Earlier this year, I realized that I no longer identified as a baseball fanatic. While I still tune into the random game and keep up with my favorite podcast, I’ve continued to be at peace with my decision to embrace new interests and to appreciate the role baseball played in my life.
Last Sunday morning found me waking up with our puppies to catch every minute of Apple TV’s televised broadcast of the Gran Premi de Barcelona-Catalunya (Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix) starting at 7:50am EDT. The announcers and pundits analyzed the turns, times, and tumult from the qualifying session the day before as I prepared my tea, fed the pups, and settled onto the couch. My favorite driver, George Russell, was on the pole just ahead of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and I was excited for the start of the race.
As previously agreed, I woke up my 16-year-old son at precisely 8:50 - 10 minutes before the race was to begin. If not for him, I wouldn’t be watching the race at all, let alone knowing a single driver, team, or racetrack. He began developing a love for racing a couple seasons ago. As a dad looking for any possible way to continue connecting with his increasingly independent boy, I began learning a bit about the sport. Netflix’s annual Drive to Survive series introduced me to the drivers and teams (and the drama between them); my son briefed me on the sweeping rule changes coming for the 2026 season.
Thr first few races of the season - Australia, China, Japan - took place in the wee hours of the morning. My son happily stayed up to watch them live while I waited to watch the next day. Those races were fun, but it wasn’t until the grid came to Miami, Montréal, and Monaco - with start times during the daylight hours - that I really started getting it.
F1 races are cool. Before even considering the cars themselves, I love that the sport is truly international. Races take place on six continents. The drivers (and reporters) speak with unique accents - Dutch, British, French, New Zealander, Argentinian, Finnish. Each course is unique and has interesting quirks and tendencies, giving rise to customized strategies for each car and driver in the race. The drivers, while all of beautiful and fit, are as varied as the tracks; rookies line up next to drivers with multiple world championships.
What surprised me the most is the advanced technology that goes into these cars. There are teams of scientists and engineers that design and build these cars from scratch. My son, always scientifically inclined, has decided to study physics and join a racing club in college - not as a driver, but as an engineer. Think of it all - the materials science, the aerodynamics, the mechanical engineering, the force and energy management. There’s something for everyone to geek out about.
Then there’s the racing itself. I was captivated by the battle between Russell and 19-year-old Kimi Antonelli at Montréal, which unfortunately ended with the power unit failing in Russell’s Mercedes. My son and I were literally cheering and whooping, not something I typically do for sport.
I am so happy that I found F1 and get to share it with my boy. Today’s race was awesome. Today it was Antonelli’s power unit that failed in the final laps to Russell’s advantage. And despite Russell finishing second, I was thrilled to see 44-year old Lewis Hamilton take first in his Ferrari. Having missed the apex of his career, it was awesome to see him race in top form to his first victory with Ferrari.
There’s something cool about finding something new to love later in life.