03/02/2025
FEATURE BY MAX NOBLE
The ancients had water clocks and sundials providing the reasonable timekeeping accuracy required when one's life moves with the speed of an ambling oxen.
It took many years before the accrued errors pushed the seasons out of line with the formal calendar. Then humanity got all global and commenced sailing out of sight rather than off the edge of the world. The couple of puddles sailed by Jason and his Argonauts had caused enough problems for the crew in knowing where in the God's universe they were.
Literally "all at sea" humanity was in need of a bit of maths, which we'd been rather good at since before the pyramids, and an accurate measure of time. Knowing your local time (by celestial observation), and a reference time (your trusty chronometer), spiced with a swift moment of arithmetic and salty sea dogs, you'd know where you were.
Due to zealous empire building the 18th century French and British governments were both keen to know precisely where their ships were so they could reliably go back for more rampaging in the colonies, while successfully locating new land for the taking.
One can confirm one's precise location on the planet in three dimensions via longitude, latitude and altitude. First good bit of news! By definition ships are most often to be found at sea level, so we can cross altitude off the list. Leaving latitude, the y-axis how far north or south are you, and longitude, the x-axis how far around east or west are you? Latitude was not too difficult with a few observations. Longitude was a touch harder to pin down, especially without an accurate measure of time.
Chronometer is a portmanteau of the Greek word for time, Chronos, and the word meter meaning measure. In 1720 a Yorkshire carpenter, John Harrison, responded to a British government challenge to design an accurate maritime chronometer. He spent the next 31 years refining his design to finally deliver one of the world's most accurate mechanical timepieces. Mariners were happy, well those that could afford a chronometer anyway. The high-cost of ownership being a consistent theme with coveted timepieces ever since.
Then trains started running to time, commencing with the imaginatively named Locomotion No. 1 which commenced carrying London passengers in September 1825. Then people started timing horse races. Then the motorcar came along, and a whole new level of time-obsession was born.
Initially pocket-watch style stop-watches were used to time early motor races. Then Heuer, who would later add Tag to their name and unleash the wonders of Tag-Heuer on the time adoring public, produced some rather useful items. Heuer's initial motorsport offerings were dash-mounted timers, followed by chronograph wrist watches. Possibly their finest hour being Steve McQueen wearing a "Monaco" Heuer in the classic Le Mans movie. Legend status instantly secured.
Ah Rolex. Missed out on being the moon watch, a competition won by Omega, but worn by Sir Donald Campbell for his 1935 World Speed Record run on the Utah salt flats. Sir Donald became the first human to surpass 300 mph on land, with a Rolex strapped to his wrist. The speed fraternity flocked to Rolex as a result. Rolex then sponsored the racing at Daytona in the 1950's, leading to the release of the Rolex Daytona shortly after. Until recently Rolex was the timing sponsor for F1 and their emblem could be seen all around every F1 circuit, however, in early January Tag-Heuer returned as official timekeeper having clearly won the bidding war.
Chopard and the Mille Miglia. An ancient tradition... founded in 1989. The revised Mille is a parade for classic cars, rather than the fire and fear race of old. Jacky Ickx and Chopard joined forever to create the new watch in 1989, and it has been a classic time piece ever since.
Michael Schumacher was an Omega man. Jacques Villeneuve promoted Bausch and Lomb. Sir Jackie has been a Rolex ambassador since modern, dollar-driven time began.
Jaeger-LeCoultre have been Swiss precision masters since 1833. At one point they built beautiful analogue gauges for cars of old. As cars have gone all touch screen they still do a wonderful job of creating time-telling jewellery.
Then Richard Mille. The only modern brand to sponsor more than one team. Rafer Nadal is one of their most famous ambassadors. The super-light-weight, hyper-rigid mechanical marvel surviving hour after hour of the Nadal serve and forehand. Surviving such a beating, providing Richard Mille with the platform for a many a multi-thousand dollar limited edition... Just like the one ripped from Lando's wrist the other year, or the one taken from Mark Cavendish's home. These watches range from a lot for a regular watch, through to small aircraft money for a limited edition model. Noting that they only build a handful per year.
Felipe Massa loves watches. One of his glorious quotes about them, when trying to entice other drivers into the same collecting obsession, was "If there are more than ten of them on the planet, it's not a limited edition". His point being when Omega, Rolex or Chopard release a "limited edition run" of "...only 1,500 watches", that's not really limited at all... given that at the price points they are pushing these items they can only expect to sell around 1,500 in any year. As with Ferrari's, the ultimate mobile jewellery item, rarity is a key selling point. Luca di Montezemolo was once asked to what level he wanted to increase Ferrari road car production and he replied, "One less than the world wants". Beautiful answer!
Kyle Jenner is reportedly the youngest "self-made" female billionaire. All off the back of flogging "special" cosmetics to girls in their early teens, who wanted to be "just like her." What generates value in the eyes of the beholder?
Why is an amazingly accurate quartz Casio worth $100, while a limited edition Patek Philippe worth $100,000 while keeping time to the accuracy of kindergarten kids repeatedly counting to 60 during the day? Indeed Patek Philippe have one of my favourite advertising tag lines, "You never own a Patek Philippe, you merely look after it for the next generation", coupled with a wonderful father-son arty picture.
Why do Omega still call the Speedmaster "The Moon Watch" and have pictures of astronauts all over their advertising 56 years after that historic first moon landing?
Why do Breitling, and Longines go on and on about aeronautical achievements from 100 years ago?
Why do Maserati still place an analogue clock in the centre of their dashboards?
Ever since the first original Olympic Games were held in Southern Greece back in 776BC we have held an obsession with knowing "who came first?" "Participant" medals are all well and good in kindergarten, but beyond that we want to know how people finished. (Hence the frustration at the end of grands prix when the actual, official result is rarely shown on screen until long after the finish, if at all - Ed).
So no wonder the fascination of motor racing engineering, and the delicate beauty of chronometer engineering are natural friends. Further united by the sporting obsession to know who won.
Many watch companies have a history of collaboration with motor racing. Richard Mille was only founded in 2001 in Les Breuleux by Dominique Guenat and Richard Mille. Yet their obsession with mechanical light weight, accuracy and a robust movement have made them a legend in double-quick time. So what makes a legend? How do we measure the worth of time as a person's soul ages? Why do we value knowing the time, when things happen as they will? Why does knowing Sir Lewis' qualifying time to thousandths of a second matter compared to knowing 1950's qualifying times to around a second? Is the sport better for the precision? Have we improved the sport, or humanity, by measuring to more and more decimal places?
Are Swiss mechanical watches works of art, and items of beauty, or the badges of honour of the wealthy-yet-clueless? Will the number nine bus appear more swiftly for a Rolex wearer or a Casio wearer? Or do Miss Physics and Father Time, laugh at us all as we chase seconds, meaning, and lap times in a universe which cares not for our petty ways?
Or do we simply sit back and smile at the marketing genius of Rolex sponsoring the Daytona 24 hour each year, and flogging ever more embarrassingly inaccurate mechanical time pieces at glorious profit margins?
Max Noble
Learn more about Max and check out his previous features, here