Hello and BGP

[Robbo SPS]

Using the currency converter 150 pounds works out to $279.
The phrase "A sucker born every minute" pops into my head.
In a couple of weeks the Mid-Ohio ALMS round will set me back $60 for a weekend superticket (including grandstand seat and paddock admission) plus $15 for a infield parking pass for the Volksmonster.
Fax

My Moto GP ticket for Leguna Seca this year will csot me £60 to have it delivered to my door  in the UK.

At the time, it worked out at £32. Bonus.

Worryingly the British GP will be sold out as always, even with the cheap tickets at £150

[Snoring Rhino]

You can hear the screaming F1 engines for a lot less than £150.

Try going to one of the national Hillclimb meetings.,

Graham-White junior has built his own chassis with a little help from Adrian Newey and is running an ex Arrows V10 lump to boot!!!! ..........the sound on the hills is absolutely awesome,and it only costs about £15.00 to get in and spectate.

Wishy

You can do it even cheaper, go to an F1 test day at Silverstone, used to be listed on the Sliverstone circuit web site or you can ring them, you are restricted from Abbey to Copse, but if your passing (it will always be a week day) its worth dropping in. It used to be free, could still be.

[bird]

There are cheaper tickets (£100) but yes it's bloody expensive compared to other races. We're going to the Istanbul GP in August and general admission is about £36.

Saying that, I've blown more than £100 on a night out many times, so I don't feel too cheated.

Anyway, Status Quo are playing the after race party. I can hear you all reaching for your credit cards..... 

[jpchenet]

Anyway, Status Quo are playing the after race party. I can hear you all reaching for your credit cards..... 

Shame they're not playing during the race 

[Piglet]

Anyway, Status Quo are playing the after race party. I can hear you all reaching for your credit cards..... 

That's the only think that's mad me sad about missing the Sunday

[monkey]

I've been to the tyre testing many times, went last year and it was still free. It is usually the week before the 'worlds greatest motor race' and a nice little intro to the sound of racing engines after the long winter. With The GP being early this year I will have to miss out.

Pay to see it? No chance. Ditch water dull and full to bursting with white trouser clad prawn sandwich munching corporate types and politicians that don't know the difference between Damon and Damian!!

Besides I’ll have packing to do.

But have a good time.
 

[geoffd]

You can watch F1 cars in action for free at Silverstone if you go to one of the test sessions, but the pre-gp one was back in April

Ticket prices are all a supply and demand thing for big events, and Bernie and his pals have gotta be paid somehow!

[pretzel]

Pay to see it? No chance. Ditch water dull and full to bursting with white trouser clad prawn sandwich munching corporate types and politicians that don't know the difference between Damon and Damian!!
 

Indeed. The one and only time I have seen the British GP live at Silverstone (the year Mr Mansell gave Mr Senna a lift back on his sidepod) I was 'fortunate' to be there on complimentary tickets from a friend of mine who was not interested in going.

The people you describe were typical of the all others who were attending as guests of the my friends firm.

Fortunately though their company was not compulsory so I ventured out amongst the masses and found most of the crowd outside the confines of the grandstands and hospitality suites to be genuine racing fans. Apart from the horrendous ticket prices the one abiding memory for me was that it was so difficult to actually SEE the racing (such as it was, even then) as a typical paying punter.

I certainly would not pay even a quarter of the current entry price purely on those grounds.

I agree mostly with Wishy - you can get most of the same single seater technology at national hillclimb meetings, and you can go talk to the drivers, touch their cars etc. My only disagreement with him is that the hillclimb cars are a LOT quieter and the sound of an F1 car at full chat is quite something.

[Fax]

Problem is quite simple, F1 has become fashionable to be seen at.  The racing is absolute garbage (and has been for some time) but you get a huge turnout of punters who simply want to be seen or be able to say they were there.  Helps explain all the celebrity posers prancing about on the grid like their sh**t doesn't stink.
Back in the day you had guys like Sean Connery and George Harrison show up at GP's, but they were genuine racing enthusiast and knew what the hell they were watching.  The other problem is the same one with NASCAR over here in that F1 has become popular with the stick & ball crowd who never gave a f**ck about racing before and don't know a thing about it now, they just want to wave their flag for some pretentious asshole.
Most NASCAR fans over here could barely tell you which end of the car the engine is in but will be covered in Budweiser attire because Little E's their man.  Same sh**t in F1.  You see thousands of people standing around looking like a walking fag packet because The Chin is their boy but what they actually know about the sport is zilch.
Bernie's only too happy to cash in on these cult zealots.
Fax

[Lorry]

I agree mostly with Wishy - you can get most of the same single seater technology at national hillclimb meetings, and you can go talk to the drivers, touch their cars etc. My only disagreement with him is that the hillclimb cars are a LOT quieter and the sound of an F1 car at full chat is quite something.

They may have silencers, but you can stand 10 feet away from them at full chat (probably only in first or second), and the vibration, let alone the noise is awsome.  OK, two hundred yards away, like an F1 car, they must sound a bit tame.

Yes they are spectators at the back

[Steve Pyro]

There is NO sound like a 8000 hp top fuel dragster either idling next to you or on a full 300 mph pass.

http://www.shra-etuna.com/sounds/topfuel2.wav

[pretzel]

They may have silencers, but you can stand 10 feet away from them at full chat (probably only in first or second), and the vibration, let alone the noise is awsome. 

One reason why you will find me at a number of hillclimb meetings throughout the season 

Not too sure about the spectators in the background though.........

[Snoring Rhino]

F1 really went sh*t about 97 - 98, when the W***er midget started getting worried about the loss of Cig advertising revenue. As from 90 we used to go to Club corner and the crowd were great, true motor sport enthusiasts, but we gradually got squeezed out by the corporate grandstands.   

[RichUK]

I went to Silverstone for the F1 testing a couple of weeks ago.

It was good, but not brilliant. Certainly not worth paying to go watch an F1 race there, not when the tickets for the FIA GT were only £20 or so.

I was amazed by the number of people who were completely decked out in Ferrari clothes, when Ferrari weren't even there!

[bird]

So basically, no, unless you're a personal friend of the specclestone 

Looks like I'm propping up the bar by myself then.

hey ho.