MONACO -- Each of the 17 races on the Formula One schedule pays out the same 10 points to the winner, but none of them can match the glamour and prestige of the Monaco Grand Prix. Monaco is not only F1's crown jewel; it's also one of the greatest motor races in the world with a rich and exotic history that stretches back to 1929.

For many race enthusiasts and drivers, the Monaco Grand Prix is part of auto racing's unofficial triple crown along with the Indianapolis 500, which can trace its history back to 1911, and the Le Mans 24 Hours, which has been around since 1923. Only one driver has won all three -- Graham Hill.

With the boom in the popularity of NASCAR, the Daytona 500 has obviously also become one of the world's great races, but it doesn't have quite as long a history as the Triple Crown races.

As for Monaco, back to 1297 an Italian by the name of Francois Grimaldi disguised himself as a monk, hid a sword under his robes, and tricked the guards to open the gates to the fortress on a steep hill overlooking the Mediterranean. Grimaldi and his men stormed the fort and ousted the ruling family of Genoa. Today, the Grimaldi family, under the leadership of Prince Rainier III, still rules the tiny Principality of Monaco.

In 1928, Antony Noghes, Founder-President of the Automobile Club de Monaco, set out a track through the streets of Monaco. The first Monaco Grand Prix was held in 1929 and won by a man who went under the single pseudonym of "Williams" driving a privately entered Bugatti 35B. A long time later he was identified as William Grover Williams, a mysterious man who worked as an agent for the Allies in World War II and parachuted in behind enemy lines. He was later captured and executed by the Gestapo in April 1945.

Actually, Monaco's racing roots can be traced back to 1911 when the first Monte Carlo rally was staged. Monaco's famous Casino goes back even further than that as it was opened in 1863.

Over the years, Monaco grew from a sleepy resort village to one of the most glamorous places on the French Riviera. This, after all, was where Prince Rainier III married Hollywood movie goddess Grace Kelly in 1956.

Monaco, which covers less than one square mile, is the home of many millionaires who enjoy its tax benefits. Its warm weather and central location also make it an ideal base for F1 drivers. Rubens Barrichello, David Coulthard, Juan Pablo Montoya, Giancarlo Fisichella, Jenson Button, Jaques Villeneuve, Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Nick Heidfeld are among the current F1 stars that reside in Monaco.

Over the years the track layout has changed little, which means that it is completely outdated by modern F1 standards. If one were to airlift the track out and plunk it in a middle of a field, it would never be granted a license by the FIA. But Monaco is Monaco. And the safety and work crews have been doing their job for so long that things run remarkably smoothly.

"I always have mixed feelings about the Monaco Grand Prix," Michael Schumacher says "On the one hand, I think we shouldn't be racing on a track like this for safety reasons. But on the other hand, I know that this track represents a real challenge. At times you get very close to the barriers and you have to concentrate 100 percent whenever you are on the track. But this is a plus point. You have to get used to being so close to the walls at such high speed, especially as there are so many bumps on the track. This Grand Prix is something really special and driving here is a unique experience that I like very much."

Trying to thread an 850 horsepower F1 car through the narrow, twisting barrier-lined streets is, Ralf Schumacher says, like trying to fly a helicopter in your bedroom. Going 180 mph just a fraction of an inch from the barriers provides a thrilling ride, says Coulthard.

"It is a big buzz when you are flying up the hill to Casino corner," says Coulthard, who won the race in 2000. "When you go up there on the first lap flat out, and you know you are going over a rise into a blind left hand corner, you have to watch out because a little bit of the steel barrier sticks out quite late into the corner, but when you have experience here you know what to look out for."

"It's a crazy challenge," he adds, "but when you get to the end of the lap and see your lap time improving, it is the ultimate feeling of reward for driving a fast car without the ability of getting away with mistakes. In other tracks we can run off, and you see us pushing the limit until we run over the curb and then we come back from there. You don't have that luxury on a track like this."

The great drivers will sometimes just kiss the barriers with the tires of their cars, but kiss too hard and you are out of action.

"It is not a normal procedure for us to be driving that close to barriers," Michael Schumacher says. "It is a very high challenge for all of us to get the best lap times out of the car. Mistakes not only cost you time, but they usually mean an accident when (under normal circumstances you would only) end up in the gravel."

It's small wonder that the winner's list in Monaco contains the best drivers in the business. Between 1984 and 1993 Alain Prost (four wins) and Ayrton Senna (a record six wins) won every single race. Since then, Michael Schumacher has been victorious five times. Besides these three drivers, only Olivier Panis, Mika Hakkinen and Coulthard (with one victory each) have won the Monaco Grand Prix in the last 18 years.

Monaco attracts a wide range of spectators. Some come in by train and sit on the hill overlooking the track or in the grandstands to watch the race. Then there are those who watch the race from the glittering yachts in the harbor (a few years ago one millionaire hired a yacht for $30,000 a day) or from the balconies of posh hotels (one charges $1,000 per night with a seven night minimum) or from restaurant tables where a meal and a view of the race can cost $1,000.

Monaco is the ultimate place for F1 sponsors to entertain their guests.

Monaco is the place to see and be seen.

Soon after the race cars leave the streets, the people reclaim them. You can walk along the track where just an hour earlier Ferraris and McLarens shrieked by, their V10 engines revving to 18,000 rpm and the glorious sound batting off the walls of the high-rise apartment buildings. The streets are littered with exotic cars as Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Aston Martins, Rolls Royces, Bentleys and other fabulous machines take over from the F1 cars.

"It's an exciting weekend for everybody," Jaques Villeneuve says, "and it's probably more exciting for those who don't work and just come here to party and have a good time."

For all its glamour, Monaco is sheer misery for the crew members. The pit lane is ridiculously narrow and dangerous. Unlike every other F1 track, there are no garages (except for tiny shacks) behind the pits for the teams to operate out of. Thus at the end of each day, everything must be loaded onto trucks or be pushed, pulled or carried back to the paddock that is crammed along the harbor front. That's a huge undertaking given the amount of stuff F1 teams bring to a race. The smaller teams have to operate out of a multistory parking garage half a mile away.

One final note about glittering Monaco and its famous harbor: In all the years, only two racing cars have gone for a swim. Alberto Ascari dumped his Lancia D50 into the water in 1955 and Paul Hawkins did the same in his Lotus 33 in 1965. Both drivers survived, although both would die in racing accidents at a later date.

It's all part of the history and glamour of F1's most prestigious race.

Dan Knutson covers Formula One for National Speed Sport News.