pEANutBUTTERflyingraKUN: Adventure ~ F1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix (23

By pEANutbutter

Free ticket from company prompted me and flyingraKUN to jump into the bandwagon of life on the fast lane to Sepang International Circuit to watch F1 race live. It was a last minute bonus. Thanks a million to my boss!

Figure 1: The F1 ticket courtesy of my boss.

The Essentials

As it is the middle of March where Malaysia normally experience her monsoon season, it's essential to know what to bring. Most of the things needed is available on sale at the circuit, but of course its going to be double the prize. So this are some of the items:

1. Umbrella - shield yourself from the blazing sun or when it rains.

Good to bring your hat/cap too.

2. Towel - to wipe your sweat

3. Ear plug and earphone - yes, i mean both! the sound of the revving

engine will kill your eardrum. I got a massive migraine after the race

by just using ear plug.

4. Hand sanitizer - good to keep your hand clean when you eat food

as it's hard to get proper table and chair to sit down and eat

5. Small bottle of handwash - they don't provide soap to wash your

hand in a proper dispenser. The same thing the last time I was here

2 years ago.

6. Cash - I don't see any ATM around. Even if they do, it may run

out of cash with approximately over 115,000 spectators attended

the race as reported by TheStar. Only certain items can be bought

using credit card like merchandise, etc.

6. Sunglases.

7. Hairband for those with long hair.

8. Anything that you are comfortable to walk in as there are going to

be a lot of walking.

9. Some reading material in case bored.

Figure 2: Sepang circuit area

Food & Beverage

Outside food and drinks is not allow in. They will check your bag. They do sell drinks, food like pizza, KFC, local delight, etc. Here are some of the items we bought:

1. Pizza (RM35.00) - 1 regular pizza with 2 bottles of water (plain water) from Pizza Hut

2. Nestle cone ice-cream (RM5.00)

3. Plain water in 500mL bottle (RM5.00)

Before I enter the circuit area, I drink up a 500mL bottle of Gatorade (which I bought from outside). It really helps to hydrate me the whole day.

Parking

Figure 3: The ticket pricing for F1 Petronas
Malaysia Grand Prix
Source: www.malaysia-grand-prix.com/

Arriving there at 9am, we park at area Bay4 (RM10.00/day) which is approximately 500m walk to the main entrance of the circuit. Since it's early and the crowd is still small, we decided to take the chartered bus to the entrance. The funny thing is, we has to change to another bus halfway through to reach the main entrance. For those who plan ahead, they can actually rent a nearer parking space for 3 days right in front of the main entrance. It cost RM53 and the presale is only until 18th March. Since I got the F1 ticket on 23rd March itself, I didn't manage to get this parking. The good thing about this is you get to secure a space for yourself for 3 days without the need to rush with others. So you can go anytime you like. You may also get there by public transport. More information on this, check out www.malaysia-grand-prix.com/

Seatings

We was seated at the Topaz area at the grandstand which apparently cost RM773! The seat has very nice view. Its not at the start/finish line where the pit lane are located. Its located at the corner before the race car turn into the pit lane or cross the start/finish line. Although you may not be able to see the start and end of the race, but sitting in this area provide you the best view for some action as it has some cornering while on the other hand, the start/finish line is just a straight road. During the race, we did witness some overtaking, etc. Regardless of where you sit, you won't be missing anything as a giant screen shows all the action.

It rains heavily after the race started briefly, thus race was interrupted and delay for about one hour. The road was still wet when the race restarted. We was so close to the racing car that when it race pass us, we can feel some droplets of rain water from the road. So you can imagine how fast the car is.

Highlight
1. Merchandise of any of your favorite team.
2. Showcase of some Mercedez Benz in line with Petronas partnership with the team.
3. Autograph session with the drivers - the line is super long. So, if you really insist,
start queuing from 10am although the even starts at 12pm. No kidding.

The race ended at around 6.45pm. The traffic out of the circuit is quite bad, but it was manage well by the traffic's personnel. We was diverted to the town of Sepang so that we will not be clashing with those traveller heading to the Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT). It's a longer route, but one has to bear with it. A wiser choice is to leave the circuit before the race ended. But of course, once your there, might as well stay until the end or it won't serve the purpose and effort you made. Overall, it was a great experience. But deep down, I still prefer Motogp.