BBC Learning English
People and Places
David Coulthard
 [bad word] 

Jackie: Hello, [bad word] to the programme, with me Jackie Dalton. I don’t know
if this sound means anything to you, but to me it conjures up images of
my dad dropping off to sleep in front of the television on a Sunday
afternoon, and can only mean one thing: Formula One motor racing.
Also known as, if you say it with a very English accent, the Grand Prix.
Today we meet one of the world's top Formula One drivers – David
Coulthard. And the first question you'd have to ask any F1 driver: what’s
it like driving round a track in Monaco at 280 kilometres an hour?
David
That takes precision, it takes full concentration and it's a beautiful feeling to be so
focused on one task and have no other distractions.
Jackie: David says you need precision – precision. This means being exact or
accurate, you have to do everything exactly right. He also says it takes
full concentration – you have to [bad word] focused on what you're
doing and not think about anything else. He says this is a beautiful
feeling. Next he'll use an informal expression to describe a state where he
is very focused. Try and listen out for what it is.
David
The great thing about being in a racing car when you're really in the zone, you are 100
per cent on the thought process of driving that car.
Jackie: Did you get the expression? It was 'in the zone'. We say someone is 'in
the zone' when they're so focused on what they're doing that nothing else
matters, and this improves their performance. It's often used in the
context of sport. Let's hear David again, listen out for those terms:
'precision', 'concentration' and to be 'in the zone'.
David
That takes precision, it takes full concentration and it's a beautiful feeling to be so
focused on one task and have no other distractions. The great thing about being in a
racing car when you're really in the zone, you are 100 per cent on the thought process of
driving that car.
Jackie: But what does it feel like physically to be in a racing car? Is it [bad word]  Listen to find out.
David
The physical aspect of driving a Grand Prix car is [bad word] than people may
imagine because you're in a very cramped [bad word]  temperatures are very high and the
car is millimetres from the ground and very often banging the ground so it's quite harsh,
a lot of drivers have lower back problems and neck problems because of the g-forces.
Jackie: No, it's [bad word]  David says you're in a cramped [bad word] 
'Cramped' means there's not much space, the ' [bad word] #39; is the part of the
car he sits in. He also says it gets hot and you're very close to the ground.
Listen again. This time, try to answer this question: what kinds of health
problems do Formula One drivers often have?
David
The physical aspect of driving a Grand Prix car is [bad word] than people may
imagine because you're in a very cramped [bad word]  temperatures are very high and the
car is millimetres from the ground and very often banging the ground so it's quite harsh,
a lot of drivers have lower back problems and neck problems because of the g-forces.
Jackie: Did you get the answer? They often have lower back and neck problems.
But David Coulthard used to [bad word] with another health problem:
bulimia. This is an eating disorder where people make themselves vomit
to get rid of the food they've eaten to lose weight. It's something that's
not often talked about in his world.
David
It's probably [bad word] to hear it in relation to ladies and it's not something that
within the macho world of motor sport would be spoken about.
Jackie: David uses the word 'macho' to describe the world of motor sport.
'Macho' means to try to seem tough and show no em