MO SC O W HOW DO YOU DO... MOSCOW! - Passport magazine
MO SC O W HOW DO YOU DO... MOSCOW! - Passport magazine
MO SC O W HOW DO YOU DO... MOSCOW! - Passport magazine
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City Beat<br />
Formula One in Moscow<br />
32 August 2009<br />
text and photos Jeff Kershaw<br />
The acrid smells of tire smoke and racing fuel, the eyecatching<br />
sights of beautiful cars and beautiful people and<br />
the pulse quickening scream of engines revving to 18,000<br />
rpm. It must be Formula One. A single Formula One race attracts<br />
a viewing audience of over 600 million people worldwide.<br />
Attendance at the race in Monaco could cost between<br />
2,000 and 12,000 Euros.<br />
On one Sunday in July for the past two years, Bavaria City<br />
Racing has brought a taste of Formula One to the Russian<br />
Capital and promises to do so for at least the next three<br />
years. Bavaria Moscow City Racing is an event where F1 fans<br />
and newcomers alike can get a feel for the excitement that<br />
is Formula One racing. The event is sponsored by Bavaria<br />
brewing as well as British Petroleum, Oris, Ritz Carlton, Samsung<br />
and others.<br />
This is an event or exhibition, rather than a show, but seeing<br />
and hearing Formula One cars speeding around a 4.5km<br />
course in the very heart of Moscow is exciting to say the least.<br />
The course encircles the Kremlin, beginning at Vasilevsky<br />
Spusk with a tire smoked filled turn around Menezhnaya<br />
Square before heading back to the start/finish lane at Vasilevsky<br />
Spusk. The sight of Formula One racers up against a<br />
background of St. Basils Cathedral and Red Square was one<br />
not to be missed.<br />
This year’s event took place on the 19th of July. Three race<br />
teams were represented, Red Bull Racing (David Coultard),<br />
AT&T Williams (Kazuki Nakajima) and Vodafone McLaren Mercedes<br />
(Heikki Kovalainen). In addition to all the Formula One<br />
excitement, Moscow City Racing also features the famous<br />
Kamaz Master off road team, Moscow Drifters, Cabriolet Life<br />
and Supercars.ru. Kamaz Master has represented Russia in<br />
world famous events such as Paris-Dakar, Desert Challenge<br />
and others.<br />
There have been two failed attempts to bring a true Formula<br />
One event to Moscow as well as one for St. Petersburg.<br />
I for one truly hope that the Moscow City Racing events continue<br />
to whet the appetites of Moscovites and visitors, so that<br />
perhaps one day, Russia will have its own Grand Prix.<br />
Attendance to the event was, wait for it….free! Of course<br />
if you are a true fan of F1, you could have reserved a seat<br />
in any of the 11 grandstands for RUR 2,500 to 5,000 or for<br />
the died-in-the-wool fan, a VIP ticket that gives you access<br />
to the VIP area for RUR 10,000. If you attended and simply<br />
can’t wait for another dose of F1 excitement, the Formula<br />
One races are still yet to be held in Hungary, Belgium, Italy,<br />
Singapore, Japan, Brazil and Abu Dhabi. But bring your<br />
credit cards, I just looked, the price for a paddock club<br />
ticket to the event in Italy is 3,059 Euro per person, plus<br />
hotel etc. See you next year at the hottest motor sports<br />
event in Russia. P
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