I was a rookie F1 usher

By REDintern Renuka Singh

As a typical Singaporean schooling teenager still heavily reliant on pocket money from my parents, I was delirious to be offered a position at the Singapore Grand Prix where I could (get paid to) watch, or rather hear, the world's first F1 night race Ã¢â‚¬Ëœlive' and get invaluable experience working at an international event that was telecast worldwide.

It was my virgin experience working at an international sporting event, where tourists from all over the world have flown in specially to catch the inaugural Singapore Grand Prix. My duty at the event was simply to be a well-mannered Singaporean (i.e. speak Ã¢â‚¬Ëœproper' English) in a bid to uphold the image of my country while I escort the foreign guests to the grand stand and the guests’ suite.

Expectations were high as I was responsible for serving the guests of a multinational company that was one of the main F1 sponsors. I had to be on my feet for approximately 20 hours over the two days (a straight 8-9 hours each day), and it was both a rewarding and stressful opportunity to serve the very important foreign guests.

There were ups and downs but at the end of the two days, the positive moments had outweighed the negative ones. Having to greet and smile at strangers who may not acknowledge or reciprocate was the most challenging part! I remember it was very quiet and dull on the scorching Saturday afternoon and I had to force myself to stay vigilant the whole time.

It was my first time serving foreigners and I was pleasantly surprised by their amiable responses. Some guests reciprocated my simple Ã¢â‚¬ËœHi! Have a nice day' with genuine responses of ‘How are you? Are you enjoying yourself? Are you having fun?', which encouraged me to give my best despite occasionally feeling foolish greeting other strangers who just brushed past me without batting an eyelid.

Prior to the Singapore Grand Prix, I couldn't fathom why the organisers would hire Ã¢â‚¬Ëœrookies' like me to usher at an event of this grandeur. One possible reason emerged on the second day when a sea of frantic guests, who had grown impatient with the lack of clear directional signs, conveniently vented their frustration on young Ã¢â‚¬Ëœrookie' ushers like yours truly.

Even though I was only responsible for the welfare of the guests of the company I was assigned to (and I was holding up the company’s sign), I had random strangers coming up to me and asked for directions I was clueless about. Despite my courteous replies of, Ã¢â‚¬ËœSorry sir, I have no idea where it is, it will be best if you askÃ¢â‚¬Â¦', I was often greeted with angry red faces as they stormed off.

Fortunately these negative experiences were balanced out by the positive moments I had with several good-humoured foreign guests. I remember standing next to a "No Fishing" sign and many guests were absolutely fascinated to see the sign in the middle of the paddocks! I was even teased by a Norwegian guest who joked, Ã¢â‚¬ËœI came all the way from Norway just to fish but now cannot.'

The icing on the cake was surely the indescribable feeling of hearing the F1 cars roar through the circuit. Though I could only catch glimpses of the F1 cars, which I doubt I’d remember given the range, the growl of the F1 engines will always remain in my memory and was sufficient to have made my Ã¢â‚¬Ëœrookie' ushering experience very special.