David Coulthard

BBC Learning EnglishPeople and PlacesDavid CoulthardJackie:  Hello, welcome to the programme, with meJackie Dalton. I don’t knowif this sound means anything to you, but to me it conjuresup images of my dad dropping off to sleep in front of thetelevision on a Sunday afternoon, and can only mean onething: Formula One motor racing 1. Also known as, if you sayit with a very English accent, the Grand Prix. Today wemeet one of the world's top Formula One drivers – DavidCoulthard. And the first question you'd have to ask any F1driver: what’s it like driving round a track in Monaco at280 kilometres an hour?
　　DavidThat takes precision, it takes full concentration and it'sa beautiful feeling to be so focused on one task and haveno other distractions 2.
　　Jackie:  David says you need precision – precision.
　　This means being exact or accurate, you have to doeverything exactly right. He also says it takes fullconcentration – you have to be completely focused on whatyou're doing and not think about anything else. He saysthis is a beautifulfeeling. Next he'll use an informal expression to describea state where he is very focused. Try and listen out forwhat it is.
　　DavidThe great thing about being in a racing car when you'rereally in the zone, you are 100per cent on the thought process of driving that car.
　　Jackie:  Did you get the expression? It was 'in thezone'. We say someone is 'in the zone' when they're sofocused on what they're doing that nothing else matters,and this improves their performance. It's often used in thecontext of sport. Let's hear David again, listen out forthose terms:
　　'precision', 'concentration' and to be 'in the zone'.
　　DavidThat takes precision, it takes full concentration and it'sa beautiful feeling to be so focused on one task and haveno other distractions. The great thing about being in aracing car when you're really in the zone, you are 100 percent on the thought process of driving that car.
　　Jackie:  But what does it feel like physically 3 to bein a racing car? Is it comfortable? Listen to find out.
　　DavidThe physical aspect of driving a Grand Prix car is lesscomfortable than people may imagine because you're in avery cramped 4 cockpit, temperatures are very high and thecar is millimetres from the ground and very often bangingthe ground so it's quite harsh 5, a lot of drivers have lowerback problems and neck problems because of the g-forces.
　　Jackie:  No, it's not comfortable. David says you'rein a cramped cockpit.
　　'Cramped' means there's not much space, the 'cockpit' isthe part of thecar he sits in. He also says it gets hot and you're veryclose to the ground. Listen again. This time, try to answerthis question: what kinds of health problems do Formula Onedrivers often have?
　　DavidThe physical aspect of driving a Grand Prix car is lesscomfortable than people may imagine because you're in avery cramped cockpit, temperatures are very high and thecar is millimetres from the ground and very often bangingthe ground so it's quite harsh, a lot of drivers have lowerback problems and neck problems because of the g-forces.
　　Jackie:  Did you get the answer? They often havelower back and neck problems.
　　But David Coulthard used to struggle with another healthproblem: bulimia. This is an eating disorder 6 where peoplemake themselves vomit 7 to get rid of the food they've eatento lose weight. It's something that's not often talkedabout in his world.
　　DavidIt's probably more common to hear it in relation to ladiesand it's not something that within the macho world of motorsport would be spoken about.
　　Jackie:  David uses the word 'macho' to describe theworld of motor sport.
　　'Macho' means to try to seem tough and show no emotion in away traditionally associated with a man. He says that's whypeople don't talk about bulimia. But David says bulimia ismore common than many people realise. He names two othersports where men are often bulimic. What are they?
　　DavidIt's something that happens to men today in horse-racing,boxing, you know, where people will resort to whatevermeans possible for them to be able to make the weight andcompete. And obviously that's a severe health risk if it'ssomething that continues.
　　Jackie:  Did you get those two sports? He mentionedhorse racing and boxing, and also pointed 8 out that bulimiacan become a serious health risk. But there's one obvioushealth risk of motor racing which we've not mentioned –the danger of driving very fast, often almost out ofcontrol. In 1995, David Coulthard had a big crash whichleft him unconscious.
　　What effect did this have on him? Did this make him feelafraid to race again?
　　DavidThat was the first big crash I'd had and it was actually,for me, a very positive experience because I didn'tpreviously really know what the journey into having a verybig crash could be like. For me, the biggest thing thatcame out of that was that, as I went towards the crashbarrier and had the accident, I wasn't filled with fear. Iwas doing my job, I was trying to gain control of the car.
　　I've, you know, taken that with me as I race around theworld.
　　Jackie:  Strangely enough, David said the crash wasa good thing for him – a positive experience. He wasn'tscared, he was just trying to gain controlof the car. And that seems to have reassured 9 him that if heever is in a big crash somewhere he knows he won't feelfear. He'll still be in the zone, concentrating on whathe's doing. And that's all for People & Places for thisweek.