Grapevine: Paddock Life - Barcelona edition

But while such time off in the annual mid-season summer break has always been much welcomed by the F1 fraternity for recharging batteries, such a long layoff this early in the campaign seemed to have put many people firmly back into winter mode. For some, arriving in Spain was almost like the start of a fresh new season.

"The gap was a bit too much," smiled Rubens Barrichello on Thursday. "I have started to drive a bit too quick on the roads, so I miss the speed!"

Not surprisingly, Spain went Alonso mad (a record 140,700 attended on race day), but on the Thursday before the race it was the double world champion who had to hand out the prizes for once, rather than receive them.

Alonso was present at an event for Vodafone to help offer advice and encouragement to a host of rising young Spanish karters.

The 10-strong line-up were pitted against each other in a thrilling 10-lap race around the local Catalunya Kartodrom.

Yet while the winners all beamed with delight afterwards at having proven their worth in front of their hero, one poor kid who had missed out on a good showing was close to tears at having lost out on the chance to shine. It was nothing, however, that a well-placed handshake and backslap from his hero could not cure.

It was something that perhaps Alonso himself could have done with on Sunday night...

Ferrari have ramped up their efforts to be more media-friendly since the start of this year, and a simple addition of a new motorhome changed things dramatically at Barcelona this weekend.

The design of their new media unit, unveiled for the first time on Thursday, has proved a masterstroke in turning the team from what at times felt quite cold (with the narrow dark doors of their old unit not quite so inviting) into a central hub for media members who want to hang out untroubled for a while.

Wide open doors, relaxing red cushions to sit on while drivers and team members hold interview sessions and, of course, the best espresso in the paddock, somehow ensured that Ferrari were no longer simply a place for stalwart Italian journalists to debate the latest goings on at Maranello.

Some of the team's rivals may have scoffed at the money the team spent on the unit, but creating true goodwill is priceless for a team - and something that only effort and understanding can truly buy.

Former world champion Jody Scheckter made a rare return to the Formula One paddock in Spain - but it had little to do with his interest in actual motor racing.

In fact, it would have been more appropriate for the 1979 world champion to be on hand with some green Wellies on, rather than a stopwatch. He was a guest of Honda Racing amid part of their environmentally friendly push this season.

Scheckter's organic Laverstoke Park Farm has just agreed a deal to provide its food and products to Honda Racing this year - ensuring that the team will serve perhaps the healthiest meals in the paddock.

But it was left to team boss Nick Fry to make the perfect entrance during a drinks and canape reception to celebrate the new partnership at Honda's motorhome on Saturday evening.

With one of Honda's most senior management members present in Spain to check out what was going on with the team's F1 efforts, Fry was pretty low profile all weekend.

So most people missed him slipping out of his office and through the packed motorhome until he bumped into the back of someone - and pushed them into a glass that then tipped over and smashed loudly on the floor.

Everyone present turned around to look at the guilty party and the fingers and jeers were soon pointed towards a shocked Fry - who without a moment's hesitation pleaded innocence. And 'not for the first time', a cynical hack swiftly replied!

Team tactics were discussed and debated until moments before the start of the race. Nervous fingers tapped away on the pitwall gantry as the cars disappeared out of view down to the first corner.

And the tension, nervous exhaustion and sweat from hard-fought racing were only shaken off almost two hours later when the champagne was popped open on the podium.

Yes, it was time for the annual Bridgestone Media Karting Endurance Race at the Spanish Grand Prix on Friday night - and once more it proved that even close allies at work can turn into bitter enemies on the track.

Autosport.com had a team again, and the pressure was on for a strong showing after pole position in the 2006 event had resulted in only a fifth place finish.

This year the team comprised of Autosport magazine's Steve Cooper and Charles Bradley, F1 Racing's Stuart Codling and yours truly. The competition was as strong as ever, with F1 drivers-turned commentators Marc Surer, David Kennedy and Eric van der Poele all eligible to compete.

Following a fifth place grid slot, autosport.com took a leaf out of Ross Brawn's books and went for a radical strategy early on to try and gain an advantage.

With teams limited to a maximum of 10 minutes per driver before changing, fears about a long queue in the pitlane for swaps meant that a short first stint was adopted to put us out of sync with the opposition.

It was a tactic that worked brilliantly. Any time lost during driving, thanks to the slightly heavyweight driver line-up, was certainly made up by having a clear run through the pits for each swap.

Surer and Kennedy's teams were still far too fast to be caught, but our tactics paid off in the tough fight with van der Poele's Belgian mob - who prior to the last 20 minutes of the race were in third place and just five seconds up the road.

But then it all went wrong for them. They were handed a penalty for missing the pit-in boards and then lost even more time amid confusion at a driver change - when van der Poele came in and there was no one there to replace him.

So autosport.com took the final podium spot but, being the first men home with no 'ringer' racing drivers on board, we knew we were the moral victors!