As promised, here's a little snapshot of the fab weekend Richard had in Belgium with the Williams and Kemppi!
I landed in Brussels on the Friday, after waiting for the rest of the other campaign winners to arrive we left straight for the circuit. For Friday I had a seat in a stand just before the eau rouge corner, this gave good views of the straight after the first corner and eau rouge section.
The extreme elevation change of the corner and the sheer speed of the cars taking the corner flat out was an impressive sight. Friday was free practice day, and after seeing the formula one, Porsche super cup and GP2 sessions it was time to check in at the hotel in Maastricht. Friday evening was spent with a meal in downtown Maastricht with other winning dealers from throughout Europe and representatives from Kemppi. After a nice meal and plenty of vodka from the Polish contingent it was time to head back to the hotel.
Saturday was to be the highlight of the weekend as it was the day I would experience the exclusive VIP treatment in the formula one paddock club. This area was situated directly above the pit garages and offered great views of the pit lane, start/finish straight and the first corner.
After being greeted by the Williams hospitality there was a three course lunch and an allocated pit lane walk. Being Williams’s guests we could stand right in front of their garage and see the cars being prepared for qualifying.
After this we had a visit from Williams driver Pastor Maldonado for photos and autographs.
With special passes from the Williams team we were also allowed into the Williams team garage and the motor home to watch the end of qualifying. Seeing the BBC TV crew working outside and brushing past drivers on their way back to the team motor homes after qualifying was pretty surreal.
After what seemed like the briefest of visits we had to somewhat reluctantly hand back the paddock passes and return to the paddock club, then it was time for the support races before the trip back to Maastricht.
For Sunday I was back in the stands for race day, for the race there was a large Kemppi group occupying the stand all in Williams colours. The expected rain on race day to benefit the Williams cars didn’t arrive and it turned out to be a dominant Vettel victory. Sadly it wasn’t the best race for the Williams team, but the hospitality we received was truly first class. After the race the marshals opened the gates and fans descended upon the track.
After a walk from our stand up to the first corner, it was time to leave for the evening flight back home. Overall an unforgettable weekend, thank you Kemppi and Williams!
And thank you Richard for sharing all that with us - what an amazing weekend you had for all your hard work!
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