While the USGP is a good time, I have to suggest making the trip to Montreal for the Canadian GP. Montreal, in general, is a very European city. With the GP in town, it becomes even more so, and allows you to get a better feel for what makes F1 racing such a big draw around the world.
The two racing series actually share a common track, they both race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal (obviously at different times).
If you compare lap times, F1 is significantly faster on a comparable track. I seem to recall reading that the last place qualifier for F1, usually a Minardi, bested the fastest single lap time for an Indycar be several seconds.
I would agree with both points, and add another, regulations. Current regs are allowing for insane amounts of downforce, and little in the way of mechanical grip.
I was reading that at the USGP, cars hit around 200 mph at the end of the long front straight. To make the next turn, the cars need to brake to around 70 mph. They start braking at the 50 meter mark! With such rapid deceleration (possible due to the amount of downforce at high speed), there is a very slim margin of error, thus overtaking is indeed difficult.
It has been said by many that to increase passing, put emphasis back on mechanical grip so that drivers can do things like overtake around the outside of a turn, which is almost unheard of today.
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July 13
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While the USGP is a good time, I have to suggest making the trip to Montreal for the Canadian GP. Montreal, in general, is a very European city. With the GP in town, it becomes even more so, and allows you to get a better feel for what makes F1 racing such a big draw around the world.
The two racing series actually share a common track, they both race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal (obviously at different times).
If you compare lap times, F1 is significantly faster on a comparable track. I seem to recall reading that the last place qualifier for F1, usually a Minardi, bested the fastest single lap time for an Indycar be several seconds.
I would agree with both points, and add another, regulations. Current regs are allowing for insane amounts of downforce, and little in the way of mechanical grip.
I was reading that at the USGP, cars hit around 200 mph at the end of the long front straight. To make the next turn, the cars need to brake to around 70 mph. They start braking at the 50 meter mark! With such rapid deceleration (possible due to the amount of downforce at high speed), there is a very slim margin of error, thus overtaking is indeed difficult.
It has been said by many that to increase passing, put emphasis back on mechanical grip so that drivers can do things like overtake around the outside of a turn, which is almost unheard of today.
See the ThinkGeek version, Airzooka, here