Night F1 race in Singapore, no problems so far

BANGKOK, Thailand – Singapore Grand Prix officials are confident driver safety concerns such as glare on the track for Formula One’s first night race have been adequately addressed. The novelty value of a night race, as well as the first Grand Prix in Singapore, seems to have caught the imagination of F1 fans, with tickets selling quickly and the circuit expected to be full to its 100,000-plus capacity for the September 28 event. There has been more reticence among teams and drivers, though, due to understandable worries about the visibility of night driving and the potential danger posed by glare off a wet track under floodlighting. Singapore is subject to regular, at times drenching, rain. Just how the combination of very powerful floodlighting and a wet track will be handled in the wheel-to-wheel action of cars traveling at 300 kph (186 mph) can not possibly be tested until the event itself—there will be one practice session and qualifying at night before the race—but organizers feel all precautions have been taken. “Safety is of utmost concern to us, thus great care has been taken to develop a lighting system that is bright enough for night race conditions, and at the same time will not cause any glare for the drivers," race communications director Jonathan Hallett told The Associated Press. “The lighting projectors have their internal reflectors positioned to specifically light the driver’s path on the track. “In the event of heavy rain, the reflected light from the wet road surface will not cause glare as it will not be reflected into the driver’s eyes." Using 2000-watt lamps, the lighting will generate a sum of 3,180,000 watts and 4200 kelvin degrees—that is four times brighter than normal floodlighting for an outdoor sports event. The circuit will be fitted with 27 kms (16.8 miles) of optic cable and 110 kms (68.4 miles) of power cables. The lighting engineers—Italian company Valerio Maioli—tested the system at the Paul Ricard circuit in France in 2007 prior to installing it around Singapore’s track, in the Marina Bay area adjacent to downtown. While much attention had been given to the lighting system for the race, as much attention also had to be given to the track surface. The events of this season’s Canadian Grand Prix, where the track at the hairpin corner degraded alarmingly over the race weekend, highlighted the problems inherent in street circuit Grands Prix. Singapore has resurfaced the streets that will comprise the course, giving occasionally grumbling Singaporean commuters a taste of the annual inconvenience of life in a city with an F1 street course. The circuit, initially mapped out by Formula One’s now pre-eminent track designer Hermann Tilke, has since been altered from the original 4.8-km (2.983-mile) layout to 5.05 kms (3.138 miles). Aside from being the first night race, another Singapore breakthrough will be the use of electronic flag displays. Initially the electronic displays will complement the established flag waving by trackside marshalls, but the more prominent electronic displays could eventually supersede flags throughout F1. The electronic displays will have three settings to accommodate day, night and wet weather conditions with alternating degrees of intensity. Singapore secured the rights to hold an F1 race for at least five years. The decision to hold the race at night—it will start at 8 p.m. local time—won over the FIA not only because of its certain to attract many casual or lapsed F1 fans, but also to cater to European television audiences. Despite its geographically diverse venues, the sponsor interest that sustains the massive amounts of spending in the sport is still dependent upon European television ratings. That was evident earlier this year when F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone threatened to end Australia’s race contract due to the unwillingness of local authorities to spend vast amounts of public money converting public parkland into a circuit capable of hosting a night race. Only a late compromise to make it a twilight race saved the Australian Grand Prix, despite it being one of the best-attended races on the F1 calendar. Singapore hopes the glamor of F1, coupled with the addition of casinos to the city-state, will help the Asian nation cast aside an image of a super-efficient but relatively staid city state. Lawrence Leong, the director of F1 projects for Singapore’s tourism board, estimated that incremental tourism revenues of 100 million Singapore dollars ($74 million; €46.7 million) will be generated annually purely by the addition of the race and the associated flow-on to hotels, airlines, restaurants and shops. Add the associated but intangible benefits to be gained through international television exposure and the use of the race by the finance sector to entertain clients, and Singapore’s motives for joining the F1 circus are clear. – AP