Path: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!gatech!news.mathworks.com!news-peer.sprintlink.net!news-pull.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!Sprint!news.ultranet.com!not-for-mail From: mitchmcc@ultranet.com (Mitchell McCann) Newsgroups: rec.autos.sport.f1,rec.answers,news.answers Subject: Formula One Motor Racing FAQ (modified 3/14/97), Part 2/2 Followup-To: poster Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 17:56:22 GMT Organization: UltraNet Communications, Inc. Lines: 1016 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU Message-ID: <3379fc02.22547089@news.ultranet.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: d17.dial-1.lwl.ma.ultra.net Summary: This article is a collection of information on Formula One racing, teams, personnel and technolgy X-Newsreader: Forte Free Agent 1.1/16.230 Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu rec.autos.sport.f1:123253 rec.answers:30630 news.answers:102458 Archive-name: sports/formula-one-faq/part2 Posting-Frequency: monthly Last-modified: March 14, 1997 4. THE RULES 4.1 How many points are scored for a win? Currently points are awarded for the first six finishers as follows: 10 - 6 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1. This applies to both the driver's and constructor's championships. Each team is required to enter two cars and both cars scores are counted towards the constructor's championship. If a race is stopped, due to accident or weather, before completion of 75% of the race distance, only half the points will be awarded for that race. 4.2 Is that a brake light on the back of the cars? No. The red light you will occasionally see on the back of the cars is not a brake light and is required by the rules for visibility in wet races. The light is required to be on whenever the car is on treaded tyres. 4.3 The start The starting procedure was changed for 1996. The countdown begins 17 minutes before the parade lap with a series of lights and horns. The parade lap is started with a green light. The cars proceed in grid order returning to their spots on the starting grid. Transponders in the car signal to the officials when all the cars are in position and the actual start procedure begins. There are now five red lights and NO green light. The five red lights will come on one at a time at one second intervals. When the fifth light comes on the jump start system is activated. At a pre-set, but unpublished interval, all five red lights will go out and that is the signal to start. NB There is no green light. This system eliminates the potential problem of the red light going out but the green light failing to come on. Such a situation has happened in the past and causes enormous confusion and is potentially very dangerous. Also, disabling the jump start system until immediately before the start eliminated some of the bogus penalties we saw prior to 96 when the system was activated as soon as the car stopped. 4.4 The finish [CS] & [HG] When the leader crosses the line and the chequered flag is waved at him, all drivers finish the lap which they are currently driving. The top positions go to the drivers on the same lap as the winner, in the order in which they crossed the line. The next positions go to those drivers who completed one fewer lap than the leader, in the order in which they crossed the line, and so on. Should a driver fail to cross the line (due to an accident, for example), his (or her) finishing position is based on the race position the last time (s)he crossed the start/finish line. An example may help: It's the 50-lap US GP and the first 4 drivers at the end of lap 49 are Diniz, Hill, Schumacher and Inoue. Fifth is Katayama, one lap down. Diniz crosses the line at the end of lap 50 first to take the chequered flag and win the race. Katayama is the next driver to cross the finish line (albeit after only 49 laps) and is awarded 5th place, since there were 4 drivers on the lead lap (who all completed 49 laps before him). On lap 50, however, Hill and Schumacher collide and both retire. Inoue is the only other driver to finish 50 laps and is awarded 2nd place. Since Hill completed 49 laps ahead of Schumacher, he gets 3rd place and Schumacher is awarded 4th. All drivers who have completed at least 90% of the distance driven by the winner are classified as finishers. All finishers must get themselves weighed, put the car in the 'parc ferme' for scrutiny and submit to any other tests required. Top three must attend the podium ceremony and give a press conference afterwards, or get fined. Press conferences take place in a variety of languages - all the top drivers speak English fluently enough for an interview. Naturally none of the English drivers speak anything else! (It is noticeable how much improved Schumacher's English has become in the last two years - he sounds more American than German now; Berger also is fluent enough to tell jokes thanks to his long spell at McLaren) 4.5 What is the safety car for? [HG] Once this is deployed, the 'SC' board is shown and drivers must slow down and circulate in their current order. The car waves past each driver in turn, until the race leader is behind him. Then all circulate until the race is deemed safe to continue, with the safety car displaying flashing amber lights. Switching off these lights indicates that the safety car will pull off next time it reaches the pit entrance; once it does, the race continues. It should be noted that, unlike Indy, safety cars are rarely used in F1. In fact, in the semi-permanent "What's the difference between F1 and Indy" thread, the excessive use of the safety car to close up the field is the major criticism of Indy racing by F1 fans. 4.6 What is a stop-go penalty? Jump starts and pit lane speeding incur a 10 second 'stop-go' penalty. Penalties are served in the team's own pit under the supervision of the team manager. If the team does not administer the penalty correctly and the driver leaves before the 10 seconds is up, then they will be called back for another 10 second penalty. The officials monitor the length of the stop by means of the timing sensors buried in the pit box. They also send an official onto the pitlane wall to ensure that no work is done to the car during the stop. Other offenses can incur fines, loss of points, disqualifications or race bans. Decisions can be appealed but historically the FIA has a propensity for increasing a penalty on appeal. 4.7 What do the different colored flags mean? [HG] Yellow - caution; no overtaking/safety car out. Yellow with red stripes - track is slippery (usually oil). Blue - There is considerable controversy regarding the exact use of blue flags. This is because the instructions given to the marshals contradict the International Sporting Code. This definition is based on written instructions from the clerk of the course to marshals at at least two GPs this season. During Practice Stationary: A faster car is catching you. Give way. Waved: A faster car is about to overtake you. Give way urgently. During the Race Stationary: You are about to be lapped. Let the other car through. Waved: Let the other car through immediately. You are now risking a penalty. (NB: The International Sporting Code states that a blue flag may be used to allow a faster car to overtake for position. However, its use in races appears to be almost exclusively limited to situations where a driver is being lapped). Red - race stopped, slow down and return to pit lane. Chequered - race finished. Black, with a car number - car must return to pit lane within 3 laps and not restart race (this may mean a terminal rule infringement, but it can also mean that there is something dangerously wrong with the car that the driver does not know about - hence it is grossly negligent to ignore this flag) 4.8 Is mid-race re-fueling allowed? After being banned for 10 years for safety reasons, mid-race re- fueling was inexplicably reintroduced for the 1994 season. The re-fueling equipment used by all the teams is identical as the FIA mandates that the equipment be bought from Intertechnique and may not be modified by the teams. Fuel is pumped at a rate of 12 liters (3.3 gallons) per second. Apart from the FIA, almost everybody associated with F1, fans, drivers and teams, believe that re-fueling is inherently dangerous and that, if not before, it will finally be banned when somebody is killed or seriously injured in a re-fueling accident. Since its reintroduction in '94 there have already been three pit-lane fires caused by re-fueling: Verstappen (Benetton) in '94, Irvine (Jordan) and Gachot (Pacific) in '95 and Diniz's on-track fire in '96 was due to the re-fueling valve becoming stuck open. 4.9 What is the 107% rule? Introduced for the 1996 season, the 107% rule is designed to weed out the slower cars in the field. Any driver whose best qualifying time is more than 107% of the pole-sitters time will not qualify for the race. For example, if the pole time is 1 min 40 secs (100 seconds), then any car slower than 1 min 47 seconds (107 seconds) will not be in the race. The rule does allow for some discretion on the part of the stewards and this discretion has so far been exercised just once for Pedro Diniz at Melbourne '97. 5. THE CARS 5.2 How big are the engines? Although subject to change periodically, engines are currently limited to 3 liter, reciprocating, normally aspirated with no more than 12 cylinders. These engines produce approximately 750 bhp down from a high of about 1,200 bhp that could be produced by the now banned V6, 1.5l turbo-charged engines. 5.3 How much does a car weigh? The minimum weight for an F1 car is 600 kg (1,323lbs) including the driver and 5kg (11 lbs) for either an on board camera or mandatory ballast for those cars not carrying cameras. Regulations define minimum weights to ensure that safety is not compromised by the engineer's efforts to improve performance by making the car lighter. 5.4 What is the tub made of? The tub, the part that the driver sits in, is made of a composite material consisting of an aluminum honeycomb sandwiched between two sheets of carbon. The result is an extremely strong, lightweight material. Smaller sections, such as the nose-cone and engine cover, use a nomex honeycomb instead of aluminum to allow greater flexibility. 5.5 How many gears do the cars have? The regulations state that the cars must have at least 4 and no more than 7 forward gears as well as a reverse gear. Most cars have 6 forward gears, Jordan and Benetton being the only cars with 7 speed gearboxes. 5.6 Interesting engine facts. (Based on a 1996 Ford Zetec-R). *In an F1 engine revving at 14,500 rpm, one revolution takes 4 thousandths of a second. *Maximum piston acceleration is approximately 8,000g which puts a load of over 3 tons on each connecting rod. *Maximum piston speed is 47.2 meters per second - the piston in a Ford Zetec-R accelerates from rest to that speed in 1 thousandth of a second. *If a connecting rod let go of its piston at maximum engine speed, the released piston would have enough energy to travel vertically over 100 meters. *If a water hose were to blow off, the complete cooling system would empty in just over a second. 5.7 What are those red boxes on the Williams' mirror. Perhaps, one of the most annoying frequently asked questions. Don't ask it in rasf1 unless you want to start a long, tedious thread. The official answer is its to stop any potential health hazards to the mechanics from the microwave transmitter which is housed in the mirror. This transmitter sends telemetry data back to the pits while the car is on the track. Several "news" programmes and publications have reported claims that microwaves, as used in cellular phones can cause cancer etc. etc. While people more knowledgeable than me claim that this is impossible, it remains the official explanation as to why they put the box over the mirror when the mechanics are working around the car. 6. MISCELLANEOUS 6.1 What happens during a pit-stop? [HG] Cars must not exceed the pit lane speed limit, which is different at each track. As driver comes in, one of the pit crew indicates the location of the pit (it isn't easy to find in the heat of the moment). The car stops on the marks and is lifted by front and back jacks. Three mechanics are required for each wheel; one to operate the tool to remove/replace the wheel, one to take the old wheel off and one to put the new one on. In addition, two are required to handle the fuel hose, and a couple of spares wipe the drivers' visor etc. The operation is controlled by the chap at the front who holds the 'brakes on' sign, and he looks out for all the mechanics to raise their hands as a signal that they are finished and out of the way. Then he signals for the car to be dropped off the jacks and the driver can leave. Due to the restrictions on the equipment, re-fueling actually takes longer than the tyre change. Crews rehearse before every Grand Prix to keep in practice. As there is now fuel being thrown around in the pitlane, all mechanics wear fireproof overalls, and sometimes helmets too. A few near-disasters have stressed that the pit lane is a dangerous place, and personnel there should be kept to a minimum.(i.e. groupies, relatives, under-age royals etc should be somewhere else!) The driver should keep his visor closed during a pit stop in case of fire. IMHO there WILL be a disastrous fire unless refuelling is banned. 6.2 Sponsorship [HG] F1 teams could not continue to spend at current levels without sponsors, among which the cigarette companies are major players. Advertising regulations in Britain, France and Germany mean that Williams appear there with 'Racing' rather than 'Rothmans' written on them, and for McLaren it was 'McLaren' rather than 'Marlboro'. (Will they now use East instead of West as Zakspeed use to do?) Sponsors can also rent out space on drivers as well as cars, and all spaces are available right down to the back of the mirrors. A six-inch wide patch on the front wing of a Williams will cost you about 2 million dollars for the season. Oh, and you won't be able to see it on the telly, but they'll do you a nice package of sponsored events for the price. (!) The best advert I saw was in 1993 when Sega sponsored Williams. The Sega character, Sonic the Hedgehog, appeared at most of the races, and the side of the car was painted so it appeared as a cutout showing Sonic's legs doing the driving. McLaren responded by sticking a squashed hedgehog logo to the side of their car each time they won a race at the expense of a Williams. Senna's incredible victory in the wet Donington GP of Europe was headlined in Autosport as 'Senna's mega-drive'. 6.3 What's the difference between F1 and Indy? Quite possibly THE most frequently asked question and the subject of much debate in rasf1 which generally, after some technical discussion, deteriorates into a slanging match between European F1 fans and American Indy fans. Generally speaking, Indy cars are bigger, faster and more durable whereas F1 cars are more agile and accelerate faster. As to which is better and which would win a head to head race? F1 cars are better under F1 regs at F1 circuits and Indy cars are better under Indy regs at Indy circuits. Tracks. Indy uses ovals as well as road and street courses - F1 does not. This, along with the use of the safety car, is the most significant difference between the two series. Whilst making for interesting discussion, the technical differences do not have much of an impact from the spectators point of view. However, Indy's detractors would say that the uniform ovals with the resulting left turns only, produce a sterile racing environment which allows no exciting passing. Furthermore, most accidents will result in the safety car making an appearance which will close up the field. Again, Indy's detractors would argue that this produces an artificial racing environment reducing the race to a series of short sprints which are merely used to establish the grid order for the final sprint to the finish. On the other hand, F1 detractors would argue that because of the wide difference in performance levels, and the fact that safety cars are rarely used, there is very little close racing or competitive passing in F1 and of course as a spectator you cannot see the entire circuit at an F1 race. (I must apologize if my cultural bias has become apparent in this section but as a Brit living in the U.S., I am living proof that F1/Indy preference is determined by genes not environment). Weight. F1 cars minimum weight is 585 kg (1,287 lbs). Indy car minimum weight is 1,550 lbs (704.5 kg). Brakes. F1 cars use carbon fibre brakes which are lighter and more durable than the steel brakes used by Indy cars. (Indy cars are allowed to use carbon brakes on the 2.5 mile superspeedways at Indianapolis and Michigan. Steel brakes are mandatory at all the other races). Ground effect. [AS] It is generally said that ground effect cars are no longer allowed in F1 but this is not strictly true. All cars generate ground effect, you cannot 'ban' it, only try to design the rules to limit the downforce that can be obtained from it. In F1 this is done by requiring flat bottoms between the wheels (now with 50mm step). In Indycar they still allow shaped ground effect tunnels, but with strictly controlled dimensions and at a minimum height above the bottom of the chassis. Turbo charging. Banned in F1 but still allowed in Indy - although at a much lower boost pressure than was used by F1 cars in the 80's. Semi-automatic gearboxes. Allowed in F1 but not in Indy. Nationality. Indy is basically a domestic U.S. series as far as teams, venues and drivers are concerned. However, there are 3 venues outside of the U.S. (Surfer's Paradise, Brazil, Toronto and Vancouver) and an increasing number of foreign drivers. F1 is truly international in teams, engines, venues and drivers although there is a strong European influence, particularly British and Italian. And according to Jacques Villeneuve (Electronic Telegraph 3/4/96): "In the last few months I've done over 5,000 miles of testing with Williams and I've learned a lot about the differences between Formula One and Indycars. An F1 car is slower on the straights but much quicker in the corners. The engine has less horsepower but the power comes on quicker and because a Formula One car is lighter and more responsive it reacts faster to the driver's input and the braking is much better. Because of its extra weight an IndyCar is a bit more physical to drive, it slides more easily and it's harder work to hold it. A Formula One car is more twitchy and when it slides you have to react faster to catch it. It has higher limits but I find this really enjoyable. 6.4 How many teams are there? With the addition of Stewart and Lola and the demise in mid-96 of Forti, there are currently 12 teams, down from an all time high of 20 in 1989. 6.5 What is the connection between Ford and Cosworth? Ford and Cosworth first co-operated in 1959 when Cosworth developed a lightweight iron crankcase engine for the new Ford Anglia. Cosworth founders, Keith Duckworth and Mike Costin, then tuned the new engine, code-named MAE (Modified Anglia Engine) and it soon became the power unit of choice for drivers in Formula Junior and later Formula 3. Next came the Cosworth FVA racing engine and, impressed by the potential of the new power unit, Ford commissioned the Northamptonshire-based company to produce a roadgoing version to suit its new high-performance Escort, the RS1600. The result was the BDA (Belt-Driven A-series) which employed many of the lessons learned in motor racing to achieve excellent levels of performance and efficiency at relatively low cost. The most successful Ford-Cosworth collaboration to date has been the DFV (Double Four Valve) F1 engine.The 90 degree V8 stunned the racing world when it appeared for the first time at the 1967 Dutch GP in the bank of Colin Chapman's highly effective Lotus 49 chassis and promptly powered Jim Clark to an historic win. The Ford DFV went on to win 154 more GPs and 12 World Championships in a career that spanned 15 years. During that time, the DFV's power output climbed from 405 bhp to 520 bhp at 11,000 rpm. The most recent development to issue from Cosworth is the Ford Zetec-R F1 engine. Carrying the same "Zetec" name as the range of double overhead camshaft, four-valve-per-cylinder engines used in the current Fiesta, Escort and Mondeo model ranges, the new 3.5 liter power unit was the highest-revving racing V8 ever produced when it was unveiled prior to the start of the 1994 season at up to 14,500 rpm. The new 3.0 liter Zetec-R is very similar to the larger 1994 engine with small differences to allow for the new stepped floors and races at engine speeds up to 15,000 rpm. The Zetec-R V10 is provided exclusively to Ford's chosen factory team - Sauber - while customer teams will be supplied with last year's V8 or the ED. 6.6 What frequencies do the teams use? Contrary to popular belief, not all teams scramble their transmissions. The following numbers are based on frequencies actually monitored at the '97 Australian GP. Further comment, either additions or confirmation that teams are/are not changing frequencies at other races, is encouraged. Schumacher - 451.6125 Irvine - 452.6125 Alesi - 454.275 Salo - 422.025 6.8 Why is Frank Williams in a wheelchair? [HG] Frank Williams broke his neck in a car crash in France in 1986. He was driving home from the Paul Ricard circuit, lost control and turned the car over. The injury was so severe that he was not expected to live, and only survived due to his excellent fitness; he used to run half-marathons regularly. For a while it was thought that he would be unable to swallow or breathe unaided, but he regained more movement than expected. He is paralysed from the chest down, with some limited movement in his arms. Among all the other obvious limitations, this means that he needs 24 hour care, cannot travel on commercial aircraft and even finds speaking an effort. Consider this when you wonder why he is rarely seen to smile. Virginia Williams, Frank's wife, has written a book called 'A Different Kind of Life' which describes their lives before and after the accident, up to about 1990. Drive carefully. 6.9 What's the best Formula One movie ever made? Sounds like a subjective question but almost universal opinion seems to favour "Grand Prix" starring James Garner, directed by John Frankenheimer. The plot may not be watchable but the racing is. Actual race footage is combined with staged scenes which were filmed during the GP weekends using Lotus F3's dressed up as F1s. Graham and Phil Hill did some driving and Garner did a lot of his own driving and was apparently quite fast. 6.10 What happened at Imola in 1994? [HG] Formula 1 has become used to seeing drivers walk away from terrible accidents, as car and track safety standards have improved. But racing at 200 mph will always be dangerous, and this was tragically proved over the weekend of the San Marino Grand Prix in 1994. The events of that weekend are well documented elsewhere, here are brief details. In Friday qualifying, Rubens Barrichello lost control of his car and hit barriers at speed. He was knocked unconscious and rushed to the medical centre, but regained consciousness with no worse than a broken nose. On Saturday, new driver Roland Ratzenberger was attempting to qualify his Simtek. The team advised that he had damaged the car following a minor off. However, Roland did not come into the pits to have the car checked. The front wing came away, Roland lost control and hurtled into a barrier. His neck was broken and he died instantly, the first Formula 1 fatality in 12 years. A saddened field assembled for the race on Sunday. During the start, JJ Lehto stalled his car and there was a tremendous startline accident as an unsighted Pedro Lamy ran into him. Neither driver was hurt, but a wheel was hurled over the safety fencing into the crowd, injuring three people. The race ran under the safety car, with Ayrton Senna leading in his Williams, while the debris was cleared. The safety car peeled off after seven laps. Passing Tamburello and running second behind Senna, Michael Schumacher noticed the back of the Williams step out, until Senna corrected it. On the next lap the Williams did not take the bend at Tamburello, and crashed at full speed into the concrete wall, 11 metres from the track. The wheels came off (as they are designed to do), but by a terrible mischance one wheel and its steering arm hit and penetrated Senna's helmet, and he suffered massive head injuries. He was airlifted to Bologna hospital and placed on life-support, but was pronounced dead later that day. The race was stopped, and restarted, and eventually won by Michael Schumacher. Gerhard Berger, who had lost a fellow countryman and a good friend on successive days, retired from the race shortly afterwards. Erik Comas, who was mistakenly waved out of the pits following Senna's accident, drove round the track believing it to be clear until he came to Tamburello and found the paramedics frantically trying to revive Senna. Understandably he was too distraught to continue. Finally, a pitlane accident also injured several mechanics. Ratzenberger's accident was adjudged to be due to 'driver error', as he should have come in to have his car checked for safety. However, the cause of Senna's crash has not been determined. Under Italian law, Frank Williams, Patrick Head, Roland Brunseyrade (the race director) and two Imola track officials are to face manslaughter charges in a trial which was opened, and adjourned, on February 20th 1997. Theories continue to abound as to the cause of the crash. Following the weekend, the following measures were implemented: - changes to the cars for that season and next - radical changes to many of the circuits - Grand Prix drivers association revived Ayrton Senna was buried at home in Brazil, with full state honours. When his car was examined, a furled Austrian flag was found inside. The great Brazilian champion had intended to dedicate his 42nd victory to Roland Ratzenberger. 7. NETIQUETTE [HG] 7.1 Read 'welcome to rec.autos.sport hierarchy', posted monthly or so. This covers most of the points made below, which are standard netiquette. Please read it. 7.2 Don't post jpegs,gifs or any other big files. Many people download all messages in the newsgroup to be read off-line. If you pay for connect time it is very annoying to find that you have spent 10 minutes downloading a 7000 line binary. Post pictures to alt.binaries.pictures.vehicles and then you can just post a short message on r.a.s.f1 telling people what you posted and where you posted it. 7.3 Please don't get offensive - a driver can't help his appearance or that of his wife, but their behaviour on or off track is fair game. Also; ANYONE CAN MAKE A MISTAKE!!! Posts on the lines of 'xxx is a complete yyyy' just get tedious. Reasonable analysis please, we can buy junk newspapers if we want rantings. Remember also that F1 is really easy from your armchair, rather less so from the driving seat. 7.4 Great drivers and world champions come from all countries, please keep down the nationalistic bias. 7.5 Not everyone on this group is male; chauvinist pig behaviour will be spotted and rebuked! (By me and others!) Drivers are good or bad on their own merits, not those of their chromosomes. I'll let you get away with sexism, so long as it is in a humorous vein; I too think that the swimsuit clad girlies on the grid are unlikely to be filling in time between rocket-science engagements. 7.6 Not everyone on this group has English as a first language - don't slag off someone for poor grammar or spelling. However English is the language of the group, please try to post in it. 7.7 Spoilers; if you are posting within two days of a Grand Prix, don't put the result in the header, just something like 'Hungarian GP - SPOILERS'; not 'Schumacher wins in Germany' as this upsets people. On the other hand, it is almost certain that somebody will violate the spoiler rule so read the group at your peril - I have never seen the result of a race NOT given away in at least one subject line!! Please don't perpetuate the regular post-race argument about whether spoilers should or shouldn't be used. We all know the arguments for and against spoilers so it is REALLY, REALLY BORING and you cannot add anything original to previous discussions. 7.8 Don't ask people to post results, practice times, starting grids etc. All of these will be posted at least half a dozen times so it is not necessary to ask - you will even see Friday's practice times still being posted on Tuesday afternoon. If you haven't seen the results within a few hours, then you have a slow newsfeed and we can't help you with that. 7.9 Don't post test messages. There are many news groups set up specifically for test messages - use them. (If you post to alt.test you will even get automatic responses from a couple of sites around the world telling you how long it took your post to get to their site). 7.10 If you're responding to a long post, please use the delete key liberally to edit the original message. People don't want to page through a three page message to see your "I agree" reply. 7.11 Please ensure that your software restricts your post to 72 character per line. Most people will not read messages which spill off the edge of their screen. 8. F1 WEB SITES My personal list of bookmarks includes the following sites: For daily news: http://www.nando.net/newsroom/sports/oth/1996/oth/car/feat/car.ht ml For race previews and reports as well as results and times by e- mail: http://www.atlasf1.com For feature articles: http://www.telegraph.co.uk For statistics: http://www.siii.pt/f1/ This is just my personal list and there are a lot of very good F1 sites out there. Check the web version of the FAQ for a few more. 9. TICKET INFORMATION (Editor's note: I would like to expand on this section and possibly make it a separate posting. Anybody who has this sort of information on any regular and/or future venues, please let me know). Canada - Grand Prix Molson du Canada Phone: (514) 350-0000 Fax: (514) 350-4709 1997 prices - Gold 3 day Can$335 Silver 3 day Can$275 Bronze 3 day Can$135 G.A. 3 day Can$75 G.A. daily Can$20, 35 and 50 Consensus seems to be that the stands at the hairpin, silver or bronze, are the best value for money. Golds are over-priced. General Admission - can be OK but get there very early. Circuit accessible by public transport - subway to Ile St-Helene station. Belgian Grand Prix Spa Francorchamps (usually held at last weekend of August) R.F.P. Route du Circuit 55 B-4970 Francorchamps Tel +32 87-27.51.46 / 27.51.38 Fax +32 87-27.55.51 / 27.52.96 1997 prices Sunday Weekend Gold 3 BEF 12500 Gold 1,2,4 BEF 11000 Gold 1,2,4 Child BEF 7000 Silver 1,2,3,4 BEF 8500 Silver 1,2,3,4 Chd BEF 6000 Bronze BEF 5000 6000 Bronze Child BEF 2500 3000 Green is limited access only, which means you allowed to stand on the banking along the 'Kemmel' straight. Bronze gives you access to (practically) all around the circuit. There are some pretty fast corners at Spa, which are a must to be seen {Usually a spin or two occurs at well :-)}. A Silver ticket buys you a place at the open tribunes, while Gold either gives you right to sit at the covered tribune at the finish line or the tribune facing the awesome 'Eau Rouge' corner. Looking for a place to stay? The Tourist Office might help you out: Spa Office du Tourisme Place Royal 41 B 4900 Spa Tel (+32) 87 77.17.00 Fax (+32) 87 77.07.00 Monaco Grand Prix Always held at the weekend following Ascension day. The following information about the event in 1996 was found on the Webpages at http://www.monaco.mc/monaco/gprix/stand.html Prices Thursday Saturday Sunday Stand Situation 16-May 18-May 19-May A1 Saint Devote - Tabac 250F 600F 1400F A3 Viaduc Saint Devote 250F 600F 1400F A4 Ave de la Costa - 300F 500F B Casino 250F 700F 1400F E Chicane - 600F 1400F K Quai Albert 1er 300F 750F 1500F M Route de la Piscine 300F 700F 1400F N Piscine panne Nord 200F 450F 900F O Piscine Plongeur 200F 600F 1400F P Piscine panne Sud 200F 450F 900F L Piscine Rainier III 200F 450F 900F T Cale de halage 150F 300F - U Virage Rascasse 250F - - V Virage Anthony Noghes 250F 600F 1400F W Courbe des Gazometres 250F 600F 1400F Z1 Av J.F. Kennedy 100F 200F 300F Z2 Virage Anthony Noghes 150F 300F 600F R Rocher de Monaco - 150F 200F Seating Notes General: Stands K,M have the best view of the large TV screen (positioned above and behind stand Z1.) Stand R is a large grass bank with a view down over the port. There are no official seats. The large TV can also be seen from this stand. Thursday: The tickets do not reference a seat number. You are free to sit anywhere in the stand you have chosen. Stands K,M: The ticket allows access to K and M. Stands N,O,P: The ticket allows access to N,O and P. Friday: The stands are free. The circuit is only operational in the morning and there is no Formula 1 action. Saturday: The tickets for all stands except Z,Z1,R are numbered to specific seats. Sunday: The tickets for all stands except Z,Z1,R are numbered to specific seats. Buying Tickets The Monaco Grand Prix tickets are on sale at the Automobile Club of Monaco Reservations Office *) or at the accredited agents: France: Voyages Kuoni 2 rue Marechal Joffre 06000 Nice Tel: 93.16.08.02, FAX: 93.16.15.45 Great Britain: Page and Moy 136 London Road Leicester LE2 1EN Tel: (116) 252.4344, FAX: (116) 252.4283 Italy: Bononia Viaggi Galleria del Toro 3 40121 Bologna Tel: (51) 26.39.85, FAX: (51) 23.93.17 Switzerland: A.C. der Schweiz Birsigstrasse 4 4011 Basel Tel: (61) 272.39.33, FAX: (61) 281.36.57 *) Automobile Club de Monaco 23, Bd. Albert 1er MC98012 Monaco Tel: +377.93.15.26.00 FAX: +377.93.25.80.08 PORTUGUESE GRAND PRIX Contact info: ACP (Automovel Clube de Portugal) R. Rosa Araujo, 24 P 1250 Lisboa Tel: 351 1 3563931 351 1 7936899 Fax: 351 1 577708 351 1 7930597 1996 PRICES +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ | Grandstand | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Weekend | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ | A | - | - | - | 40 000$ | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ | B | - | - | - | 35 000$ | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ | C | 6 000$ | 10 000$ | 20 000$ | 23 000$ | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ | E | 6 000$ | 10 000$ | 12 000$ | 16 000$ | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ | H | 6 000$ | 12 000$ | 20 000$ | 25 000$ | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ |K (no seats)| - | - | 10 000$ | 12 000$ | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ |Paddock Vip | - | - | - | US $1300 | +------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+ Prices in Portugueses escudos (except Paddock in US dollars). Some exchange rates: 1 UKP ~= 239$ 1 US $ ~= 158$ 1 DM ~= 103$ 1 FF ~= 30$ Check http://bin.gnn.com/cgi-bin/gnn/currency?Portugal for other exchange rates. In 1995, in the C/E/H/K grandstands children up to age of 12 years accompanied by an adult payed 50% of adult price. Check Rui Pedro Mendes Salgueiro's home page http://www.mat.uc.pt/~rps/f1/ for a map of the track, with the position of the grandstands. A - In the start-finish line B - Just after the A C - On the outside of the first bend K - On the inside of the track, from the first bend to the beginning of the fourth. E - On the inside of the track, near the new chicane. Moving around it is possible to see from the inside parabolica to the chicane and the Ss (there are more than one grandstand in this area). H - On the outside of the Parabolica Senna. 17TH GRAN PREMIO DI SAN MARINO 1997 25/26/27 April 1997 in Imola (Italy) Contact Info: SAGIS s.p.a. Via Fratelli Rosselli 2 I-40026 Imola (Italy) phone: (+39) 0542 / 31444 fax: (+39) 0542/ 30420 Ticket Office: SAGIS s.p.a. Piazzale Leonardo Da Vinci, 1 I-40026 Imola (Italy) phone: (+39) 0542 / 34116 fax: (+39) 0542/ 34159 Ticket prices for 1997: Friday Saturday Sunday Weekend Stand Situation 25-April 26-April 27-May Prato (No seats) 50'000 70'000 80'000 130'000 Prato Tosa (No seats) 50'000 80'000 100'000 160'000 A Start/Finish 100'000 200'000 500'000 B (TV) Tosa 80'000 130'000 280'000 C (TV) Acque Mineali 50'000 70'000 250'000 D (TV) Acque Mineali 50'000 70'000 250'000 E (TV) Acque Mineali 50'000 70'000 250'000 F (TV) Acque Mineali 50'000 70'000 250'000 G Variante Alta 50'000 70'000 220'000 H Rivazza 50'000 70'000 200'000 I Marlboro 50'000 130'000 300'000 L Agip Petroli 240'000 M Exit Marlboro 50'000 130'000 350'000 P (TV) Panoramico Al 80'000 130'000 250'000 P (TV) Panoramica Ba 80'000 130'000 220'000 68th Gran Premio d'Italia 1997 5/6/7 September 1997 in Monza (Italy) Ticket prices for 1997: Friday Saturday Sunday Weekend Stand Situation 5-Sept 6-Sept 7-Sep General admission 50'000 75'000 75'000 130'000 F (TV) Central Grandstand 100'000 Sold out H (TV) Left Lateral 320'000 C (TV) Right Lateral 100'000 400'000 J Inner Goodyear 300'000 K (TV) Outer Goodyear 100'000 380'000 L Second Variant 220'000 M Roggia Stand 220'000 N1 Serraglio 200'000 P Ascari 3 Stand 250'000 Q (TV) Ascari 2 Stand 100'000 350'000 S (TV) Rombo Stand 100'000 350'000 T1 Junior Stand 200'000 Y (TV) Parabolica Lateral 200'000 Z (TV) Renault Parabolica 320'000 Z1 Inner Parabolica 220'000 Daily Car Parking Pass 30'000 Daily Car Parking Pass & General admission 190'000 *Note: The prices have a surplus of 3% for booking in advance. Ticket are not sold before May! All prices in Italian Lira Check http://www.olsen.ch/cgi-bin/exmenu for exchange rates. 10. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The contribution of the following individuals is very gratefully acknowledged. This FAQ would not have been possible without them. Harald Bloche [HB] bloche@postix.gmd.de David Byrne [DB] yr39401@cs.may.ie Glenn Durden [GD] alfa@melb.alexia.net.au Tim Downie [TD] trd@fisher.stats.bris.ac.uk Darryl Ellson [DE] darryl@trigger.ch.umist.ac.uk Helen Gerald [HG] geraldh@logica.com Thomas Gmuer [TG] tgmur@tinet.ch Andrew Henry [AH] rasfaq@bath.ac.uk Tom Herre [TH] therre@online.no Chuck Ingene [CI] caingene@u.washington.edu RP Mendes Salgueiro[RM] rps@mat.uc.pt Randy Malbone [RM] rmalbon@cs.umb.edu Kim Meijs [KM] kh.meijs@via.nl Hans Molenaar [HM] hmolenaa@hbg.nl Hugh Rankin [HR] hrankin@ibm.net AJ Samuels [AS] ajsamuels@dolomite.win-uk.net Chris 'Bart'Simpson[CS] simpson@stsci.edu Ulrich Teichert [UT] krypton@netzservice.de A big thank you also to McLaren, Jordan, Tyrrell, Sauber, Benetton, Ferrari and Minardi for their assistance. Copyright (c) 1997 by Mitchell McCann -- The hoopiest site in the whole, wide web. The F1 FAQ, circuit maps, pictures, naked women and the incomparable "Formula One Insider." OK. So four out of five aint bad. http://www.ultranet.com/~mitchmcc