Walking into the Circuit of the Americas on race weekend and you can immediately feel the energy. The initial impression you get is unlike any event I’ve ever been to outside of Formula 1. It is a combination of theater and huge financial investment. You realize that this is a big deal to a lot of people. 400,000 people to be exact. My wife and I being 2 of those people, we embarked on our race weekend with full force. We were eager to see all that the track had to offer and were ready to forget about life’s problems for a couple days of race cars, beers, and some of the best BBQ in existence. There was almost too much to take in but I’ll do my best to give you some of the best inside tips from my experience.

Parking Suck, Take the Bus

Let’s get the boring stuff out of the way first. Circuit of the Americas is not far from Downtown Austin, about 15 miles. But on race weekend, it might as well be 1000 miles away. There is ample space on most highways, but as soon as you get within a couple of the racetrack, the roads go down to 2 2-lane roads. Keep in mind this is for ALL 400K attendees on the weekend. My first time getting to the race I took an Uber with some friends back in 2019. This was a huge mistake. It took us almost 3 hours to get out of the parking lot and that was only because we walked about 1.5 miles up the street to try to jump the queue of people waiting. This was not fun, especially after the race when you are dehydrated, and sun baked. 

This year, I was keen on not making the same mistake. I opted to take the shuttle bus. We opted for the downtown shuttle, and it was amazing. You hop on the charter buses after a short wait in line and ride in comfort all the way to the front gate. It was great to just hop on and cruise over without a care. However, the way home after the race was a bit of a wait. Once the race ended, there line was huge! We waited about 45 minutes to board and took another 1.5 hours to get back downtown with all the traffic. It sucked, but sure beats waiting 3 hours in the sun just for your Uber to arrive. The shuttle was $40 per person, per day, which while steep, is totally worth it. There was a cheaper option shuttle but had a less ideal pick up/drop off location than downtown and was only $25. While I realize deciding how to get to the track is not a fun topic, this is a make-or-break part of your experience, so book a shuttle and never have an issue.

Stuff to Do

Ironically, some of the best parts of race weekend are not the race. If you enter through the main gates, you will be cast into the good stuff. There are merch booths for each team, pit stop challenge games, professional racing simulators, and this year, the new regulation Formula 1 car for 2022 on display.

  You can spend hours engaging with all the activities at the booths. There was even an Alfa Romeo tent with a full bar and the new line-up of cars to drool over. As you make your way around the track, you will notice that the is something to do at pretty much every corner of the circuit. From the Mariachi band tearing up the “Cantina” to the Zipline looking over the whole circuit (totally worth the $30). My favorite was the Biergarten with a local polka band playing in an Oktoberfest style tent. You could grab a beer and hang in between track events to cool off and reset. Race weekend is a stimulus overload, so it is more than welcome to find a good place to chill out for a minute when you can. Trust me, 12 hours of Formula 1 sounds like a great idea until you are in the Texas sun for 2 hours. You’ll start to question why you even came to the race in the first place. But thoughts like this are easily curable with 20 minutes out of the sun and Red Bull.

Best Places to Watch

Finally, we are ready to talk about the actual race. I cannot recommend general admission tickets more for your first time. This was my second time at the USGP and I still got general admission. Being able to move around and look at all parts of the track is super undervalued, due to the fact that when you watch in person, it’s not nearly as exciting as on TV. The cars come by at extreme pace with howling engines you can feel in your chest, but then it’s over. You won’t see them for another minute and thirty seconds. Because of this, I love the fact that I’m not committed to one spot. I walked around the track during the sessions. You get to see multiple angles gain a greater appreciation for the sport. One example that stands out was getting to walk across one of the sky bridges during qualifying. Charles Leclerc came by at around 140mph about 20 feet below me. It was surreal to see the speed and feel the wake of air blow by from the car. I know not everyone will get a perfect experience, and sometimes the views aren’t as great as a grandstand seat. But in some cases, those grandstand seats are 4-5 times as expensive. 

Despite my stance on general admission, the next time I go to the grand prix, I will probably buy a good seat.  Only because I can appreciate that seat now that I have been all around the track and have seen first-hand where the best spots are. If you came here specifically for a recommendation, it must be the turn 2 stands. Turn 1 is the obvious choice as you can see by the attendance in the photos, but that is the problem with it.

There are too many people there. Turn 2 has a perfect view of turn 1 and turn 2, as well as most of the front straight. Another reason this is the best spot is there is a TV with live coverage and audio right in front of the section. You can keep track of what is going on during the race while also being close to the action. So, remember to walk past the turn 1 crowd and find yourself a comfy seat at turn 2.

Bring Money, Lots of It

The most overlooked part of attending the race is money. I have been to plenty of sporting events in my life, but I was not ready for the pricing structure of Formula 1. From $90 hats to $16 Michelob Ultras, pricing gets out of hand fast. By far the worst offender was this taco place charging $50 for 6 street tacos. It was easily $15 worth of tacos at any food truck, but at the race it was $50. My main problem with this pricing structure is what I call the “Disneyland Effect”. The Disneyland Effect is when you are so excited and immersed in whatever you are doing that money becomes no object, even though you are mad about the price. You see $50 tacos on the menu and think “this is outrageous…. I’ll have 2 please”. There are no other options at the venue so you kind of just jump in and forget that you aren’t using monopoly money. One thing I will tip my hat on, is that they only charge $4 for a bottle of water. With a similar markup to beer and soda, water would be over $10 so I’ll give them that. When its blisteringly hot outside, access to water is important. So however much you think is appropriate, it’s probably half of what you will spend to have a good time. I’m not saying to budget hardcore, but more to make sure you have enough to enjoy yourself. You are already spending a ton on tickets and parking/shuttles. Don’t let a $150 t-shirt stand in your way.

Once race weekend is over, you will be thankful. You’ll find your bed and sleep off all the fatty foods, alcohol, sun poisoning, and anger if your team didn’t win. But if anyone asks if you are going next year, most people have the same response, “F*** YES!” There is something intoxicating about being there. Maybe it’s the piercing engine noise, the electric feeling in the air, or the sense of something bigger happening while you are there. No matter what it is, the United States Grand Prix in Austin is something that everyone needs to do. Even ones that hate cars and sports will find something here. It’s a magical place that is so fitting for a place known for being weird. Get on the notifications list and get your tickets to the 2022 Grand Prix as soon as you can. There is one thing I can guarantee if you do: I’ll be there waiting for you.