Red Bull Air Race: Disastrous Organization in Windsor

I traveled up from Toronto and over-nighted to see the race (my first), having purchased the tickets for myself and my wife from Red Bull's web-site.

What a disappointment to realize that the non-paying spectators on Riverside actually had a better view than I did.

They did not have to line up over two blocks away for the only paying-spectator entrance for over an hour to then end up being herded like cattle into a chute!

We managed to squeeze into the only space I could find—behind one of those enormous, black video screens which they had placed right in line with your view of the race. 

This is what I saw: Planes entering the start gate, go around one pylon, and not seeing them again until they exited to perform the Immelman to re-enter for the second lap.

1. They had obviously oversold tickets to event for the area I was in—there were far too many people, such that only the very early got a shot at seeing "between" the large black, video units.

Why couldn't they have located them further back instead of occupying very valuable, waterfront viewing space, I wonder?

I came for the race NOT the pre-amble that was thrown up on the screens for two hours prior.

2. The johnnies-on-the-spot has no "fast" service line.  People lined up in ragged lines near a group of units, and if you happened to choose one with a "slow" turnover (like I did) you were severely inconvenienced.

3. They discouraged anyone from bringing his or her own refreshments (even water) but had very few stands where you could get a drink in under an hour—again far too many people and not nearly enough concession stands.

From the Windsor side of this race, it was by far the most disorganized event I have ever attended in my life—bar none! We left before the last racer made his initial pass and took a taxi back to our hotel.

Windsor is a lovely city with genuinely kind and helpful people—the Red Bull Organizers were to blame here...period!