I do not exactly remember the first race I watched of Michael Schumacher’s. But I distinctly remember the first “serious” Formula 1 talk I had at home. It was the 1st of May in 1994, the day the world lost Ayrton Senna in a fatal crash at the San Marino Grand Prix while driving for Williams. It was perhaps the most devastating incident in Formula 1 fans’ life as we lost the most beloved racer of all times but that was also the time when the ascent of Michael Schumacher had already begun. Alain Prost completed the triad with these two as the most famous drivers in F1.
Watching Michael Schumacher drive for the last time in the history of Formula 1 today made me go through a roller-coaster of emotions. Today was not the day of Schumi’s final retirement alone but also brakes being put on one of the most beautiful chapters of my life. I have spent many evenings enjoying F1 races with family and friends, with the sole aim of watching Schumi race! For me F1 was Schumi and visa-versa! If F1 became my most favourite sport, the credit goes to Schumi!
Schumi’s Ferrari Red was my colour too! The fact that red was always the most attractive colour for me perhaps played its part partially in attaching me to the most vibrant and energetic colour and the F1 team of the world! For me, Red denoted Life and immense life Schumi infused on tracks!
Ask a Formula 1 fan and he/she will tell you that F1 is not merely a sport; it is meditation. Yes, meditation! The roar of those high power sophisticated engines in unison put you in a trance! Mesmerized, you watch those cars fly by! In fact many a times watching F1 races I have enjoyed the most peaceful of my sleeps! Well, getting up soon enough to check for the current grid positions!
Watching a F1 race is like watching high tides crash onto your beach! The sound of the sea is akin to the thrilling sensation felt at hearing a racing car roar by! Both make you experience life’s calmest moments! Don’t believe it? Try sitting on a beach and putting on the TV on a Race-Day!
In 2006 when Michael Schumacher announced his retirement, I felt like I had lost a crucial part of my being. F1 without Schumi was simply not for me. My most favourite sport suddenly seemed charmless. And gradually I found myself missing out on many of the races – a rarity in Schumi-days! The F1 Diary which I kept also lost importance for me; I would fill it up only occasionally, updating the records reluctantly. I was a Reluctant F1 fan, now!
Came 2010 and Michael Schumacher started his second innings as a race driver! This time with Mercedes and his colour changed to white. And along with he brought one of his most ardent admirers – that’s me! – back on track! Of course, like Schumi himself, I too believed in his capabilities to become a champion again but unfortunately that did not happen. Though the second phase of his career did not see him having even a single podium finish, but his presence on the track made all the races worth watching!
I cannot thank God enough for giving me the opportunity to watch my Hero live in the 2012 Indian Grand Prix! Seeing him wave to race enthusiasts – including me! - while taking a lap around the track in a decorated open trailer along with all other drivers, I couldn’t believe my eyes! I was seeing my most favourite sport person in flesh and blood! Schumi looked as handsome as on television and in magazines! The radiance of his face and the brilliance of his brain all came through just the way he is! It was pure ecstasy! Hypnotized I was looking at him! It was Dream come true! Being at the same place where Schumi was made me tizzy! I was breathing the same air which he was! I couldn’t simply believe my own luck! I was watching The Great Michael Schumacher live! Wow!
Everything about Formula 1 was unfolding in front of my eyes like a breath-taking sequence! Everything that I had read and watched, I was experiencing in person! The excitement, the preparation, the involvement, the ceremonies, the grandstanding, the pit-stopping, the grid positions, the warm-up laps, the start-finish line, the 5 illuminating lights, the pole positions, the team crews, the grid girls, the television crews, the race cars, the safety car, the tyres, the tyre-warmers, the chequered flag, the yellow flag, the blue flag, the pit-boards, the marshals, the cranes, the screens, the laps, the circuit, the track, the sectors, the grand stand, the paddock, the pit-stop, the chicanes, the stadium itself, everything what I had ever known about F1 was all there laid out in front of me! I was a part of this amazing event on the earth! And I couldn't believe it! I was living one of the most beautiful experiences of my life! And I was thanking God for the blessings!
And there was Michael Schumacher! And I was watching Schumi’s last venture into the Indian Grand Prix live! As the laps were reducing, my feeling of loss was increasing. I knew that soon the race would be over and I would never ever see Schumi race again – as if I had watched him live all my life!
Drivers had gone inside; crews had thinned; volunteers had also all gone; crowd had also almost disappeared but I waited for the place around to become quiet. F1 technicians had started to dismantle things around; the 5 illuminating lights were the first to be lowered. I was trying to absorb as much as possible. The Mercedes crew members were busy packing their things, leaving Schumi’s name plank at the top of his pit section to be removed last. For the team, they had already said good-bye to the beautiful Buddh International Circuit in India!
The most lasting memory of my Indian GP is of looking at Schumi’s pit for one last time before walking out of the grandstand. I wanted to take his memory within me.
Seeing Schumi race for the last time today kept bringing back beautiful memories from my life, realizing simultaneously with a heavy heart and teary eyes that this blessed moment will never ever come in my life again. All throughout the Brazilian Grand Prix today, my eyes kept trying to spot Schumi; I was almost oblivious to Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel’s record matching performance at Interlagos of becoming the third driver – and the youngest - in the history of F1 to win three Championships in a row! Congrats, Sebastian; and sorry.
F1 is an amazing sport; one of the most fantastic experiences in a human’s life! Nevertheless, I do not know if I will ever enjoy it the way I did while watching Michael Schumacher race. I know for sure that I will not see Schumi come for a third stint – and he should not – and that is the reason I am so sad today :(
Schumi, Thanks for all those amazing F1 moments and memories; I will miss you …
more or less same feeling :(
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