Balancing Normal Life and Professional Racing

This is a global production. All the years of harder work were for this. So much of your childhood is lost to ultimately a profession. There is a lot of my life that isn't normal. Have you passed your driving test? Oh my Godd. I tried to also feel like just a normal eighteen year old kid. How do you think it's gonna feel this weekend I don't think it's fully sunken in. I want to do better and there is things I can do better to speed That's well. That's Eid Welcome to U to spepeed. It's British Grand Prix We it's getting closeer me? It's awesome. I love it. I camp. I mean well, it's posh camping I'm in a mortal home did campits overst and aend nineteen ninety opal Lotus support race to the Grand Prix and it was a hot weekend. There was nothing worse than waking up in a tent In a hot tent. Yeah five in the morning you're off to go and compete. Yeah Yeah, exactly. So anyway, I'm in a nice air conditioned motorhome. But I'll be there with some buddies are in the one end of the motorhome. I'll be there with my son who's not racing this weekend. So it really feels to me It's more than a grand Prix Yeah. it's a social event. It's a family event. It's a celebration of British engineering and British fandom and barbecues and you know undercooked sausages. I always loved Thursday Friday at the British Grand Prix because as you say, it's such a family event, but it's a family event for the teams because What you looking at? ninety percent of the teams are based in the UK now and and every team has at least one part of their operation that has a UK base. And so everybody is able to bring their family to the track filling the grunge. And so it's people that you know And you talk to and you see around the world and suddenly they're there with kids or with their mum and dad. and it's just like there's something really mega about that. So what we should maybe explain to any new listeners, there is a club called the British Racing Drivers Club. Yes. and that club owns Silverston. So Silverston is a privately owned facility which was a gift from the founding fathers when they bought the airfield and they decided that this will be operated by the British Racing Drivers's Club. There's only eight hundred or so members of the club The club will never sell the facility because it was given to us and we are custodians handing over to the next generation. And there's that constant sort of transition of You know, of course, the older ones said they their full life and then we got the young guys who earn the right to be a member of the British Racing Driverss Club. And all of this happens And as I say, many of the other GMPes around the world are government funded and supported Basically, the fans pay to go to the Grand Prix That generates the income to pay Formula onene for the rights to host the house right. And what's left over gets reinvested in the track, building new pit complexes, new campsites, new whatever it happens to be. Yes, there are a team of people called the Silverstone mananagement team under It Stuart Pringle, who are paid full time to operate the professional business is Silverstone But beyond that, no money goes out of Silverton. It all gets reinvested. We've built And young drivers young drivers careers. Yeah. young drivers are supported by that. But we've now got an international car track, which was completed earlier this year, which will host world championships in the future So Silverstone is now a destination that whether you're carting, whether you want to go to the museum and see the innovation tract of things, whether you're there trrack days whether you're there for Formula One, whether it's sports cars, motorbikes, it all happens there. And as I say British Racing Drivers' Cl On it. British Grande deb What did it feel like for you? Was it all about pressure or was it suddly sort of the realization of a lifetimes dream of I'm going to race in Formula One at home. Yeah, it felt like I was at home because I'd been going to Silverston since I was seventy eight years old, not to the Grand Priz to cartting races that used to have long circuit cartting there. And then when I started in cars in nineteen eighty nine testing in Silverstone. I remember being in Formula Ford, which was the entry level cars that you raced at that time, one hundred and ten horsepower and groove tyres Going down Hang or Strays, you took out your favorite book. and you read a couple of chapters. you re it was so And I remember driving on an openest day and a Formula three thousand car came past me, which is like a Formula two car today disappeared And I thought How can you ever drive a car that fast? Yeah Because I was you know, only used to what I was used to. and of course, you adapt as you move up through. But yeah, I had so many great memories as a kid learening how to drive a road car when I was a teenager around the perimeter road, camping there, barbecues So then be there as a Grand P driver There was familiarity to the environment. The only thing that was different was a sea of Union jacks as you drove around the circuit. And it's the only Grand Prix track ever heard the crowd above the noise of a race car And that was down at Still Cner I overtook Jean Oisi and his Ferrari, when I was in the Williams Formula One car, they'd made stow instead of a fast right handnder, they made it a kind of ninety right as a reaction to you know the Sen and Ratzemberurger fatalities of ninety four And as I went down the inside and was going down to second gear, I heard the crowd roar. and at first I thought that had a problem with the car because it was a noise I'd never heard before. but it was because they were excited that a British driver had taken the lead. And they're knowledgeable, they're passionate. I remember that same crowd noise when Lewis Hamilton took the lead of a GP two race back in zero six And it was, you know, these were twenty six V eight s. They were noisy and the crowd louder than all of that as Lewis took the lead and announced himself to his home crowd as somebody to watch for the future. They are hugely passionate hugely loyal, hugely knowledgeable. and this weekend they will see another British driver make his debut. That man is Avid Lindblad, somebody who is making waves in Formula one, impressing everybody. and I got to sit down and have a chat with him Avid, welcome up to spepeed Thank you, than for having me. How are you, man? I'm good, good. you? Yeah, very well, very well. It's British Grand Prix weeek. Let's start with that of course. How pumped are you for your first ever home grand Prix I'm very, very excited. It should be a lot of fun. I've been very fortunate to have some very special moments the past few years when I've gone there. and yeah, I even remember very well when I was and I went to Silverstone for the first time to watch my first F one race in twenty thirteen. So yeah, to be going there thirteen years later as a former one driver will be pretty nuts. That's wild. That's really What do you remember about that I remember, um Being in Maggots and Becketets in the Grandstand and just looking at the cars going through and just thinking it was so fast and just being sort of mesmerized and asking my dad like Wow was it really possible like one day to drive one of those cars Um, because this was really when I was sort of getting into it and I' just bading him, you know, like, is it possible could I be there one day When I was really learning about sort of my passion for it. so yeah to be now going as a driver is pretty cool. And coming up through the ranks, you'd have got to drive at Silverstone a lot even before F three and F two, I' imagine. Or did you not? No. No F three was my first time. Really? Yeah Yeah, I mean, I did the BRDC award, which was actually my first time, but then my first time racing was was in F three I didn't do British F four or Freer. So you just found a natural affinity with the circuit straight away because F three it was like Yeah, yeah. I don't know. I remember it was weird when I drove it for the first time. I guess it's because Um, ' I'm British every time I'd go in the FN game as a kid, I'd always do Silverstone. I rememember just when I drove it the first time It was my first laps, but it felt like I'd al reready done a thousand. Oh. It was such a weird feeling. Yeah So even now I haven't actually driven there that much. I've raced there in F three and F two Um two weekends, but I feel like I know the place quite well. so yeah Back to back windins in F three. Yeah What was it about the circuit that just kind of spoke to you, allowed you to pull out those kind of results? Be it's not It's not usual and for those listening who maybe aren't so much into F three or F two, when you have You have a feature and a sprint over the weekend, to win both is incredibly rare Yeah ye. and yeah, but obviously because of the nature of the reverse grid, it's quite difficult. I don't know. quQality it was a bit of a mess so I started a bit further back. so I was actually at the front of the sprint and that was a bit more of a Easy a race And then the feature was quite nuts with all with the weather. it rained and then I stayed on sls and it ended up working out Um I enjoy the track. It's very, very cool, very high speed obviously very iconic. I just enjoy it a life. It's very special to drive. How dod you think it's gonna to feel this weekend When you roll out of the pit lane for the first time in an F one car on British Grand Prix weekends And you drive down through Maggots and Becketets and you go past that grandstand that you sat in as a five year old watching the cars go by and had this dream that one day it would be you and that realization that it is you. Yeah, not really sure. It will be pretty It'll be pretty surreal. Yeah, I'll be very special. Um, It's come at such a young age for you. So young in fact that when you started you hadn't passed your driving test Is that right? Yeah. Have you passed your driving test? No. Oh my God. Are you having lessons No, I haven't actually had a lesson yet. I did my theory. um couple months ago. How did that go Don't tell me you failed No, you did not. No, you did not Yeah, it was quite bad I was quite disappointed. Especially because Id started revising only at like eight PM the day before But I did like three or four hours of reision, which I thought was enough because I spoke to my mate and he was like, yeah I just turned. As a right, I' do bit revision I'll fine and I missed by one as all I raed becausecause the questions aren't You know, what's a yellow flag What's a ye R stripe flag? It's, you know, what what does this signpost mean? and what do you do in this scenario? Yeah's a whole little bit different. They also try to trick you a little bit and some of that it's not very like ye, you always try to pick like the safest answer because normally that's the best guess. But there are sometimes two that seem pretty logical. I don't know. Yeahah, I think again.. It's okay. it's only it's only theory because I was going to ask You know, okay, you're not having lessons, but Will you have lessons? And if you do, how do you think they're going to go? because you've got to have a driving instructor Yeah trying to instruct a Formula one driver on how to drive. I mean, I don't know, maybe I'm very naive, but my sort of plan was to have a lesson to sort of learn about all the u I don't maybe silly is not the right word. You know, the things that the destructors are very hot on, you know, checking your mirrors multiple times, your ten and two on the hands, like all those sort of basic stuff that aren't really actually proper driving to make sure I'm on top of all of that so I don't get caught off guard And then I was to go to the tests and the end up driven still quite a lot on the road because I'm allowed to with my mum. Yeah. So I'm very comfortable on the road. I can park well and all that sort of stuff U so it would be more just to learn about the small things. It's all the little things like three point turns. Yeah, reverse parking Those are the things that catch everyone. I think you'll be pretty good on the emergency stop The reaction time you should be pretty good on, hopefully yeah don't stall it. Do you still have to pass the test on a manual car in the UK. You should. You don't have to. you can do an automatic test, but then you can't you can only drive automatic. so if you want to get a higher car. you can only get an automatic which obviously more expensive. So it's definitely better to do it on a manual than you just got more cars available. And will you do it here or in Portugal because you live in Portugal U no, I want to do it here. You want to do it? do it in the UK I love that. I love that not only that you failed your theory, by the way, the best of us fail our theory tests just to let everybody know. But that you're not yet having actual driving lessons and here you are as a Formula O driver. How How does it feel to be sitting here as an F one driver, everything you wanted since you were five years old at that British Grand Prix coming coming through It's it's pretty nices and, you know, to be honest, sometimes I still have to pinch myself. I don't think it's fully sunken in. I don't know, I'm very much someone that' sort of just goes the flow and just sort of takes it all in my stride. U but it is very cool and there is A part of me that stills like, This is F one, like this is pretty pretty nuts you know, like, the amount of races, the amount of times I was on the sofa at home watching it or when I was at the c track in the UK and you know, my race would finish or just before my race, I'd have you know, my phone propped up seeing what would be happening. So now actually be in it myself is very cool So I've been enjoying it a lot. It's been really fun so far this year, but I wouldn't say it's still fully sunken in. What's the biggest kind of pinch me moment that you've had so far Melbourne was was very emotional in some ways. Bose my parents were there U which is actually quite rare for me. I guess when I was a proper teenager a few years ago, I actually didn't like my parents to come so much. It was very often me and my trainer Sam. And then last year I wanted my dad a little bit more there. But Melbourne's been the first race in a long time that I had both of them and I just remember very well I went to the National Anthem and I saw my name card. with the F one, you know, logo And it already got a little bit that already hit me and then I just remember walking back to to my car. Obviously I'd had a great results in then I was starting like eighths or something. And my coach was there and I was getting ready And he said to me all the years of harder work were for this. And that really really hit me and I immediately almost you know shed a tear. I had to bas control myself because the race was about to start. Um But I'd say the emotion I got in that moment and the really the appreciation of, you know what was happening Um Yes. pretty was quite something. Silestston's obviously going to be a big one. What's the other track that you're most looking forward to? What was the one that you enjoyed the most when you were playing that FO game? I enjoyed the most Silver stone. The ones I was looking forward to this year were Suzuka, which was one of them Um and then the other one Honestly, I'm looking forward to Brazil. Yeah. I you know I had or something that was going say. I just think it's a really cool week. Obviously the track's very iconic I think it's cool to drive, but I just think it's, you know, it's bit of everything. I think Brazil's a cool country, but also you know, the weather's always up in the air. So the race is always very exciting There's lots of overtaking opportunities, but yeah, you never know if it's going to be wet, dry or rain in the middle or you know, there's been some many many cool F one races. So Those three have been the three races I've been mo looking forward to this year. You've done some driving in India this year as I understand. DC said he was out in Mumbai with We used to race in India. I used to love that out in Great Noida near Delhi. It was such a fun event, cool little track Um How much does it mean to you to go to Mumbai to do that event Yeah, it's it was very special. I mean, u, you know, been talking quite a lot, you know, really connecting with my roots, you know over the past few years, you know, I'm very proud of my heritage. It's quite a Rix, British, Swedish and Indian. But yeah, you know Obviously, You know I am British racing in the British flag, so I'm very connected in my UK roots. Sweden's quite close and growing up I spent a lot of time there And I'm very close to my grandparents, my mum's side, but India was, you know, quite far away so my first time I went there was actually like two years ago I think it was end of twenty twenty four Um So you know, for me, that was that was very special And I went again at the end of twenty five and then, you know, to be going there dririving on the streets of Delhi, you know, in an F one car was Yeah it was even more special for me, you know, just to really connect with my roots and connect with with the Indian people, bring sort of, you know, the love and passion to F one of F one back was very cool. Because the support in India has been huge for a while. It's starting to blossom and really boom Um, again And the reaction to you when you went over to do that was absolutely huge. How much do you feel that how much pride did you take from seeing that kind of a reaction Yeah, it was pretty cool. I mean I I think I was just quite grateful for the sort of welcome and the sort of appreciation and the sort of, you know, kindness that, you know, the Indian people sort of gave me Yeah, because you know, I'm aware that I don't race under the Indian flag and I do feel, you know, most associated to the UK U, But I think just the welcomeness and the kindness, I think that was, you know, the biggest thing for me And you get to do all these cool things largely because of who you're racing with, being with racing balls, part of the Red Bull program You're with a team that loves to embrace the social media side of things and you're of an age where that I imagine would come naturally, or is it a struggle? No, I would say some of it is different. You know, there's quite a few of know the TikTok stuff that I wouldn't do off my own back But in general, no, you're right. I mean, when you've got someone to edit it for you, it's a lot easier Yeah But I just mean, you know, my of my age, you know, social media is a big thing. So in that regard, I am very fortunate. Um and it's something I've been, you know I've spoken about a lot, you know that I'm I think for a lot of drivers, the older ones, especially they sort of I wouldn't say struggle with it, but maybe it bothers them more because this is something that is sort of cap increased during their sort of career Whereas for me, because I'm young, I've always seen the social media and just generally the marketing side of F one and the media as always a important part of it is I've always seen it as a part of the job. So for me it doesn't really bother me because I always knew that That was that was part of the job, yeah Do you deal with social media and with what you know, sort of living in an online space can represent because you're part of a younger generation that, as you said, has grown up with this. It's just it's just the norm for some of us that didn't it can be quite hard and it can be quite challenging, not just the constant need to post and seemingly sort of share everything with the world. but that kind of instant ability for people to be able to reach out and connect with you, be that in a positive or sadly as it is so often, in a negative way. How do you handle that Honestly, I've been quite fortunate that I'd say I haven't really had any really bad sort of interactions or anything, you know, like that so far Um, so I'm I'm not the best person to answer your question. But I would say, you know, I'm I try not to I don't really look at comments or you know, all that sort of stuff. I do have a, you know, a scroll every now and again. But quite often I do it on my private account. Not like you have a private burner account that you can go and look at stuff that's like not in your name or Well, I mean, to be honest, I remember when I was what ele you know, when I was in school and we were all getting our phones. and obviously I had an Instagram account from when I was nine. It wasn't actually on my phone. it was my parents who set it up And when we were all getting phones at around eleven, twelve, you know when we' slight secondary school Everyone was getting Instagram accounts. And I didn't really I didn't have access to my proper one. And I didn't also want to use my proper one because I wanted to, you know feel normal.. So I remember I got my own account, you know, and just made a private one with my mates. you know, and we all followed each other and you know we'd post random stories about were doing. And I just kept that account. and that's my private one that you, I scroll on For me, it's quite an important thing that I really try to focus on You know tryrying to be normal and trying to do you know normal stuff because there is a lot of my life that isn't normal. And I'm extremely grateful because you know it's normal for good reasons. You know, I'm very, very fortunate to be in this position. But when I'm at home, you know, I try to hang out with my friends, I try to also feel like just a normal eighteen year old kid That's not really brought up a lot in the stresses and the responsibilities that you guys as racing drivers have is so much of your childhood is lost to ultimately a profession and a job from a very young age and a hugely stressful one. At that. Do you I should say, how much do you value that time then away from the track with your maids, with the people that you've grown up with, so you can, in your own words, feel like a normal eighteen year old It's very important. It's something I value massively. It's something that I would say I've learnt over the past year to value more Um, because, you know As the as I've come up to with the ranks, the seasons have become busier, you get less time off and you learn that you need You need a distraction when you can find one, because you can't think about racing all day every day It is draining. You need to find your way of switching off U And for me that is, you know, when I'm at home, it's hanging out with my mates, it's going to the beach, it's, you know, trying to really disconnect So I value it massively. It's definitely working. You're impressing everybody in Formula One and around the motorsport world with your rookie season in the sport It seems to be coming together so well for you, for Liam, for the team this year. U How does it feel for you? How does it feel within the organization um the season that you've had and the start that you've had I think it's good. I think the first few races were pretty cool I think I'm impressed, you know, in Melbourne and you know, in Japan Um I would say overall I'm happy. I wouldn't say I'm over the moon with it. I would say there's definitely things that I want to do better and there is things I can do better U So I'm very focused on that, but I would say it's been a positive start. How does the mindset change And this is something I'm always fascinated in because when you're coming through F three, F two, every weekend you're going into, the expectation is Minimum points hopeful podium You know, but the goal always is is win. You then come to Formula one and it's not quite like that and your expectations have to be measured How do you switch your head out of? I'm gonna win? this weekend to you know what? scoring points would be a crack in result Yeah, it is a bit weird because everything I've ever raced in, I've wanted to win and I've almost You know, it's not always a It doesn't always happen, but every weekend I've gone into There's a chance. wouldn't's right? Well yeah, I wouldn't happy with a P five. and you know you know The goal was always to win where now would people five would be like it was yeah, it be insane. Yeah So it is weird, but I think For me In the end you just realistically know what is possible. In the end in F two and F three of the same car as everyone. Soee you know that If you drive the best, yes, teams are different and there are good and bad teams, but In theory, if you drive the best, you should be able to win. Whereas an F one that's not the case because it's not one hundred percent a level playing field So I don't know for me, honest, I just knew what was achievable with the package we had. you know That's changing a bit every weekend because of the upgrades because it's a really, you, fast development rate But you know, you drive in FP one, you do a decent lap and you see where you are in the pecking order and you're like, right, okay, that's roughly where we're going to be this week Um, and, you know, There's no point getting disappointed over something that's not achvable. So for me, I'm very aware of what is possible and I think that, you know I'm lucky that the team have done a good job and brought us a really good car that we are fighting for points. Um, because It is sometimes a bit disheartening if a win is P seventeen Um, so yeah Um Back to where we began the five year old Avid in the grandstands. this weekend for the British Grand Prix returning to Silverston, you have a beautiful new helmet for those watching, they'll be able to see it. for those listening. just describe what we're what we're looking at and the work that's gone into into this helmet. Yeah, it's quite something, it's quite different. I don't know, basically I wanted to do something that almost visualized my journey and my path to Silverstone to my first F one race. So it's very, you know, on the back here, I've got all the She all the images, you know I'd say very pivotal moments in my career U So I can't see them all now, but you know, starting on a I've got them on the front here. So starting on a motorross bike when I was three winning the British Championship signing with, you know, rebel, the double win in Silverstone, my first FP one, my first point.' all very know pivotal moments I'd say in my career Um And I wanted it, you know, I always said from the, you know, when I was five, I believed I could be an F one. So I wanted it almost to look like a map, like a journey envision from my five year old self. So that's why the images are very childlike, they're quite basic. Um And you know, the dream big because, you know, like I said, when I was five, I believe that was possible. So, you know, the dream big, you know, it was It was very much my My goal, it was my dream. That's why it's know my path my way. You know, I was very fortunate to have the opportunities, but I didn't come from a racing family. It was something that I really pushed and it was I didn't come from my parents So yeah, that's I say in a nuthell. I' I think it looks really cool. I think it's come out really well and I'm really looking forward to wearing it this weekend. I love it. I love the message. It's something I tell my kids as well. Dream bigig is I think it's a wonderful mantra to have You have dreamt big, you have done it your way. I'm so happy for you, man. and I'm happy for that five year old kid in the grandstand that gets to live his dreams and realize that this weekend, Hvid, thanks so much for coming in. Thank you. Thank you for your time. Great to hear from ArVid. and that brings to an end a bum a week of episodes here on Up to spepeed after our regular Monday episode. Our special with Zach Brown, which came out yesterday. If you haven't heard that, do please find it and listen in. And of course, talking to ArVid today, a desperately impressive young man both on and off the track. As always, folks, you can get in touch with us via social media at U to spepeed Show Via email, up to speed at global. com and we'll be back on Monday after the British Grand Prix This has been a global production.