I’ve never considered myself a petrol head as such. Yes, I love driving and always have ever since passing my test and I have a soft spot for Top Gear and think that James May is possibly my favourite TV presenter when it comes to all things cars. So when the opportunity arose to actually go to a formula one race I was surprised by how the idea of that made my heart race just a little bit faster. Getting onto the track in Singapore is even more of a thrill as the race is at night and also on the street. The city is on lockdown for a couple of weeks prior to the race getting the grandstands built, securing the miles and miles of fencing and safety barriers and generally making sure that everyone experiences an amazing race but a safe one.
Our 3 day passes would give us a seat in the grandstand and also a walkabout to zones 3 and 4 where we could take in the atmosphere, grab a bite to eat, visit the vintage cars on display and hopefully spot a driver. What we were not prepared for was the sheer volume and vibrations of the cars as they pass you by – that was a shock. Even with the industry standard foam ear plugs, the noise was incredible, exhilarating and very very exciting. Much to the relief of my family I was somehow able to not let out a girlie scream as Vettel then Webber flashed by during the early pre-race qualifiers. I think any chance to sitting next to my daughter on days 2 or 3 would have been long gone had I done that!
The weekend also included some fabulous concerts on the Padang Stage featuring The Killers (they did a cover of I think We’re Alone Now by Tiffany, which I’ll never be able to listen to in quite the same way) and the wonderful Laura Mvula of Green Garden fame. It also nicely co-incided with the purchase of some new glass in the form of a 70-200 2.8 IS USM ii and I’m rather pleased that on first outing this wonderful new lens didn’t disappoint.
So here’s a round up in photographs from the madness of the past weekend. If you ever get the chance to go to a race I cannot recommend it highly enough, we are booking again for next year ;-). Oh and old news, but Vettel won the race!
Remember, adventure is out there!
Nat x
