V8 Supercars at the track and on the street

Saturday, 06 February 2010 21:29

Street circuits versus race tracks, this is a debate that has been going on for many years across a variety of motorsports categories and the Australian V8 Supercar Series is no exception.

Given the two big track announcements in relation to the 2010 V8 Supercar calendar this week I thought I’d also look at the merits of each, from a spectator’s perspective, in this week’s Power Fix.

Firstly, the race tracks. They may not have the most modern of facilities but these tracks usually offer more than enough features to compensate for this flaw. The main advantage they offer us as spectators is usually a much wider view. At a street circuit you may only see one section of the straight or a single corner, whereas at a race track you may be able to see several sections or even the whole track, from a sole vantage point.

Another important advantage for those of us who are keen photographers is the absence of the layers and layers of fencing that are required at street races. This means that when you attend an event at a race track you are able to get really great photos that don’t include cubed wire squares!

Finally, in my experience I’ve also found that the ticket prices at these events are generally cheaper.

While the ticket prices for the street circuit events that I’ve been to have been more expensive, they did include more. Not only more on-track entertainment but also off-track entertainment, including nightly concerts featuring, up and coming as well as established, local and international acts.

In addition to the entertainment, street circuits often offer more modern facilities. They also feature televisions around the circuit so you are able to monitor all of the action and the audio commentary seems to have better coverage.

I’ve also found street circuit events to have a more electric atmosphere. This may have something to do with the more diverse crowd that seems to be attracted to these events as well as the off-track entertainment. It is not unusual for this atmosphere to seemingly take over the entire city holding the event either! In addition to this the proximity of the street circuit to the city also means that these events are usually easier to attend using public transport.

And now to this week’s announcements for the 2010 Australian V8 Supercar calendar. The first of these was in relation to the Queensland Raceway, which had been listed as provisional when the 2010 calendar was issued late last year, and was then cancelled at the beginning of this year after negotiations between V8 Supercars Australia and the track owner broke down. However on Tuesday it was announced that this event has been reinstated for 2010 after a new round of negotiations were successful.

The second related to the Gold Coast street event, which saw spectator numbers dwindle in 2009 after the A1GP debacle. It was announced on Thursday that the V8 Supercars have been given a two-year deal to take over the event and turn it into an international attraction. The renamed SuperCARnivale, which has seen the event shortened to three days and the track almost halved, will feature 600km’s of V8 Supercar action and a new endurance race featuring world renowned drivers from 17 countries.

It’s not going to be the only event on the 2010 calendar with international flavour with the V8 Supercars also racing on the Abu Dhabi and Bahrain tracks as well as on the streets of New Zealand. Regardless of whether it’s a race track or a street circuit though I’ll be looking forward to every single event! www.girlracer.co.uk

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