You know the old saying, "It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission", well, that was my approach once I got down to the waterfront in St. Petersburg on my March 17, 2013 bike ride.
I thought, "can I ride on the course?". So I thought, "I'll try". Well, no one asked me to leave and it gave me such a unique and special view of a Grand Prix course.

The official race was still one week away, but preparations had been going on for more than a week.
I found my way into St. Petersburg thanks again to the friends I met earlier in March from the Ann Arbor Bicycling Club.
They showed me the way around this bicycle-friendly city.

These white concrete barriers each were individually placed along the 1.8-mile race course.
I did see a flatbed tractor trailer coming onto the course with a load of the barriers.
Those large viewing stands were constructed on site for the race.
It is phenomenal how many workers and how much preparation goes into this type of an event.

I actually returned to this site again on March 21st, much closer to race weekend.
It was much more colorful and dramatic that day. Still, these 8 photos give a glimpse of this world-wide event.
One man told me that 460 countries would be watching the Honda Grand Prix Indy Car Race from St. Petersburg, Florida!