Alt+F1: 05 - 04/07/2014 - Bahrain Battle Royal

lets go

Nice. I don't watch F1 (yet) but these podcasts are great.

Best race in recent memory. Really amazing stuff, this race is the reason I watch F1!

Considering how the race went, I expect A LOT from this Alt+F1!

Well, this image lets me know this is going to be great.

This was a really fun race, I re watched it almost immediately and I hardly ever do that.

Hells yeah!

keep it up! you actually got me back into the sport (:

chances are, its the perfect season to get back into it , too!

Yeah, really loved this race. Best I can remember in quite a while.

Also, it has been said before buy I'll say it again: The intro song to the podcast is pretty much perfection!

I really want to see I live stream of you guys watching a race (no race footage... for legal reasions, just your banter and reactions) :D

Sorry if this clip has been posted in the comments of a previous video but if anybody thought the flipping car at this race was crazy they should see this one

@spok21 said:

Wow that was four years ago already?

Anyone remember Spa 1998?

That was the race that got me into F1 :) What a crazy race. I need to find a replay of that somewhere.

@rhombus_of_terror: I know man i remember seeing that crash and i was fully sure that webber was dead!

But no thank feck he just gets up out of the car and shakes himself off! amazing when you see that crash and then the one that killed senna looks not much worse that a bit of a shunt

I still don't watch racing, but I listen to this during my 5 mile an hour commute with great joy. And wishing I was driving like 200 mph.

Super race. Shame they didn't penalize Maldonado more than they did.

this race was great

I fell off F1 during the reign of Ferrari. If things are getting as interesting as you guys say then I may just get back into it.

Love the podcast lads.

Is there a good place to get highlight videos or the like on the interwebs for the current season? I don't have TV so I'm not watching the races, but hearing about all this drama makes me want to have a look.

@edgecrusher: Sky sports F1 is a good start.

I love this podcast so much and Bahran was awesome.

Or what about Kubica's crash in 07? That was pretty crazy, and shows what happens when an F1 car loses its front wing in 300 km/h.

Fun fact: Kubica was out for a while after that crash and guess who got his spot? Vettel, and as they say, the rest is history.

I don't watch F1 but this podcast is AWESOME.

This race was so flipp'n exciting! I can't wait to see one in person. Ordered my tickets for CotA on Friday.

What a race. Merc delivered us a good one.

I also just found out my girlfriends uncle has a skybox at the Austin track and I'm going to the F1 race there!! Holy shit, I literally did a dance.

I went to the 2013 US Grand Prix at COTA, here's some things I can share from my experience:

1. The biggest thing first: Tickets / Admission. This boils down to purely how much you're willing to pay. If you're like me, flying from several states away to attend the race, other costs are being factored in as well. General Admission happened to be the cheapest, and the price goes up when you start to look at grandstand passes. Grandstands are like real estate, the stands on the pit straight and other "iconic" parts of the circuit are going to be more expensive. Grandstand passes double as GA passes, you can spectate from all the GA spots on the circuit while still having a seat in the grandstand you bought a pass for on race day. That being said, unless you shell out hella money for VIP / Paddock passes or whatever, your seats are not reserved. Bringing a DSLR with a 70-200 to try and get pictures? Get to your grandstand or GA spot as early as humanly possible and get your desired vantage point early, because it will be taken otherwise. I chose to go for General Admission passes, these granted me access to all the GA spots during practice, qualifying and the race. GA did not get me any grandstand access except for late on Friday when I was watching the Ferrari 430s practice and the pass scrutineers waiting at the entrance to each grandstand allowed me up since it was the end of the day and the grandstand was empty.

2. Parking: I don't know about other circuits, but Austin had a number of different lots that you could purchase parking passes for. Plan ahead on which entrance you plan on using and try to get a parking pass for that lot. Sometimes this is easier said than done, but it can be worth it if you're not a fan of walking.

3. While we're on the subject of walking, prepare to do a lot of it. If you're like me you'll want to watch the cars fly across just about every corner on the track. Most of these tracks are pretty long. If I had to guess, I walked the entirety of the outside of COTA at least 2 times a day all weekend. So by the end of each day I would get back to my hotel and literally pass out.

4. As for things to do, an F1 race isn't just F1 cars that burn around a track for an hour and then everyone leaves. There are support races like the Ferrari Challenge and Formula Vintage that raced at COTA before the F1 cars went out. Codemasters also had a booth which had 360s with racing wheels where you'd race 4 other people in a 5 lap LAN race, and then whoever won got to do the crazier simulator that was on hydraulics, somewhat similar to ones that the teams spend millions of dollars on so they can get around the no-off-season testing rule. Whoever set the fastest lap in that simulator won paddock passes for the race. COTA had an amphitheather where they did driver signings and Pitbull did some concert after the race on Sunday. Not only that but there's merchandise tents by the metric assload all over the circuit in the event you want to buy a $80 Red Bull Racing t-shirt (If you really want to get merchandise, and I don't blame you, go somewhere other than the official team booths. They sell practically the same stuff for much cheaper)

5. COTA security at the gate wasn't strict at all. COTA had weird rules about bringing food and beverages into the facility since they want you to buy their over-priced food. If you're going to bring things, pack smart and make sure it can all fit into a pack or bag that you won't be uncomfortable to carry all day. Also, never let ANYTHING lay unsecured anywhere for any period of time. I had my camera with a 70-200 IS II lens on it which, for those who know, costs at least 2.5k. There was absolutely no way I was going to put that down by itself, even if I was within arms reach of it. Keep your stuff secured. I don't know how common stuff getting stolen at a race is but you never know.

6. Utilize free hotel breakfast. I know in most cases it's sub-par but believe me, going there with a decent breakfast in your stomach will really help. The food at the circuit is also sub-par, but instead of being free the prices are jacked way the fuck up. $9 for a bottled water? Bring your own. COTA allowed 2 un-opened bottles of water per person. Not only are the prices expensive, but most of the times the lines are insane, and if you're trying to hurry up to get to a good spot before a practice session starts and you have to spend 30 minutes in a line to get a beer or whatever, it's frustrating.

7. If you're going GA, scout out the GA spots on Google maps or the circuits website beforehand. Most circuits offer a map outlining the GA spots, but Google maps can help you pick out some spots that the official circuit map might not make mention of. I found a really good spot just outside turn 10 at COTA that was absolutely empty on race day. I had clear sight lines because nobody was in front of me and I managed to get a lot of great pictures.

8. If you plan on bringing a camera, try to make sure you're not spending the whole weekend watching F1 cars through your camera lens. I know you want to snap a lot of pictures, I'm the same way, but if it's your first race in person take a large chunk of the time you're there to appreciate the cars, the track, and the atmosphere. If you come back the next year, go ahead and take millions of pictures then.

9. If you're GA, avoid Turn 1 like the plague on race day. Unless you can get there 30 seconds after the gates open, you're going to be on your tippie-toes trying to look over peoples shoulders. And if you have a camera? Forget about it.

10. Another tip for GA: Plan where you want to watch ahead of time. I started at Turn 10 for the first 1/4 or so of the race, then began to make my way back towards turns 3 through 9. If you want to watch pit stops (assuming the circuit you're at has GA areas by the pit straight), you can either get a spot at Turn 1 at the beginning of the race and wait for the crowd to thin out (If it even does), or start somewhere else and work your back by the time everyone will start coming in for their first stop.

It's a bit of a novel but hopefully this offers some insight to those looking to attend a Grand Prix. If anyone's interested here's the footage I got: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENGmZtYMfGM

And all the photos I got: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.375376889275379.1073741829.375369745942760&type=3

Damn, it bums me out thinking about Kubica. He was such a good driver, had a ton of potential in F1. Also, yes, that crash is freaking incredible. It's definitely the one I go to for F1 crashes.

I was at Melbourne for the 2002 GP, the one where Webber got 5th in the Minardi. Apparently there was a huge pile up on the first corner that took out 8 cars. I was sat at turn 5 and had no idea until I got home and watched the news.

@ramprat: Thanks for the tip, but the best bits seem to be stuck behind a pay/subscription wall. I'm not a SKY customer so no highlights for me. :(

@brunosardine: That post was a great read!

@brunosardine: Thanks for this. Quickly becoming a fan due to this podcast and seriously considering attending a race next season. Hopefully New Jersey will get its act together as it's next door but Austin is my next choice.

btw, whats the email address for the pod?

@splodge said:

altf1@giantbomb.com

Great! it's time to start sending in some beef mails... hmm what sort of beef should I start? Nascar VS F1, BAM.

Notemaster Drew Scanlon.

I know, I would love to do so, but I dont know how yet and I would also like to have the whole experience shortened so I dont spend the whole day watching(that is what happens right?).

@dannyodwyer the wing had nothing to do with Gutierrez going flying, the wing barely made an impact, the wheel contact made his car flip. if the impact of the wing was significant the wing on the lotus would break, not just loose a small part. from certain angles it sure looks like it was the wing, but sky showed an overview after the race where you can clearly see that the Sauber wheel is going over the wheel of the Lotus.

@drewbert@dannyodwyer Drivers who complete more than 90% of the race distance are classified. Less than that is a DNF (Not classified).

Inspired by the enthusiasm of these guys so I watched this...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/26916655

Wow... F1 really can be entertaining... perhaps I was wrong about this sport!

@super2j: The races are roughly 2 hours long.

Really loving the season so far, what a great race. This was the first race where I really knew who every driver on the grid was from the get-go, and it's really starting to make a difference to my enjoyment.

@super2j Races usually last around the two hour mark, qualifying is probably an hour and a half. The BBC shows tend to run a little longer on either side in both cases (for pre- and post-race chatter) but it certainly won't take up your whole day. The more awkward part is that if you want to watch live, start times jump all over the place depending on where in the world that week's race is located.

I need to watch the recording. I missed the race live because Cox had the time listed incorrectly. I already know the results, but I still want to watch it before I listen.

@drewbert@dannyodwyer What I really liked about the end of the race is that not only was the racing amazing between Hamilton and Rosberg but they were both good sport about it. You could clearly see in their body language after the race that they had a blast doing it and there was no bad rivalry between them like it's often the case between teammates. This year is gonna be amazing.

Guys, FanView (the devices that you rent at the races to watch) is NOT at the grands prix this year. FOM and FanView failed to make a new contract.

@super2j: I just started watching F1 this year but it like takes the same amount of time as watching a soccer game.

@dannyodwyer: Not sure if this has been answered, but a driver doesn't count as retired if they finished something like 90% of the laps, hence why Button was classified

I have never been into F1 or any type of auto racing before but thanks to you guys (and Forza 5) I am hooked. I have watched each of the first three races so far and enjoying all of it. Keep up the great work.

Also thinking about watching the Indy race this Sunday as a comparison.

Excellent race and excellent podcast.

@jigglemaster7: @y2ken: @zaxex: Oh wow, that is totally doable, my bad. Do you think its a good multitasking sport?

@super2j: I think it'd probably be okay to do something on the side but good luck trying to keep your eyes off the race. Personally I like paying attention to every little thing, it makes it that much more exciting when something crazy happens.

Answering my own question from before, nbcsports.com actually has a lot of great highlights and recap videos.