2014 has been a busy year and unlike last year I was able to attend only 2 races.
The German Grand Prix was a fantastic experience and I was really looking forward to go across the Atlantic and attend the 2nd race this year held at Austin Texas.
As always, this is the Day 1 Experience at the 2014 United States Grand Prix.
It was an early morning start and Austin is pretty cold. The Circuit of the Americas is right next to the airport and is an hour's drive away from "The Domain". Austin is a city scattered all over and getting around is quite a journey.
The Passes arrived a day earlier and everything was in place for the Weekend :
Enroute to the Circuit :
Welcome to the Ferrari F1 Club at the Circuit of the Americas
I hardly got time to settle in and the Friday Free Practice ( FP1 ) was already underway.
Shots from FP1 :
Scuderia Ferrari F1 during FP1 :
Lewis Hamilton dominated FP1 and was 3 tenths faster than his team-mate Nico Rosberg.
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen were 6th and 12th respectively for Ferrari.
The Lull after Free Practice :
For the first time in my Paddock Club Experiences, I came across Breakfast Service being offered :
We were soon joined by Mattia Binotto ( COO - Power Unit ) who discussed about the technical changes in the power units this year and the challenges faced by Ferrari to match up to the Mercedes.
Video Link :
The Paddock abuzz with activity after FP1 :
The Menu for Lunch :
Time for a Power Lunch before the Pit Lane Walk :
The Sun was out in full force and it was a windy day too. It was an amazing day for racing in Austin and I must admit that this was one of the best pit lanes I have been in. Caterham F1 and Marussia F1 could not make it to the race and their garages were taken up by Pirelli who showcased all their tyres.
Shots from the Pit Lane Walk :
The Scuderia Ferrari F1 Pit Garage :
Some moments in the Garage :
A moment with the Ferrari Team Boys :
The Ferrari F14 T Firing Up before the start of FP2 :
Video Link :
Free Practice 2 was soon underway and the Teams would run through the qualifying simulation and more importantly the Race Simulations :
Shots from FP2 :
Scuderia Ferrari F1 during FP2 :
Lewis Hamilton was the Fastest again in FP2 but the gap to Nico Rosberg was down to only 3 thousandths of a second.
Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen improved to P3 and P6 for Ferrari.
Post FP2, I was able to send some time with an amazing man who excels in artwork viz. oil, acrylic and watercolor paintings. He has a unique skill-set and
has made some stunning art works, be it F1, Moto GP or Nascar!
Please do visit his page and be awed : www.kevinpaigeart.com
Kevin honoured Jules Bianchi with an art work of his car - a gesture that really moved me. The Mood was sombre after what had happened at the Japanese Grand Prix and the everyone from the F1 Fraternity rallied to offer Jules encouragement and support and prayers for a miraculous recovery!
TOUS AVEC JULES!!
Marc Gene ( Ferrari Reserve Driver ) joined us in the Lounge to discuss about the performance of the team on Friday and the expectations they had from the race.
The High Banking into turn 1.. it is quite a climb!
Some Shots of the Ferrari Formula 1 Club Lounge :
The Media interviews for drivers in the Paddock :
One of the support events for the weekend was the Ferrari V8 Series.
The 458s strutting their stuff on track :
It was time to head back to the hotel and the Track looked amazing in the setting sun!!
A Big thank you to the Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team for all the hospitality shown to me over the day
A Big Thank You to Ma'am Emilia Capasso, Simona De Filippis and Shotije Bega from Ferrari for a memorable Friday.
Day 2 and Day 3 Experiences coming soon!!