Bernie Collins on Handling Bad Days in Formula 1: Learning From Every Race
In motorsport, the highs of success are often mirrored by challenging lows, and Formula 1 is no exception. Bernie Collins, a seasoned engineer and strategist, opened up about how she dealt with tough days in the sport and the emotional toll of races that didn’t go as planned.
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Reflecting on those difficult moments, Collins explained, "The bad days are, you know, generally when you have a race that's gone poorly or bad decisions have been made, or even sometimes a decision that was good, that's not worked out because a safety car happened one lap later."
She emphasised that the most challenging part was the immediate aftermath of a disappointing race, especially when it came to facing the team. "I always find getting off the pit wall and walking through the garage difficult because there's like 40 people who've worked really hard to get that car on track, and then, just at the final hurdle, it's not quite performed as it could have or should have."
For Collins, the initial post-race debrief was emotionally charged, but by Monday or Tuesday, her approach became more analytical. "You might still be upset about the race, but you're trying to do it as neutrally as you can," she explained.
Her focus was on improvement and learning from mistakes. "You don't want to make a mistake every week, so it is trying to learn from those mistakes that make you a stronger strategist or a stronger team, whatever the case may be."
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Despite the emotional strain, Collins found comfort in the fast-paced nature of Formula 1, especially the rapid feedback loop that engineering and strategy offer. "What I really loved about F1 as an engineer is how quick the feedback is. You could be designing in aerospace, for example, and it might take 10 or 12 years for that part to ever make it to a plane, whereas if you design in F1, you know, it's on the car next week. If you do strategy in F1, you see the result in like two laps' time."
This immediate feedback allowed Collins to learn quickly and adapt to the ever-changing conditions of a race. Her key takeaway for overcoming tough races was simple: "You just need to sort of remove emotion a little bit. You've had a bad week, that's fine. But then just try and learn as much from it as you can."
In the world of Formula 1, where the stakes are high and outcomes can change in an instant, Collins' ability to find resilience and growth in difficult moments speaks to the grit and determination required to thrive in the sport.
Listen to the full interview with Bernie Collins here:
