Our era seems set for great upheaval, as if everything around us were suddenly spiralling out of control, against a backdrop of widespread doom and gloom. The motto “don’t worry, we’ll do the rest” and its corollary “don’t look, you won’t understand” are spreading like wildfire. The environment, health, education and the economy, for example, are subjects reserved for experts. Whether it’s the experts advising the authorities or those who monopolise the media, the specialists know and we simple individuals must believe without resistance and feel guilty without reservation.
Yet everyone has a working brain and the ability to use it. Among all the little lights flashing in the grey matter, have you been watching the one that wondered what this pandemic was all about, and the reactions of dubious effectiveness? Masks, lockdown, the self-authorisation to breathe fresh air, the closing of bookshops, the ban on visiting the beach or hiking alone in the forest… Not to mention those strange vaccines that don’t protect. As soon as the virus suddenly disappeared from our screens, we were plunged back into the panic of global warming. The earth is getting warmer, we’ve got to stop using our petrol-powered cars, it’s wrong. Electricity is going to save us, it has to. It’s like a firework display of questions crackling in our brains, isn’t it?
What if CO2 wasn’t the only problem? What if human activity wasn’t the main culprit? What if electric vehicles caused more problems than they solved? It’s a subject worth thinking about, and letting the opposing views have their say, if only to discuss them. But there’s no room for all these questions, so we have to toe the party line and keep quiet. Move along, there’s nothing to see (or say).
The carbon footprint of motor sport needs to be reduced quickly before it is eliminated altogether. Fossil fuels are not inexhaustible, everyone agrees, and this change is necessary for the survival of our sport. The horizon for this revolution has been set at 2030 by the FIA and 2050 by France, for example. However, the technical solutions are not yet fully developed. 100% renewable fuels are making their appearance thanks to cutting-edge companies. Like other disciplines, French F4 has been using a biofuel since last year. The tests were conclusive and the transition went off without a hitch. We can only applaud the World Motor Sport Council’s decision to require karting to follow this route in FIA Karting competitions from this year onwards.
Well, it wouldn’t be as simple as that for our little machines. Listening to the professionals and the drivers, we realise that there are a few problems associated with the introduction of this new fuel. Nothing dramatic, but fairly frequent phenomena that could at least partially distort the fairness of the competition. Even if solutions can be found, why not talk about it openly and trust in the community’s ability to understand? We’re all in the same boat, so we might as well row in the same direction…
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