SPEAKER_02: 0:08

Welcome

SPEAKER_00: 0:17

to another episode of Trackside, the podcast from Marshalls. I'm Jamie Osborne. I'm joined by Jessica Althoff and man, are we going to have some fun on this episode. So As many of you know, one of the things we like to do besides talk about new marshals and, you know, all that, uh, goes into marshaling and, and, you know, the rules and the series and the, the, the stuff that goes into it is all these luminous personalities that we've gotten to run into over the years. And, you know, we've done a little bit of that with Jim Robertson. We've done that with Dave Holly, you know, but kind of talking about what they do, one of the things we wanted to do was focus on marshals who have put the capital M in Marshall. And we thought amongst ourselves back and forth, and I won't speak for Jess, but when you think about marshals who have made an impact, you know, those marshals that you meet and you don't tend to forget, the first one that pops up into your mind is Danique Hustey, who And many of you know him on Facebook. He is a prolific poster on Flag Marshalls of the World. He works, it seems like, every Grand Prix. It's not true, actually, as you'll find, but it seems like he does. I will tease him in this episode about seeing him more than I saw Lewis Hamilton on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix broadcast last year at the end of the season. And what a magnificent individual. So, yeah, Denis Castillo, what a great, I think, I have to admit, topic, person to interview for the podcast. You, Jess, what do you

SPEAKER_01: 2:15

think? Oh, absolutely. Yeah, he's, like, wonderful person. always from day one like i don't know i don't know how you could not love him you know because he's so kind and he'll talk about that and he's so knowledgeable and he travels the world and he knows everyone i i swear he needs a sash like we've said it before like the mayor like he he just goes around like the like uh yeah no it was it was a great interview and i'm really looking forward to everyone hearing it and uh so this will be kind of our i think pre-lamont episode since he's going to talk about that a little bit and some really cool experiences he's had there. He

SPEAKER_00: 2:51

lives up in Canada, up in Quebec, I believe. We didn't even cover that, but a fluid French speaker and most of the time he speaks great English, but he'll not tell you he does. But Like I said, everybody knows Denis and just such a great human being, such a passionate advocate for motorsports and the marshals of motorsports. And it's a lengthy interview, but man, you're going to get to know somebody who you're going to want to know more of.

SPEAKER_01: 3:28

Definitely. Yep. Let's check it out.

SPEAKER_00: 3:31

One of the things we love to do on the podcast is talk to interesting people in the motorsports world. And one of the most interesting is Denis Castille. I hope I didn't mangle your last name, didn't he? One of the great people in racing. You've probably seen him in the tent if you've been in the Austin Grand Prix in the recent years. He comes down to Austin quite a lot. That's where I've gotten to know him over the years. Jessica, you've gotten to work with him on pit lane. We welcome to the podcast, Denis Castille, one of the great, great people. Marshalls in Motorsports. Welcome to the podcast, Denis.

SPEAKER_03: 4:13

Thanks for having me. I mean, it's a pleasure to be here. If I remember good, I've met you, Jamie, in Austin in 2017 or 18. That sounds about right. Because it was my first event. And Jessica, if I remember good, it was in New York for the Formula E.

SPEAKER_01: 4:32

It was either, I think it was either New York or like two months prior in Miami, maybe. But yes, that year. No, it's probably New York. You nailed it. I still

SPEAKER_03: 4:41

have pictures of you sitting on the wall. And I think it's 18, 19, 20. I don't remember exactly the year, but yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 4:50

I don't sit on the wall, Danny.

SPEAKER_00: 4:53

That's why he mentioned the photo, Jess. Oh, great. So, Danny, I have to start with the... Question that will contextualize you probably as much as anybody. Everybody seems to know, Denis. I have to ask you, how many Grand Prix have you actually worked now? What's the current total?

SPEAKER_03: 5:16

34 Grand Prix, all in. 33 of them were in Pettline. except for 2017 that I did in Montreal on track. I was an intervention marshal. And I did... This is going to be my third Le Mans event, also in pit lane. I kind of specialize in pit lane. I really like pit lane because I'm... Still a little bit hyperactive, so I need to hear and see. Everything needs to be moving around me, and I need all that stuff.

SPEAKER_00: 5:56

That's a good place for you. So that's what I think is the reason I wanted you on this episode so much, was to talk about that vast experience. And, you know, you... I have to give you a bad time about all the FaceTime you got on the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the end of last year. I think I counted you on screen more than I saw Lewis Hamilton on screen. You got a lot of FaceTime, sir. And I'm going to count it up before I see you next. But anyway, every time the camera cut at the celebrations on the front straight at Abu Dhabi last year... At the very last race of the season, I would see Denis on the pit lane. You were looking around. You were taking your photos. We all take our photos. Nobody's judging. But you were looking around, and I kept saying, that's Denis. Oh, there's Denis again. Oh, look, there he is again. So there you go. So what's your favorite venue? When you think about places you've traveled to to work, work an F1 event to work a WEC event. What are your favorites?

SPEAKER_03: 7:17

Favorite one. It's probably spa. It's spa. I've been doing spa for, I don't know, five or six years. And I was there the year that the race lasted six laps. I think you were

SPEAKER_00: 7:36

discussing. It rained. It rained and it rained and it

SPEAKER_03: 7:39

rained. I mean, the track, the weather, the temperatures, the people there are probably what is most closely related to Canadian way of doing things, the way that we are Canadian. And I think it's the spot. You cannot imagine when you are at the bottom of Eau Rouge how it's high. There is no camera angle so far that delivers the height of it. I mean, it's unbelievable. I was at the bottom taking pictures, and I was not able to get pictures. I went at the top, walked at the

SPEAKER_02: 8:19

top,

SPEAKER_03: 8:20

take a third picture, and same thing. So far, even on TVs, there is no image or video that you got the image of what it is i mean it's and it plus it's a beautiful track it's an old track it's it's part of the historic race it's it's probably yeah for for the track itself uh yes it's it's i think it's

SPEAKER_00: 8:44

that's so cool yeah so you've done 34 grand prix um let's rewind i probably should ask the questions in the proper order but i didn't oh well sue me Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started in motorsports marshalling.

SPEAKER_03: 9:03

It all started out, if I go for the long story short, as a

SPEAKER_00: 9:08

kid... It's a podcast. You can go as long as you want.

SPEAKER_03: 9:11

As a kid, I was involved in soapbox racing. Oh, cool. And in... There was, in Montreal, there's a French and English Canadians. The English Canadians were well more equipped. There was the Rosemont Boys Club that was close there. So we, us French, we were, you know, building soapbox, you know, with what we knew about, you know, the way that we were doing things. And those English people, they taught me how to build a better shoebox and how to use different type of axle and They

SPEAKER_00: 9:44

tell you how to

SPEAKER_03: 9:45

cheat. No, no, no, no, no. It's only they knew more because they were well more organized in society than the, put it this way, the French poor Canadians. Because I've come from neighbors who were really poor. But we didn't know that we were poor. Sure. It's as simple as that. We didn't know because everyone is all the same. Soon after that, I kind of go to, you know, motorcycle and I ended up, you know, being a mechanic for Harley's and I've been involved for more than 20, between 20 and 25 years in motorcycle drag racing on Harley's, especially on Harley's. And just to be a bigger mechanics, I went to the adult school and I became a machinist to have a better understanding of how steel can be treated and different materials and the way that I was able to develop parts and design parts because I was also Through those years, parts designer and design stuff, I did work on the, for a couple of years, I don't know, for five or six years, you got the early four valves heads. But I was working on four valves heads in the 80s and 90s. There was two companies, one in Quebec, the other one in California, who were working on four valves heads and developing all this stuff related to, so we're kind of exchanging all that development. Soon after that, got tired of drag racing. You know, it was really expensive. The purse were not there and we couldn't beat the Americans with the budget and the publicity that they had. You know, drag racing, can you imagine in Canada, drag racing is not that big. But in the meantime, I started out the Continental Drag Bike Association, which was the association was regulating the way that we were doing our race and go with the rules for the sporting rules and the way that you should also out to manage an event. So all that all together, we mix, we were the first in the world association who have been mixing Japanese bikes and Harley bikes. Because the thing that we were saying is, I don't mind what you're riding. We like you running your bike. That's fine. You want to race? That's fine. Let's go racing. So at that time, it was kind of really, really new. And we've been there for, I don't know, a couple of years. It would be two or four years. Soon after that, people from the B.C., British Columbia, they asked me, they can use my rule book and all that stuff because everything was already there. And the CMDR already, Canadian Motorcycle Drag Racing Association is still there and they base all their stuff on what I was doing in the 80s. When I got the, if I go back to the end of my time in drag racing, I started out getting involved in sims racing. So at first I said, what is that? That's for kids. And soon discovered that, oh, wow, this is not for kids. So I would join four or five guys from Chicago area. And they were running the USARacing.org, which was and become after. And I don't want to get all the credit for that. But when I joined them, I said, okay, let's imagine about, I don't know, 20 years ago. My English was not what it is today, although it's not really, really good. But, you know, it's yes, no, thank you, and that's fine. But my writing is really good. So I'm good in writing it and reading. So we took the USARacing.org. to the point that we were the biggest sims racing group in the world running our factors. We had group and people waiting on our Sunday race meeting. They had to wait a year to join us and they had to go to lower series. And after that replay, someone was driving on Sunday night for that series. It's about, When I left the place, it was about a year before iRacing came out. Wow. Because I was one of the founders of iRacing, one of the first drivers in iRacing. And I enjoyed it. And in 2014, I said, okay, I'm done with Sims Racing. You know, I'm going to do something else. I asked one of my friends who was taking care of Le Parc Fermé at the Sécurité de Villeneuve. So he says, how can I get involved? He says, you can... do some marshalling stuff. So in 2015, I joined the two groups that were in Quebec, the one from the pit lane and the other one from the track. So I was doing both. If an event, in a local event, they needed people for flag marshalling, I was going there. If they needed people for... And I also did start with Marie-Jeanne. Marie-Jeanne is one of the first lady in Quebec. And Canada, I think, was a starter for a different local event under the ASN sanctions. So I also did that a couple of times with her to help her with. So this is how I started out. So it started out marshaling in 2015, and it went on and on with all the other events that I've done.

SPEAKER_02: 15:35

That's pretty great.

SPEAKER_01: 15:38

10 years, man. And you've been so many places. I would have thought it would have been way more than 10 years.

SPEAKER_03: 15:45

Yeah, but, you know, it started out kind of really slow. But as soon as it picked up, you know, I was doing four, five, six, seven. I think my biggest year was eight events, you know, eight F1 events. And I was also doing other events, you know, local events and all that stuff because I was doing, you know, some training with other people. And in every event, I've been looking. How can I say that? I don't have any particular standing. The only thing that they know is he's got experience and he's there with us. And I never go to people and say, you should do that just like that. Never. It would be an insult for them to telling them, even if you know that they're making a mistake, let them ask you. If they ask, perfect. You got an answer. If they don't, it's okay. That's their event. And I mean, when you go to another country, another event, you're invited there. You're a guest. So act like one. Be polite. Be respectful of the use and custom of the country or the way that they're doing it. But they know that. So through years, it develops. So as soon as I was in... people from different tracks come to me and says, how do you see that? Is it okay? Is it working okay? Or if it's really, really, really big, I'm going to go tell them, okay, I'm going to mention the track, but it's far east of the European country, between And so I went there, and I'm with another marshal that you know, and we start looking. We were kind of support PATA for the F2, and as soon as we were, that was really cool because the only thing that we had to do is take care of the support PATA, all them, and after that, you're free to do whatever you want. And the F1, you know, don't have to worry about nothing, no assignation, no nothing. You can go to whatever the garage and where you want to go, except taking pictures, obviously, that's for sure. So that was so funny. But the issue was the firemen, they've been trained by another country, but half of them were well-trained by that other country left. So half of their knowledge was lost. was not there anymore. So I look at it and says, oh, there's an issue there. They're playing with fuels, with, you know, transferred bucks, and there is no firemen there, and firemen were sitting elsewhere. So I start asking Chief of Support Paddock, says, can I... go to you with something that I think there's a little safety issue here and says, I says, go, go, go, go, whatever, do whatever you want, train them, help them, just make sure that, because I also been, you know, training a lot of people for fire. Because even in Abu Dhabi, I think the third year, we were only two persons in pit lane who had fire training, fire marshal training. And we were the sole ones who were able to do so. If anything would happen there, forget about it. It's going to burn down. But I think that's the only place, the country that I'm talking about, that I had to go and say, okay, I need to come out with it because it's too dangerous. Yeah. Other than that, it's, I'm there to serve you. So if you have a question, I have an answer. It's probably for, and I'm

SPEAKER_01: 19:43

yeah. Yeah, definitely. No, it's good that you, I mean, I think we all know safety is number one, always, you know, with this stuff. So I think as long as that they, if, if, if somebody wants to get offended that you brought up a safety issue, let them be offended. Like,

SPEAKER_03: 20:00

and this is one thing that as a Marshall is, whatever or whenever you are, it's if you see something that it's really at risk, you have, even if your chief boss or chief in anywhere says, no, we're not looking at it, do it and do something about and pay the price of it. Because my only way of looking at it is if anything happens, if we go to a court or a group that will ask, What happened? And you have to explain, oh, I did mention that, but my chief or whatever was in charge say, no, we're not taking care of it. I don't feel great about saying that I could have done something. I'm doing it and I'm paying the price. That's it. That's all. It doesn't have to be a discussion about a safety issue. It needs to be correct. That's it. That's all.

SPEAKER_00: 21:01

That is such an important... Mentality is such an important mindset because as Jessica said, safety is so important. And I think a lot of marshals feel like they shouldn't overrule their chiefs when they see something unsafe, but it's so important. My mentality, just as you were just saying, didn't he was, how would this play out in the newspaper? When the newspaper asks the questions about what happened in a particular situation, how would you answer them? Not that we're supposed to answer, taking aside all of that. That's the way I interpret the situation is, would I be able to answer that question that a reporter posed to me, irrespective of whether or not I should talk about it or not? That's not what I'm saying. Could I live with myself and could what I say stand up to the values I hold important or, you know, just, well, I thought about it, but I didn't say anything. I would never want to be in that position.

SPEAKER_03: 22:16

And this is what new Marshall also need to learn. And even the experience one is, um, This is part of your progress. Yes, at first you're going to be in doubt. You're not sure. But talk to the others. Ask questions. Is this something that we need to worry about it? You know, it's only not always jumping on it and doing it. But have a discussion with your fellow marshals. Is this something that we've seen that it's okay, it's going to be just like that? Soon after that, you get the experience to be able to judge. What's this at a point that, okay, no one will give me the correct answers and it's still a risk. I'm doing it. Although other than that, it's, I'm going to wait and have everyone around me talking about, and just to be sure, like you're saying, you know, I don't want to have to answer to anybody that says, I knew I didn't do nothing or I was not supposed to do it or I was not mandate. It wasn't my job. It wasn't my job. And particularly in volunteering. In volunteering, you go there because you like what you're doing. It's your hobby. It's the fun thing that you need to do. There's a limit to where you want to go or what you want to do. And there's also a limit in expertise. So, and it's not all of the marshals who go and pass their week, you know, reading stuff, reading documents, reading rules and all that stuff. This is the thing, like, for example, me, I like to do, I work between race, you know, the rest of my time is all dedicated to racing, to how I can improve that, how I can learn more. How can I have a better understanding? How can I pass that message? in a proper way, in a polite way, in a respectful way. Sometimes this is that part that is a bit missing, but all around, it's good. But again, back on safety issue, if you see something, talk about it. Just make sure that nothing's happened and see yourself, what do I have to say or answer to a judge or a newscaster or whatever? What will be the answer? This is the way that you decide that you define your way of working.

SPEAKER_01: 24:53

Yeah, definitely. Should we talk about some happier topics? Oh, yes. Other than what might happen if all hell breaks loose out there. Of course, you know, we never want to see that happen. But you've mentioned that you work 34 Grand Prixs, which I think is so cool and all over the world. So what, I guess... Do you just love to travel, or was it kind of more you were invited to go work these? I guess, what was it that kind of got you out to go work

SPEAKER_03: 25:22

them all? I like to travel. I started out traveling in 2017. That was the first time that I was going to Abu Dhabi. I never took the plane to cross the ocean before.

SPEAKER_01: 25:36

Really? Wow. Everything that I've done so far. That's a long flight. Your first flight.

SPEAKER_03: 25:42

First flight going to France for the, that year I did, um, Austin, uh, in Paris and, uh, Abu Dhabi in 2017 or 18. I'm not sure. I don't remember, but so it was all new. Everything is the thing that I discover is I don't have the, uh, what is it called? You know, when you,

SPEAKER_01: 26:06

no, no,

SPEAKER_03: 26:08

uh, the, when, uh, You go to a different time zone and jet lag. That does not exist with me. That is amazing. I mean, I'm in Abu Dhabi. It's the time of Abu Dhabi. I'm in Belgium. It's the time of Belgium. I'm in Austin. It's the time of Austin. That's it. That's all. Simple as that. Never, never, never had

SPEAKER_00: 26:28

to deal with jet lag. Oh, you were so lucky. That's the

SPEAKER_03: 26:30

superpower.

SPEAKER_00: 26:31

I am infinitely jealous.

SPEAKER_03: 26:33

Yeah, I mean, but there is so much stories. Kind of, is it in maybe 2019, where I was working, lost my job, but the ticket for Abu Dhabi is bought. So, chat with my wife and says, what do I do? You know, I don't have any money. So, I left Montreal with... sixty dollars canadian in my pocket plane ticket paid and place to stay during the event because in abu dhabi they welcomed the marshall you got a place to stay travel food everything is but i was there a day before so i rented a little spot at the airport which i didn't know that that little hotel at the airport was solely for the people were 24 and more hour delay for their next flight. I couldn't stay there. So I had to go on Facebook. I'm at the Abu Dhabi airport saying that, is there anyone who can help me? I'm stuck at the airport and I don't have a place to sleep and eat tonight. One of the Filipino girls there answered me about, I don't know, 10 minutes later and says, how much money do you have? Do you have enough to take a taxi and bring me and go to the University of Abu Dhabi? I said, yes, I got enough money for that. It cost me from my$60,$40. So I got left. But the good thing about it is there was some tests the week after. So every day I was hired and paid. So I came back. 10 days later with$1,200 US in my pocket.

SPEAKER_02: 28:24

Oh, so they paid.

SPEAKER_03: 28:27

No, for the test. Everywhere that they go, if they go in Spain or they go for Abu Dhabi or they go any other track, the marshals are getting paid for the test, not for the event. So you're not getting paid for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday event, but you got paid for, let's say on Monday, it's a holiday. And from Thursday to Saturday, you get paid. So I knew that, okay, I don't have a job here. I'm going to go there. Through that process, you know, I lost myself in Abu Dhabi in the public transit. Imagine yourself, you speak a bit of English, French, and no one speaks other than Arabic. and you need to find your way and you're lost in public transit with the buses. So imagine that and not knowing the custom of the place, all the first seat in a buses or the Metro, are for the ladies and the families. No man is allowed to go sit there. It's a cultural thing, so just like that. So I jump in the bus, seat, oh, same place. I'm going to sit there, and everyone start looking at me and complaining about, which I don't understand. But I did understand that I was not seated in a good place. So one of the men in the buses took me by the shoulder and moved me back to the seat. giving me message saying stay air stay air no move no stay no move stay here okay it's only after that i've learned but in every country it's a there's a story just like that and i mean it this is the yes this is part of the fun stuff of it you know it's when it happens okay it's kind of bizarre weird but but soon after that i don't know an hour later it's it's it becomes something to joke and talk about and become part of your life. It's your story that it's there. It's your life.

SPEAKER_01: 30:24

Oh, definitely. Such an education to travel and see all the interesting stuff. I think that's so cool. Do you have any favorite stories of like this is one of my most treasured memories working in another country?

SPEAKER_03: 30:41

Le Mans, the first year that I'm there. Yeah. I've been welcome, like, I've never seen a place just like that. I mean, it was something else. So they asked me to go with the starter for the Porsche race. So Anthony told me that, okay, go with that. I think his name was Paul. I go with Paul and I follow him. I didn't know where I was heading, but I was following him. He says, what's your step? Going in the first little tower at Le Mans. And so I said, what do I do here? He says, you're deputy starter, whatever the name that they use. I didn't do nothing, but I was, oh, well, this is... Something, you know, you're at Le Mans. The first year, it was the 100th year's anniversary. Everyone wants to go to Le Mans. I'm new there because I wasn't even sure that I would be picked to go there. But no matter what, I've been lucky and they offered me that. The other thing, so soon after that says, we got another little job for you. So you know how the track is at Le Mans, at the top. You know, you got that first turn. You're at the top. And you got the minute boards. So he says, what you're going to do is you're going to show up the five, three minutes, two minutes, one minute,

SPEAKER_02: 32:10

and

SPEAKER_03: 32:11

clear there. So I'm there. You got 60. I think that year was 62, 63 teams. 62 cards all in lines. 62 teams, all the teams, 62 invitee from, 10 invitee from each team. You're at the top of that cliff and you got the board and you look down and says, unimaginable, they're going to clear that in five minutes. And I got someone with a radio in my back who's tapping because all my board are already in line on my shoulder, my foot. So I just have to lift my toe, and I know that I have the good card, and there's a little, so I go four to five, the three, the two, 30 seconds, clear the pit lane, and you see all those people. I was looking and says, I've never seen anything just like that. So we went to the wall, and that was the first time that I get emotional to a point that I was crying like a baby. I'm at the wall and I'm crying like a baby. So Anthony looked at me. Are you okay? Are you okay? I says, no, no, it's okay. It's a positive thing. So within a minute, I've seen the little boy inside me drawing cars with no fender that didn't know what was it. Drawings, motorcycle with a V engine on it. not knowing it fits a Harley, a Hendon or whatever. And to your app, I have seen that line of life from that kid. 63 years later, you're at Le Mans. You're the only one with that board. And you got, I don't know how many camera crews who are there and asking the question about this and that when it's, and I don't have any answer other than showing the board. I mean, That was the most impressive moment in my martial life, saying that that little French-Canadian is at Le Mans, at the 100th anniversary of Le Mans. He's the one who's going to show the board. I mean, that was something. I mean, and it's probably the same for everyone who goes to a race event. You find your sweet spot. You know, there's something that, oh... This is the spot. This is the thing. This is what I was watching for. I didn't know what it should be, but that's it. I got that feeling.

SPEAKER_01: 34:58

Your bucket list thing. That's so cool. That was your moment.

SPEAKER_03: 35:03

I think it's more than because it wasn't a plan. It's not in the bucket list. It's only life that brings you good things. If you're open to those good things, they'll come to you. And if you are on the racetrack and doing stuff on the racetrack, it will come to you there. It

SPEAKER_01: 35:21

was something you didn't even know you wanted.

SPEAKER_03: 35:24

You know, like, yeah, it was a bonus. I'm pretty sure that I didn't know that there was a minute board for a big event just like that. You know, you see minute board, that smaller version, or smaller event, but not at Le Mans. And it's all electronic, but they kept that portion of...

SPEAKER_00: 35:43

They still do it now. It's part of the normal WEC start sequences. Somebody's standing on the grid right at the start line with the boards.

SPEAKER_03: 35:54

Yeah, so that's probably one of the... No, the best moment, the best moment of that last 10 years.

SPEAKER_01: 36:03

That's so cool. And that lends itself well to this episode, which is going to be kind of a Le Mans episode because that's happening in a couple of weeks and you're going again, right?

SPEAKER_03: 36:13

Yes, I'm going again. The first year at Le Mans, the way that it's run, particularly at Le Mans, it's not at all work events, it's just like that. At Le Mans, you've got two types of fit line martial, the one from the cold side and the one from the hot side. Cold side, you're at the wall like we do in F1, and we take notes of whatever happens, and if you see something that people from the hot side didn't see, you report it. The second year, they invited me to go... hot side of the pit lane. So outside of the pit lane is where you are within the car and the garage and the team. It's like a scrutineers and F1, but you are applying sporting regulation. That's the main difference. So it's not scrutineering like, on technical regulation, but it's sporting regulation. So you got the fictive wall that it's there at the white line and you make sure that they don't cross that, they don't do it. There's a lot of thing to look at, but that portion, I mean, this is something, you know. And you got about five car or five garage to look at to all that line, you know. So, and you rotate every, three hours, I think, because it's physically challenging because of the noise, the activities, and the best part of it at night. Going to bed when cars is running. This is really weird. The first day I'm there and I said, I'm going to take my shower. I'm going to eat. And I go to bed. And you hear a car running. And I did ask, please find me at least one or two shifts per night. So the first year, I got two shifts. One at around 10 o'clock. And the other one, it was at 4 a.m. in the morning, I think. If I remember good. And that was awesome. Awesome. I mean... You see the light. You hear nothing. You look at the stands. People are sleeping in the stands. People are laying in garage. Teams member are, you know, spawning in garage, you know, because sometimes it's cold. They are laying on the floor of the garage and they're sleeping there till the next stop. I mean, it's challenging for the team. I think we kind of forget when we look at F1 what is competition. In a WEC event just like that, you know, a 24-hour, and it's a competition for the team, for everyone, for the team, the drivers, the official, all the people are through that 24 hours are relaying jobs and doing it. I mean, it's... But that's the beauty of it. Like you said, Jessica, it's for the purists. It's for the one who really likes competition. Because everywhere is competition. And it's also really, how can I say, can I use friendly oriented? Between team and official and all that stuff. I mean, there's a lot of teams coming to you If you need coffee, go there, picked up. You need something to eat. Everyone is there for everyone. And they know that you're going to catch them because we work with phones. We relay pictures. So the only thing that you do is soon as you hear, okay, a couple of cars are in the pit. Okay, this is my car. This is I got my number. So I'm pulling out my phone and I'm spotting them. And if I see... send the picture, and that's all. And fines are heavy, and there's a lot. Last year, they sent about 2,000 pictures for the direction. 800 were looked at and defined as sufficient to lay some warning and penalties, and I think it's 400 of them were I don't know how many millions of dollars were involved into those penalties. But they don't care. They know that it's part of them. But the Petline Marshall, they talk with the team. Like Friday morning, you go to them. Make sure that you're zipped. I don't want to see your nose. Your mask needs to be covering your nose and all that stuff. So you're kind of letting them know that this is some particularities that you're going to look for and you're going to look for in the afternoon. So they have all the morning to set themselves to what you're going to look for. And soon after that, this is my job. My job is to catch you. Your job is to do not being catched. So do it properly. And that's it. That's all. It's part of, it's a fun game, you know, it's, it's, but they know it and you know it. And this is why it's so cool on Friday morning. You know, it's soon after that, they discovered that, okay, you catch them there. And then I might, yes, look at the pictures. You can discuss with them because it's allowed to discuss with them, but no matter what, The picture is already sent, and so people from the regulations are already looking at it, so it doesn't change nothing. But you can tell them, switch feet if you're about to jump on a car. Make sure that the clip is still on. Let the car go with the clip. You know the ground, the clip that I'm talking, the ground that they put when you're fueling. Adjust all the wires and let the car go. it's safer just like that. It's simple things that they can improve, you know, but sometimes it's the fatigue and they tend to forget and you are there to make sure that they need to respect the rules, but also it's for their safety. You know, it's not only make sure that your extinguisher is closed, the guy is covered, his face mask is down. It's all that little stuff that makes sure that, again, it's safety and At the end of the weekend, it's going to be a great weekend for everyone. But yeah, Le Mans is something. Le Mans, it's really something.

SPEAKER_01: 43:03

Jamie is probably going to need you to write him a recommendation letter to go next year, right?

SPEAKER_00: 43:08

Well, I have decided that next year, if I'm going to get to go, next year is the year. So I am putting everything on going to Le Mans next year. That would be good. Yeah. So I'm hopeful. So we'll see. You're right. It's a process. So, Denis, I'm sure there's a bunch of people listening who have only worked their domestic race, whatever country they're in. How... And understanding that every... countries experience, you know, Canada is going to have different rules than the United States or Brazil or France or whatever country, but in general, in general terms, how does one begin the process of looking for and applying for out of country, Grand Prix, Wex, other motor sports events? Uh, for example, If you were to go to Australia and want to work the Bathurst 12, how would you start doing that? You've done it in so many different countries. What's the overall process? Not with specifics because they're going to vary by country, but in overall, how do you strategize? How do you choose how to go? How do you find out about the entry forms? How do you go about the process? Two things. To go

SPEAKER_03: 44:34

international, it's pretty simple. You have to make sure that you're locally known. So you join a club, learn, you learn your stuff. You try to be good at it just to make sure that if I need letters from anyone, I'm going to get the letters. So I need to improve myself just to make sure. As soon as you've done enough events, there is some... FIA regulation on how to go international, which is based on different type of license. So for example, as of today regulation, okay, I've done the local event. I've been involved in a lot of stuff locally. I've been involved in different province or different state for you guys. And I'm gonna ask because every country the first thing that they're going to ask is a non-objection letters, which is the letters that they ask you. And you need to get that letters by the ASM. The ASM is the authority who represent the FIA in your country. So in Canada, it's GDS ASM. So it's literally the Sportive Nationale represent. So the letters come from them. So they're going to ask for your, what you've done so far. So I've kept everything, you know, from, I sent everyone to everything, you know, details about the event, what was my purpose and that the event, not talking about it, but just giving numbers so they can easily read, okay, you've done 30 days of racing this year. So you've been involved in different tracks doing this. This is my non-objection letters. It's also associated with your license. There's a C, B, and A license. For example, for PITLINE, it's in Quebec and Ontario, there's only two licenses, B and C. So they're going to emit letters based on your license. So it means that if you're B licensed and you've been involved for the last two years, you're entitled to apply for an international event. under supervision because you're a B class. A class, it's kind of, you're not a freelance, but you're in your specific group, you're good at what you're doing. This is how it should be. It's not the same in every country, but most of the time it's how it should be. And after that, you need to rely on contacts and people that you know. Can anyone has a contact for this track? Because I remember when I won the first year for Austin, I did ask to go to New York because I was also making the weekend after Montreal. So we needed experience in Montreal to get a better understanding of what is a street race and electric street race. So I need to get some knowledge. And it was Lisa Kaye. that was there that year. And I asked her, would it be possible to be able to go to Austin? Because it was my first international event going to Austin. And I passed an interview there in New York and I gave her all my paper and I also had a USB key with all the info on it just to make sure that if she needs to read it back. So it's knowledge and contact that makes you be able and more you go to a different event more people get contact you cannot imagine how many emails they receive you got a contact for this place you got a contact for this one you got a contact for this and that i mean this is how it goes so far uh Did it will change through years? Probably it will change because more and more they're relying on experience. You cannot go at the top of the series and having some type of job being a newbie. You need experience. So you can go to that big event, but you're going to work with support series. You're going to work with F3, F2, and F4. Those more experienced, they should be there for the F1 because they are more experienced or they're going to get the experience. Let's say for grid position, it's an example. You've done the F2, you've done the F3. That's good. You've got experience. You're pretty close to be good to go for the grid for the F1 because it's the top series. So again, you need to have knowledge, experience to do that, but it can be made within a couple of years. At my third years, yes, my third years, I was starting to do international stuff, but I did get involved into it. I learned my stuff. I did ask a lot of questions. I was known to the guy who, what is it? How is it working? And asking a lot of questions. And soon after that, it goes easily. And more and more countries are open to have new people or international. Although your experience, the first year in Brazil, I was the first foreigner to join the pet line in Brazil for the last 50 years, three years ago. Wow.

SPEAKER_01: 50:25

Wow.

SPEAKER_03: 50:26

I mean, I had contact people that I know and they said to themselves, let's see, let's try. We get one. I didn't like the experience because I think I behave according to what I'm supposed to be. I'm a guest. I'm a pit lane marshal. I'm a Canadian. And all that thing mixed together, I act according to it. So year after, there was three in pit lane, four on track. And last year, there was... Eight international marshals in pit lane in Brazil and about 20 of them on track. Wow. So that thing when you kind of represent the international community, I'm not talking about Canadians. I'm talking about international community. You're an international. They never had any international. Not a lot of people speak English. It's at that point, that it's good to know your stuff. So you don't have language. You don't need language to post or tell someone there's an issue or there's a problem there. Teams, they speak English. I mean, the racing team, they speak English. The pit lane team, sometimes they don't know. Sometimes they don't have a lot of experience either. You know, they do one event a year, big event a year, and that's it. That's all. Your experience will come through more years you know and and doing something that they're going to learn a lot more about it but i think this is important to you can do it it's feasible and you need to get the contact and contact it's not uh it's pretty easy you know you you know someone ask him and most of the people i said most of the people was like okay let me find the email and the contact and put my name on it Because if I put my name and says, okay, Jessica and Jamie, I know them. I've worked with them. I can vouch for them. If you've been good doing what you were doing there, they're going to probably think the one who was going to ask you that, okay, if, for example, Dennis is saying that they're good at it, you vouch for them. they are less worried about that. Again, it's experience. Gain experience for every new marshal. Go to local track. Go to every event that you can go. NASCAR, IndyCar, whatever. Get knowledge. Get a better understanding of what's the safety issue, what's the technical issue, and what's the sporting regulation. And after that, you're good. Then you can go anywhere. And the People are welcoming you. I mean, it's just like that in every country.

SPEAKER_00: 53:31

Absolutely. And the networking aspect is huge. You know, when you work with other marshals on your station, when you're networking in the tent, exchange emails, exchange contacts, because I can't tell you how many Australians I've met at the F1 paddocks in the tents and in the hotels. And, you know, those are going to be the people that you rely on to give you those contacts. So keep a spreadsheet. There's nothing wrong with that. Add them to your list.

SPEAKER_03: 54:01

Best thing through a weekend, it's the tent itself. Be there in the morning and be the last one to leave the tent.

SPEAKER_02: 54:11

Because in

SPEAKER_03: 54:11

between, it's only stuff that's going on. But if you learn stuff or share stuff, you're going to learn it in the morning. You're going to learn it late at night. And there's a smaller group, better discussion, more experienced discussion. So you're going to learn all that stuff. But it's simple. Be kind. That's the, the way that you can go anywhere, be kind and be not only kind because you need to be kind, be kind for yourself and be kind for all the others. It's simple as that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 54:47

Yeah. It will always serve you better to do. Yes, absolutely. But yeah, that's pretty common. I think, you know, for, you talked about, you know, kind of interviewing and I know that a lot of our private specialties as we kind of refer to them as the more private, priority areas that have pit lane, scrutineering, all that kind of stuff, start. Any of those where you are going to be in close proximity of the drivers, the cars, VIPs, whatever, that's pretty common that those are highly vetted positions. But it's not to say that you're never going to get chosen if you don't know anyone. It's always good to have a

SPEAKER_03: 55:22

recommendation. And marshals between themselves tend to believe that because you're in pit lane or you're a starter or you're a VIP or any of that stuff. No, no. It's only a specialties. It's only like the guy on the TSP. It's a specialties. You know, your intervention, your specialties, it's only a different specialties and it's part of the track. Pet line is part of the track. And sometimes they believe, they think that, oh yeah, you're pet line. No, I'm no different than what they're doing, except I'd like lot of activities around me and this is the place where i have a lot of activities you know yeah that's the only reason why i'm pet lane

SPEAKER_01: 56:03

no that's a great point i certainly wasn't trying to imply that they were better than the people out on track it's just more that you are there's a higher level of like you can't go rogue here like you can't go run up to your favorite driver and ask for a selfie. You're like, no. It's more of the access you have. The chiefs have to be sure that you're not going to do anything crazy that could potentially affect the start of the race or make it on the broadcast in any way. You

SPEAKER_03: 56:33

only act like a pro you know it's you're in a it's volunteering but it's a pro businesses and you need to act like according to what you're involved in you know it's it's it's not related to money or anything just like that it's only i'm a within a professional series which is the top of the series if we talk about the f1 and i'm gonna hack according to it simple as that it's I think it's the best way also to look at it and see how it goes. We're privileged to a point to be able to do that. And the series itself, it's also privileged to have experienced people to them. It's an exchange of experience. knowledge from both sides and knowing that it's there for them. They need to also act according to sometimes, you know, things are not really gentle, you know, but that's a different thing. But a lot of them are really cool. I remember we were talking about a spot in the pit line at Spa. There's one big main entrance. And when you are under red flags, you cannot go. Journalists, okay, and broadcasters, they cannot go pettling. So they are at the wall. And close to the wall, there's the Aston Martin garage. And it's raining. It's cold. And we're damp. I mean, you know, your last shirt. It's all wet because of the... So went to the Aston Martin garage and all of my suit, you know, I got just like this, you know, I got a Canadian flag suit on it. Even if it's another country, I'm going to find a way to sue it before I go out of it. So... It's cold, really, really cold and damp. And we're still waiting. We wait, I don't know, for how many hours to do it to someone to take the decision of either.

SPEAKER_00: 58:45

This was the rainy year, right?

SPEAKER_03: 58:47

The rainy year. I mean, you were able to see the cloud start covering the top of the trees and going down and down and down. I mean, it was fun and misery in the

SPEAKER_00: 58:58

same time. Beautiful misery.

SPEAKER_03: 59:00

Beautiful misery. Exactly. You got the exact word for it. So I went to the Aston Marshall Gallagher and says, Would it be possible to have coffees? And the lady who says, yes, how many do you need? I need 20 of them. She looked at me kind of surprised. Is partner just like that? Not too sure. But Laurence Stroh is there. the boss. So I'll look at him and throw him in flag. He looked, start laughing. And he asked the people to start, they were preparing coffee. So I was running with coffee tray in the pit lane, you know, giving coffee to everyone. So those are, are kind of, you know, funny moment, you know, it's, it's true that, miserable thing and weather, you find something to laugh and everyone, how did you get, oh, you went to the, yeah, they're Canadian.

SPEAKER_02: 59:58

You flashed your colors. Oh,

SPEAKER_01: 1:00:03

that was nice of them. I remember in the first year in Vegas when we were on a delayed hold for something that happened on the first day. We won't get into that, but we know, I think everyone knows it was very well publicized. I remember, I think it was the Man, that second Red Bull team has changed names so many times. They will always be Toro Rosso to me in my mind, but I think they were Alpha Tori at the time or something like that. They came over and offered all of it. Here, they're handing out Red Bulls. It was very sweet. They're just like, the teams are lovely people.

SPEAKER_03: 1:00:34

Yes, yes. Teams are lovely people. Look at the ass people. They always bring stuff to the marshals. They're kind. I think they're aware that we are and what we do. and they respect that and they come to you with, you know, freebies and all stuff and chick and all the other things that we get from the town. In Brazil, I was kind of surprised. You know, the year in Brazil that it was really windy and the part of the

SPEAKER_00: 1:01:05

grandstand

SPEAKER_03: 1:01:07

blew off. So I'm with Aston Martin Garage because the first year, They were always putting me with the Canadian team. That's Lance Stroll. That's Canadian. He's going to go with him. And I asked them, please don't do that. For example, if I do a mistake on a grid and something happens to Lance Stroll, they're going to chase me in my home. So give me someone else. If I do a mistake, they ain't going to chase me for that. But yes, a lot of time, you know, you associate with drivers of your country you know it's but yes you but uh what was my point on that i don't remember

SPEAKER_00: 1:01:53

you were talking about brazil and and uh it was windy that year

SPEAKER_03: 1:01:56

yeah and um for whatever the reason i get along with my crack kind of cool and easy we were chatting and whatever it was on a sunday morning um We're about to start, blah, blah, blah, blah. We went to the practice, not practice, but all the preparation. At the beginning of the rest, he handed me out a cap from the team.

SPEAKER_02: 1:02:24

Oh,

SPEAKER_03: 1:02:24

nice. Just for the fun of it, just like that. It's a little something that you did not expect. And they're giving you a cap from the team immediately. Cool. That's fun. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01: 1:02:39

That's very nice. The Haas team has always been very generous to the marshals in the last few years. I think we've gotten hats and bandanas and stuff to everyone. Hundreds of marshals. It's very cool that they take the time to do that.

SPEAKER_03: 1:02:54

I got another nice moment. I don't remember what the track is or year, but it's Lewis Hamilton's And, you know, most of the time in training, we say to grid marshals, have a look, eyes on your drivers, and a lot of people say, okay, he looked at me, and that's kind of cool. And it's true, yes or no. When he looks at you, it's usually because he's going to look at this mirror, which is in line with you. So if he looks at you and says, Oh, he looked at me. That's kind of cool. That's fun. And he turns his head and look at left. It might not have been that he was looking at you. He was only looking at this mirror. So I'm with, I'm the grid marshal for Lewis Hamilton. And he asked one of his crew to move just to look at me and give me a hand signal. I mean, I was not expecting that. I was not looking for that. The only thing that I did when I was there, I always do that to my drivers. I'm there for you. That's simple. But I'm not waiting for any answers. Just let them know if he sees me. And he asked one of his team members, just move and give me a high-end thumbs up. I mean, wow, this is a great thing, you know, at the RACEAC that you're not, expecting anything just like that but in the meantime don't wait for that also you know because they are under so much pressure just you as a grid marshal you're under a big pressure you don't want to make you want to make sure that am I going to weave it fast enough is it okay did I missed it was it You know, there's always a lot of questions on the grid that you're asking yourself. So imagine if you're the drivers of that car who is about to leave. I mean, the pressure is so high that don't expect anything. Just make sure that you look at him and if he looks at you, he's going to be able to see your eyes. This is important. This is why I ask a lot of grid marshals, don't wear sunglasses. He doesn't see your eyes. You need to get the eye contact. Eye contact is eye to eye. So that's the thing, just like that. I mean, those are moments that through doing grid, it's fun. But since the beginning, yes, I'd like to do grid. And I did 34 F1 race, but I also did grid for F2, F3. So I've passed the over the 50 or 60 mark. grid position so even last year I was giving my place different place no no no have someone that wants to go there and he's ready to go there I had my share of it you know it's I'm I'm full of it so I don't need it not that I'm not enjoying it but I'd like to see the reaction of someone when he comes back pushes button raises start and look and how was it just a smile yeah just a smile looking at their faces oh that was great awesome never thought that it was going to be just like that your day's done yeah you did your job you did your thing and i mean this is what you're looking and expecting but you know when you go to racing you know that type of you know uh look at it it needs to be we as trainer or leader or whatever needs to make sure that you give them all the best opportunities to enjoy that moment and not being pressurized by the moment, but enjoying it with what's going on. Don't let yourself invade by the pressure from the generator, the car, all the people, the VIP, but just take the time to say, I'm on the grid of an F1 race. There is 24 race. There is 20 of us who are going to do the same job. Can you imagine how lucky you are? Yeah. This is something. This is something. I mean, this is big. Just that it's enough to. How can I say that? You know, to fill you up, you know, with confidence.

SPEAKER_00: 1:07:42

And that's what we're all here for. You know, honestly, for whatever reason we get into marshaling, those kinds of moments are what we're here for.

SPEAKER_03: 1:07:54

Yeah. I've seen, I remember two years ago, I'm in Long Beach and again, Anything related to pit lane, it's all different because they got their own official, which are same guy from NASCAR and all that stuff. So there's another group who are taking care of all this stuff in between the pit lane and going to the track. So you are there, you make sure that the photograph is there, one knee on the ground, that's it. That's all ads and all that stuff. And I was looking at a young guy who was doing blue flags. And you know, sometimes you look at, and I look at him and says, what's his point of view? I'm behind him and look at him and says, oh, he's good. And he's really good at it. Don't be shy to go to him and says, you know what? You're really good. Continue to act just like that. That's enough. No, I look at, he look at me and kid's face, you know, it's, oh yeah, yes. You're good at it. Continue. Do it just like that. And he was doing it with style. Plus, he had style to it. So it was big. And flags needs to be theatrical.

SPEAKER_00: 1:09:08

Big. Yeah. Big. Go big.

SPEAKER_03: 1:09:10

Go out. Go snap it. You know, it needs to look just like that. So when you look at it on the track, the driver is forced to see it. Don't be shy with a flag. And he was doing blue flags. I mean, it was fast and snappy. But go to him and tell him, man, you're good at it. Continue your good work. And again, that's a thing that we need to give us each other those moments. Jessica, you were good at it. Jamie, you're excellent at it. And all those things nourish ourselves and our ego. And we're happy to do that. And this is why we're going and we're doing it. Yeah,

SPEAKER_01: 1:09:57

it's a small gesture that goes a long way.

SPEAKER_03: 1:10:01

Again, same thing. Be kind. But think about being kind. Because sometimes we forget about it. We don't think about it enough. Being kind. Being kind with others. We all do the same thing. and different part of the track. But it's all the same thing.

SPEAKER_01: 1:10:18

Oh, definitely. I can tell you, maybe to wrap this up, a memory of you in Vegas, first year, and I was on the grid. It was the first time I was on the grid, and I had to wave my flag. And I was near the back. I had Ocon. And everyone's going. They're leaving for the formation lap, and Ocon's not going. And I'm like, oh, jeez. I'm going to have to wave this flag. And so I waved it. And then he goes immediately, and I'm like, oh, I probably jumped the gun on that. I should have done it, whatever. Anyway, fast forward an hour later. You came up to me, and you said, I asked... Nadia, the chief, who was that that waved that yellow flag? And she said, it was you. And you said to me, you did it exactly how you were supposed to do it. And I was so relieved. And what a compliment. I didn't remember

SPEAKER_02: 1:11:07

that.

SPEAKER_01: 1:11:08

But it was a huge compliment hearing that from you because we all know that you have a 60 degree black belt in grid. So it was...

SPEAKER_03: 1:11:19

You know, I just try to bring... what i've learned to someone else in all the possible ways you know it's not only telling them how to do it it's only telling them that you did great you know it's exactly what it was supposed to be and you did it simple as that

SPEAKER_01: 1:11:39

yeah Well, that was such a great experience. And we're going to miss you this year. You're only doing Le Mans. I'm certainly not going to be in Le Mans. I don't think Jamie's going to be in

SPEAKER_00: 1:11:48

Le Mans. No, not this year.

SPEAKER_01: 1:11:49

I think we do look forward to seeing you hopefully in another one, maybe in 2026.

SPEAKER_03: 1:11:55

Probably in 2026. It's only this year that I want to take kind of look back of what it is. As you probably understand from my saying, I'm still really, really happy about doing it and still doing it. But I want to have a kind of look back and ask to a different person in charge, what's your plan to improve this and that in regards? Because for me, since the beginning, and this is why I got kicked out of a country at first, The wellness of the Marshall is two things that I look for. Senderization of the pit lane work and the wellness of the Marshall. And wellness of the Marshall is not only food and lodging and all that stuff. It's all thing all together. It's respect, gift, money, whatever it needs to make sure that you can continue to have volunteers You can get the next generation to come back, but the new generation, they don't understand that we're doing it for nothing when there is so much money involved. Does bringing some money in the game will help that? Probably, because it's the future. Simple as that. Is it It's still going to be a hobby? Yes. Because if you play my plane and you pay my hotel, it's still going to be my hobby. It's not a job. It's going to be a hobby, which I will have much more time to go and do more because you're supporting me. But the wellness of the marshal and make sure that the marshal are respected. So this is why I talk a lot with, you know, Elise Rasset. who is the chair of the volunteers and official commission. I did a lot of talk with Rebecca Lee from the FIA on standardization. Their part are done. It's the part of the each and every other track to settle for some type of standard. So, which is, I didn't find a way to bring everyone together under the same, top or roof to act according to it, to get a better understanding of what it should be, the standardized fit line. But it's coming. Doing all those countries and events, every time that I leave that country, there's a little of something that we discussed that stays there and it improves to here. So it's, you're putting like, you know, you're getting some flowers, so you need to put the seed first and see, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 1:14:53

Yeah, that's awesome. We always appreciate you trying to leave it better than you found it kind of a thing. So I think it's important for everyone to do that if you can. Of course, be tactful about it.

SPEAKER_03: 1:15:06

We're dealing with egos. My egos and the egos of everyone. So just find a way to make it happen. It's not by yelling or complaining. It's about... sit down, take the right moment to have that discussion, see what can be improved. Is it possible or no? And that's it. And it goes to, it's making its way no matter what, because people naturally, they don't tend to not being good. They don't force themselves about not being good. No, it just gives them the opportunities to be better in their way of getting better and they will jump in it.

SPEAKER_02: 1:15:49

You

SPEAKER_03: 1:15:49

know, no one is born bad or, or, or, or good. You evolve through something and you get better and better at what you're doing. So if it's a good thing, you continue and evolve it to it. I don't know. It's the way that I look at it. That's

SPEAKER_00: 1:16:07

an old guy. That's fabulous. It's always great to, um, It's always great to visit with you. You've got so many stories and you're just such one of those distinctive personalities that it's always so amazing to visit with. We're so glad you were able to spend some time with us on the podcast prior to your departure for Le Mans France. And we wish you safe travels and a fabulous experience as usual in Le Mans. And we look forward to seeing you next time you're in Austin. or wherever it is we run into each other.

SPEAKER_03: 1:16:45

Thanks for having me. And please continue to do what you're doing. You know, it's marvelous and beautiful what you're doing so far. And I like that. I like every part of it. And go ahead, continue and go deeper, go further and push it. And you're filling a need, which is you're the first one to do that. So go ahead, do whatever you want. It's good. No matter what, it's good.

SPEAKER_00: 1:17:16

Merci, ma bonne amie.

SPEAKER_01: 1:17:18

Thank you. All right. Bye, Denny. See you.

UNKNOWN: 1:17:21

Bye.

SPEAKER_01: 1:17:22

So that was our interview with Denny and yeah, what a, what a treat that was. And he's so entertaining. And like you'd said at the beginning, you know, so passionate about all this kind of stuff. And I, I definitely learned some stuff about him that I didn't know, which was super fascinating. Like the soapbox Derby.

SPEAKER_00: 1:17:39

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01: 1:17:40

That was awesome. And just his Lamont experience of course was great. And just, I'm sure there's, he could write a memoir that would be a thousand pages long of all this, all this stuff that we didn't get to, but, Probably.

SPEAKER_00: 1:17:53

And yeah, we probably went 15, 20 minutes before and then probably another 10, 15 after. So Denis's got a lot to say. He's got, like us, a lot of opinions. But, you know, one of the things about Denis is as you gain that international perspective, which is what he has. I mean, he's clearly worked more international Grand Prix than his own by his own admission too. It's just such a remarkable thing to be able to have the wherewithal to be able to say, I may not be from your country, but I can help you Grand Prix in the future years. And, you know, here's an idea that You don't have to do anything with now, but chew on it. See if it'll make your event better next year and ciao. I mean, what a great way to approach life. What a great way to approach working in an event like this. F1 in a foreign country.

SPEAKER_01: 1:19:03

Oh, definitely. And you know that knowing him, you know it's always going to be done tactfully. But I also can understand kind of, you know, people do have fragile egos in this biz. And so, you know, I can definitely see how people would be like, I'm not listening to you, whatever. But, you know, as we mentioned, you know, safety should come first. So it's like, yeah, definitely always speak up. And, like, I think he even talked about, like, if you're new at this and you think there's something weird, like, don't be shy about questioning it. It could save someone's life, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 1:19:35

Absolutely. Absolutely. No,

SPEAKER_01: 1:19:37

it was great.

SPEAKER_00: 1:19:38

Yeah. A great talk with a great guy, Denis Castilleux from Canada is our feature for this episode of the podcast. And, you know, it's been great to visit with folks and hear what they've thought about the podcast and especially as it's evolved. And, you know, it's kind of funny, Jess, you and I sit here and chat with each other. I don't really think about... something as abstract as the evolution of the podcast, but it's evolved and it's kind of fun to talk with people in the paddock about things and they say, hey, I heard your podcast.

SPEAKER_01: 1:20:21

I know. It's kind of funny how, you know, you probably heard more feedback than I did, like in Miami, because you were out and about more than I was. I was kind of sequestered away.

SPEAKER_00: 1:20:32

In the important

SPEAKER_01: 1:20:34

people's hotels. Oh, geez. Yeah, yeah. But we got some nice compliments recently at an SCCA event in Houston, which was very nice.

SPEAKER_00: 1:20:44

That was very nice. It

SPEAKER_01: 1:20:45

was very nice. And it was very like, you know, like, yeah, it's definitely, You guys have gotten better than your first couple.

SPEAKER_00: 1:20:51

I know it makes me think, do I want to go back and listen to that first one? I'm afraid,

SPEAKER_01: 1:20:57

yeah. That's all right. But, you know, and it's funny, a lot of the feedback I've gotten, because I'm so hard on myself that I have all my weird little you knows and stuff like that that are completely involuntary and people say. And

SPEAKER_00: 1:21:08

unnecessary.

SPEAKER_01: 1:21:09

They say. Oh, that's just how you talk. That's not unusual at all. So I think anyone that knows me, that's nothing weird. I'm sure if you don't know me, you're like, God, what a horrible public speaker you are. But I think hopefully we're getting the point across enough that hopefully it's been helpful. It's

SPEAKER_00: 1:21:27

the passion that counts.

SPEAKER_01: 1:21:28

There you go. There you go. But we've got some really, and all of our guests have been amazing, and we have some other really amazing guests coming up that we've gotten scheduled. So really excited to share. show you guys some of those or you know whatever show you guys is the whatever

SPEAKER_02: 1:21:43

share

SPEAKER_01: 1:21:45

with share there you go that's the word I was looking for a share with those with you hopefully in the coming months so we got some

SPEAKER_00: 1:21:51

good yeah it's it's gonna be great we've got some really amazing interviews lined up and some real deep discussions with the workings of races that most marshals experienced or not really probably don't know about and that's something we're really excited to be talking Of course, if you have any ideas, we're always welcome to listen. As you've heard, we love to have an international voice. So tell us about what's going on in your country. Tell us about what's going on with your martial program. How do our marshals in America get it over to Britain or Australia or wherever you may be listening to us from. Let's get involved. Let's hear about what's going on in your countries. We're always welcome to that. feedback and that information so hey turn on voice memos on your phone record a little segment send it to us and we'll be happy to include it on the podcast as well Jess it's always been fun we'll knock another one out and hopefully get this one out in time for the Le Monde broadcast and the huge weekend that is always Le Monde and strangely it coincides with the canadian grand prix which i'll never understand but there you go

SPEAKER_01: 1:23:13

yeah well if you're one of those people keep an eye out for denny if you know him i'm sure he'll probably be on tv somewhere

SPEAKER_00: 1:23:19

he'll be on the hot pit side and you will almost always find him on tv if you look hard enough

SPEAKER_01: 1:23:24

yeah so all right well it's been fun jamie as always thank you and uh yeah i think uh i think that's it well

SPEAKER_00: 1:23:31

absolutely we'll wind up another episode of trackside the podcast for marshals this podcast is copyright Bye. Bye.