Viewing 2023 Formula 1 races from Elara - November, 16-18th

[BingoBangoBongo]

One of the cars sucked a water main cover off the street due to the incredible doownforce. It damaged the bottom of the car and two others. They welded all the covers down.

I DVR'd the practice round and finally got around to watching it last night. Even on the replay it was hard to tell what caused the damage to the one car. I didn't hear that others were damaged. They did get a couple of quick shots of the damage and it was pretty significant, not something that a little duct tape would fix. The team was quick to cover the car after it was towed and then placed a screen in front of the garage area to block any view. Maybe they should have used Flex Seal

 

[dioxide45]

That's gonna make maintenance tricky

Cheers.

They have to weld them all down. This was part of the cause for delay as they had to check every manhole cover on the track. Not sure how they break those welds after the race. The one that came off was apparently because the concrete around the cover failed.

 

[geist1223]

Saw on the News how all the changes to the Road (bought and paid for by Formula 1) have caused some businesses to lose all their customers/business because people have no access. Unknown if the City is going to return everything the way it was after the Race. Unlikely if this is going to be an annual event.

 

[SmithOp]

Saw on the News how all the changes to the Road (bought and paid for by Formula 1) have caused some businesses to lose all their customers/business because people have no access. Unknown if the City is going to return everything the way it was after the Race. Unlikely if this is going to be an annual event.

or how long it will take to remove everything. I have a trip there in two weeks, may cancel...

 

[dioxide45]

Saw on the News how all the changes to the Road (bought and paid for by Formula 1) have caused some businesses to lose all their customers/business because people have no access. Unknown if the City is going to return everything the way it was after the Race. Unlikely if this is going to be an annual event.

I suspect there is still access but the foot traffic no longer goes by. Lack of direct foot traffic can be detrimental.

 

[DaveNV]

What they're doing to the Strip is terrible. If you've been to LV previously, you have an idea of what it should look like. It doesn't look that way now, and may never again. Things are built over and around, views blocked, and entire walkways closed indefinitely. This entire debacle was a disaster. The Formula 1 people were supposed to pay for "everything." But then they demanded $44MILLION from the City government to share the road building expenses.

We'll be staying at Elara next week for a few nights. I'm curious to see what sort of aftermath this ridiculous road race has caused. I know in the months leading up to it, there was nothing but frustration and problems for residents. What will the next few weeks bring, as the City ramps into the Holiday Season?

Dave

 

[ernststarhemberg]

I'll be at Elara in mid-December. I'd like to think the temporary scaffolding obstructing the casinos will have been taken down by then.

 

[brp]

Vegas was never a favorite place of ours (despite owning three parcels there ), one that we go to occasionally for shows and such. But we do like to walk around and these changes make it seem even less desirable as a destination.

Cheers.

 

[dioxide45]

What they're doing to the Strip is terrible. If you've been to LV previoously, you have an idea of what it should look like. It doesn't look that way now, and may never again. Things are built over and around, views blocked, and entire walkways closed indefinitely. This entire debacle was a disaster. The Formula 1 people were supposed to pay for "everything." But then they demanded $44MILLION from the City government to share the road building expenses.

We'll be staying at Elara next week for a few nights. I'm curious to see what sort of aftermath this ridiculous road race has caused. I know in the months leading up to it, there was nothing but frustration and problems for residents. What will the next few weeks bring, as the City ramps into the Holiday Season?

Dave

From what I recall, the request for the $40 million was to cover expenses that F1 had with fixing underlying infrastructure when they were prepping and repaving the roads for the race. For example, if a sewer was damaged, it didn't make sense not to fix it while things were tore up.

 

[JimmyQ]

I'll be at Elara in mid-December. I'd like to think the temporary scaffolding obstructing the casinos will have been taken down by then.

I was there last weekend and was told everything will be down "by February".

 

[PigsDad]

I was there last weekend and was told everything will be down "by February".

So it takes two months to set up everything, and another two months to tear down everything. That means Vegas will be a construction mess for 1/3 of the year for the next 10 years. Ouch.

Kurt

 

[ernststarhemberg]

It's a three year guaranteed contract with the option to extend to 10 (I'm about 70% sure they will opt for the extension). Preliminary numbers I've seen thrown around say that while casino foot traffic didn't meet expectations, the revenue/gambler has been higher than expected.

 

[brp]

Preliminary numbers I've seen thrown around say that while casino foot traffic didn't meet expectations, the revenue/gambler has been higher than expected.

Sure. No one can go anywhere...

Cheers.

 

[DaveNV]

This should give people pause...

F1’s aftermath: When will everything get back to normal?

Crews are set to begin dismantling the course Sunday, but the full removal will take weeks.

www.reviewjournal.com

Dave

 

[CalGalTraveler]

We attended F1. Had a great time. We got lost at times with track diversions and many staffers were also confused because the town is reconfigured but overall we got where we needed to go. F1 directional app was frozen at times. Will be fixed in future as they work out the kinks. Less riffraff in blocks off the strip so felt safe.

Room had great view of Harmon although we bought grandstands one night and watched the final race at a non-HGVC complimentary lounge. It was great to know we had this room view as a backup and watched the first night practice at 2am.

HGVC pool F1 viewing party was fun. HGVC put on a class act on this event. Great food - e.g. tender tri-tip, beef and chicken skewers. Full open bar with good brands open all night. Food for dinner and then another round at 9:30 - midnight.

Former Creed singer was good but a bit somber for a crowd that was craving party music and dancing. Loved Joey Fatone & Friends. AJ from Back Street Boys also was there. Really enjoyed concert hearing hits from NSync and boy bands. Also great DJs and dancing.

We had a preso. Low pressure. Rep nice but told some half-truths which we ignored. Out in 50 minutes. Got to see the new Elara bHCs. VERY NICE but pricey given none of our deeds can be applied toward Elara. Apparently Elara only begets Elara.

 

[muscae]

Pool Party? I just got a prearrival call telling me the Elara pool is closed for the season. I'm arriving this week.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Sorry it wasn't a pool party per se. They covered and turned the pool into a dance floor and stage for the party. It was a special F1 viewing party. They also had race simulators (my kids thought this was great), golf simulators, an art station and an F1 auto on display.

I like where HGVC is going with events. Makes me happy to be an HGVC owner. This event turned a condo stay into an experience with entertainment and food. Although we didn't attend the entire time, it was nice to have a place to co-mingle and grab a drink or snack with family.

I also wonder if HGV was also using it to market to Marriott owners across the street at Grand Chateau who AFAIK did nothing for the race but many were watching the party from their windows. They had big billboard that talked about HGV Ultimate Access experiences which is visible from the street but also directly at Grand Chateau. Many MVC owners are very unhappy with the recent drastic increases in MF.

 

[PigsDad]

@CalGalTraveler, was that the $8K pp tickets that HGV was advertising earlier?

Kurt

 

[CalGalTraveler]

@CalGalTraveler, was that the $8K pp tickets that HGV was advertising earlier?

Kurt

Nope. We didn't stay onsite to watch the race. There were a few lounges and events around the race by sponsors. If you are a customer and sign up early e.g. T-Mobile you get in.

 

[jabberwocky]

So it takes two months to set up everything, and another two months to tear down everything. That means Vegas will be a construction mess for 1/3 of the year for the next 10 years. Ouch.

Kurt

I’ve talked to several Uber/Lyft drivers today. They all seemed to be mad about the race. Traffic doesn’t flow and in many cases it’s faster to walk than take a cab. They said the number of trips they could complete were down, along with average tips.

If staying at Elara in the next bit you may find it easier to get dropped off/picked up by walking over to Aria at certain times of the day. Harmon avenue is pretty gummed up between Koval and Las Vegas Blvd. - so getting in/out of Elara will take much longer than you think while they are still removing barriers etc.

I’m flying home tomorrow. The airport looked pretty congested today. I counted 27 private planes queued for takeoff in addition to the 18 regular commercial airliners on my Flightradar24 app.

 

[davidvel]

I watched the race last night (on TV), and while I generally don't watch F1, it was pretty good. We were in Vegas in March at Grand Chateau and construction was already underway. All the complaints seem to be similar to those with any large scale event: US Opens, Olympics, Superbowl, etc. I expect Vegas will make more money than it loses overall from this event and the successive ones. Only time will tell.

 

[dioxide45]

We attended F1. Had a great time. We got lost at times with track diversions and many staffers were also confused because the town is reconfigured but overall we got where we needed to go. F1 directional app was frozen at times. Will be fixed in future as they work out the kinks. Less riffraff in blocks off the strip so felt safe.

Room had great view of Harmon although we bought grandstands one night and watched the final race at a non-HGVC complimentary lounge. It was great to know we had this room view as a backup and watched the first night practice at 2am.

HGVC pool F1 viewing party was fun. HGVC put on a class act on this event. Great food - e.g. tender tri-tip, beef and chicken skewers. Full open bar with good brands open all night. Food for dinner and then another round at 9:30 - midnight.

Former Creed singer was good but a bit somber for a crowd that was craving party music and dancing. Loved Joey Fatone & Friends. AJ from Back Street Boys also was there. Really enjoyed concert hearing hits from NSync and boy bands. Also great DJs and dancing.

We had a preso. Low pressure. Rep nice but told some half-truths which we ignored. Out in 50 minutes. Got to see the new Elara bHCs. VERY NICE but pricey given none of our deeds can be applied toward Elara. Apparently Elara only begets Elara.

So do you show up in any part of this video?

 

[HuskerATL]

So do you show up in any part of this video?

I think that was @CalGalTraveler dancing on the table....

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Ha Ha. I was the blond DJ!

 

[raddoc]

We had a nice view from our 02 room. And regarding a previous posting - there weren't lights directed at any of the buildings that overlooked the course to try and block views from the rooms.

I would also advise avoiding Rosa Mexicano in the Miracle Miles shops. They had one of the absolutely worst margaritas I have ever had. Tragically bad especially for a Mexican restaurant.