Don’t Forget That Your Idol is Human, Too

Learnings from my F1 virtual autograph session

Note: Quotes are not verbatim. They are all paraphrased as I stupidly used my earphones and ended up with a mute screen recording. The meanings have been preserved.

What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned from each other?

When Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz were asked this question in a McLaren virtual autograph session, I expected them to blurt out some racing trick or strategy that my amateur F1 fan mind probably wouldn’t fully understand.

Both of them seemed unsure about how to answer the question.

Lando went first. He talked about how he probably wouldn’t have gotten into golf if it weren’t for Carlos. Not surprising considering he’s a 21-year old Twitch game-streaming lord who could be playing a more adrenaline-inducing outdoor sport.

Lando never really saw himself as someone who’d enjoy golf the way he did now. But because of his teammate, he learned to appreciate and even look forward to it.

Carlos was still figuring out his answer when Lando teased, “Yeah, Carlos, what’s the best thing you’ve learned from me?”

“What I really value about him is how he just laughs at everything.”

Carlos admitted that he was always more of a serious and intense guy. Naturally, things that pissed him off would really piss him off.

Aside from his driving, Lando is known for his unique and very, very hearty laughter. Like, he is the living embodiment of LOL. More than once you can catch him with tears in his eyes while laughing like there’s no tomorrow.

Obviously, all that fun and laughter were contagious enough to rub off on Carlos. “Now, I can take things more lightly, make more jokes, and even laugh a bit when something doesn’t turn out right.”

Hours before the virtual autograph session, I was scrambling about what I would ask my favorite F1 team drivers if I got the chance.

Well, out of the other fans in the room, I was one of the lucky five who would get to ask a question.

In fact, I was asked to go first. And as much as I’d love to claim the question narrated above, my question was, to be frank, boring. I asked about how they mentally prepared for a race — something you can probably find out in a normal race coverage. I was hoping there was some special ritual or trick they used to psyche themselves up. But I guess for most athletes, in general, the pre-competition routine doesn’t vary all that much.

The girl who asked the more interesting question began by mentioning how she appreciates their chemistry as teammates. In F1, your teammate is really your biggest and truest rival on the grid. High tension is the rule rather than the exception, which is why you can’t help but be charmed by Carlos & Lando’s bromance.

I wish I had asked more about that. The real stuff that drew me to them. It crossed my mind to ask, “What would you miss the most about being teammates?” or maybe emotional things like, “How do you deal with a race weekend that sucks?” Instead, classic overthinking got the best of me, and I felt pressured to ask something smart or related to the sport.

If I had recognized them more as real persons and not some far-away athletes, maybe it would’ve been a simpler, more compelling interaction.

Nonetheless, this 20-minute (highly-subdued) fangirl experience was easily one of the highlights of my 2020. Here’s what I learned:

1. What we value most about people is how they change the way we see things.
2. If you ever get the chance to interview your idols, know that this is the time for you to see them as humans. Ask human stuff.
3. If you're going to screen-record something, do not use a headset unless you want to end up with a silent documentary. (Regrets.)