Denver Seating?

[tllips]

We may be able to make it to Denver in August. :)

Is it better to sit in Grandstand 7 between turns 1&2 or in Grandstand 2 (overlooking turn 9) for on-track action?

Also, There are some Gen Adm tickets in promo packages for less than a seat in the grandstands. (i.e. you get 4 ticks and 4 hot dogs for less than 2 grandstand seats) Can you see anything on the track from Gen adm? Where are GA viewing areas?

If we make the race, it will be with some children ranging from 3-6 yrs old and I don't want to buy them $44 grandstand seats if I don't have to.

Thanks,
tllips

PS- For Colorado residents, we will be spending the week prior to the race at Vail. Any ideas for cool things we should check out while there in the summer? They probably need to be somewhat kid friendly too.

[skaven]

I seem to be well suited to answer some of your questions, so I'll give it a shot. I have sat in grandstands 7 and 2 (the numbers have changed over the years). 7 was alright. Saw stupid Dominguez crash up some carbon fiber from stand 7 during the first race. The past two years I've been in stand 2 at the "mile wide corner". That is pretty exciting and where most of the passing occurs. Dominguez had the crowd cheering for him two years ago as he took out of lot of drivers in that corner. :gomer: Last year, the main event was watching Fabio squiggle into the corner and checking out Seabass'z alternate lines - he was hooked up. I'd recommend stand 2 for sure.

I've never done GA seating at Denver. I've only been to one other street course (Vancouver). There, I bought GA tickets, walked around, couldn't see the support race, walked out of the gate and bought tickets from a scalper to the Molson Canadian Corner. :thumbup:

I don't think GA is for me, but if I were paying for a gaggle of children...

Regarding Vail, I just moved half an hour from there. You can rent mountain bikes and bomb down the slopes. In August, the rafting might be winding down, but there are some good rafting trips down the Colorado River in Glenwood Canyon (between Glenwood Springs and Dotsero). If you are in shape, you can try to hike Mt. of the Holy Cross which is just south of Minturn. If you are in not so good shape, you can hike to the top of Notch Mountain for a good view of the holy cross couloir. Might not have too much snow in it in August though. I have seen kids on Notch Mountain. Another good hike is north of Frisco into the Gore Range. Pretty dramatic peaks and less travelled. Don't be above treeline after noon or so as the lightning storms roll in.

If you are in a lightning storm, crouch down with your hands above your head, your elbows on your knees and your butt off the ground. That way, when you get struck, the current goes down your forearms, to your knees, down your calves and out... avoiding your vital organs. :)