It is that time of year once again. The only month in which I would skip evening classes. The only month in which I would hog the television screen. The only month I would be the number one promoter in school, on the internet and EVERYWHERE. Yes, you've probably guessed it. Welcome back to the month of the most electrifying F1 race in the 21st century - the Singapore GP.
No words can ever describe how proud I am to be a F1 fan in this tiny country of mine. The Marina Bay Street Circuit may be newer as compared to our neighbour's Sepang Circuit but Singapore has a longer history of the motorsport (Surprise! Surprise!).
I have learnt certain facts about Singapore's Grand Prix history and I thought I should share with you guys in anticipation of the race weekend from a local perspective.
As I was saying, the first southeast Asian Grand Prix was in fact held in Singapore way back in 1961. It was coincidentally organised in mid-September, just like the current F1 calendar. They are similar in a way (both are street circuits and therefore very tricky) but with a number of differences between the past and current track. Here is a chart I have created for easy comparison.
After watching a car ride video of the Thomson Road circuit (http://youtu.be/OKpyahvkE1E), I noticed that there is a long winding part of the circuit which starts from the Circus Hairpin all the way to the Devil's Bend. These sharp bends make this particular circuit one of the most dangerous in the world. Besides the tight turns, there were a lot of hindrances around Upper Thomson Road and Old Upper Thomson Road. Racers had to look out for huge monsoon drains, bus stop, ditches and even oil trails at the same time they drive along this track of tricks. In the span of 12 years, the track sees a death per year on average and this had involved the locals.1973 was its final year. It wasn't till 2008 that we welcome motorsport back to our shores.
My very first F1 race was in 2011. To be honest, I was absolutely unprepared that year. I did not know what to bring and what to expect of watching a F1 race live. Although my dad may have watched a F1 race before this, it was also his first time attending a night race.My parents treated me to a three day zone 4 walkabout ticket. That was the safest option as they were unsure which grandstand offers the best views. The walkabouts were good but it only covers 1/4 of the entire track. My height did not do good to me either. I was blocked from a good view most of the time. All I could see was a peek through someone's arm (it wasn't a pleasant spot to watch the race, trust me) while hearing the cars in the background. Thank goodness, the cars were still using the V8s then. To add on to my misery, I did not own a DSLR then. I only had an ordinary Sony camera that snaps fast objects in a blur, lights that are so unnatural, people who seemed to have turned into ghosts... #cameraproblem
2012 was the year of my GCE "O" levels and as a result, I had to skip that year. That did not stop me and my best F1 buddy (shoutout to Angie!) from sneaking out from my extra class to meet Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber at the meet and greet Casio event. It was definitely worth skipping a class for! I may not have been able to get any autographs or selfies with either of them but seeing them up close had already surpassed my expectations. I was beyond mad. My throat ached by the end of the day.2013 was the most special Singapore GP year for me. We all know how expensive one ticket costs... My parents were not too keen on buying me tickets, knowing that they have to spend a bomb on my overseas education the following year (Here I am in Brisbane!). I had therefore put my mind off on attending the race and planned out perfectly on how I was going to spend the weekend.
It was somewhere in mid August. I had been faithfully listening to this particular radio show for the past few days, listening out for the F1 key word. The objective was to come up with an image that describes the key word as close as possible. I remember that day clearly. It was a Wednesday and the key word was circuit. I immediately stopped whatever I was doing. I cleared my study table and started running around the house to find as many cables (phones, cameras, USB) as I could. My mom thought I had gone psycho but I did not stop. I only had an hour before I had to submit a photo through Twitter. I opened up Google with an image of the Marina Bay Street Circuit and began to join them together before coming up with this.
I finished it within 20 minutes. The wait was treacherous. I was constantly checking my Twitter, stalking other people's pictures to see if they were able to beat mine. I waited for more than hour so when the direct message arrived from the DJs, I was jumping and squealing (apologies to the neighbours living below me). I HAD WON TWO PAIRS OF THREE DAY ZONE 4 WALKABOUTS! I decided to divide the tickets into three of my beloved people (Friday: Angie, Saturday: dad, Sunday: mom).
A month later, I was back at the track again. This time, I was way more prepared than my previous experience. Angie and I took our day off from college to do a track walk of our own, one week before the race. It was a smart move we have made as we were able to walk the entire track without any blocks. We covered the zones 3 and 4 like a boss, literally!
It was once again not the best tickets we could get but getting access to F1 for free at the last minute was what matters. It just felt different (I guess it's because you don't have to pay a single cent for it!). The concert line-ups were awesome, except for Rihanna's though. Rihanna's was a mega disappointment. I turned up super early every day just to soak up the race atmosphere (and get good standing spots). My shots were way better than 2011 (thank goodness) even though they were still not up to my standard. That week was that one week which I would not want to forget if I were to have amnesia in the future. It was too beautiful to let them slip through my fingers.
The Singapore GP has seen the same few drivers ruling the street. With Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso struggling, will we see another repeat from Lewis Hamilton? Perhaps Nico Rosberg's first win? He has consistently been in top ten in the past few races. What about Daniel Ricciardo or the Williams? What about the rookies? The rookies this season are an outstanding duo.
All I am hoping for is a sensational race. I am just asking for a different winner and podium finishers. A dramatic race (even if it is a street circuit). That is all.
Till tomorrow my fellow readers! I will be blogging on the Formula E so stay tuned! :D
I would like to thank my dear Indian friend, Sid, for helping me throughout this writing process. Couldn't have finished this without you! :) Go check his new blog out, from a marshal perspective.
Redbull should be strong..Expecting a ferrari turn around as well as this track does share similiarities with hungary's..The gap to williams should be closed
ReplyDeleteWe'll have to see about that. I don't wanna expect too highly on my favourite team only to be hugely disappointed in the end. :(
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