A Lifelong Passion

[Ferrariman60]

This was a piece I wrote for a literary contest I entered in high school. The winners were published in a vignette which was distributed at the end of the year. I was fortunate enough to have this piece published as you now see it:

A Lifelong Passion
High speeds, exotic cars, cutting edge technology, incredible courage, and fierce competition are all terms that can be used to describe my favorite spectator sport, Formula 1.
Formula 1 or Grand Prix Racing is almost universally recognized as the pinnacle of motor racing and automotive technology. Since the sport’s inaugural season in 1950, the cars and drivers taking part in grands prix have transfixed audiences the world over, and have provided some of the most memorable moments of passionate competition ever witnessed.
From the first time I saw a grand prix; I have been captivated by Formula 1. The cars are magnificent having more resemblance to fighter planes than automobiles. The sounds made by their ultra high-strung engines spinning at over 17,000 revolutions per minute are mind bending, and the courage and skill of the drivers piloting such machines is simply awe-inspiring.
Unlike most American motorsport which competes on oval race tracks in standardized cars, the Formula 1 World Championship is contested in vehicles of a team’s independent design in accordance to rules set forth by the sport’s governing body, in a wide range of environments in many countries ranging from multi-million dollar facilities in Turkey and Bahrain, to tracks in Canada, Australia, and the United States, to the far East in Malaysia, and timeless European circuits such as Silverstone, Monza, and the contorting and treacherous public roads of Monte Carlo. The drivers who compete in Formula 1 are just as diverse as the countries the sport visits. Men and women have competed in grands prix, many from Europe and South America, but drivers from North America, Asia and Africa have also been participants in the pinnacle of motorsport.
Watching Formula 1 is like getting a crash course in physics, computer science, mathematics, and aerodynamics. Technology has become such an integral part of the sport and the rate of development of teams with multi-million dollar budgets is so high that to the inexperienced viewer, Formula 1 appears to become a convoluted mess of numbers. The true Formula 1 fan however, knows more than just what happens on the track. Formula 1 has a history richer than almost any other sport spanning 60 years of automotive design and tales of epic championship battles which live on decades after they occurred. Cars made over the years by teams such as Ferrari, McLaren, and Williams are almost as famous as the people who drove them. Drivers such as Fangio, Prost, Senna, Häkkinen, and Schumacher are remembered not only for their achievements on the track, but for their character attributes, and how their unique styles and personas left indelible imprints on the sport, transcending time itself.
As a Formula 1 fan of five seasons now, the excitement, history, and uniqueness of Formula 1 have made me set my alarm every Sunday morning and I probably will continue to do so for the rest of my life.

[Zack]

Nicely written

[François]

Nicely written indeed! A true testimony to the sport we all love.

Mayhaps you could've hinted at the inevitable politics and scandals which, like it or not, are also a noteworthy feature of Formula 1.

[Ferrariman60]

Nicely written indeed! A true testimony to the sport we all love.

Mayhaps you could've hinted at the inevitable politics and scandals which, like it or not, are also a noteworthy feature of Formula 1.

I would have written much more, but there was a strict length limit to which I had to comply.