adieu to my last german

one of the reasons michael schumacher is retiring from formula one is the lack of space. he gets a humongous trophy every fortnight. except last year 2005, when a force named fernando alonzo came into the picture and was the one collecting the trophies. but more than a decade prior to that and again this year, it was schumacher. and where in the world does he store those heavy products of hard work ? there could a be an enclave somewhere in europe. and it's size, is not a room of its own but a mansion in beverly hills.

as the ultimate glory-hunter, the german is my escape from the dreary, poverty-driven life that i lead. his earnings of $2 million per race isn't bad. he's worth what, £300 million? a wife, two kids. an equally rich brother that says, "we're not close growing up." though ralf could always tap big bro as mechanic, like he did when he was cutting his teeth in kart racing. there's their dad, their only surviving parent that had bumped into some bad investments with michael's money. schumi's retirement was always on the offing but now that it's here, it feels so unreal.

schumacher is the all-controversial formula one driver, seven-times world champion. i couldn't even recall all his scrapes, the latest being in monaco this season, when he devised a spin to block the track and hinder rival alonso's odds for taking the pole position. there was the 1994 damon hill incident which forever sullied his name and a repeat in 1997 when he was trying to slam into david coulthard's car in a bid to win the title didn't make him appear that lovable either.

but despite all the lingering questions from detractors such as damon hill (obviously) and keke rosberg, formula one will surely pine for schumacher's competitive presence. being german, his driven, single-minded, win-at-all cost attitude didn't attract fans from the holier-than -thou assembly. "he's such a blatant cheat like that "hand of god," icon, diego maradona." relying on their brilliance alone, schumacher and maradona are already very good. but somehow, their dark sides appear and glide through their psyche. and the morality police are not happy, to say the least.

it has been so much fun watching schumacher the last ten years. he's my roger federer. which proves that all good things come to an end. there are still a few races left this season. it would be a delight to see ferrari's number one navigate one last overtaking strategy. then to set sail to other oportunities, like pulling a magic johnson in business. and not a yevgeny kafelnikov in the poker circuit. although unlikely, it would be something if he could play poker on tv, just for a glimpse of a driving legend that is michael schumacher.
(photo from askmen.com)

September 17, 2006