Dreaming of Monte Carlo
“On the 54th lap, his Ferrari skidded out of control. In the stands by the waterfront, Monte Carlo's glossy postwar idlers gasped and screamed. Igor's auto spun crazily and came to rest, backside-forward against a pile of straw. Slowly, with compressed lips, the prince emerged from his wrecked car, walked with dignity into the bar of the Hotel de Paris and was not seen again.”
Excerpt from May 31, 1948 Time Magazine article “Noble Try”
Like many Americans, my wife and I became borderline obsessed with Formula One (F1) racing after bingeing the Netflix docu-series Drive to Survive.
I never paid much attention to F1 beforehand. I knew the names Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton, but that’s about it.
My newfound F1 fandom came up in a conversation with my family genealogist, aka my mother. She told me, “Don’t you know you have a distant relative who used to race Ferrari’s in Grand Prix’s?” My response, “Nope. If I had I would’ve followed the sport sooner!”
My distant relative is the Prince Igor fellow from the Time Magazine article above. He was the fourth husband of Barbara Hutton, an American socialite and one of the wealthiest women in the world. Amongst her other six husbands included a Count, a Baron, another Prince and…..Cary Grant.
Sporting the Apple Vision Pro Headset
Prince Igor raced in the first ever Ferrari entered in a Grand Prix, the 1948 Monaco Grand Prix. Like what?!?!
Learning about my family association not only deepened my connection to F1 and to Team Ferrari 🏎, it made me want to experience a race in person!
Thankfully for me, my wife is also hooked on F1 🤩. So we made it happen!
A group of nine F1-loving friends traveled to the 2022 Montreal Grand Prix. We stayed in the same hotel, explored a new city together, and bonded over our first F1 weekend experience.
Sadly, everything about F1 is pricey. Getting to a race requires travel and lodging (for us in the Mid-Atlantic region of the US at least). Tickets can cost several hundred dollars per person at “less glamorous” circuits. For two people, attending a race weekend can cost a lot of 💵 💵 💵, upwards of $2,000.
My wife and I like to be prepared for expenses like this. We intentionally keep a bucket of money set aside to use on spontaneous adventures. Being able to pack up and go on a trip on a whim is something that excites us, so we’ve made it a goal to have that flexibility in our lives. (So when my wife wanted a $200+ racing jacket of her favorite driver, we had it covered 👊)
The experience itself was SO. MUCH. FUN. A highlight was walking the entire ~2.7 mile circuit after the Sunday race finished.
Trust me, I had fun. I’m not smiling because my favorite driver did not win.
Outside the track, our favorite Montreal food spot was Chez Suzette. A rainy day didn’t stop us from enjoying mouth-watering crepes and friendly service!
Oui oui
Five years ago I never would have considered going to an F1 race. Now I hope to travel all over the world to visit different tracks. To not only witness the racing spectacle, but to explore new places with friends and family.
When thinking about how to plan your life and how to fund it, look to the past for clues. It can help you figure out what to strive for.
One day, I hope to attend the Monaco Grand Prix to see where Prince Igor made it to lap 54 in his Ferrari before crashing out in a princely manner.
Who wants to come with me?
(Monte Carlo on TV isn’t too shabby though)
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