US GP Ticket rec's

Hey everyone..
I've never been to laguna seca and don't even really know the curcuit except the corkscrew.
I was wondering if anyone knows about the tickets/seating arrangements and could give me a bit of insight?
Also, are there still paddock passes, and what exactly does paddock pass allow me to do? (go into paddock... like I can stand in pit lane?)
haha. sorry for the newbie questions.. only races I been to was AMA at Infineon and sat grandstand at the start/finish and QP2 in Brno 2003 which u can just walk around wherever you want.
thanks a ton!
ps-anyone know good deals for lodging?

Laguna has great spectating even if you don't buy grandstand seating. Grandstands are located on the front straight and between turn 4 and 5. Neither spot is really worth the money - other place on the track are way better. There's great free spectating above turns 1 and 2, under the bridge near turn 5, above turn 6, at the Corkscrew, and on the outside of turn 10.

Paddock passes allow you into the paddock but not into pit-lane. Now that Laguna has permanent pit garages, top teams get to use those and are thus out of sight of most people. For MotoGP, this means you won't see any of the MotoGP teams. You won't even see their trucks since they'll be flying everything in anyway. More than likely you'll be able to watch all the AMA classes at work, up to and including the top factory superbike teams. This is pretty cool, but I'm not sure it's worth money (although I've already got my paddock pass).

Finally, my advice for lodging is BOOK IT NOW. I've booked already - rooms will almost certainly be impossible to get within about 3 months...

Anyone got a tip on a place that still has rooms available? I looked and couldn't find (didn't look too hard). Would like to stay in Monterey so I can go out drinking at night w/out having to ride anywhere.

I highly recommend paddock passes, you never know what you'll run in to walking around there.
For one: you'll most likely see a famous racer or two.
Two: the racer's girlfriends are HOT!!!
Three: see bikes in various states of (dis)repair is intriguing to me.
Four: One time I went to the paddock early on Friday, and I happened to be right in the middle of some sort of roll-call for the racers....it was very exciting.
Five: The privateers are typically very cool and will talk to you if they've got time.
etc.

~I believe the campspots and grandstand seating went on sale today. check www.laguna-seca.com if you want any of these.

Campspots, in my own little opinion, are the way to go. You don't need to go anywhere, all the action is right in front of you. It'll be the best price you'll find: I think $40/night for general, and about $225 for the whole weekend for a reserved spot --- which you can 'grandfather' in your name, thus receiving rights to that spot year after year (provided you buy them each year). Early access to all cool stuff, no parking worries, etc etc etc. That's not even to mention I think there's gonna be a strong sized BARF camping contingent this year, so parties will surely be happening (if you end up on Fox Hill, parties happen there regardless).

Either way, make your decisions soon as I'm thinking both paddock passes and local hotels will be gone well before the event....but that's just a guess.

see you there....is it 2005 yet?