Before the day even began the farmers tans were strong, as we the foot and pant tan. All these things were only intensified as the day went along. It ended up being a beautiful day! Started out cloudy and cool but was hot and sunny.
We made our way fairly easily back to the train station stopping to pick up meals and snacks at a store along the way. Man is Nice ever prepared for this event. The que to get train tickets was crazy long. Luckily it wasn't that busy today so we only got to observe their preparation. Similar to the stampede back home, they have flags on the light poles and are all systems go for the weekend.
They are definitely loud cars. Even the announcer is loud. We had ear plugs but even so you could hear them fairly loud in your ears, but at a tolerable decibel. Except the announcers. They were yelling the whole time. With the ear plugs in you could actually hear them normally, and more clear. Neat with the announcers though they took turns talking in 5 or 6 different languages. To the left of our grandstand there was a straight stretch where they would gun it. Sometimes it did sound like a gun, or fireworks going off.
For those who are unaware, Formula One is a season long. Starting in March and ending in November. Points are awarded throughout the races, in each city as well as you place in the races. You may win a race but that doesn't mean you win the season. Monte Carlo is unique as they race on streets along the coast line. They are normally racing on some kid of race track turf similar to a tennis court. Today was a typical 'Friday' schedule for the races. Here in Monaco they have at least one other event added to the scheduled so they go from Thursday till Sunday, instead of the usual Friday to Sunday.
They also have 5 different types of tires ranging from varying types of soft to hard. Again on the streets I'd different then anywhere so it can chenge things a little. But interesting to notice the type of tires and how they actually made a difference.
Formula One, GP2, and Porsche super cup, as well as another one I'm not sure about. Formula One is the big leagues. GP2, which we are assuming is Grand Prix 2, is like the farm teams of hockey. And the Porche super cup is a bunch of Porsches racing each other and trying to be NASCAR.
Today we saw two practice sessions for the Formula One. A practice session as well as a qualifying round for GP2. For the Porche cup we also saw a practice session.
We definitely enjoyed our day there is no doubt about that,and it is something we can check off our list. But if we were to recommend it to anyone we would definitely say to go to Saturday or Sunday. You would feel to vibe of Formula One as there would the competition side involved. For the practice sessions, don't get me wrong they are giving it but they aren't in direct competition with one another. It is more to get a feel for the track, as well to figure out what turns you can pass on and how to drive the course. It was still so cool to say but lacking in spirit a bit.
So cool the restaurants along the track are still working and there was a hotel that there were people on the balconies and had a smorgasbord board of food, that is the way to do it. Although we were in the grandstand seats and there were no assigned seating so you could bounce around and get a lot of different perspectives which is pretty sweet.
I got a program and would be more then happy if anyone is interested in reading more information. Our seats were right across from the Monte Carlo Casino. THE casino. So that was pretty sweet we got to look at it all day, especially as we would not have been able to see it otherwise. Our seats were located where they are coming out of one turn and going into another one, also where many accidents happen. Unfortunately we didn't get to experience that up close, we just go see it one the screen. Which is pretty insane because when they run into a wall or something and damage the car, they have a crane that lifts them off the track, then little runners who go out and clean it up. Flags go up informing drivers and they slow down. Where we were seated had 4 out of the total 9 cranes on the course. So naturally we were disappointed when nothing happened in front of us. Although, there were many close calls and wobbly and they take the turns so incredibly close that I am surprised no one hit it.
Oh and also the round is over the crane trucks parade around beeping their horns with damaged cars on the back. It is quite funny. But also kinda cool cause you get to see the car in slow motion more.
There really isn't a tremendous difference between the F1 cars and the GP2 cars. Luke says they have a different engine, and maybe are heavier. They are certainly louder then the F1 cars though, especially when they back fired as they pined it, the back fire resonated a little more. All the different colours have a different meaning. The blue in the pictures is telling the driving that a car is wanting to pass him. Ideally so they don't run into each other.
Here is a glimpse at some of the goings on that you see on the screens. All the vehicles have cameras and they will do a lap showing you it from the drivers perspective every now and then, and show you their speed. It is nuts. They take the corners SO FAST!! Our corner the average is 154 km/h there are some they take going 200-250. You can't see the lifting the car up in the biggest one in case you can't quite tell what is going on. And you can see the pit. The whole time they are showing you what different cars are doing and different turns, replays of crashes, and what not. Much more informative then a hockey game jumbo torn.
Pretty crazy though in a way you feel as though they are always in front of you as they go around so fast! The top speed for F1 was one 1.14 and milliseconds. For the GP2 it was 1.19 and milliseconds. And for the Porche the last time I saw was 1.37 and milliseconds. And in this game milliseconds matter greatly. They can make or break anything!! The timing is mind boggling. But then you see the speeds they are going at, and see then drift a corner and you realize yea it makes sense.
Honestly I just think Porches look silly. I laughed when they all started driving around. When I think of sports car I think Camaro, or normal Porsche. When I think car racing I think NASCAR, and now I will also think F1. But the Porsche to me just looks like it is trying so hard to be a mixture of the two of them. Anyways. They are pretty loud as well when they are going around. There seemed to much more of them, or they just clumped together more which was kind of neat as you saw them a ton and there was actually almost always in front of you.
Was again an early morning, and a long day, and in the direct sun draining us, so we are well ready to sleep. We took an over crowded train back from Monte Carlo. And I mean all the seats, and all aisles and even the stairs and middle staying part in between cars, a was packed with people. It was an uncomfortable 20 minutes in a crowd of sticky sweaty people. We think the conductor was being a smart Alec but we couldn't understand him or the guy that tried to talk to us. There was also a surprising in amount of people that stayed on past Nice.
Well we are looking forward to sleeping for many hours, and then getting up and exploring Nice, the beaches and all that it has to offer. We did pass a few different churches on our way back from dinner tonight. Hopefully the weather keeps up! I gotta say though everytime we are walking and I see a sign saying Nice I second guess how to pronounce it. Speaking of signs I almost ran into one today walking to dinner. I'm waiting for this to happen as it has been a. While sign my last incident with a sign or pole. True story. Well we are looking forward to all Nice has to offer us.
But we had an amazing time today none the less! Did I happen to mention that already? Well we did! Now it's time for a new adventure of exploring our dreams. Hopefully our bodies will let us get some much needed rest.
And so the adventure continues...
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