February 13, 2001
Josh Gilles

The recent month or two has been one of the most hectic I have had in a long time. It is these events that I feel I need to talk about a bit and to shed a bit of light on the person behind the management of Arela Grand Prix Engineering.

Firstly though I would like to extend my hand to welcome aboard Rob Hagarty and Marco Rosas our two 2001 GPVWC season drivers. I know these two drivers will give it their all and give the best that they can for the team. Secondly I would like to talk about myself and talk about how Arela came to be formed.

Ever since I was a little boy I have loved computers. For some reason they absolutely fascinated me. I would spend hours programming in Basic even when I was 5. I couldn't do much more then getting it to tell my sister how much she smelt written across the screen an infinite amount of times but like everyone, you have to start from somewhere. I also was an excellent game player. The types of games I usually play are strategy and first person shoot-em ups. These games seem rather simple at times, I always seem to be able to complete them in little to no time at all (maybe that's cause I like doing long sessions playing them, the longest being 18 hours only getting up for toilet breaks and a drink every now and then). Guess the teenage part of me shows there huh.

I seem to be moving out of game playing a lot nowadays and moving onto other things. I wouldn't call myself a professional Web Developer but I'd call myself a Web Developer nonetheless. I am finishing up my degree in IT and will move on to big things soon.

I have also always loved role playing and organising fantasy type scenarios. After Rob Hagarty asked me to be part of Arela and be the manager behind it, I jumped at the chance. Arela was originally founded so that Rob Hagarty would be able to drive for 2001 under a team he knew and trusted. It now has moved on and while still fulfilling that original role it means so much more. Arela is about team work and support for all of its drivers and is very serious about competing in the GPVWC. We may be a new team and we may have out struggles like all of the other new teams but to all the other teams out there, I say "Watch out" cause we're not as far behind you as you may think.

Being only 19 I still have a lot to learn, but, I'm learning it quickly and with hard work and dedication I believe I can take Arela to new heights.

Rob Hagarty

My name is Rob Hagarty. I am 35 years old and this will be my first season as a driver in an online GP league. I am very much looking forward to working with the team, Josh and Marco, to acheive the best outcomes we can. I am sure there will be trying times throughout the season as we learn how to cut tenths off our lap times to be more competitive, but I am hoping for a few top 6 positions and maybe a podium by the end of the season. Anything beyond that I will consider a bonus.

I wish all teams and drivers all the best for the season, and look forward to the 2001 on track action.

Marco Rosas

Finally I signed my first contract as a GP3 driver. After a bad experience in another online league (only managers?!?!?), a terrible test due to phone line problems and lack of training with new wheel, I get a seat to race.

My experience with car games started very soon in my life. I start playing them in the times of my Spectrum with Scaletrix and Lotus. Since those days to now I never stopped playing.

Talking of F1 games I've started with the oldie GP1 from Microprose, in which have wan all championships and races in all levels.

Then I discovered GP2. I never had the opportunity to play a lot, because it was too heavy for my computer (386!).

Years passed by, and I finally got myself a new PC. At that time F1 Grand Prix Simulator hit the shelves. I was always playing that game, but never won...

Some years passed by till GP3 came out. As soon as I put my hands on it, I couldn't stop playing, day after day, and it wasn't enough. I was a very good player, using the keys.

When I was looking for help in the web for my setups, I found a couple of online F1 leagues. I decided for GPVWC.

Everything was just fine, till Dan asked for time tests. At the same time, I started having problems with my phone line, so, I couldn't be connected more than 5 min.

In consequence, I've failed my test at Silverstone. The only chance I had after that was Catalunya. But, unfortunately, even on this race, I had no chance to prove my qualities, because I was trying a new wheel, which I wasn't used to drive. Therefor my fastest time was a high 25. I didn't even tried setup.

After that, with a bit of training, I achieved to drop my time to even better 24.

Luck was on my side, and good Josh gave me a seat on his team.

Hope now I can help the team and Rob to get the best results.