Headed to the Canadian Grand Prix!

Well, Michelle and I are finally pulling the trigger on attending an F1 race in the flesh. We've been following the sport pretty closely for eight years so it's about time really. The closest we ever got to a modern F1 car before was the time someone brought the lotus to the Mitty.

We considered going to the USGP, but it wasn't really anymore expensive to go to Montreal. Maybe less so since there's no need/temptation to rent a car.

So if anyone has any tips for the city or the race itself let'em fly.

Excited does not do it justice.

Awesome. Congrats. I've never been to Montreal, much less the Canadian Grand Prix, so I have no advice to give other than to have a blast.

For the experience of speed the inside of the track from the hairpin (turn 10) to the end of that straight is a must. The turn 2-3 complex will highlight the handling and acceleration. The entire track is a park and should be wandered as much as possible. The gardens, the rowing ponds, and the geodesic dome (where the subway lets out) are really interesting. The city wonderful. I was not there for the F1 race, but for the CART and NASCAR races. Probably not as many folks in attendance as F1 but a great time all around.

Are you flying in, or driving up? If you're driving up, I salute you.

Next year. Right, Adrian?

Montreal is an awesome city to explore. Very easy to navigate around. Mass Transit is easy to to use. Some of the worst drivers I have ever experienced though. If you are looking for a place to eat and drink, Dieu du Ciel is one of the best brew pubs I have ever been to: http://www.dieuduciel.com/en/home.php

92dxman wrote: Some of the worst drivers I have ever experienced though.

This. One thing you have to know about Montreal is that the number of bad drivers is off the charts.

In reply to G_Body_Man:

Oh Can-a-da....

Advice
- ignore any painted lines on roads. Everyone else does!
- Speed limits tend to be suggestions! Last time I was in Montreal I was passed in a Construction zone posted for 60 km/h by a guy that was doing at least twice that!
- Having said that out-of-province license plates are considered good revenue sources!
- Have FUN! - Montreal is a great city with lots to do!

Montreal is a great city. If you are a foodie you have to eat at Joe Beef/Liverpool House. Schwartz's deli is another must do. Remember the Montreal greeting; Bonjour/Hi (say both). Have fun.

So we indeed fly up, just today in fact. Guess who was directly in front of us in the customs queue?

If I was writing fiction it would be unbelievable... frickin Coulthard, McNish, and Di Resta.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far btw. We will definitely check some of those out while we are here. Brew pubs FTW.

Pasta Napoli on Ste. Denis in the Latin Quarter. Just walk Ste. Catherine Street after the race. Last I went there were Gallardos everywhere. I'm 90 minutes south in Vermont.

What an awesome picture!

Legen - wait for it - dary.

I last went several years ago.

Tips,

No other city embraces the race like Montreal. Hit the city street festivals.

Walk the track on Friday, there are some spots were you can be 2m from an F1 car braking for a corner. Back in the V10 days. I stood there wondering why no one was camping out in this great spot. People were kind of staring at me. I felt odd but figured, meh, I will stay there for a while. Then a toro rosso or redbull came charging into the corner. The noise and impact of sound on my chest made me RUN from the fence! Then I realized why so many were staring at me and now laughing! It hurt to stand there.

Try to see as much of the track as you can, very beautiful. Better than Spa to me even. I love Spa being on the racing track but Montreal is better for spectating.

Despite the super long lines take the metro off the island after the race.

Also, be aware literal translation of French to English sound nasty, insulting, and rude. But that is just how translation between the two works. Don't get offended.

We have spent plenty of time in Montreal over the years. The last time we were there with a group trip for a Boston /Montreal hockey game there was a guided tour of the city on a large greyhound type bus. The driver brought us out on the track in the bus! We were not supposed to be out there, but it was fun. If I remember right the track is either mostly or completely on an island. Very cool track.

Have fun!

I saw Michael Schumacher win there in 2003. I remember removing my earplugs at one point and I'm pretty sure that my ears started bleeding immediately. That Friday night in Montreal was one of the best nights of my life.

Ok, time for an update. We tried to get a table at joe beef/Liverpool house, but no dice. That said, that particular inquiry led us to another awesome restaurant a block away, Bon Vivant. I'll say this town knows how to do food.

In addition, I discovered that a band I've been wanting to see just happened to be playing a block away. Little Dragon. Good times!

So yesterday was the first time we went to the track (free practice). You guys weren't kidding, that is one stunning track. Probably one of my favorite places to spectate is on the braking side of the hairpin. The way the cars burble and backfire as they move sequentially down through the gears sounds downright brutal. There were some other good spots along the straights as well. I managed to snap a few good ones there with some image distortion due to the speeds involved.

Matt B wrote: So we indeed fly up, just today in fact. Guess who was directly in front of us in the customs queue? If I was writing fiction it would be unbelievable... frickin Coulthard, McNish, and Di Resta. Thanks for all the suggestions so far btw. We will definitely check some of those out while we are here. Brew pubs FTW.

That's hilarious! I was a few people further back in the queue - I considered asking them for a pic too, but figured they'd appreciate being left alone! I was the guy in the "Australia" T-shirt - you probably didn't see me - but I remember seeing you behind them, with a very pleased look on your face Sadly I couldn't stick around - up in the cold parts for work this weekend.

In reply to edwardh80: Small world! We noticed a few other people staring at them, so there's a chance I saw you too.

BTW, you guys are right. Traffic here is bonkers at times. Besides the usual mayhem, there was a guy that thought he didn't need to obey the police directing traffic. I'm pretty sure he's going to need bodywork from the cop straight up punching the car in order to correct his behavior.

The trick to understanding Montreal is to remember that everyone thinks they're a racing driver. If you get cut off, it was a passing move. As opposed to Toronto, where the person who cut you off had no clue you were there

Were Coulthard's pants as tight in person as they are on tv?

Thanks for inviting us along (virtually) I might have to check the race out. I grew up only two hours away, but never went!

Ok so I'm super late updating the thread. I could blame international data plans for suckitude, but really I was just having a good time.

During qualifying you could tell the drivers turned it up a couple notches. Everything seems subtly more urgent. The time seemed to go by faster than watching it on tv for some reason.

If you have general admission tickets like we did, then it's hard to get any shots of the cars without a fence in the way. That said, there's a great spot overlooking the track when you walk in on the southern bridge (there's a northern as well).

Oh yeah, DC must have had his normal pants on that day. Hehe

So the night if qualifying I go down to the apartments' garage to take out the trash and what do I discover... Corvairs!

I was tempted to leave a note, but figured we wouldn't be there long enough for it to matter. So I just poked around and fogged up the windows a bit.

Awesome stuff mate, I did the earplugs removal at Melbourne in 97, my advice, don't do it, it is an incredibly loud shreak although the current engines do not Rev nearly as high as they did then