Travel Story 2: My Formula 1 Baptism

If you know me, then you know that I am not much of a sports person. Okay, let me clarify: I love football and tennis enough to make up for all the other sports that I don’t like or I don’t know anything about but that’s the extent of my sports knowledge. I also don’t know anything about cars. Ask me the difference between a Toyota and a Honda is like asking me about math (meaning, blank stare).

So it came as a surprise to my friends that I actually went to Singapore to watch the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix when they themselves who are F1 addicts have never even watched a race live. I have to admit, the only way my friend Pam convinced me to go with her was the prospect of seeing cute guys and of course watching Muse and Red Hot Chili Peppers live.

In preparation for the trip, I watched the Netflix F1 docu-series Drive to Survive and the way they told the stories of the mid-tier teams (no Mercedes or Ferrari in this one) actually piqued my interest. But still I went to Singapore knowing next to nothing about the sport except for the names of the drivers and which team they were on.

First day was just “practice” and the second day was the qualifying while the last day was the actual race. Stepping onto the grounds of the Marina Bay Circuit even on that first day was already electrifying. You could see how everyone was so excited to see the cars drive around even if it was just basically practice sessions. And when I saw the first few cars drive around the circuit, I almost yelled “Guys, not so fast! You might crash!” But as I started getting used to the speed and the power of the cars and the skills of the drivers, I started to understand why people were crazy about this sport even though you would only see the cars drive past you for a split second every few minutes or so. Even though we were just passive viewers, the adrenaline and the amazement at those powerful machines and human beings was flowing through us.

So from Friday to Sunday, I was so caught up in the F1 fever that I kept checking news stories, tweets, social media posts of the drivers, etc all throughout the weekend. And now I’m still following the sport past Singapore although I still know very little about rules and techniques and all the power plays, but I’m fascinated with the behind the scenes drama and the actual races themselves. Since the Netflix docu was my initial exposure, I’ve started to root for the middle teams and the underdogs, although of course it’s hard not to cheer for the charming and insanely talented 21-year-old Charles Leclerc (it helps that he’s very cute too lol).

So for this part of the trip, my travel lesson is this: Say yes every once in a while to things that you know nothing about because you just might discover new things to love. It’s never too late to start experiencing new things as long as you keep that spirit of wonder and adventure alive in your heart.

Oh, and seeing Muse and RHCP live was the icing on top of this speedy cake. But that’s another story for another time.