In Continuum.

Speaking of breaking the rules, that was exactly the case when this whole "motor racing" thing started out in the beginning. Initially, they didn't have any rules as to the power of the cars, the weight of the cars, or the size of the cars in general. Due to the fact that a lot of older races happened on public streets, and also because the organizing committees wanted to reinforce fairness between racers during the races, they came up with a set of rules and regulations for the participants to follow, called "Formula". The number "one" is merely the class that the cars are in, with Formula Two involving smaller cars, and Formula Three involving even smaller cars. But you know how humans are, we don't like our cars to be too small sometimes. That is also why Formula One is to most popular motor racing sport in all of the motor racing sport in the world. Admittedly, I didn't know of the above until a little bit of research online, and my lack of interest when it comes to cars also contributed to my lack of knowledge. I thought "Formula One" refers to some secret petrol X that the racers used for their racers. Too much cartoons for me, I suppose. I did grow up watching Speed Racer, after all. 

So this is the first time something like that is happening here, and it is indeed something to be very proud of, I'm sure. I mean, the scale of such an event is just so huge, you can't help but to be astounded by it. The problem, however, is of course the inconveniences involved with organizing such an event. Sure, the massive traffic jam yesterday morning was due to the rain in general, and not to mention the train breaking down over at Tampines. However, I am pretty sure the road closures in town had something to do with the morning traffic, one way or another. My mother's drive to the office yesterday morning took a little more than an hour, not to mention the fact that everybody has to find various ways to get into town now. The taxi drivers are probably going to rejoice though, with all the surcharges flowing in like a fountain during this three day period. Think about it: let's say you are a spectator at the F1 race this year, and the only way for you to get home from that part of town would be to take a public transport, or to take a cab. You could always walk out of that part of town but, that'd take some time. That is when the taxi option comes in, and here is how much money they are going to earn. 

You step into the cab, they automatically earn $2.80. There's a petrol surcharge at $0.30, not to mention the peak hour charge at 35% of the total fare at the end of the trip. If you are stupid enough to call for a cab via your phone, that is another $2.00 (if I am not wrong) out of your wallet. For a special three-day period only, you also get charged $5.00 extra for taking a cab out from town. So, let me sum up. If you are taking cab out of the event area within this three day period, stepping into the cab itself is going to cost you $10.10. That does not include the journey home, mind you, which could cost upwards of twenty dollars, depending on where you are going. A trip from Kallang to Clementi Road for April yesterday was a whopping $26, so you can do the math yourself. The cab drivers are probably going to earn in big bucks tomorrow, all thanks to this single event, which is not putting any smiles on the commuters' faces at all. Personally, being there is not exactly what I have in mind when it comes to having a good weekend with friends. First of all, I have to deal with the people there at the event. Since this is probably going to be a once-in-a-lifetime deal, you'd expect the event to attract all sorts of people. Middle-aged men and women, having nothing to do on a weekend, would probably bring their whole family to the event - which is just weird, in my opinion. There's nothing wrong, of course, just weird. I mean, we have this family in flip-flops on one side of the grand stand, and then David Beckham on the other. What's up with that? 

Then I have to tolerate the noise of the engines. I mean, I usually give dirty stares at pretentious drivers around Singapore who like to modify their car engines to make their cars sound sexier. In actual fact, I read, women are only really attracted to the sound of Maserati engines, followed closely by Ferrari ones. I'm sorry, but your modified Honda isn't really going to make the cut with the ladies. It is a nuisance, especially when you are in a quiet neighborhood and some pseudo-sports car speeds by with his engines all fired up. It is irritating and annoying, sad attempts at making your car feel that much closer to a real F1 racer. But with all the rules and the speed limit being capped at 90km/h in this country, I don't suppose you can go very far anyway. So yes, I have to tolerate the noise of the engines, which is just unbearable to my ears. I dislike the sound of tires screeching on tarmac, or just the general sound of loud engines anyway. I can understand why some people can be attracted by the idea of an engine being fired up. Perhaps it demonstrates the amount of power the car has, and by association the driver of the car as well. It doesn't matter if you are skinny and wimpy at the same time. You really only need a car engine that sets off the highest decibel reading. 

In truth, I am not ready to invest that kind of money for the tickets. I heard that for one thousand dollars a night, you get to view the race from the highest hotel in the world. Of course, the racers are also going to be no bigger than your thumb nail, but they obviously are going to leave that out from the brochures. I did the math, so hear me out. Let's say you do buy tickets to watch this race thing, and you are sitting there at one of the grand stands, with your camera ready and everything. At its slowest, the cars are probably going to pass you by within one second, which means a 62 round race is probably going to come up to about one minute in total. One car is going to appear before your eyes for one minute, and that excites you? OK, we throw in a whole lot of cars at the very same time during the finals, that is still not going to be a lot of time spent anyway. People might argue that you get the atmosphere and stuff. You get to see it, you get to hear it, you get to smell it, you may even get to taste it if you are crazy enough to lick the tarmac. But if I am going to spend that kind of money, I'd rather do so on something which is going to last longer than one minute before my eyes. It's really not worth it, to me. 

Here's some of the perks you get if you watch the race at home. You get air-conditioning, which is a plus in a weather like Singapore. Rain or shine, you get the roof above your head and the comfort of your sofa. You can grab a drink from the fridge whenever you want, and you even get to view the race from the camera mounted in the driver's helmet. You are constantly bombarded with updates, statistics, commentaries, not to mention a thousand different angles to view the race. At least the cars are constantly in sight, and not for one second in every round they make around the circuit. Here's another reason for you to catch the race at home: after the race, you can fall asleep on the couch if you want to. The bed isn't too far away either, and you won't have to endure the homebound crowd once the race ends. That is always a plus, I am sure. Oh, and not to mention the fact that you get to see the crew change those tires at lightning speed. Now that is definitely something I love to watch during any F1 race, the speed at which the crew changes the tires and the petrol is just, not humanly possible. But like many other impossible feats, they are interesting to watch. 

That is one thing I like about motor racing, the changing of tires. Then there's the other aspect, which is the car crash. It's a cheap thrill of mine, but I love to see car crashes. You know, multi-car pile up on expressways, trucks being smashed into smithereens by trains, cars being blown up and stuff. I hate to see people get hurt or get killed, and I certainly don't hope for that to happen to anybody. But you know, the act of cars being destroyed is just so fun to watch, and they tend to happen during F1 races. Here we have, perfectly engineered cars, traveling through narrow streets at three hundred kilometers per hour, being smashed into pieces at top speed too. It's kind of like how we love monster movies, the way they smash buildings in big cities and to crush cars with their feet. We love to see things being destroyed, which is also why those "Most Dangerous Moments Caught On Tape!" shows are always being brought back to life. I do not wish for the injury or the death of anybody of course, but some kind of crash or explosion would be very nice to watch indeed. 

Other than that, I am not very hyped about the race itself. I'd be interested with a tennis match between Federer and Nadal in Singapore, or the NBA dream team playing here or something. Those would be events that I'd be genuinely psyched about. And as for motor racing, I am not so sure, I am not a fan. I just don't get the racing, you know, like crickets. I don't get cricket at all. Why do they always toss the ball in that funky way, anyway? I think Singapore should try to import monster trucks next time, and have them run over piles of Comfort Cabs. Die, you money sucking monsters! That'd be pretty interesting to watch, and I'd pay good money for the destruction of perfectly fine cars on a field. I think Singapore has done a magnificent job at organizing this event though, but I am just not particularly into it at all. Terence, my high school friend, probably shares the same sentiments. "F1 is crap!" is his MSN nickname, and I do wonder how many people out there feel the same as me, as the rest of the country goes crazy over watching speeding cars.