track like the backs of their hands.

It's all public street during the rest of the year, and I think my worry (if I was brave/daft enough to take part in this madness) would be if some half-senile old local forgot it was race day and decided to pull out of his driveway for a nice Sunday drive at the wrong moment


*EDIT - I was confusing this with the one-lap "Zero Challenge" race, which is for bikes using non-carbon based fuels. They "only" get up to around 100 mph. Races for petrol-fueled bikes can last for up to 6 laps, depending on class and event (Superbikes and the Senior TT class). Other race classes and sidecar events are typically 3-4 laps long.

[Art Blade]

yep, I watched footage around the IoM TT and a fiery accident of Guy Martin. Basically he walked out of a ball of fire and didn't know it happened until they showed him. He's back to racing that TT.

[fragger]

I saw that one too, incredible That would be enough to convince me that I'd pushed my luck far enough... yet he's back in the saddle again. You'd have to have a fatalistic streak a mile wide to be one of these people.

[Art Blade]

yep, that type of racers.. I like them but I couldn't be one of them. Too much of a tree-hugger (in racing games, I keep hitting the only tree, rock, pole or post there is, far and near. I find them. And I hit hard  I once even crashed into the only parked car in a canyon) In real life, my real life is worth keeping so no need for doing things that might require saving it.

[fragger]

Yeah, I've pushed my luck enough just by riding on the street at legal speeds I admire these guys but they can have it on their own, thanks.