French GP - Bad reviews - Traffic/Parking/Facilities

French GP - Bad reviews - Traffic/Parking/Facilities

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Discussion

GTBob

Original Poster:

155 posts

177 months

Saturday 18th January 2020
quotequote all
I was just about to buy tickets for the French and Austrian GPs but have just read really bad reviews of the French GP on https://www.bookf1.com/ from the standpoint of facilities, crowd control, traffic management and parking. These were from 2018. Can anyone reassure me that things had improved last year or that we know of plans for improvement this year?
Thanks
Bob

TheDeuce

21,275 posts

65 months

Saturday 18th January 2020
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The 2018 traffic problems were a hot topic last year but it turns out they were all resolved.

The only remaining problem is that now you can get to the track on time, you'll have little option but to watch the entire GP. And my god, it's the dullest on the calendar. Even last year when all other supposedly dull GP's were elevated by the improved over taking etc, the French GP still managed to be tragically dull. We're talking here about a GP in which even the commentators complained live on air about it being boring.

Are you sure about this!? wink

Eric Mc

121,788 posts

264 months

Saturday 18th January 2020
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Just looking at that circuit gives me a headache. It looks like a 1960s psychedelic art work.

anonymous-user

53 months

Saturday 18th January 2020
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One reason for traffic improvement was a fall in attendance from 160k to 135k, 18-19.

As they say, you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.

It is a crap circuit, which produces poor racing. It should go back to what it was designed to be, a test facility.

TheDeuce

21,275 posts

65 months

Saturday 18th January 2020
quotequote all
REALIST123 said:
One reason for traffic improvement was a fall in attendance from 160k to 135k, 18-19.

As they say, you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.

It is a crap circuit, which produces poor racing. It should go back to what it was designed to be, a test facility.
It really is a test facility. Specifically designed so a car can fail dynamically and then skid to a halt, return to the track and have another go. Very useful if you're proving next year's Renault Clio but not exactly what F1 fans expect. Le ciruit du miserable.

A track you can't crash at: The FIA's home race. Pfft... Also painted in the colours of the national flag to remind us all it's more about national pride than partaking in a global sport. Good work guys...


Deesee

8,331 posts

82 months

Monday 20th January 2020
quotequote all
In regards to the crap circuit, it’s actually not bad, just really really tough to watch on TV.

Anyway the organisers handed the circuit over to the FIA bods to come up with a better layout.

They can back with a totally different track layout.. hehe

So that being a no go, they put a few options down.

Remove the chicane in the mistral (no go as there’s a 10k seat grandstand there).

Reprofile the mistral chicane so its tighter and a heavy breaking zone. (A nurbergring hairpin would be good Imo).

A 3rd DRS zone into Signes (that would be outrageous)...

And a reprofile (straighting) of turn 1/4 in the hope that the teams run less downforce and turn 4 becomes a heavy breaking zone.

There is due to be a support race with 25/30 historic cars this year so it might be worth the drive down this yr for me.



anonymous-user

53 months

Monday 20th January 2020
quotequote all
Deesee said:
In regards to the crap circuit, it’s actually not bad, just really really tough to watch on TV.

Anyway the organisers handed the circuit over to the FIA bods to come up with a better layout.

They can back with a totally different track layout.. hehe

So that being a no go, they put a few options down.

Remove the chicane in the mistral (no go as there’s a 10k seat grandstand there).

Reprofile the mistral chicane so its tighter and a heavy breaking zone. (A nurbergring hairpin would be good Imo).

A 3rd DRS zone into Signes (that would be outrageous)...

And a reprofile (straighting) of turn 1/4 in the hope that the teams run less downforce and turn 4 becomes a heavy breaking zone.

There is due to be a support race with 25/30 historic cars this year so it might be worth the drive down this yr for me.
Lipstick on a pig, IMO.

sparta6

3,689 posts

99 months

Monday 20th January 2020
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The traffic into Paul Ricard last year was free flowing .

Leaving the circuit there was a slight queue further down the hill but nothing on the scale of other circuit congestion.

As for the "race" ! All I can say is the lovely people and refreshments help compensate for attending a time trial.

TheDeuce

21,275 posts

65 months

Monday 20th January 2020
quotequote all
Deesee said:
In regards to the crap circuit, it’s actually not bad, just really really tough to watch on TV.
That's the problem though, as a race track it's too good, too safe, too perfect. The FIA's home race and their wet dream of how safe a circuit can be..

The best and most entertaining circuits are all flawed in some way. Or just plain ridiculous like Monaco.



Look at it. Unutterable turd.

Deesee

8,331 posts

82 months

Monday 20th January 2020
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TheDeuce said:
The best and most entertaining circuits are all flawed in some way.
Not flawed for me, just facetted different levels of complexity through the lap, best "modern" circuit, for me COTA, Old circuit, Interlagos, best of both Suzuka.

Id love to see Imola or Brands back on the championship roster, but these cars are just to damn quick, they had to butcher A1 ring, Hockenheim etc to get modern cars around, dare I say it they've even improved Silverstone (nb for the modern F1 car nothing else, imagine Grosjean taking bridge flat).

For the viewer, Id love so see Sepang and Istanbul Park back on TV, however the local french governments are paying the funds to have a GP in there region (they just need to switch the sprinklers on)... biglaugh



sparta6

3,689 posts

99 months

Monday 20th January 2020
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Deesee said:
Id love to see Imola or Brands back on the championship roster, but these cars are just to damn quick, they had to butcher A1 ring, Hockenheim etc to get modern cars around, dare I say it they've even improved Silverstone (nb for the modern F1 car nothing else, imagine Grosjean taking bridge flat).
biglaugh
+1

It's all about money - and Zandvoort proves that anything is possible when they have the right motivation.

Special dispensation can be given to any circuit should they choose £££.

Brands Hatch could be considered the London Grand Prix, and is certainly not Micky Mouse unlike the Formula E London venue this year

Norfolkit

2,394 posts

189 months

Monday 20th January 2020
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We went to Paul Ricard in 2018, it's as bad watching there as it is on TV, the only track I've ever been to that I wouldn't go back, still, at least you can get a beer.

TheDeuce

21,275 posts

65 months

Monday 20th January 2020
quotequote all
sparta6 said:
+1

It's all about money - and Zandvoort proves that anything is possible when they have the right motivation.

Special dispensation can be given to any circuit should they choose £££.

Brands Hatch could be considered the London Grand Prix, and is certainly not Micky Mouse unlike the Formula E London venue this year
Zandvoort is a great example of an interesting circuit Vs what France have offered.. There had to be a Dutch GP so of course zandvoort was on the table. The problem... The circuit isn't fast enough for modern F1 cars. Solution: apply unprecedented levels of banking to speed it up. It's essentially the same approach I took as a kid playing with my scalextric, stick a few coasters under the corners and the cars can go faster smile

My point being that zandvoort has a genuine reason to exist, so folk bent over backwards to make it so. I fully expect it will go on to become a a much loved circuit. The contrast between that and ricard... Let's be honest, if ricard was dropped tomorrow nobody would care.

carl_w

9,154 posts

257 months

Monday 20th January 2020
quotequote all
TheDeuce said:
That's the problem though, as a race track it's too good, too safe, too perfect. The FIA's home race and their wet dream of how safe a circuit can be..

The best and most entertaining circuits are all flawed in some way. Or just plain ridiculous like Monaco.



Look at it. Unutterable turd.
Surely getting rid of the stripy bits and painting them sand-trap yellow and grass green would be a massive improvement?

Deesee

8,331 posts

82 months

Tuesday 21st January 2020
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carl_w said:
urely getting rid of the stripy bits and painting them sand-trap yellow and grass green would be a massive improvement?
..




coppice

8,564 posts

143 months

Tuesday 21st January 2020
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TheDeuce said:
Zandvoort is a great example of an interesting circuit Vs what France have offered.. There had to be a Dutch GP so of course zandvoort was on the table. The problem... The circuit isn't fast enough for modern F1 cars. d circuit. The contrast between that and ricard... Let's be honest, if ricard was dropped tomorrow nobody would care.
Zandvoort was certainly quick enough for 1200bhp 80s F1 cars - I know because I was there. Of course a modern F1 car will lap quicker thanks to the dubious benefits of aero but I have to say it was a great circuit back then.

Ricard isn't great but France absolutely should have a GP - it sort of started the whole thing off after all . From some comments in the thread about FIA I am not sure Ricard's history is widely known - it was built , as a private venture in the late 60s by pastis magnate Paul ...err..Ricard . The French GP has of course had many homes - including Le Mans , Reims,Magny Cours , Dijon , Rouen and Clermont Ferrand (etc)

TheDeuce

21,275 posts

65 months

Tuesday 21st January 2020
quotequote all
coppice said:
Zandvoort was certainly quick enough for 1200bhp 80s F1 cars - I know because I was there. Of course a modern F1 car will lap quicker thanks to the dubious benefits of aero but I have to say it was a great circuit back then.

Ricard isn't great but France absolutely should have a GP - it sort of started the whole thing off after all . From some comments in the thread about FIA I am not sure Ricard's history is widely known - it was built , as a private venture in the late 60s by pastis magnate Paul ...err..Ricard . The French GP has of course had many homes - including Le Mans , Reims,Magny Cours , Dijon , Rouen and Clermont Ferrand (etc)
France should certainly have a GP. It's not lost on me how relevant France has been to the world of motorsport and cars in general.

Ricard is clearly an excellent facility and it's reasons for existing make complete sense to me. Sadly none of those reasons make it a good GP venue.

I think Deesee's photo of a forlorn F1 car meandering around a stripey car park sums up the problem. They have succeeded in making an F1 circuit that actually makes F1 cars look slow and unimpressive.

Deesee

8,331 posts

82 months

Tuesday 21st January 2020
quotequote all
coppice said:
Zandvoort was certainly quick enough for 1200bhp 80s F1 cars - I know because I was there. Of course a modern F1 car will lap quicker thanks to the dubious benefits of aero but I have to say it was a great circuit back then.

Austria is a similar length circuit to Zandvoort, and Aero has managed to save 5 seconds a lap (and at altitude) since 2014! Never mind 1985...

These things will be biblical at Zandvoort, it could well be the shortest timed race in F1/GP history.

sparta6

3,689 posts

99 months

Tuesday 21st January 2020
quotequote all
Deesee said:
Austria is a similar length circuit to Zandvoort, and Aero has managed to save 5 seconds a lap (and at altitude) since 2014! Never mind 1985...

These things will be biblical at Zandvoort, it could well be the shortest timed race in F1/GP history.
Austria delivered one of the best races in 2019.

F1 needs to keep focused on delivering such spectacle.

The general viewing public don't give a monkey's arse about lap times.

coppice

8,564 posts

143 months

Tuesday 21st January 2020
quotequote all
Deesee said:
Austria is a similar length circuit to Zandvoort, and Aero has managed to save 5 seconds a lap (and at altitude) since 2014! Never mind 1985...

These things will be biblical at Zandvoort, it could well be the shortest timed race in F1/GP history.
Well, nobody complains about Monza , and its 2003 GP was 73 minutes ...!