US Gran Prix

[benracin]

Each year the men of the Harding family take a trip to a race for our "Man Trip". This year I'd kind of like to go to the US Gran Prix but I don't know much about it other than it's F1 cars. So, can anyone help me out with these:

1. Any other racing that weekend besides F1?

2. General admission tickets are a good price. Are they worth it?


thanks!

[R2 Racing]

I'll be going again this year for my fourth year in a row. It's a freaking blast if you go with good friends! There's pretty much on track activities all day like the Porsche Cup and random open wheel feeder series races.

On Saturday, you just get a general admission ticket and wander around wherever you want because there's no reserved seating that day. On Sunday I get a grandstand ticket down in turn one. It's just where I like watching the race from.

[Greg Amy]

I've been every year. SUPER event. As Kevin noted, being able to wander around with a GA ticket is probably as good as anything else (though I do like our T1 seats).

Following is a link on Speed's (the TV channel) forum. There's a pretty intense fan base there, with tons of info for the Indy GP enthusiast. This particular link to a 3+ yr-old thread, "USGP: A Veterans Guide (LONG)". It gets updated every year 'round about USGP time, but it's still great reading for those attending for their first time (my input is the top of the 5th page; over 2 years old but still relevent):

USGP: A Veterans Guide (LONG)
http://insider.speedtv.com/viewtopic.php?t=16472&start=0

[RacerBill]

Ben: I worked at the Speedway (USAC and IRL) for 10 years, so I know my way around. But I have never been to the USGP (moved to Ohio in '98).

From the schedule, there is a lot of racing going on that weekend - IMSA GT3 Cup, Indy Pro, and Formula BMW - in additon to F1.

As for general admission, looks like the only way to get GA tickets for raceday is to by the package for all three days. Saying that, and looking at the map on www.usgpindy.com the first two days are a real bargain. On practice/qualifying days, all of the stands are open - no reserved seats. So your options are really open. On race day, all the seats are reserved, so GA viewing looks very limited.

Now, insiders info. Ticket scalping is legal in Indiana. There are usually any number of people willing to sell you tickets on race day. Back in the good old days, you could get two to three times face value for 500 tickets!

If I were going, I would buy the two day GA and look for tickets race day morning. Be sure to get to know the place so you know where the tickets are that you are buying. I would also call the Speedway to see if they can tell you where raceday GA tickets get you. (looks like there are viewing mounds at T7 -may be for the golf course - and between T11-12 across from the southwest vista) but there is no way to get between the two areas other than around the outside of the track.

The closer to race time you wait, the lower the price. But be aware that the grounds are HUGE and you can have as much as a half-hour walk from where you park to where you sit.

Have a great time.

[planet6racing]

When is the race this year? Aimee mentioned something about wanting to go, so I should probably make that happen...

Any chance we can all get tickets near each other?

Edited to add: Where can we camp that is close to the track, but without all the stupid people staying up until way too late?

[tdw6974]

Attended all the races from the 1st one until the year of the tire Fiasco. Stopped going because of price gouging of rooms "Special Event Pricing" I hate paying 250.00 per night for a 49.95 room. The only time I was able to "beat then at there game" was the year they moved the race from Sept to June and the Hotels where a bit slow to react. We always Had a great time went early to wander around Had seats under cover across from pits could see jumbo tron etc. The first year was the best and then each year lost a little bit of the freebies not sure if they will be bring the Vintage F1 back as they dissappeared from program. Still had a good time. There is nothing like the sound of F1 at full throttle :eclipsee_steering:

[raffaelli]

We went last year for the first time. We Limerock for ALMS on Friday, drove to Indy Saturday. USGP on Sunday, drove back after the race. Then went back to Limerock again to see some racing.

The tickets for USGP were free from a vendor I work with. I do not think that I would have choosen them if I had to purchase. I was about 12 rows off the track on the main straight across from the pit stall closest to pit out. It was great for the pre race activity, great for viewing the pits stops. Mostly though we watched the race on the screen as the cars were tight to the wall and we could only see the top of the wing and air scoop for a very...very...brief moment. If I were to purchase the tickets, I would have sat at the twisties at the end of the main straight.

I probably didn't get the full experience of the race since we were on the property for about 3 hours and in Indiana for not much more. (Plus MS ran away with it and I was on the Alonzo bandwagon at the time and 1/3 of the field never made it out of turn 1.)

I think I would like to give Montreal a try but would defiantly prefer ALMS at Limerock that weekend.

[Knestis]

I went the year John Watson won at Long Beach. You could still stick your head in the garages then. :)

K

[RacerBill]

Edited to add: Where can we camp that is close to the track, but without all the stupid people staying up until way too late?
[/b]

Check the USGP website (www.usgpindy.com). If you select 'tickets' and 'parking' you will find a map and prices for camping on the Speedway property (as I stated earlier, you can have a considerable walk from parking/camping to your seat or viewing spot.

Other than that, there are other areas close to the track (strip mall lot No not that kind of a mall - shopping mall, on the souteast corner of 30th Street and Georgetown Rd, but they tend to be less controlled than the Speedway, so the parties are longer and louder! The Speedway is literally in the town of Speedway which is an independent municipality within the city limits of Indianapolis. Except for the Coke field (SE corner of 30th Street and Georgetown Rd) it is all urban area.

I used to make money ferrying party goers from the mall lot to the nearest boose sstore for cold beer! That was before I got hooked up with USAC. I lived close enough to the speedway to hear the cars when they were running.

There are homes in the area that reqularly rent out spots on their front lawns for parking (Speedway area just west of the track, and north on Georgetown Rd.) and camping. Some folks have been renting the same spots for years.

[Racerlinn]

1. Any other racing that weekend besides F1?
[/b]

O'Reilly Raceway Park (formerly known as IRP)
Saturday night, June 16th - USAC Midget and Sprint cars and the Advance Racing Association, Ltd. Late Models and Pro Trucks (ARA)

Yeah, it's "roundy-round" but the Sprints and Midgets put on an awesome show. Bring a lawn chair or blanket and sit on the turn 1 hill so you can look straight up the front stretch. It's amazing to watch how twitchy these cars are in a straight line, let alone in the turns. With the stockers on the schedule, there will be constant activity on track.

[JIgou]

The first year they had the race there I paid face value for my tickets.

The next year a friend and I paid 50% of face value for tickets. Picked 'em up from someone on the street. Now that the event isn't brand new and the roundy-round guys don't go anymore out of curiosity, I've gotta think tickets like that are easier to come by.

Both years we ignored where the seats were and spent our time on the grassy berm at the end of the backstraight. It's GA, and the reserved seating would have to be pretty darn good to beat that area IMHO.

For camping, we happened to have a friend who is one of those "rent space on the front lawn of a neighborhood house for years" types, so it was simple for us. I would have absolutely NO clue how to get hooked up with a spot on one of those lawns without his "in". We were about 2 blocks from the front gate.

I'll go back again some day, but this racing my own car thing keeps getting in the way....

Jarrod

[DavidM]

We went the first year and the next year. Haven't been to the last couple. It's neat to go see if you haven't been to an F1 race. The sound of the cars is almost as good as seeing the sheer speed, especially in the corners. We stopped going because the track is just too lame. It just isn't interesting enough to keep us going back.

We just got GA tickets and sat on one of the spector mounds on the back side behind T7. Great view and you're pretty close to the track. Make sure you wonder around a bit to see the cars from different spots. My favorite spot was along the fence at T4/T5. Watching the cars accelerate out of 5 was awesome.

Ticket prices are usually cheap. Don't pay more than face value. My understanding is that a lot of europeans come to the race because it's actually cheaper than the euro races even with airfare. Hotel prices are the only thing that suck. They try to ream you a new one. We stayed at the worst Hollidy Inn I've ever been at that was 30 minutes from the track the first year and still paid out the ass. Things may be a little better now.

If you're flying and want to save some $$ then you may want to look at flying into Cincinnati. It's only about an hour away and airfare is usually much cheaper.

David

[Drew Aldred]

I've gone every year since it came to Indy with two buddies, a great time every year. It's alot easier for me since my sister lives in Indy, so no hotel to pay for !!

No problem at all with the GA tickets, you can go anywhere on the grassy hills, and most of the front straight (pit side) is GA on race day. Go ahead and spend the money to park in someone's yard for race day. Drive around on Friday and pre-pay with the owner who should give you a pass of some type that will get you a spot in his yard. WAY easier than trying to leave from any Speedway parking lot, been there already. And the traffic is NOTHING compared to the 500 traffic in May. We leave my sister's house on the South side around 11 AM, park, walk to the track, get something to eat and sit down around 12:15 or so for the pre-race stuff.

Do yourself a favor on Friday practice make the climb to the upper deck in T13 (Indy T1) and listen the cars howl around the track wide open.........

[RacerBill]

Do yourself a favor on Friday practice make the climb to the upper deck in T13 (Indy T1) and listen the cars howl around the track wide open.........
[/b]

But nothing compared to OP1 - 3/4 thru IRL Turn 1 underneath the stands at ground level - watch and hear the cars coming directly at you at 240+ !

[R2 Racing]

On Sunday we generally sit in Stand C, Section 16. It's the last section underneath the canopy on the outside of the track and the closest to Turn 1. You can see the entire front stretch through turn 6 and there's a jumb-tron right across from there to watch the rest of it. On Saturday we usually just hang out in the infield on the temporary stands or grassy hills, baking in the sun and drinking oil cans.

If any of you guys are going to be driving to the track in a rather nice car (BMW, Subaru, Porsche, Ferrari, NSX, Audi, etc, etc.) I know how to get you some very, very nice parking for free. But you can't be driving a shit-box. My friends and I all clean up our nice cars, caravan out, park there, and act like we're more baller than we really are.

Our hotel is on the north side of downtown Indy, inside the outerbelt, and it's not astronomically priced. We're also cramming like six guys into a room though so it's cheaper. Since we don't really use it for sleeping, but more for passing out, we don't care. It's also got a nice big parking lot for doing donuts if you so choose.....not that I know. Plus there's a lot around it including restaurants, a nice pool hall, bars, and a state liquor store. :023:

Greg, if you feel like hanging out with some other GLDiv ITA guys, I know of a couple of them that have a RV every year across the street from the front straightaway grand stands in the RV lot. They always have a pretty big party going on. Haha - I think I know more about where to party and score beer than I do about the actual track. :birra:

[Racerlinn]

Ruck, there's a decent chance I may be actually home that weekend this year (you won't be waving at me as you go the WRONG way on I-70). May have to try and find you jokers at the track some time during the weekend. I was going to try and worm my way into a "official" position at the track, but I can't dedicate the time required.
Can I drive my shit-box race car and park it next to your Bimmer?

[R2 Racing]

Can I drive my shit-box race car and park it next to your Bimmer?
[/b]
No. Actually, my bimmer is appauled that you even asked that question. It's kind of snobby like that.

[NutDriverRighty]

Captain Who and I went the first year. Flew into the Cinci airport (Whaddya mean we're not in Ohio??!!), stayed in Shelbyville. Parked in someone's front yard for $25 or more, but it was well worth it. Less than 2 blocks from the track. Got stuck in the tunnel under the front straight with a bunch of drunk and rowdy Brazilians. Sat in reserved seats, infield, near the #4 marker for T1. Could only see front stretch and T1. No Jumbo-tron. Was bummed about that. While near the back gate to the pits, saw Bernie from about 10 feet. Was the same distance or less from Mario. Wouldn't trade the weekend for anything..........but not sure I'd go again after the tire debacle.

Scott "Righty" Franklin
www.NutDriver.org

[gsbaker]

Wouldn't trade the weekend for anything..........but not sure I'd go again after the tire debacle.[/b]
Agreed. You must do it once, at least. I went to the first "new" GP and several after but I, fortunately, missed the tire debacle and pledged to never go again--and never will.

T1 is the place to be. ~20 seconds of WOT at 19K rpm into that corner while losing 100 mph in ~2-3 secs. You have to see it live to believe it.

[KelleyHux]

I went the first year as a flagger. My husband had been to the Canadian GP in Montreal. He had a great time and convinced me to go with him to the USGP.

To make a long story short - it was probably the one of the worst weekends I've spent on a corner in my F&C career. I'm sure it didn't help that we were at Turn 13 with absolutely no hope of seeing a race car up close. The only saving grace was the nice new fiber optic landline Tony had just installed. The worker parties were a joke - one of them even had a few "ladies of the evening" sent for additional entertainment. I couldn't believe it.

Needless to say - we've not been back since. He is talking again about going to Montreal, but we've found more fun and appreciation at ALMS events. The 12 Hours of Sebring and the Petit LeMans are just fabulous events! The Central Florida and Atlanta Regions do a great job of welcoming their visitors (but that's another topic).

I'm glad to hear folks had a good time as spectators - but to me, that's just not racin'. Racin' is a participant sport. I participate by volunteering to help out. Keep in mind, many of the flaggers (and pit/grid folks) are SCCA clubbies too - you might be able to find someone with GA guest passes.

The IMSA GT3 Cup cars should put on a great show - there maybe a fair amount of carnage tho.

Kelley Huxtable
"Worker Bee"
DMVR

[AntonioGG]

I went in 2000 and 2001.

I did not like their system for getting tickets. I stopped going mostly because of that. I am no interested in sitting in the main straight. GA is better IMHO.

For 2000 we sat on the main straight, inside next to pit exit. That was cool because you could feel the thumping in your chest as they shifted gears. It was amazing.

For 2001 we were across that section. BOOORING. Waste of money.

OK, hotel gouging, $250 for a Red Roof Inn? No thanks. In 2000 we stayed in Dayton, in 2001 in Effingham and drove in the morning of the race.

We tried finding a nice place to eat downtown after the race...but it was pretty dead. Maybe we didn't hit the right areas. We ended up at a chain restaurant in the suburb.

For comparison, we went to the Canadian GP last year. Big difference. I think the city is much more into it with lots of events related to the race going on. The crowd was amazing and the circuit is very nice. The walk back to our hotel (we decided to skip the taxi, metro, and bus lines that were a mile long) was exhausting. I hear they are changing it for this year.

I'm done with the USGP. We may try the British GP next...or skip F1 completely and go to LeMans.

Summary: Do it if you've never been to an F1 race and you're not likely to go to one outside the country.

[DavidM]

Captain Who and I went the first year. Flew into the Cinci airport (Whaddya mean we're not in Ohio??!!), stayed in Shelbyville.
[/b]

Ahhh...Shelbyville. That's where we were as well.



Summary: Do it if you've never been to an F1 race and you're not likely to go to one outside the country.
[/b]

That's a good way to sum it up. A friend of mine went to Spa a couple years ago and said it was great. Same friend worked in Kuala Lumpur for a year and went to the Malaysian GP. Said that was good as well and not all that crowded. I'll probably go to LeMans before I go to euro F1 race, though.

David

[JimLill]

Does WGI in 1963 count :blink:

[tdw6974]

Does WGI in 1963 count :blink:
[/b]
Does for me :rolleyes:

[RacerBill]

Does for me :rolleyes:
[/b]

63 - That's pre-bog, right?

Too bad they turned the snake pit into the F1 runoff area!

[R2 Racing]

If anyone cares, my friends and I just got our seats for Sunday's race. Stand C, Section 17, Row HH 12-15 and Row GG 12-14.

Also, this is the hotel we stay at: Amerisuites Keystone Crossing. We got it for $180/night and they'll give a slight discount for AAA members. It's a suite with two full beds, a pull out couch bed, and plenty of floor space. Not too bad. Plus it's not far from the track (north-side & inside the outerbelt) and close to a lot of stuff.

[RacerBill]

If anyone cares, my friends and I just got our seats for Sunday's race. Stand C, Section 17, Row HH 12-15 and Row GG 12-14.

Also, this is the hotel we stay at: Amerisuites Keystone Crossing. We got it for $180/night and they'll give a slight discount for AAA members. It's a suite with two full beds, a pull out couch bed, and plenty of floor space. Not too bad. Plus it's not far from the track (north-side & inside the outerbelt) and close to a lot of stuff.
[/b]

Amerisuites Keystone Crossing - just walk across I-465 to Fast Times Indoor Karting center! Just kidding! Take the car.

If you have never raced on a two-level track before it is a blast! But the walls make street courses like Long Beach and Detroit seem like the desert.

http://www.fastimesindoorkarting.com/

So, bring your helmets!

Keystone Crossing - You guys got me going now! Two of my all time favorite eaterys are right there. On the casual side - try BD's Mongolian Barbeque, just east of the hotel on 82nd Street. If you like fine dining and stake cooked at 1800 degrees, there's Ruth's Chris, on Keystone Ave. just north of I465 (on the way to Fast Times!). If you are into seafood, look up the New Orleans House a few miles west of the hotel on 86th Street - expensive ($25-$30), but elegant white tablecloth dining with unlimited seafood and Southern buffet. Only thing the limit you on are escargot, oysters rockerfeller, and frog's legs.

TGI Firday's in the shopping center outside the hotel used to be part of what was known in the 80's as the Herbies Triangle.