Those folks from Shell Canada are so sneaky. What was presented to the media as a meet-and-greet with the star of their new Television Ads, Shell Global Solutions Fuel Technology Manager Clive McDonald, turned out to be an impromptu product unveiling.
Well, sort of...
Currently Shell produces a line of premium gasoline known as Optimax Gold, and around the world as V-Power. As of June 6, 2005, Optimax Gold will be sold in Canada under the V-Power Label aligning with the worldwide brand. They have also renewed their technical partnership with the Ferrari Formula 1 team through 2010.
What could have been a dry, boring product roll-out was, in fact, an entertaining discussion with McDonald about his experience working with the Mclaren and Ferrari Formula 1 teams formulating high performance fuels for the fastest circuit racers on earth. He can be seen in Shell’s new television commercial, jumping at the shriek of a passing Formula 1 car and uttering the memorable line “I’ve never been to a Formula 1 race in my life, quite frankly it terrifies me!”
The impression you get of McDonald on T.V. is that of a brilliant, enthusiastic engineer with a cheeky sense of humour and a great deal of humility for a man of his accomplishments.
“I tried to move heaven and earth to avoid being in that commercial,” mused McDonald. “Suffice it to say I failed. When we did the shoot, Michael (Schumacher) was practicing his starts. All over the track he’d do downhill, uphill and cold starts. The attention to detail was incredible!”
Shell works directly with Ferrari at their Fiorano test track allowing Shell engineers to make immediate adjusts as they are needed and get a close look at the cars their fuel are powering.
“When Schumacher would pause, we would run out and film the commercial!” McDonald said.
Car manufacturers, specifically those in disciplines such as Formula 1, often pepper advertisements with catchphrases such as “synergy” and “trickle-down” to justify their huge investment, claiming the technology produced in Formula 1 will ultimately make it to production vehicles.
Honda, Bridgestone and Hewlett-Packard are among the latest companies to feature advertisements tying in their product with their participation in Formula 1.
McDonald maintains that Shell premium fuels aren’t as far away from their Formula 1 counterparts as many would assume.
“Formula 1 Gasoline is the most strictly regulated fuel on earth,” noted McDonald. “As such it’s not altogether a different breed of petrol from that which Shell sells to its customers. You can see the benefit immediately as we are always modulating our formula based on things like the changing seasons.”
McDonald Claims that participation in Formula doesn’t just benefit the buyers of Shell Fuels but Shell as well.
“I’m a research scientist, I think in 5-10 years. In Formula 1 they want it (snaps his fingers quickly). You learn to solve problems, find solutions, immediately,” observed McDonald. “When you work for a large company such as Shell it can take much longer to find, and then approve, a solution.”
Since haphazardly acquiring his newfound celebrity status McDonald has had to field a number of Formula 1 related questions. Consistently one question keeps coming up.
“A lot of people ask me what is so magical about Formula 1,” McDonald said. “Going back to watching Schumacher practice, it’s the incredible attention to detail that amazes me.”
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