Monaco Grand Prix

It seems to be generally agreed that Monaco is a ridiculous venue for a Grand Prix because it is so tight and passing is nearly impossible unless the passee gives way.  But it's a highlight of the season for participants and a special win for drivers.  I try not to miss it on TV because the background is lovely. Alas, because Monaco is a tax haven, many of the wedding-cake buildings have been replaced with high-rise cookie-cutter condos.  The Hotel de Paris and Casino still stand, but the train station became the Lowe's Hotel, now the Fairmont Hotel (it looks like a parking ramp).

Although the idea of Formula 1 cars at Monaco is just as dumb as IndyCars on street circuits in the States, the romance of the setting still captivates me.  And the tradition: Monaco has been around since 1929, largely unchanged.  The 2013 race was the customary combination of parade and crash-fest.  But there's no better place to watch a street race than Monaco.  The segment from Nouvelle Chicane through Noghes makes for an intense segment of an intense lap, parade or not.

Great venue, visually.  For actual racing, not so much...  The  Fairmont (formerly Loew's,  formerly Station) Hairpin
requires special steering arms, unique to Monaco, to get the cars around it. 

Above and below: Old Monaco and New Monaco.  Not much change over almost 90 years.  1.9 miles is pretty short,
even for a modern circuit.

The old Gasometre Hairpin was the first corner after the start-finish line when it was where the Swimming Pool Chicane
is now.  First lap crashes were routine.  You might think that moving the start-finish line and changing Gasometre to
Rascasse and Noghes would mitigate the problem, but it only moved it to Ste. Devote.  Monaco generally and the
Gasometre in particular were said to inspire Chris Pook's vision for a Long Beach street race.  Sure enough, the hairpin
at Long Beach results in the same traffic jam/accordion crashes.