Bjorn Wirdheim is a fresh addition to the Formula One paddock. Intelligent, humble and hard working, the F3000 Champion made his debut in Melbourne as Jaguar's third driver - a stop on his way to a fulltime F1 racing career. In an exclusive column for Atlas F1, Bjorn will share his experience over the 2004 season and tell us in his own words about the technical and personal challenges he faces throughout the year.

This Week: Bjorn reveals how Jaguar solved their race start problems ahead of Bahrain, and what it was like driving on a circuit surrounded with sand

After the race in Malaysia we went back to Langkawi, which was starting to feel like home after so many visits, and we were supposed to begin training again to keep us ready for the heat of Bahrain. But I got a phone call on Monday evening from Tony Burrows, the test team manager, and he asked me to come back to England to do some testing at a drag strip called Santa Pod, to do some work on the starts.

So I flew back to England on Tuesday evening, and I spent a bit of time in the workshop before going out testing with the team on Friday to sort out the problems we had in Malaysia. The track is long and straight and perfect for the job, with a lot of rubber from the drag cars; we had to point big heaters to help bring it up to the right temperature, although we could only heat up a small patch, but every little bit helps!

I had two days of straight line testing at Lommel in Belgium back in January, so I knew what was expected, and we carried through the test programme and collected a lot of data, which helped the team a lot in Bahrain. I think I will actually be doing more testing than I expected this year; I am also going to be in Barcelona for a couple of days this week.

After the test I flew straight out to Dubai on Saturday evening, where we had a couple of PR functions over the next few days, before arriving in Bahrain on Tuesday. It was really hot when I got there, but thankfully it wasn't as humid as Malaysia! Actually it was quite nice outside in the shade, and there was plenty around under all the amazing looking buildings along the paddock.

While I was in the workshop, in England, I saw that the engineers had found a download on the internet; someone had created a version of the Bahrain circuit to use on a computer game, although it wasn't that accurate; I just had a quick look at it, but I didn't really use it. The only thing the team received from the organisers was a drawing of the circuit with the correct measurements for the corners and the straights and so on, and with that information they were able to find out what the gear ratios are, but that's all I knew before coming here.

So I spent Wednesday on the circuit, and went out with my engineer and a few of the other team members and did five laps in a road car, so when Friday came I already knew it pretty well. The circuit isn't that difficult; it was actually very easy to learn, with mostly slow corners; there's only one corner that's a bit tricky.

There's no grass around the circuit, and it looks very strange to see it from the car - it's actually very difficult to see the gravel traps because the concrete is the same colour, and one of the drivers was complaining about that in the drivers' briefing on Friday. So it's very different here, and the circuit is very wide, but it wasn't as difficult as in Malaysia to find the braking points and so on, because they were very well marked.

It was difficult to run well at first because the grip level was really low, and also some of the corners are a bit strange because the circuit drops away and it's very difficult to keep the car balanced. There are a couple of other corners where you're braking and turning at the same time; when you come through the third last corner - a quick right hander - you already have a lot of load on the car when you brake into the second last corner, which is really tight, so it's really easy to lose the rear.

The thing is there was only grip where the racing line was; as soon as you made a small mistake or got a late turn in or something there was no grip at all and you went off! If you put a wheel outside the line then you wouldn't make the corner if it's in the braking area; you run wide, and then you hit the concrete which is even more slippery. I actually had a spin in the first session, but I think most people did!

It means it's difficult; the circuit is good for overtaking, especially the first corner - which is a perfect place for overtaking, but it's very slippery on the inside and you have to brake really late to get anyone. It's just like on a wet circuit that's drying up, and you could see how many drivers were having trouble in the race with overtaking.

Normally during the first session I am not really doing much testing but really getting used to the circuit, learning. Unfortunately we had to stop early in the first session because the car caught fire as it came into the pits, and the fire damaged some of the looming, but it didn't really affect the tyre programme.

The race drivers don't usually do much running in the first session, and it doesn't matter what track you're at and how new it is, the grip is usually a lot higher at the end of the second session on a Friday. A lot of drivers waited to put new tyres on until the end of that session, which is when you really put a lot of rubber down; Mark and Christian found two seconds at the end, and we worked out the right way to go with our Michelins.

Of course it is sometimes frustrating looking at my lap times; I know that ultimately it is what everyone looks at for every driver, and I do it with other drivers too, but the problem is no one really knows what we are concentrating on or the reasons behind everything. All I can do is just keep focused and do the best I can do for the team and the programme, and so far they seem pretty happy with what I've been doing.

Thankfully the sand didn't really affect the cars, or not in a way that you notice when you are driving; the Cosworth engineer can see it, but as far as I know it didn't cause too many problems. I think the dust from the concrete was a bigger problem than the sand, because the concrete is very dusty. That was also mentioned in the drivers' briefing, but really it's just something that is from the track being so new, and it will be better the next time we race here.

We were a little worried when we saw all the sand and the rain coming towards us early on Sunday, but it didn't make a huge difference because, if there was a layer of sand on the track in the morning, the support series cleared it off.

And the race was pretty exciting actually, so I think we should go to more new circuits! Christian had a good race, and a good fight with Raikkonen, which will help him in terms of experience. And of course it was really good for Mark to get that last point; it's an important point for the team. If only we'd had the information we now have about the circuit we could have done even better! At least it's there for next time.

I was really happy to go to these first few races, to get to experience some new tracks and new cultures while I was learning about Formula One. And now we go back to Europe, and the circuits I'm already familiar with from Formula 3000, which will be a big help for me. But before that I am testing in Barcelona to work on some new parts for the car to help push the team up the grid in Imola, and I'm really looking forward to it.

På återhörande,             Bjorn Wirdheim's column is written exclusively for Atlas F1 by Bjorn himself, with the assistance of David Cameron. Click here for Bjorn's official website.