Formula-1 U.S. Grand Prix, Austin, Texas, Nov 16, 2012

Published November 21, 2012 | By Rod

My trip to the inaugural Formula-1 U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas was an exciting adventure. Although I had previously driven through Texas several times and spent 6 weeks at Fort Bliss in El Paso (many years ago), this was my first visit to the Austin – San Antonio area. The mid-November weather was perfect for all 3 days at the brand new Circuit of the Americas (COTA), where clearly, a boat-load of money was spent to build a world-class racing facility. It was also clear the organizers knew how to plan for the expected crowd of more than 100,000. Traffic jams were avoided by shuttling people in from remote parking sites such as downtown Austin and the Austin airport.

The photos should give you a good idea of what it was like for the average bleacher-seat or general admission ticket holder to attend this historic race. As the saying goes, “Everything is bigger in Texas” and this event was no exception. The COTA facility is grand, and the Saturday and Sunday crowds were huge.

I must say “Many Thanks!” to my son, Brian, for making this adventure possible.

This event is covered in 4 photo galleries: (1) Friday Practice-1 & Practice-2; (2) Saturday Practice-3, & Qualifying; (3) Downtown Austin Fan-Fest; and (4) Sunday – race day.

Gallery-1: Friday Practice-1 & Practice-2