12 hours of sebring

i am planning my first trip to the 12 hours of sebring next march. i was wondering if anyone has general advice as far as best place to spectate, are the reserved box seats worth the price, parking, accomodations etc. any input would be appreciated.

Sign up to work the race, be right on the track, best seats in the house. Some of the guys from our local PCA go down there each year.

Generally, you have to get the pit pass, and spend quite a bit of time on that side of the track. You will also spend a lot of time walking the spectator areas of the track and watch from many different interesting spots. (seats at Sebring - defeat the purpose). You can park in the porsche corral (take your porsche club ID or your car). Sebring is a small town, so there may be no empty rooms at this time. You can call every hotel and see if there are any reservations anywhere. Most fans take some vehicle and camp around it. Facilities are primal. There are plenty of eating vendors at the track.

Reserved box seats are great to watch the start, but little else. I don't think they're worth the added cost, especially if you can have a nice shady area to sit like Porsche Corral. The regular ticket will get you pretty much everywhere on the track except the pit boxes. If you like to watch the action in the pits, get a pit pass. Also, there are always scalpers at the gas stations near 66 and 27 so you could leave the track late afternoon, get a pit pass from one of them, then return to the track to watch the end. Sebring is a big track and has plenty of vantage points. One of my favorites is around the 14-15-16 area - you can walk between people's parked motorhomes and see the cars from every possible angle. Bring a nice camera and tripod; the possibilities for photos are terrific.

Last year you had to purchase a ticket in advance that allowed parking in the Porsche corral as the space there is limited. You can't just show up with a P-car and a PCA membership card anymore. The vantage point at the P-corral is very good (Sunset bend onto the front straight). And you have access to the tent where they have Speed TV so you can get the scoop on the running order and grab a bottle of water. Be prepared to do a lot of walking, you really don't want to sit in one place. Every ticket gets you paddock access. I wasn't aware of the pit pass though. Guys, what access does that get you besides standing behind the chain link fence?

Thanks guys this is excellent info. so i am getting the impression this is like watkins glenn or any other sports car track. not really beneficial to sit in one seat the whole time ( like nascar or indy ) how do i get a pass to the porsche corral ? also you are right about hotels they are already full within 30 miles of the track. there are rooms in lakeland, how far is that from the track ? any other town to the north ( i am coming from Va. ) that would be good to try ?

It's a lot of fun to camp there - for the last two years I've flown in from LAX on Saturday morning, picked up a rental convertible, and parked in the North enclosure with my tent. The party atmosphere on Saturday night is excellent!

You can look for any hotel with an address on hwy 27. Lakeland would be far enough to commute. I would say under an hour. Bartow is slightly closer. I have recieved corral parking tickets from my local dealer for the past couple of years. I didnt pay any attention as to the other people trying to get in the corral. I didnt know they had tightened up.

It's like spring break! You need to walk around to different areas of the track. I prefer the end of the straight down by the hotel (no sure of corner #) very heavy breaking. The only draw back is no elevation change - so a little harder to see some of the circuit. It's a great experience

Chateaux Elan is at the track and has the view of the air pin!

Can someone find out the definite skinny on porsche corral passes, and how we need to get them, and post it here? i was under the impression that you just need a pcar or pca membership.

when your purchase tickets by phone from Sebring direct, you have to mention the Porsche Corral pass aslo. It was $20. last year and sold out quick. If you show up without a corral pass and expect to park there you will be very disappointed.

That is true. Be sure to specify that you want the Pcar corral when you order the tickets. Don't take long as they will sell out. The Club Sebring tickets are nice if you want to spend a little money. You get an air conditioned suite with drinks, food, televised race coverage, clean restrooms, and paddock parking. Pit passes are a bit tougher to come by and often require some team connections. Accomodations... get yourself going on those right away as they get tough to find. The Chateu would be the hot spot, but I can guarantee their booked solid. There are plenty of good spots to watch the race. Just be prepared for the heat, sun, and intoxicated masses.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS THE CLOSEST/ EASIEST AIRPORT OT FLY IN TO ?

Sebring airport is right on site if your flying a small private plane. For commercial flights try Tampa/St. Pete or Fort Myers.