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It was anybody's race... and it was! Which was what made this 1st Singapore Formula One night race something not to be missed. The 3 days F1 weekend was certainly the talk of the town. For those that speculated that Singapore's street circuit wasn't exciting enough have begged to defer after the conclusion of the dramatic race where Ferrari, Felipe Massa's sure win spot was snatched away by Renault's Spaniard, Fernando Alonso. There were overtakings, crashes galore and pit stop mishaps. Topped up with Singapore's spectacular skyline, it had every ingredient to make an unforgettable F1 race.


Singapore F1 Grand Prix Highlights
Commentary in Spanish (or something) but a good round-up of the night's highlights on race day

Having the chance to attend the race on the ground was an experience by itself. Thanks JAMES! To soak in the mood, to see the Ferrari fans in red, to hear those deafening engines as they zoom pass. It was more fun to catch some old friends and meet new people; it was like a social event in itself!

The evening on Qualifying Day was as planned. James, myself and his polish friend; Lessek met for early dinner at Siam Reap II along Empress Place. It was just a stone's throw away from Gate 5 which was a decent walk toward our seats at the Marina Bay Grandstand.
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Taking a stroll pass the Anderson Bridge, one of Singapore's oldest bridges. Opened in 12 March 1910 and at only 8km wide, the bridge is one of the narrowest paths of the circuit.

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Before entering the Esplande grounds. You can see the 1600 lighting projectors attached to aluminium trusses, suspended 10 metres above the track on vertical steel pylons mounted on prefabricated concrete blocks, placed behind the barriers at intervals of 32m. It involved a total of 240 steel pylons and a mind boggling 108,423m of cables. Powered by 12 twin-power generators, the resulting light was four times brighter than the lighting in a normal sports arena.

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At the Marina Bay Grandstand overlooking the Central Business District of Singapore. This was a great place to be seated, with at least 3 corners where the cars slowed down for a better view.

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The cars in all their shinny glory. This is the part where I'll have very little to comment as my limited knowledge of the sport kicks in.

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Ferrari's Felipe Massa coming in around a bend at T17. You can actually sense the support for the team when each red car passes.

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A shot of Lewis Hamilton in his Vodafon car. He had his fair share of supporters.

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This could be Mark Webber in his Red Bull car coming into T19. (corrected by F1Wolf to be David Coulthard)

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After emerging from under the grandstand, cars hit another turn (T20)before they zoom pass the Singapore Flyer toward the Pit Area.

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A spectator holding the The Kangaroo Cam. Rental at around SGD$150 for 3 nights. Great for those gamblers following the scores for betting.

Somewhere along the race, James deserted Lessek and myself for a free visitor's pass to the Paddock Club which overlooked the pit area and was more like a restaurant. Unlike what many believed to be an uncontrollable crowd situation, the entire atmosphere was very pleasant. There were more then enough merchandise and snack outlets. Beer prices also varied around the circuit! From SGD$6 - SGD$12! However, you can practically get anything you want just a short walk to Marina Square. I've been to enough crowded places to know the situation was very manageable.

As the crowd parted at the end of the race, we had a chance to walk a stretch of the track toward the exit! And thanks to Ricky, I hitched a free ride home together with Chris, Ruddy and another dude. It was all good... but could have been better with RAIN! The race will be all so different!

So as Ricky asked, "You a F1 convert yet?". It got me thinking about the sport underneath all it's speed and glamour. The technology the team put into just maximizing that extra second is mind blowing! It's science in itself and very overwhelming. It remains to me a great spectator sport, and I'm reserved to being "not crazy over cars"!


More Singapore F1 Grand Prix 2008 Pictures

2 comments:

  1. that Red Bull car you have there is David Coulthard :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for the correction, knew I wouldn't get everything right ;)

    ReplyDelete

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