America’s Main Street turned into D.C.’s closest version of the Monza Straight Saturday as fans packed eight-deep along Pennsylvania Avenue to experience the power of Formula One and motorsport as part of Red Bull’s first Showrun in the nation’s capital.
Organizers estimated the crowd to be more than 50,000 along the five-block makeshift track between 3rd and 7th Streets NW. Fans craned to catch a glimpse as the machines sped by, going so far as to climb up trees and even some light poles to get a better view.
The star of the show on a brilliantly sunny afternoon was Oracle Red Bull Racing’s RB7, the car driven to a Formula One world championship by Sebastian Vettel in 2011. Thirteen-time Grand Prix winner David Coulthard piloted the car in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol, calling it “an absolute privilege” to do so.
“I came from a village in Scotland, 300 people. And here I am, 53 years later, driving a Formula One car in your capital,” Coulthard said. “It’s something that I never imagined would ever happen, and I’m very proud.”
He ripped the 750 horsepower unit down the strip with ease, easily topping “a couple hundred kilometers an hour,” or more than 125 miles per hour.
“I can’t hear the sound when I’m in the car, but hopefully, the sound was echoing on the streets,” Coulthard said. “Hopefully, people got a little experience of a little bit of the speeds the cars can go — the cars can go twice as fast as what we’re doing here.”
PHOTOS: Formula One Spectacle on Pennsylvania Avenue: Coulthard and the RB7 in Action
Coulthard — who, appropriately enough, goes by the nickname DC — soaked up his D.C. experience, saying he took a morning Segway tour of the city’s sights and donning unique racing shoes adorned with cherry blossoms and the District flag for the occasion.
“People have choices — they could have done anything else today, but they wanted to be here,” Couthard said. “They wanted to see a Formula One car, the motorbike, and rallycross, so there’s a big fan base in America.”
Fans were treated to more than 20 back and forth ‘laps’ across three heats during the two-hour event from Coulthard, former NASCAR, IndyCar, and rally car driver Scott Speed, and street motorcyclist Aaron Colton.
Speed ripped his blue Subaru rally car up and down the avenue, adding a few donuts in between. Colton also dazzled, throwing in wheelies, stoppies and burnouts while punctuating his runs by standing atop his motorcycle exhorting the crowd as it rolled back to the paddock.
Both were tremendous appetizers for the main course, the unmistakable, throaty V8 of the RB7, which generated the biggest roars and what fans predominantly came to see.
“I wasn’t able to go to a race this year, and this is probably the closest thing I’ll get to seeing a car, said D.C. resident Masen Confetti, “so, had to do it.”
Though a supporter not of Red Bull but rival F1 team Ferrari, Confetti came to the sport like many Americans in recent years — through the Netflix series ‘Drive To Survive.’ He and his girlfriend have graduated to love the sport even more than the show, aiming to get to one of the now three U.S.-based races — “We tried to go to Vegas last year, but tickets were just too expensive” — if not elsewhere in the world.
“I think the the show does a great job of giving the behind the scenes, like the drama between the drivers, but definitely not recapping the actual season anymore,” Confetti said. “I definitely enjoy watching the races more than watching ‘Drive To Survive.’”
At 24 races this season, the F1 calendar is the longest it’s ever been. If even more expansion were to come, Washington hasn’t been among the rumored destinations. But Coulthard gave his endorsement to the energy and vistas he saw along D.C.’s streets.
“I know one thing: If they did a Grand Prix here, you would sell out because people have turned up today, and this is just a demonstration,” he said. “From what I can see around here, you would have iconic images.”
“So yeah, I guess we need to see who wins the presidency and then go to speak nicely to them.”
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