One of my earliest plans going back to Bologna was visiting the Imola track. It was even on my vision board for this year. I felt that it was a very special place – and it did not disappoint!
Imola is a classic Italian small town, except it has an international racetrack. I arrived there by train (which was easy coming from Modena), and I took a 25 minute walk to the track instead of taking the bus.
My first surprise was that in their gift shop there was a 2014 Torro Rosso on display (given the closeness of Faenza, the home team is V-CARB/AlphaTauri/Torro Rosso more than Ferrari, who considers Monza their main track anyways), and it had Carlos’s race number! He started in F1 in 2015, so it was a bit of a pickle for me, but he did some free practices in 2014, so that was my explanation.
Right when I arrived I had a coffee with Michela, who intercepted my email to the track and as she is responsible for organizing different motorring related programs in Emilia-Romagna, we decided to talk a little bit. She had also worked for the Racing Bulls F1 team for 15 years, so I took the opportunity to pick her brain. I have never met anybody before who worked for a team, so I didn’t even know where to start my questions…
She had travelled with the team, because she wanted to see the world and did logistics. She even took care of the drivers, who she referred to as “my babies”. At this point, the fangirl in the back of my brain started yelling: “Now you are only one person away from Carlos Sainz!!” I obviously quieted her down and pretended that I was normal. Anyways, Michela obviously has a strength of taking care of people, providing for their needs and guiding them, as right now she not only works for the region but also as a counselor. It was clear from the beginning that Michela 100% lives according to those directives that she also advised me to follow: search your soul, find your strengths, interests and wishes and build on them.
When I was properly inspired, she suggested taking a walk in the park before the guided tour, which was a perfect way to wind down a little bit and reflect on what we talked about. I could also visit the Senna memorial, which was pretty much abandoned and I really appreciated those 15 minutes that I could enjoy there by myself. Except for an older gentleman who showed up at one point, adjusted the Brazilian flag on Senna’s shoulders then left.
Little known, but there is also a Gilles Villeneuve memorial in Imola, because Enzo Ferrari had a special place for him in his heart – even his praising words are on the statue. Even though Gilles didn’t die here, Imola was his last race back in 1982. The statue has 7 interlocking circles symbolizing the beginning and the end, and there is an Italian sentence by Roberto Nosetto (former Ferrari Sporting Director and Director of Imola) saying “From Gilles, I received a life lesson: he taught me not to give up.”
As I still had some time, I walked up to the Acque Minerali corner of the track – amazing view with benches, so I enjoyed a bit of quiet time. I probably would have enjoyed it more with a bit of engine noise, but I take what I can get.
On the way back, I almost got lost, because the underground tunnel is as well-hidden as Sirius Black’s house at Grimmauld Place, you can only find it if you know it is there.
When I finally got outside of the park, it was already time for the guided tour. We went around with a minivan once then we did it again with stops. (I always appreciate those track tours where you can be on the tarmac either by car or on foot.) The first stop was the start/finish straight, and I learnt a bunch of interesting facts (our guide knew her stuff for sure), like motors have a special extra chicane to do compared to cars, and that the F1 start line is a bit ahead of the regular one because they asked for that…
We stopped at Tamburello, which used to be a lot faster before, but has been changed into a chicane after Senna died. We once again visited the memorial and there was also an introduction of the Villeneuve memorial, but just from afar. Then we went into the pitlane, saw the safety car (a brand new Lamborghini), and could do one of my favorite activities at any track: hanging out in the holes of the pitlane-track separator. I don’t think people see how good I am at that, otherwise, somebody would have hired me a long time ago to do those boards for the drivers!
Finally, we checked out the podium and the race control, then went back to our starting point – the Imola Faenza tourism company. They have simulators and the shop (I didn’t buy anything, even though they had nice pins, but if it’s more than 10 euros, I’m not buying it.)
I took one more look around and said goodbye, because there was one more part of my plan. I wanted to visit the home team in Faenza. Michela also talked to someone so they would let me into the lobby. I also got the advice to take a taxi, because the HQ is in an industrial area, but I thought that the weather was so nice so I was just going to walk it. Of course, I ended up once again walking by the side of the road with no sidewalks…
It was a nice 40 minute walk with sunshine, so I’m not going to complain, but if you feel less adventurous than me, do take a taxi! When I arrived, I immediately recognized the place from the pictures, but the Red Bull logo would have been a big giveaway. I was unsuspectingly taking selfies, when the gate started to open. As there was nobody else there, I assumed that it was for me, so I went in to take another 100 selfies in the front yard.
I decided to go to the lobby (to see what happens) where a supernice receptionist not only let me take photos, she also offered to take some of me and gifted me with a lanyard as well. One of the tasks to set for myself was to get some driver cards, I also asked for those (and I was shameless to ask for more than a set, so I can also give one to my sister and also do a giveaway!) – and got them, mission completed!
If you are willing to go to this little town that isn’t the center of tourist activity, you can actually visit the Racing Bulls team – well, at least from the outside until the gate.
I had a pretty busy day full of experiences, but given the lot of walking, I didn’t feel overwhelmed, but more like I had an inspiring day! I definitely recommend looking around the Imola Faenza Tourism Company website, because I heard about some things that are coming, and damn, I will have to go back for them. If you are interested in carbon fiber (after seeing the Pagani atelier, I am one of those people for sure), there will be a carbon fiber factory visit and also Gresini Racing opens their doors to visitors (I’m not a MotoGP fan, but that sounds interesting too!).
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