The whole plan was quite unprepared what made it interesting. So why visiting Milton Keynes? To see the headquarters of the Red Bull Racing Formula One Team. I knew that they were located there but much more I didn't know.
So we got the tickets for £14.50 - price was for getting there and back on the same day. Quite cheap - unlike the way from the Stansted Airport to London which was a shorter distance and twice as expensive.
We made it to the train just in the right time. The station we had to look for was 'Milton Keynes Central'. The expectation was quite naive, like 'At the train station you'll see were to go.' As we got there, there was no hint, no sign, it looked like it wasn't just around the corner.
And we also had no Internet connection for our smartphones and we also didn't want to pay roaming charges. So I asked an employee at the Milton Keynes Central station where we had to go on the map. He asked to be sure what I meant:
'Red Bull... The racing cars?'
I confirmed and he said the area where they are would be 'Stacey Bushes'. He showed it us on the map. It meant for us to follow the big street in the left direction for like 2,6 miles.
Being clear where to go we followed the street as we were told. While walking my friend was even questioning why Sebastian Vettel hasn't named one of his racing cars Stacey yet. It would have made sense, because the German multiple Formula One world champion gives every of his cars girls names. In 2012 it was for example Abbey. So why not naming the car after the area where they were built? Soon we knew why.
After more than an hour of walking we arrived at Stacey Bushes, but we saw nothing what looked like anything near the Red Bull colors. We couldn't believe that we might have overlooked it. Soon came a guy along and I asked him how we could get to the Red Bull Racing factory. He reacted like
'Oh no, you're miles away!'So the guy at the train station told us something completely wrong. But we were in luck: The man we met said that if we could wait a few minutes he could bring us there. He wanted to drive in the same direction anyway - because of soccer training.
So he went home for his car and we waited. It took a bit more than 'just a few minutes', but we kept patient - even if we didn't know that he would really come. Otherwise walking wouldn't have made sense. It would have been eight miles as we know now. But then he came and brought us the whole way back on the other side of the town.
While driving he said that he also likes Formula One and that he saw the Red Bull Racing home run the year before where the racing cars were driving through the streets of Milton Keynes. The broadcasting plan of the BBC with not sending every race live was also a topic. The last race in Suzuka was also an example for that - I saw it in London as a highlights show a few days before.
Minutes later we could see that we were right: We stopped at Bradbourne Drive. Next to a T-Systems establishment there were the Red Bull Racing buildings. Almost two hours after arriving at the train station we were there.
On the right side was a smaller building - probably office area. And on the left side of the street was a much bigger one - the factory. But the main entry was contruction area - probably it was a good time to work there, because the teams were travelling from Japan to South Korea for the next race which was already the weekend ahead.
Anyway - maybe interesting to know - the main entry which was under construction at that time was damaged after its conclusion because some burglars went in to steal the throphies placed at the entry area in the end of 2014.
We walked around and also saw that the team principal Christian Horner was the only one with named sign on his parking spot. So no parking spot for Adrian Newey? Well, if I remember a documentation correctly I could at least have a glimpse in his office from the outside. There's a path along the building where you can see in some rooms.
The opportunity was of course to take some pictures - including with ourselves on it - for having a memory to be there. There were also some Red Bull Racing employees walking from one building to another. To get in the building is as far as I know only possible with some tours on special dates during the year.
From the outside it was quite interesting to see and a special experience to just having been there without being inside. Anyway, for the way back to the Milton Keynes Central we went to the next bus station and took the next bus. We walked enough that day. The bus line had many stops and it took a while before we arrived back at the train station.
It was already getting dark and past 8 o'clock after we were back in London there was the first plan to have dinner. After this long day, long afternoon - well earned.
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