Buemi confident for 2011

The end of the season was certainly busy with a dash from Brazil to Abu Dhabi, where we stayed on for an extra week for the Pirelli tyre test. So I was pleased to get back to Europe, spending a couple of days in Switzerland to unwind.

To be honest, after two or three days of chilling out, I started thinking about work again, because I prefer to have some proper holiday around the end of December, so I immediately got stuck into my training regime. I also went to the simulator in Milton Keynes. It was a useful session, even if it was not the usual routine of preparing for the next race, as Bahrain 2011 is still a long way off! But it was good to be back behind the wheel, even a “virtual” one, because there will be quite a few new tasks in the cockpit next year, with the re-introduction of KERS and the use of an adjustable rear wing.

Earlier this week, I drove to Faenza to see the guys in the factory and meet with the engineers. It was fun as well as work, because the local restaurant where a lot of the crew goes for lunch had laid on a special pizza dinner to celebrate the end of the season. They gave us a great meal and we presented the owner with a wing off the car which I signed. He’s got an amazing collection of F1 memorabilia and photos all over the wall.

I took the opportunity to see where we are in terms of next year’s car and, even if I am not going to tell you anything about the STR6, let’s just say it definitely looks impressive! There’s a saying about race cars that if it looks good it usually is good, so I came away from the factory in a positive frame of mind. It was a very interesting day. Now, I am heading back to Switzerland and then next week, I am spending a week in the mountains in Austria as part of my training programme and then it’s back to the simulator. What with that and some press and marketing events, it’s definitely going to be a very busy end to the year. But over the new year week, I should be able to unwind a bit and spend time with my family and friends.

From Buemi’s blog on www.tororosso.com