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Postcard From Valencia Sunday: Not All Plain Sailing
Posted by: redbullf1 August 24th, 2009 at 10:47 am
Out comes the sun again and out come some fairly major high-profile guests of the team. As well as footballers Gaizka Mendieta and Iker Casillas entrepreneur and Dragon’s Den TV star Theo Paphitis and Tour de France winner Carlos Sastre. And Austrian sailor Hans-Peter Steinacher. Two-times Olympic gold medal winner Hans-Peter knows a thing or two about Valencia. He raced not 250m from the Paddock and stayed here for three weeks in preparation for the Bejing Olympics as the conditions off the Spanish coast are similar to those in China.
He said: “I was really impressed with the Red Bull Racing guys here, how professional they are. For me what is really amazing is the attitude in the team. It really comes from the heart.”
Hans-Peter and sailing partner Roman Hagara are now developing a massive five-man catamaran for testing, then racing, in January and February in the Middle East.
Post-race the British TV broadcaster, the BBC held their live analysis show in the Energy Station. And Eddie Jordan, DC and Martin Brundle were quizzing our two drivers and Chrisitan Horner as well as McLaren’s chief Martin Whitmarsh. Also in shot were various members of the team seen texting their family back in the UK to tell their mums they were on the telly. The technical term is ‘goal-hanging’.
Some of the team were invited to a party on one of the yachts in the harbour for refreshments before heading out early on Monday.
And before they stepped on board the plane they were asked to give details of their next of kin at the Air Iberia check-in desk. An airline asking for your closest relative before you board their aircraft? That doesn’t fill you with confidence…
Next up Spa where the fight goes on…


