I was at CHV today for the launch of BC41. Apparently, TF had shifted the venue of the launch from STC to CHV to avoid the expected huge volume of human traffic at City Hall MRT and I must say that this is indeed a GOOD judgement call! The presenters were 3 of the better instructors in TF's stable and thats the main reason why I'm even there. I'm not sure if I would have attended had it been other mediocre fellows....
We all had our own programs after that and thus didn't wait up with one another for dinner. For me, I went around near the F1 Trackside, hoping to buy some F1 merchandise after having seen some of the fans wearing the better looking ones. Sad to say, besides the stall I saw in Orchard Rd yesterday, the few I saw just now were all within the F1 Spectators' Area which is obviously out of bounds to me unless I forked out some dough for the tickets.
By the way, the 2009 Formula 1 SingTel Singapore Grand Prix (official name) is in town this weekend for the 2nd consecutive year. Actually, Singapore used to host the Formula Libre events back in the 60s & 70s but thats eons ago...
Disappointed, I then made my way to the MRT. Along the way, I noticed the heavy police presence in the vicinity and noted that those under SPF had, strapped to their left thigh, a black bag which I assumed to be containing a chemical defence suit similar to the one I've been trained to put on back during my NS Days. WOW! Looks like they had even factored in chemical terrorism into their security plannings. Splendid job by the organisers!!
Up till yesterday, I was actually still harbouring hopes that someone would somehow have a spare ticket or 2 to give up and I would be the lucky recipient. :p But then again, reality isn't as such. As I walked along on my way to the MRT, memories of my experience at the very first F1 'Night' Race came flowing back. I was very lucky to have gotten 3 free passes for the Friday 'Practice' session thanks to my Bro-in-Law who had bought the tickets for his staffs as incentives but they prefer monetary rewards. Thus, the 3 passes become excess. If I had not been scheduled to depart for my US Trip the following day, I would have tried ways and means to get the Sunday passes instead!
Attending the race and watching it on TV is a totally different experience. Being on the ground, you'd see the cars for only a few seconds each time due to the speed at which they are going. You'd only get to see them for that bit longer if they had to slow down due to cornering or if they had a crash. Most of the time, you'd turn your head from right to left, back to right and then to the left again as the cars zoomed by. The noise generated by the engine can go up to 140 decibels and if you do not use earplugs, good luck!! If you're near enough to the tracks, you'd be able to smell burnt rubber, probably due to the friction between the road and the tyres during braking.
I must say I'm extremely lucky to have experienced all these last year and am looking to be able to tilt my head right-left-right, hearing 140 decibel noise and smelling burnt rubber in 2010 at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
I strongly recommend you to try watching it on location at least once to experience it. If you've already done so, stick to the TV for its commentary, race statistics and most importantly, for the numerous camera angles!!
We all had our own programs after that and thus didn't wait up with one another for dinner. For me, I went around near the F1 Trackside, hoping to buy some F1 merchandise after having seen some of the fans wearing the better looking ones. Sad to say, besides the stall I saw in Orchard Rd yesterday, the few I saw just now were all within the F1 Spectators' Area which is obviously out of bounds to me unless I forked out some dough for the tickets.
By the way, the 2009 Formula 1 SingTel Singapore Grand Prix (official name) is in town this weekend for the 2nd consecutive year. Actually, Singapore used to host the Formula Libre events back in the 60s & 70s but thats eons ago...
Disappointed, I then made my way to the MRT. Along the way, I noticed the heavy police presence in the vicinity and noted that those under SPF had, strapped to their left thigh, a black bag which I assumed to be containing a chemical defence suit similar to the one I've been trained to put on back during my NS Days. WOW! Looks like they had even factored in chemical terrorism into their security plannings. Splendid job by the organisers!!
Up till yesterday, I was actually still harbouring hopes that someone would somehow have a spare ticket or 2 to give up and I would be the lucky recipient. :p But then again, reality isn't as such. As I walked along on my way to the MRT, memories of my experience at the very first F1 'Night' Race came flowing back. I was very lucky to have gotten 3 free passes for the Friday 'Practice' session thanks to my Bro-in-Law who had bought the tickets for his staffs as incentives but they prefer monetary rewards. Thus, the 3 passes become excess. If I had not been scheduled to depart for my US Trip the following day, I would have tried ways and means to get the Sunday passes instead!
Attending the race and watching it on TV is a totally different experience. Being on the ground, you'd see the cars for only a few seconds each time due to the speed at which they are going. You'd only get to see them for that bit longer if they had to slow down due to cornering or if they had a crash. Most of the time, you'd turn your head from right to left, back to right and then to the left again as the cars zoomed by. The noise generated by the engine can go up to 140 decibels and if you do not use earplugs, good luck!! If you're near enough to the tracks, you'd be able to smell burnt rubber, probably due to the friction between the road and the tyres during braking.
I must say I'm extremely lucky to have experienced all these last year and am looking to be able to tilt my head right-left-right, hearing 140 decibel noise and smelling burnt rubber in 2010 at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
I strongly recommend you to try watching it on location at least once to experience it. If you've already done so, stick to the TV for its commentary, race statistics and most importantly, for the numerous camera angles!!
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6 comments:
I can never understand why people are even interested to go a watch a live Formula 1 race. Is it really worth it to cramp through the bad traffic, go through the crowded stadium/race track (whatever you call it) and wait for hours just for a few moments where you can tilt your head from left to right (or vice versa depending on the direction of the track)??
I've been there a couple of times and got like the best seats in town because I was working on some events for the show but I still don't "feel" it at all. The TV is definitely better... LOL
one man's meat, another's poison. i used to be unable to appreciate soccer either until i sat down and properly watched a full game. from then on, i'm a proud man utd fan.
sometimes, it just needed you to really sit down and try to understand the sport to really catch the 'feel'. but some ppls, no matter how many times they try, simply wont get the 'feel'.
and we're thus back to the first line... one man's meat, another's poison.
:)
Ya... probably. But I still can't understand it... LOL
By the way, I'm a proud Liverpool fan... Guess that means we're rival :-D
Rivals? Not until our teams are playing each other or neck-in-neck in the title chase! :)
I think it will be fun when that happen. Probably that will be a good time for us to have a get together and watch them from the "mamak" big TV screen and whichever team lose will buy dinner... LOL
maybe when we all come by for the quarterly, we can all go to some pub or similar to catch a game?
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