By Jamie Makin
July 1 2005

The journey to Montreal, Quebec for the 2005 Canadian Grand Prix was my second trip to that race. I had gone the first time last year and celebrated Fisichella's 4th place finish but worried for Massa's well being after his heavy shunt in the hairpin.
Canada is a track that historically suits the Sauber team well and this year they expected the C24 to perform better than at prior races. I couldn't wait to see if they could finally score some much needed points.

The first thing I realised when I got to the track Friday morning was it was going to be much, much, MUCH hotter than usual. Last year had blessed us with cool and comfortable weather for all three days but this year was like a blast furnace. Temperatures were well above 30C with the humidity making it feel closer to 43C. I don't enjoy the heat, in fact it often makes me ill, so I knew I had to pace myself and stay well hydrated.

My seat in Montreal is in the Senna Curve, halfway up the grandstand right about where the pit-out blend line ends. It's a wonderful seat with good views of the first few turns and pit-out as well as two Jumbotrons to catch the action in other parts of the track. However, it's a long walk from the Metro station. Almost two miles according to my GPS unit. A long walk, yes, but well worth it.

One of the first things I noticed along the walk was the amount of Sauber merchandise for sale. It was of course expected that the fans would be rooting for hometown hero Jacques Villeneuve, so the merchandisers planned accordingly. This may not seem so monumental, but every other race I've been at it has been a struggle to find so much as a Sauber hat. This year changed that, and people were buying them as quick as they could sell them along with Sauber shirts. It was very surreal, being at a race and seeing as much, if not more, blue and green as Ferrari red. I never expected I'd ever see that day come. And with the pending rumours of a sale, this could very well be the only time it ever happens.

I made Friday a short day at the track because of the oppressive heat. I arrived in time for the first F1 practice, caught the Formula BMW practice afterwards, then left after the second F1 practice. It was a fairly uneventful day of on-track action but was nice to see and hear the beautiful F1 cars for the first time this year. I always enjoy seeing the changes to the cars from last year and I like to study each driver closely to see how the are handling their car.

Saturday was the longest and hottest day of the weekend. First F1 practice was at 9:00 am so I was back to the track bright and early. There was even more blue hats in the stands than the prior day. The Villeneuve fans are a very enthusiastic bunch and they cheered their hero on every time he came out on track. It was a whole new experience seeing Sauber finally get some well deserved attention. It did sadden me a bit that I seemed to be the only one cheering for Massa though. I even got some strange looks from nearby fans when I cheered him, almost as if they were trying to tell me "you got the wrong guy". But ah well, it was still good to see support for Sauber no matter which driver it was for.

After F1 practice came the first support race for Formula BMW. Those little cars are always fun to watch. The resurfaced track was very slick and some drivers had a tough time keeping it on the black stuff. Other looked reality strong and you could easily identify who might be headed for a big future in open wheel racing.

Finally at 1:00 pm came the much anticipated qualifying session. The heat and humidity were practically forgotten for an hour as everyone watched the grid get set. Villeneuve was of course the star of the show and you could practically feel the crowd willing him on as he set first and second sector times very close to those of Ralf Schumacher. The crowd went wild when he finished his lap and had surged ahead of the Toyota driver. He got a standing ovation as he came by the stands on his cool-down lap, the only driver of the day to get that much support. Their joy was short lived though as Takuma Sato was next car out and took provisional pole away. At the end of the session though, things looked good for the Sauber team with Villeneuve in 8th and Massa in 11th. Jenson Button took the surprise pole with Michael Schumacher alongside of him. Rubens Barrichello would start from the pit lane after gearbox trouble deprived him of a hot lap and the rest of the field was fairly jumbled up as well. Clearly an exciting race was on the cards for Sunday.

I stayed for the next support race, the Honda-Michelin Series. These are local drivers in spec Honda Civics. They are close to stock, with upgraded suspension and tyres and safety features so they really place an emphasis on driver talent. They are an absolute blast to watch. Lots of fender rubbing and door-to-door action. This year's race did not disappoint.

I called it a day after that race though, skipping the Star Mazda series race which followed. As much as I wanted to see it, I did not want to suffer from heat exhaustion and be too ill to get to the track Sunday. The long walk back to the Metro was almost unbearable in what would be the hottest part of the weekend. The local fire department was kind enough to set up a few sprinklers along the way though which offered some much needed relief.

Sunday started a bit more overcast with a threat of rain but thankfully cooler conditions. Not that 28C was cool by any stretch of the imagination, but after dealing with Friday and Saturday's weather it was still some relief. The humidity still hung around though and the air was filled with a thick haze.

The day started with two support races - the second Formula BMW series and the Ferrari Challenge which pits drivers against each other in specially prepared 360 Modenas. I enjoyed them both as always, but winced every time one of those beautiful Ferraris got banged up.

Finally came the main event, the Canadian Grand Prix! The stands were quite full, although I got lucky and had 3 empty seats to the right of me which gave me some breathing room. The support for Villeneuve was enormous. I still couldn't get over how much blue and green was in the stands.

The start in Canada is usually eventful and chaotic and this year was no exception. The Renaults of Fisichella and Alonso surged ahead on the start while Schumacher fell back to 6th. Massa got a great start and was ahead of Villeneuve by the time they got to the second turn. Villeneuve and Sato got the worst of it as the C24 rear-ended the BAR007. You could feel the collective disappointment in the crowd as Villeneuve had to pit for a new front wing. His fans are very loyal though and continued to cheer him every single lap as he worked he way through the field.

I don't need to recount the entire race for you, surely you've seen it by now. But I thoroughly enjoyed it start to finish, especially since it kept throwing out more surprises. The biggest disappointment for me was seeing Nick Heidfeld's engine expire. I had hoped that Canada could give him his first win, but he and the team ended up struggling all weekend instead. Räikkönen winning was very special. I have rooted for him since his Sauber days and could now celebrate the first time I had seen him win in person. Schumacher worked his way back up to second by the end but could not challenge Räikkönen for the win. Barrichello put in a stunning performance to go from last to third turning around his and the team's fortunes.

And then there was Massa's brilliant drive to fourth. Perhaps I was one of only a few in the crowd who cared, but he has clearly come a long way since his rookie season. In watching him all weekend I've seen how much smoother and precise he drives now than he did just a year ago. He was under pressure the entire race but he handled it like a champion in the making. First he held off Heidfeld, then Ralf Schumacher and finally Webber. I thought he was going to lose the position to Webber in the final chicane but he held on. Villeneuve came home 9th to the disappointment of the crowd. At least he finished the race, but it was not the point-scoring finish that he, the team or his fans had hoped for.

I left the track that day hot, sweaty and exhausted but happy that the race had gone so well. They let the fans walk the track immediately after the race so I took the opportunity to walk the half that I missed last year. The stroll down the start-finish straight was fun and I took a lot of photos which I will upload when I return home to a high-speed connection. The teams were already packing up and probably got out of the circuit quicker than I did.

I'm now at a beautiful lodge along Lake Erie for a few days of relaxation before heading to the United States Grand Prix next weekend. The rumours of BMW buying Sauber are stronger than ever and I am wondering if this will be the last time I see my beloved team in action. It saddens me deeply, but the most I can hope for is that they give me another result to celebrate as a farewell present. I'll have my full report on Indy next week.