F1 - A guide for Americans

    F1 has always had a large following in almost every country but the united States.  The lack of races in the US  and no American teams or drivers has contributed to this. If you want to be an F1 driver, you probably need to be the son of rich European parents. There are a few exceptions to this (Senna) but even those probably had very wealthy parents and started racing go karts while still in diapers. But just because you won't be a millionaire driver yourself, you can still enjoy F1 (Quick joke - How do you become a millionaire race car driver? Start with a billion dollars.) It's like NASCAR but better because the cars are faster and they turn both left and right. No,  not really but that just emphasizes the stereotypes that keep gear heads from enjoying all forms of racing. In order to bridge the gap, let's start with the basics to understanding F1.

  The season;  The 2014 season started on 14 March in Australia and finishes on 23 November with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.  There are a total of 19 races scheduled, each in a different country.  While eight of the races are in Europe, there is one scheduled for the United States from 31 October to 2 November in Austin, Texas.  There have been discussions and rumors of a race in New Jersey but it doesn't look like that will ever happen.

  The tracks;  The majority of the races are held on purpose built circuits but there are a few still held on public roads which are temporary converted into race tracks.  The most famous of which is the Monaco Grand Prix.  This is also one of the most prestigious events in the F1 calendar and the expense and extravagance surrounding this event is beyond belief.  During practice runs, many of the drivers have unofficial agreements to leave as much rubber on the road as possible in order to burn off the layer of filth left by the previous night of partying.

Grand Prix De Monaco 2014

  The cars; The single seat, purpose built, open wheel cars are the fastest multi-turn circuit racing vehicles in the world. On the faster tracks, the cars reach speeds over 200 mph and up to 5 g's of force in turns.  During the race, cars will make several pit stops to change tires and make basic repairs.  Since 2009, there is no refueling during the race.  An F1 pit stop is an incredible coordinated event involving upwards of 30 people and should take less than two seconds for the top teams.

Sebastian Vettel

  The teams and drivers:  There are a total of eleven teams for the 2014 season.  Mercedes, Red Bull,
Ferrari and Lotus are the most popular and well known.  The top drivers to keep an eye on this year are Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel.  Vettel, racing for Red Bull, has won the championship in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013.  He is one of the most successful F1 racers of all time.

  Where and when to watch;  CBS Sports Network airs most of the races live and frequent replays the following day.  The replays are extremely helpful unless you want watch live in the middle of the night.  Just make sure if you are watching the replay to avoid spoilers on Facebook.

Bernie Ecclestone

  Bernie; While not critical to understanding F1, no guide would be complete without mentioning Bernie
Ecclestone. Bernie, who is now 83 years old, became a key player in F1 for many years, turning it (and himself) into billion dollar industries. He is a very savvy businessman but may soon be a prisoner in Germany.  His trial started on Thursday, 24 April 2014 in Munich.  The charges, of bribery and incitement to breech of trust, stem from a 44 Million dollar payment to a German banker named Gerhard Gribkowsky to facilitate the the sale of F1 Group to a buyer of Ecclestone's preference.  Gribkowsky has already been found guilty and is serving an eight and one half year sentence.  If convicted, Ecclestone, even if only receiving a fine, would be forced to finally step down from F1.

Hopefully that's enough to get you started.  We'll be posting throughout the season and providing a few more guides on the car details and drivers as the year goes on.

A Visitors Guide to the Audi Museum and Forum in Ingolstadt, Germany

 The Audi Museum, located in the town of Ingolstadt in Bavaria, Germany was opened in 2000 and is co-located with one of their main assembly plants. This is also the same location where many new Audi's are delivered to their owners.  Any American Audi owner will be intimately familiar with this facility if they selected the European Delivery option.  I had the change to visit this museum a short while ago and though I'd take a moment to share my experience to help others interested in going.  Before visiting, I checked out the official website as well as some blogs but didn't seem to find all the info I was looking for and hope this post answers those questions for others.
  The closest major airport to  Ingolstadt is Munich, which is approximately 70 kilometers and an a little less than one hour's drive away.  Once outside of the city limits of Munich the highway (autobahn) leading to Ingolstadt will have those famous circular white signs with three gray diagonal lines indicating an unrestricted zone.  If you are unfamiliar with those signs or driving in Germany the best thing to keep in mind is stay to the right.  If you are not passing, get out of the left lane.  Those HID daytime running lights may look really far behind you, but believe me, when they are moving two times your speed, will be on your rear bumper in seconds.   On these unrestricted sections of the autobahn, most cars in the middle and left lanes will be travel around 120 miles per hour (around 200 KPH) but there are always a few that will be closer to 180 mph (290 KPH).    Don't bother trying to catch them or keep up with them and just get out of the way.  German drivers are not competitive like American drivers and do not feel slighted or superior based on their highway speed.  If there is slower traffic in front of you, just be patient as they will move over to the right as soon as possible.  Do not attempt to pass them on the right or you could end up paying some hefty fines in addition to the scorn of all the drivers on the road.
  Once at the museum, there is a small outdoor parking area and a larger parking garage accessed through an underground entrance.  A small parking fee is charged for utilizing the parking area, however when you purchase entrance tickets to the museum, you can have your parking ticket validated.  However, we attempted to use this service during our visit but ended up stuck at the exit to the parking lot because our ticket would not raise the gate.  It took a quick run back to the parking payment machine with euro in hand and a few honks from the cars waiting behind us to finally get the gate open.
  While slightly smaller and older than the Porsche, BMW or Mercedes Museum, the Audi facility is worth a visit especially if you are a fan.  Some of the highlights of the museum include the history of the four rings and the Auto Union,
  After touring the museum, it's worth taking a few extra minutes to head into the building located to the left of the museum.  This is the Audi Forum, where a large percentage of new vehicles are delivered to their owners.  It's an interesting site seeing all the new cars lined up under the bright lights ready for their owners.  A mildly amusing game can be made of trying to pair the new car with the guests in this area.  Is it the young 20 something guy with wife and kids in tow picking up that new RS7 or the 60 something retiree and his wife.  The Audi shop is also located in this building and has options for every buyer and price range.  All the standard branded items from pens, hats, jackets to model cars are available.  While the prices were similar to what is found in the Audi catalogs from any stateside dealer, there were a few discounted and discontinued items available during our visit.
  While there are factory tours available, we were not able to take advantage of that opportunity during this visit or find out much information about booking a tour.  Maybe next time.
  The museum is open Monday through Sunday 9 am to 6 pm with a 4 Euro entrance fee.  Check out their official website here.