Formula One has been my absolute obsession this past year. My obsession began when I binge watched Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix in early January and ever since I have been enthralled by the sport. Needless to say, I have been looking forward to this day all year!
My friends and I had General Admission One Day tickets for Saturday 10/18 at the United States Grand Prix in Austin. We had such a wonderful experience, despite the sunny Texas day! Even though this was my first ever race experience, I feel like we were able to get the most out of the day!
Seeing as Formula 1 is growing ever more popular in the states, (especially for the girlies!), I thought I would write down all the tips and tricks I had for any future COTA racegoers!
What’s In My Bag:
- NorthFace Backpack – I had no issues with this size bag getting into the track
- Plastic, Unopened Water Bottle – I wasn’t willing to risk bringing a metal reusable bottle, though I did see others walking around with them! We bought some water bottles from Starbucks before getting on our shuttles and again.. no issues!
- Umbrella – having a way to hide from the sun was absolutely essential seeing as there is hardly any shade found at COTA
- Picnic Blanket – I purchased a last-minute picnic blanket from Amazon, and it was one of the best items we had! Be sure to get one that doesn’t stick to the grass!
- Foldable Chairs – I wouldn’t say these were a necessity but they were very nice to have. I purchased mine for $5 at Academy the night before the race!
- Portable Fan – as someone who has grown up in Texas, there is nothing more brutal than the Texas sun. I would consider having a portable fan as essential for this race.
- Hidden Snacks – We stuffed some protein bars into the picnic blanket as a way to sneak in some snacks. In the future I would bring even more, they didnt seem to care at all at the gates!
- Sunscreen – again, the Texas sun is brutal, be sure to come prepared!
- Hat & Sunglasses – Be sure to buy a team hat beforehand as the prices of merchandise at the track are very high!
- Circuit Map – We were able to grab a map from one of the Information Centers near the entrance of the track.
Shuttle Experience:
There were two shuttle options getting in and out of COTA this year. There was one shuttle going to and from Waterloo Park in Downtown Austin, and one to and from the Travis County Expo Center in Northeast Austin. We stayed in Round Rock, TX overnight therefore the NE Austin shuttle was the most convenient option for us (it was also the cheaper ticket!).
The ride in to the track was much longer compared to the ride out. We arrived at the Expo center at about 10:00AM but because of the traffic we were on the bus for over an hour before arriving to the circuit. The dedicated bus only lane was convenient to get into the track quicker than the line of cars but the lane was much shorter than I had initially thought.
We left the track that evening during the Eminem concert that had followed the qualifying session. The ride out of the circuit was much smoother than the ride in. We got back to the Expo center in about half the time it took to arrive that morning.
Overall, I would recommend the shuttle service as it was a much better value in both time and money compared to finding parking at the track.
Where We Sat:
We found a spot to watch the sprint race near the fencing at turn 18. This was honestly such a fun place to see an F1 car for the very first time! Because it is tucked in front of a hospitality center, there weren’t many people crowded into the space. We had plenty of space to lay out our blanket and chairs while we waited for the sprint race to begin.
The cars come flat out through the long right turn and it was so cool to watch them come around the corner and then disappear into turn 19. We also had a view from afar of Turn 1 on the hill!
After the sprint race we explored the track until it was time to set our stuff down to watch the Qualifying session. We ended up traveling over to Turn 1 on the hill so that we had views of the pit lane and could see the qualifying times on the big screen. Watching the cars speed up the hill at the end of a straight was truly incredible. You certainly don’t realize the utter speed at which these cars travel until seeing them in person!
I would definitely recommend sitting near a screen during qualifying in order to keep up with the times. Turn 1 was such a fun experience and I was so glad to have watched Lando take pole from this spot!
Concert Experience:
We didn’t stay long at the Eminem concert that evening and I was glad to have left when we did. I honestly did not enjoy this experience as it was the most claustrophobic concert I have ever been to. The amount of people on this lawn was astounding and everyone was pushing and shoving to try and move forwards nearer to the stage. There were also golf carts trying to drive in and out of the crowd which was adding so much stress to the situation.
We only stayed for the opening song before making it to one of the few exits, they had for the concert. Unfortunately, unless you upgrade your ticket for the concert and unless you get there before most of the crowd arrives, I wouldn’t recommend the evening concert, especially if you find large crowds to be overwhelming like me.
Things I Would Do Differently:
I’m overall very pleased with my first experience at COTA for the United States Grand Prix. I will absolutely be returning to the circuit to watch Formula 1. When I return to Austin, there are a few things that I will do to make the experience even more enjoyable.
To start, I will arrive to the shuttles earlier in order to try and beat the heavy traffic surrounding the Circuit. I will also attempt to hide more snacks in my bag and perhaps bring a more insulated water bottle in order to try and keep my water cool. Though we didn’t have too much trouble filling up our waters, the water was lukewarm at best and was not that enjoyable.
I would also like to experience being higher up at Turn 1 in order to the cars go back down towards turn 2. There was a lot of action at this part of the track, and I would love to be able to see it close up!
To Finish,
It was such a wonderful day spent at the Circuit of the Americas and if you are a Formula One fan I would highly recommend traveling to this circuit to watch an event during the race weekend!
If you are heading to your own F1 race experience, I hope your day at the track is as amazing as mine was!
Ainsley XX
