Race day. After a hearty breakfast at
Beauty's diner, I head on over to the track. It's wet, but not overly so.
When I got to the track, the Ferrari Challenge was still taking place.
During the Ferrari Challenge or the Porsche GT3 race, an errant car hit the guardrail in front of Grandstand 33. The crew worked feverishly to repair it.
Here is the driver's parade. Kudos to the classic car owners for driving with the tops down in wet weather.
They were still working on the guardrail just before the start of the race.
Me in line for the restroom just before the start. That's 33 in the background. I'm sure the ladies in line appreciated me taking this picture.
The race started with the safety car.
Lewis' McLaren.
Below is my last photo before the heavy downpour. I didn't take my camera out again until after the race. I sat between M., a DC defense contractor, and A. a Montreal dad who brought his young sons. They were great companions. My observations during the race:
- There was A LOT of pot smoking going on. Who knew?
- M. was sharing his recent experience at a NASCAR race. He drove a mid-engined German car to the race. The fans derided him in the parking lot and called him a fa&%ot, among other things. I was not surprised. Those guys are so backwards, I thought to myself smugly. Not like us sophisticates. Just as I finished that inner dialogue, two Middle Eastern guys with huge beards (and Ferrari gear) take their seats in front of us. Two boorish Canadians behind me yell at the top of their lungs, laughing: "Uh-oh, we're not going to be able to watch this race because we're going to get blown up" and "I better call my wife and tell her I love her."
- When Michael was second behind Vettel, the crowd cheered every time he passed us.
- During the heaviest rain, the crowd was in a festive mood. The younger, drunker guys were chanting Allez Allez like it was a soccer match.
- The highlight had to be Vettel half-spinning out right in front of us, giving Button the win. It was pandemonium where we were sitting. I don't think there were any huge Button fans, but we were all elated.
After the race, I walked a short stretch of the track. Between the rain and flood of people already on the track, there was nothing on the ground for me to scavenge, i.e. pieces of Pirelli or carbon fiber bits. I did see two guys carrying small pieces of carbon fiber. One obnoxious bloke carried a huge Pirelli sign as a souvenir.
I was so excited, I didn't notice the return of the dark clouds.
I did not expect to see any of the drivers. I was just drawn to the Renault garage. The crew was packing up and taking down the communication/data center in the pit lane.
This is the back of the comm/data center. I know nothing about electronics. I assume that's some sort of server/computer.
Those BBQ grill looking things, apparently, hold the signs the drivers look at as they pass by. I still don't know if I got that right. The security guard who explained it to me had a really thiiiick accent.
Then, out of the blue, they wheel in Heidfeld's disabled #9.
And lo and behold, Heidfeld appears! I yell out to him: "Nick, maybe next race!" He didn't acknowledge me. I convince myself that he heard me, was lifted by the comment, and was thankful that he was lucky enough to have such a great fan. Ha!
And just like that, it started pouring rain again. This time, it was even heavier than before.
The end.
P.S. I briefly chatted with a Renault engineer after the race. I said it was great that they changed qualifying strategies and had the drivers out more (just in case there was traffic or a red flag). The engineer replied that was not their intent. They just wanted to put more miles on their cars for testing purposes.
