Formula Fordable

I know, Formula 1 is amazing. But, it's so expensive. Expensive to take part in, and expensive to watch. Go and scare yourself by browsing the Silverstone ticket page. If you want peak day and peak time, general admission to Silverstone for F1 is £399. That allows you to sit on the grass somewhere and watch a car scream by for a milisecond. £909 for a grandstand seat, and £1,229 to get into an enclosure. You can't even watch it at home without paying for some form of streaming subscription.

So why bother? Follow F3 and F4 instead. They're actually more exciting. I've been following GB4 this year (the GB formula 4 series), and every race has had me on the edge of my seat. A car even caught fire in the last race. In the race before that, at the end of the formation lap, 22 drivers steered their cars into the pits to change from dry to wet tyres. 2 drivers though, didn't. Ava Dobson (an F1 Academy wild card) was one of the 2 drivers left on the grid when the lights went from red to green. It was so exciting. 2 cars on slicks charged off the line, and moments later 22 cars on wets followed them. It was a brave call from Ava and she clung on to P2 until the heavens opened and the posse of wet-tyred formula 4 cars caught up with her. A spin by one of the posse brought a safety car onto the track and I was willing the car-rescue to take as long as possible so Ava could cling onto her P2. But it wasn't to be, and Ava finished the race in P19.

Kate Broadbent with Abbi Pulling at Silverstone for GB3

GB4 races are streamed via YouTube, so it's free, and the commentary is excellent. But, Kate and I watched Ava live at Silverstone. The cost? Just £20 each. And we could go anywhere! On the grass, in the grandstand (any grandstand), and in the pits! Kate has friends who are racing GB4, so we could just wander (with permission!) into their garages, check out the cars, and watch the action from the pits.

And or course, it's not just GB4. GB3 races on the same day. And since we had free access to wander round the enclosure, we could simply tap on the door of Abbi Pulling's and Bianca Bustamante's team lorries and get photos and signatures galore.

Kate Broadbent with Bianca Bustamante at Silverstone for GB3

And everyone was so friendly and encouraging. We found Bianca Bustamante sitting on the steps of her team's race lorry looking exhausted. She'd just finished her first race of the day, and was wearing her glasses. I caught her eye and she smiled. And she was so nice. She signed a poster-print of Kate karting (which I purposely brought with me!), and she took off her glasses and posed for a photo with Kate. (Abbi had signed the poster earlier, so Bianca felt obliged to do an even bigger signature with an even bigger message - "go Kate" from Abbi, and "keep pushing" from Bianca.) I'm ordering a frame, and the poster will have pride of place on Kate's racing wall of fame...

Abbi Pulling signing the poster of Kate

So yes, watch F1, but take some time out to follow GB4 and GB3. And go and watch GB4 and GB3 live. It's arguably more exciting, and you really can get up close and personal. And it's cheap, really cheap. And I'm not just talking about the entry fee. F1 nose cones come up for sale for thousands of pounds. We picked up an F3 nose cone for nothing. One of the teams was throwing it in the bin! It's now an amazing piece of art and talking point in our living room. GB4 and GB3 have to be the most affordable way to watch Formula racing. So just do it. You'll have a great day out.

Don't pay thousands for an F1 nose cone. Get an F3 nose cone for free!