[Rumours] Grand Prix back in Montreal by fall?

[BobHWS]

I doubt this will happen, but here's the story from Sunday's Montreal Gazette:

Grand Prix back in Montreal by fall?
Mayor says track could be ready, but prefers long-term deal
The Gazette March 29, 2009 2:01 PM

Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay said Sunday he was surprised to hear rumours that the Grand Prix could return to Montreal as early as this fall because construction of a new Formula One race track in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates is reportedly behind schedule.

“We have been talking with (F1 boss) Bernie Ecclestone about it coming back in 2011 and 2010,” he said.

Tremblay said he doesn’t want the race to return to Montreal in October if it will only be for one year.

“If for one reason or another the Grand Prix (asks us to hold the race), we don’t want to have it just in 2009. We want a long-term agreement that respects our ability to pay...”

[Dutton]

Race in October? OK, it probably wouldn't be overly cold or snowing...but it certainly isn't in the realm of impossibility...

It'd be begging for disaster to hold it in October, IMO.

Otherwise, I'd resigned myself to the Canadian GP being gone for a while. It'd be sweet if it could be back on track by 2010.

[Burnsie]

Personally I think Montréal hosts one of the best races on the calendar, and it's one of those races that F1 needs. When it comes to edge-of-your-seat viewing, I would put it in the same group as Melbourne, Spa and Monza. I'd love to see the Candian GP back on the calendar - whether that means this October or next year - but from a financial perspective, surely it would be a much more feasible option to host it on back-to-back weekends with a United States GP?

[mjstallard]

Fingers crossed for this. Montréal would be such a better place than Abu Dhabi to have the final GP of the season.

[Marbot]

Originally Posted by mjstallard

Fingers crossed for this. Montréal would be such a better place than Abu Dhabi to have the final GP of the season.

I think that it would swap dates with the GP in Brazil if it were to go ahead.I have a feeling that the track in Abu Dhabi will be finished in time anyway.

[duke_toaster]

http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114595

Weather could be a problem, 3.4 is the average low in October but even then it would be very wet and cold. Has F1 ever been run in sleet before? Would it be do-able? Snow must be a red flag, and hailstones could be interesting ... to see how quickly the race is stopped. Would result in a prime time pair of races at the end which would be sensible for TV.

Surely it would be more logical to go to a venue nearer to Abu Dhabi like Dubai Autodrome or Qatar? Soul-less venues I agree, however.

[Burnsie]

Originally Posted by duke_toaster

Weather could be a problem... Snow must be a red flag, and hailstones could be interesting...

Nah, a couple of laps under the change-of-surface flag would be fine, and the drivers can pit to fit chains to their tyres

[Ralf's Girl]

I would love to see the Canadian GP back on the calendar, although I don't see it happening this year.

Abu Dhabi says everything is fine... http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/74100

[Dutton]

Originally Posted by duke_toaster

http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114595

Weather could be a problem, 3.4 is the average low in October but even then it would be very wet and cold. Has F1 ever been run in sleet before? Would it be do-able? Snow must be a red flag, and hailstones could be interesting ... to see how quickly the race is stopped. Would result in a prime time pair of races at the end which would be sensible for TV.

Indeed. There is a reason that the Canadian non-winter-weather motorsport season runs from May-September (sometimes late April, I've seen). Whilst October isn't usually particularly cold or snowy, it can happen. It could easily be warm and sunny, but it could entirely conceivably be cold (with an outside shot at some snow).

Even if snow and ice were not around, and it is likely they would not be, the temps could easily be a bit below tyre operating temperatures. I wouldn't worry overly much about the average low part if it is the same over there as it is here: the temps drop significantly after sun-down, so a day could be +14 high with a +2 low. The problem is more that October is a month where it doesn't quite know if it wants to be winter or not. There is a good chance, especially if it is earlier in October, that you'd get through the whole weekend fine. The biggest risk is that it just happens to be an unusually cold weekend. I would not figure snow would be much of risk, really, but not impossible.

I just think holding the race in October is asking for freak weather to make the race impossible to run.

That'd be the case in these parts, at least, and I do not think it is much different at all over Montreal way. Well, the ice over there must be significantly worse than here I would say (more humidity), but I am just guessing on this last point.

I might be significantly wide of the mark with all this, of course, since I haven't spent vast amounts of energy over the years tracking Montreal's weather.

********

OK, I have just done a quick google. I think my comments have turned out to be broadly accurate. You can swtich it to Farenheit if you want, and there are two checkboxes for record high and record low if you want to see them.

http://www.weather.com/weather/wxcli...02?from=search

[BobHWS]

While I'm not in favor of running an F1 race in Montreal in the month of October--by then it's off-season for girl-watching --it would not be the first time to do so. The very first F1 race in Montreal was October 8, 1978 and the winner was, of course, the immortal Gilles Villeneuve. To get an idea of what the weather was like that early October day, just take a look at this photo of Gilles and his wife on the podium.

[Mekola]

Originally Posted by mjstallard

Fingers crossed for this. Montréal would be such a better place than Abu Dhabi to have the final GP of the season.

Wasn't it during Gilles' years???

[BobHWS]

Originally Posted by Mekola

Wasn't it during Gilles' years???

From 1978 to 1981, it was the last or next-to-last race of the season. It preceded or followed the race in Watkins Glen during those years. In 1982, the race was switched to girl-watching season in June.

It continued to be paired with the US Grand Prix (held in various locations) until 1990 and 1991, when it became paired with Mexico. Starting in 1992, Montreal stood on its own, not paired with any other North American GP, until the US GP was revived in Indianapolis in 2000. Montreal was paired with Indy until 2007 and then it stood alone again as the only North American GP in 2008, its final year...until?