RACE is the buzz word this week, no doubt about it. To start off, we had that race with probably the most heart-stopping ending ever in Sao Paulo on Sunday when our very own Lewis Hamilton left it until the last but one corner to clinch his first but no d

RACE is the buzz word this week, no doubt about it.

To start off, we had that race with probably the most heart-stopping ending ever in Sao Paulo on Sunday when our very own Lewis Hamilton left it until the last but one corner to clinch his first but no doubt not his last F1 world championship.

Things were happening so fast that one could barely take in what was happening on the track but I could not help but smile when I saw the Ferrari crowd's ecstasy as Felipe Massa crossed the line first in his home country of Brazil melt into misery seconds later as realisation dawned that their hero had been pipped at the post when Lewis powered into fifth place just yards from the finish to win the series by a single point.

Then on Tuesday we had what was much more of a one sided affair, the race for the White House.

Usually, I do not take much notice of American politics but this contest between the old war veteran John McCain and young upstart Barack Obama for the presidency of the USA was impossible to ignore.

Our TV news channels and national papers were full of it, covering every twist and turn. One of the most notable revelations from Sarah Palin, who will now go back to the obscurity of political life in Alaska but should long be remembered for her hockey mums and lipstick remark, was that apparently she did not know which newspapers she reads.

Like death and taxes being unavoidable, it seemed certain to me that there was no way Obama would fail to win, and McCain's desperate pleas in the run up to election day for his supporters to go and vote made me think that he felt the same.

So, in their own ways Lewis and Barack have made their mark on history.

What I cannot get my head round is the labels given them by the media. This is where another sort of race comes in.

Lewis has been hailed as the first black F1 world champion and Barack as the first black president, but in reality they are not.

It does not really matter, but they are of mixed race, both having white mothers. But I suppose that phrase does not suit the headline writers.

I wonder if there will ever come a time when we do not feel the need to categorise people according to the colour of their skin.

THEY are a saucy lot in Worcester and I am tempted to join them the weekend after next, if only out of curiosity.

That's when the British Sprout Festival - the only celebration of the humble vegetable to take place in the world - will be held.

There'll be a garden made entirely of sprouts, a sprout cake, demonstrations revealing 101 ways to cook and serve the green orbs, sprout dancing and, wait for it, sprout marbles.

Luckily for me, sprouts are among the few vegetables I like. Get the gravy ready.