Race and classic pictures

Do look down - if you dare!

The viewing tower that reaches into the sky above the Circuit of the Americas is always a big hit with the fans who visit the venue for the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.

Designed by Miró Rivera Architects and built by Patriot Erectors, the tower soars 251 feet (77m) into the air. The top is reached by an elevator which is coiled around by a double helix staircase consisting of 419 stairs.

Just below the top, at a height of 'just' 230 feet (70m), there's a special vantage point for spectators where they can stand on a special transparent glass deck and look right down on the cars going about their business on the track below and a 360 degree panoramic view of the entire circuit.

Definitely not a sight to be missed - provided that you have a head for the dizzying height!

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.