I like attending to different events, especially to the mass ones. I had never been before to a circuit, and I was lucky enough to win a small contest awarded with two tickets for the GP Catalunya of the MotoGP Championship in Barcelona.
The tickets were for the whole weekend, but we could only manage to be there for the free trainings on Saturday. I was surprised of how easy it was to get into the circuit with the car and so on, but then we realized not many people go on Saturday… and they are pretty right.
Disclaimer: Before continue reading my comments, please be aware that I am not a MotoGP fan. In fact, I’m not sure I had ever watched a complete race before last weekend’s, and I did not know more than a handful of names.
Saturday is not a fun day. The different pilots ride their motorbikes for 40 minutes in each category just trying to beat themselves… It is the free practice race. So, from the spectator point of view, you just see motorbikes continuously “flying” in front of you, but what you get to see (who goes after who) does not count at all, as it is totally irrelevant because only the timing is important in this case. The qualifying race, also on Saturday, is a bit more interesting, but you cannot still appreciate any big difference… We used that day to learn about the different pilots, and try to identify them with each different helmet.
Sunday, though, is much more interesting. Lots of people attend (but not many to the practice race) and you actually see a race: pilots trying to surpass others and risking in each single curve. Fun: even if we did not get the best tickets in the circuit (we were sitting in the fastest part of the circuit, instead of close to some curves), we shared the emotion and drama with the Spanish pilots.
In conclusion: great experience, but I would recommend skipping Saturday’s session and go directly on Sunday, with a fridge with cold drinks, and a lot of sun protection.
By the way, I particularly liked the way the police had organized the departure of all spectators’ cars and motorbikes. Depending on the parking you had your car, they routed you to a different road in a different direction. Instead of creating a huge traffic jam in the closes highway entrance, they sent us to a 20 km away entrance thorugh minor roads, avoiding any traffic jam. From the driver’s point of view, it is a longer way, but you are more relaxed as you do not stop in any moment, and it probably takes you less time.