Adventure #14 - Our Hard Hat Tour

We finally had the tour we canceled when I broke my shoulder. Since November things have really changed.

I'll start with the drive up...

This is what it was like ten years ago, 2008.

This is what it looked like last November 2017.

This is what it looks like now!

Everything is changing. Come this November it will be done and will look so different.

This will be the new gate entrance we have always used. It completely changed!

This is what it looked like in 2012...

You can see the old Speed Canteen off to the left.  

Last November it looked like this...

What was the Speed Canteen became the Busch Garage Bar and Grill, and was still there. There were new gates with covers overhead, and the new addition was taking shape.

In March it looked like this...

The Busch Garage was gone. Now there is the Trackside Bar and Grill. We did wander into in March, but I didn't take any pictures. It was lovely though.

Our first stop on tour was a view of the work being done on the infield and a view of the new grandstands from about the middle. With that came a thought of "We should have gotten seats here!" Driver introductions will be right in front along with pit lane action.

Then we turned to see the view of the start/finish line. It's that white box way down there. We were given permission to go check out our seats.

Much better!

We sat in them for about 15 minutes. With the start/finish line right there, can't wait to see the cars come across!

The race off pit road is going to be fantastic.

There will still be a view of the action on pit lane, and with my zoom lens, I should get some good photos. I did comment we might need to move up a couple rows to be able to see over the people who stand up. We'll see how this first race goes.

Afterall, these will be the only steps I will have to climb. If we added a few more going up, it would be very possible. We'll see how this first race goes.

From our seats, we could see the new garages being built, along with the exit for the pedestrian tunnel. The new Fan Zone is going to be awesome! Our guide was awesome. He was able to answer the many questions asked.

Next up was the new entrance we'll be using. Due to construction, we could only view it from the promenade level. Remember one of March's adventures was being able to sign a beam. Well, here it is...

We'll see it every time we go to our seats since they are to the right and down a couple sections.

After that, it was time to cool off in the suites...

Our tour ended in the new Roll Bar.

We have the option to do another in August, but that would depend on the weather. They plan to have construction completed in October.

It was a great adventure to add to our list.

Next up a Diamondbacks vs. Giants game!