Greetings all,Sorry for the lack of activity on the blog. Seems like the trend is for me to go somewhere on a weekend trip and then write about it the following weekend. I suppose I could do it after work during the week but often after finishing up the daily routine when I return from work, I'm just not up for it.
Nothing really of interest takes place during the week so I am afraid there would not be much to write about. I get up, dress, go to work, come back to my room, have dinner, surf the internet, watch a bit of TV and then hit the rack. Do that 5 days in a row and that sums up the week.
The week of 5-11 Jul was pretty busy. Was off on the 6th because of the July 4 holiday (was in France as you probably recall) so it was a 4 day work week. On the 7th, I spent a fair part of the day moving out of the hotel where I have lived for the last 2 months and into a hotel like room on a US Army barracks about 35 minutes away.
It was a hassle repacking everything I brought here for a move cross town but all and all, it has proved worth while. I was getting a little tired of living at the hotel so the move was welcomed in the end. The only drawback is that I am 35 minutes away from where I work vs 5 minutes and the fastest way to get there is straight through downtown Stuttgart. Sometimes traffic can be a little heavy so that can be a pain in the butt. I usually don't mind the drive though.
My new room is not quite as modern as the other place and a little "Motel 6" like. It has everything I need though including internet and a little more space to store things. It also has washers and dryers downstairs so I can do laundry during the week without having to go to a laundromat. It also has a little kitchenette on every floor so I will be able to prepare a meal every now and again instead of eating frozen and canned stuff.
It is also a much cheaper option then the other hotel which saves the government a lot of money. /
Well, enough about the mundane. I am happy to report that I checked another box on the "Things to do during a lifetime". I am sure this is not on your list but it was on mine, "attend a Formula 1 Gran Prix race".
Now, while Formula 1 racing is seen as the very top tier and pinnacle of motorsports, it does not have much of a following in the US. However, it does average about 600 MILLION viewers internationally for every race. That is twice the population of the US. So, it is a big deal everywhere except the US.
Many races are sponsored by a countries central government, who spend (and lose) millions of dollars each race. Why you ask? Hosting a Formula 1 race is seen as a national prize much like hosting the Olympics. It bolsters a countries presense on the world stage with China and the Middle East having recently been granted a place on the calendar.
The cars themselves are marvels of engineering and aerodynamics. They are like fighter jets that stick to the ground instead of flying. The cars are all handbuilt with many teams operating windtunnels 24/7 in hopes of improving performance and testing modified designs in hopes of gaining a few thousandths of a second on the next race.
Top speeds are around 220 mph. Lots of race cars go that fast, you say. What's the big deal? It is not so much how fast they go, it is how fast they stop and how fast they go through the turns. The rate at which these cars slow is staggering thanks to their carbon fiber brake rotors and carbon fiber brake pads. Going through a turn can generate as much as 5 times the force of gravity (5g). The same force can be generated while decelerating.
Many races are sponsored by a countries central government, who spend (and lose) millions of dollars each race. Why you ask? Hosting a Formula 1 race is seen as a national prize much like hosting the Olympics. It bolsters a countries presense on the world stage with China and the Middle East having recently been granted a place on the calendar.
The cars themselves are marvels of engineering and aerodynamics. They are like fighter jets that stick to the ground instead of flying. The cars are all handbuilt with many teams operating windtunnels 24/7 in hopes of improving performance and testing modified designs in hopes of gaining a few thousandths of a second on the next race.
Top speeds are around 220 mph. Lots of race cars go that fast, you say. What's the big deal? It is not so much how fast they go, it is how fast they stop and how fast they go through the turns. The rate at which these cars slow is staggering thanks to their carbon fiber brake rotors and carbon fiber brake pads. Going through a turn can generate as much as 5 times the force of gravity (5g). The same force can be generated while decelerating.
/
Brake rotors can get as hot as 1800 degree Fahrenheit (twice that of the cars we drive) and stop an F1 car traveling 190 mph in 4 seconds. At a mere 100 kph (62 mph), the car will come to a stop in 1.4 seconds and cover 55 feet. Most cars take around 120 ft to stop from a speed of 60 mph. A "high performance" car will take around 90 feet or almost twice the distance of a F1 car.
Engine speeds are limited (!) to 18,000 rpms. Most road cars redline (max safe engine speed) at 6500 rpms. The engines used to be 3.0l, V-10 but regulations changed and they are now 2.4l, V-8s. Building an engine within regulations will generate around 720 hp and the old V-10s were close to 1000 hp. This in a car that weighs 600kg (1322 lbs). Many cars on the streets today weigh between 3300 lbs and 4000 lbs.
Doing the math, a F1 car has a power to weight ratio of 1 to 1.82. A Corvette (3200 lbs and 430 hp) with it base engine has a power to weight ratio of 1 to 7.5.
Team budgets go as high as $450,000,000 per year (yes, that is almost 1/2 a billion dollars per year). A "low budget" team may only have $50 million in their coffers for the year. Some drivers are paid a salary of $40 million per year. it is not unusual for the highest paid (including endorsements) sports figure in the world to be a F1 driver.
Engine speeds are limited (!) to 18,000 rpms. Most road cars redline (max safe engine speed) at 6500 rpms. The engines used to be 3.0l, V-10 but regulations changed and they are now 2.4l, V-8s. Building an engine within regulations will generate around 720 hp and the old V-10s were close to 1000 hp. This in a car that weighs 600kg (1322 lbs). Many cars on the streets today weigh between 3300 lbs and 4000 lbs.
Doing the math, a F1 car has a power to weight ratio of 1 to 1.82. A Corvette (3200 lbs and 430 hp) with it base engine has a power to weight ratio of 1 to 7.5.
Team budgets go as high as $450,000,000 per year (yes, that is almost 1/2 a billion dollars per year). A "low budget" team may only have $50 million in their coffers for the year. Some drivers are paid a salary of $40 million per year. it is not unusual for the highest paid (including endorsements) sports figure in the world to be a F1 driver.
/
Ave budget for a NASCAR team is $15 million and an Indy team budget is around $8 million.
/
Well, back to the race weekend...in a nutshell, everything besides the actual race sucked.
I left on Friday later then I hoped and was in traffic the whole way up to the inn I was staying at which was about 2.5 hours away. The hotel was nice enough. Clean and everything worked. I figured it was about 45 minutes from the race track.
Saturday was qualifing. I didn't know my way around the track nor did I have my tickets in my possession as they were at will call. I had lots to do and was unfamiliar with the area. I thought I had best give myself plenty of time.
I made it to the track in 1.5 hours in heavy traffic. After a bit of wandering around, I found where my tickets were being held for me, picked them up, and went off to the grandstands. I also spent Sat shopping for souveniers and the like. Past experience tells me that you do not want to be messing with that on race day when it would be a packed house.
It was really something to see the cars on the track (F1 is held on dedicated race tracks called "road courses" which feature a series of turns and straight aways, this particular track is 3.5 miles in length and has 16 left and right turns of various radii). The cars are sleek, low, and fast. The sound they make at speed is incredible. It is a shriek that penetrates you skull and resonates through your body. I listened for a couple of minutes without hearing protection just to take it in. Some people sat through the whole race on race day (1.5 hours) without hearing protection which really surprised me.
Sunday was race day and I knew traffic and crowds would be worse then Sat. I thought I better give myself even more time to get to the track for the race which was scheduled to start at 2:00 pm. I left at 8:30 am thinking it would take me 2 hours to get to the track. I would get there in time to see the Porsche Cup race at 10:45 am. Much to my surprise, a drive that would have taken with 45 minutes with no traffic, took 4.5 HOURS. I probably could have walked in that time. I was shocked at the traffic situation. At one point, I honestly thought I would miss the start of the race. Thankfully, I got to my seat 30 minutes before the race started.
After the race started, it seemed like it was all worth it. I was sitting at a F1 race in Europe.
All and all, I was happy I went but would NEVER do it again. There must have been 90,000 poeple who descended on this little remote town and I parked in a field with 18" high grass (there were Ferraris in that farmers field, too). Like any sporting event, there is no way to watch instant replays or hear the commentary that you would hear on a TV broadcast. I had to ask who won the race and I was at the damn thing. Lastly, ticket prices that rival the prices of a Superbowl ticket. You can go general admission which is the cheapest route but you would stand at some far reaching corner of the track, in the dirt or mud if it rains.
Don't really have any pictures to share. My camera is great for taking still shots but not so much at higher speed action shots or things that are far away. The race had both those things.
Jodi would have gladly went with me if she was here and not complained about a thing even though she would have hated every minute of it. I am a lucky guy to have a woman like that.
Cheers,
Michael
I left on Friday later then I hoped and was in traffic the whole way up to the inn I was staying at which was about 2.5 hours away. The hotel was nice enough. Clean and everything worked. I figured it was about 45 minutes from the race track.
Saturday was qualifing. I didn't know my way around the track nor did I have my tickets in my possession as they were at will call. I had lots to do and was unfamiliar with the area. I thought I had best give myself plenty of time.
I made it to the track in 1.5 hours in heavy traffic. After a bit of wandering around, I found where my tickets were being held for me, picked them up, and went off to the grandstands. I also spent Sat shopping for souveniers and the like. Past experience tells me that you do not want to be messing with that on race day when it would be a packed house.
It was really something to see the cars on the track (F1 is held on dedicated race tracks called "road courses" which feature a series of turns and straight aways, this particular track is 3.5 miles in length and has 16 left and right turns of various radii). The cars are sleek, low, and fast. The sound they make at speed is incredible. It is a shriek that penetrates you skull and resonates through your body. I listened for a couple of minutes without hearing protection just to take it in. Some people sat through the whole race on race day (1.5 hours) without hearing protection which really surprised me.
Sunday was race day and I knew traffic and crowds would be worse then Sat. I thought I better give myself even more time to get to the track for the race which was scheduled to start at 2:00 pm. I left at 8:30 am thinking it would take me 2 hours to get to the track. I would get there in time to see the Porsche Cup race at 10:45 am. Much to my surprise, a drive that would have taken with 45 minutes with no traffic, took 4.5 HOURS. I probably could have walked in that time. I was shocked at the traffic situation. At one point, I honestly thought I would miss the start of the race. Thankfully, I got to my seat 30 minutes before the race started.
After the race started, it seemed like it was all worth it. I was sitting at a F1 race in Europe.
All and all, I was happy I went but would NEVER do it again. There must have been 90,000 poeple who descended on this little remote town and I parked in a field with 18" high grass (there were Ferraris in that farmers field, too). Like any sporting event, there is no way to watch instant replays or hear the commentary that you would hear on a TV broadcast. I had to ask who won the race and I was at the damn thing. Lastly, ticket prices that rival the prices of a Superbowl ticket. You can go general admission which is the cheapest route but you would stand at some far reaching corner of the track, in the dirt or mud if it rains.
Don't really have any pictures to share. My camera is great for taking still shots but not so much at higher speed action shots or things that are far away. The race had both those things.
Jodi would have gladly went with me if she was here and not complained about a thing even though she would have hated every minute of it. I am a lucky guy to have a woman like that.
Cheers,
Michael
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