I have this KOSS headset, it works great for races at Charlotte, I don't know how much louder Bristol will be.
Heads up, they get pretty sweaty.
I use this scanner with the drivers frequency programmed
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00A1VSO9M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Uniden Bearcat BC75XLT Handheld Scanner: 300 Channels, 10 banks, Close Call Technology, PC Programable, NOAA Weather, Aviation, Marine, Railroad, NASCAR, and Non-Digital Police/Fire/Public Safety
https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC75XLT-300-Channel-Handheld-Emergency/dp/B00A1VSO9M
Something like this should work. Go in around lunchtime (when it’s really busy), order food, get a table, and eat lunch while scanning for the frequencies. Make sure to use a headphone, so the staff doesn’t freak out that you’re listening in. Once you get the frequency saved, you can listen to it whenever you’re in range, which can be quite far away.
Source: I used to do this. The drive through can be quite interesting. You can hear customers ask stupid questions, and the employees will crack jokes with each other.
I bought this uniden scanner. Not too hard to set up and I programmed the channels by car number. https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Handheld-Scanner-Black-BC75XLT/dp/B00A1VSO9M/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1472345801&sr=1-2&keywords=uniden+scanner
I used professional noise cancelling earmuffs from Home Depot with earbuds and it all worked great. It is important you can hear the scanner (and save your hearing).
Unless you're above ground in the outer boroughs, I don't think it would be reliable for live audio. You will either have dropouts between stations, or high latency. Or both. Try an inexpensive scanner.
This https://www.amazon.ca/Uniden-Handheld-Scanner-Black-BC75XLT/dp/B00A1VSO9M/ but I don't see why it would work. It doesn't scan every frequency
No, I'm saying if you want a scanner, buy a scanner, not a Baofeng two way radio:
https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC75XLT-Public-Scanner-Channels/dp/B00A1VSO9M/
>Any ideas of a good scanner that can pick up the aircraft band by chance?
If you're looking for a new handheld scanner, the default answer (at least in the US) is usually Uniden. The lowest cost BC75XLT is perfectly fine, although I personally prefer scanners that have alphanumeric channel names, e.g. the BC125AT. The really good one is the BCD43HP, a wonderful toy, not cheap.
Edit: if you're interested in military aircraft as well then the entry level is the BC125AT.
https://www.uniden.com/radio-scanners/handheld
Uniden BC75XLT on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A1VSO9M/
If you're looking to invest in something more long term that you'll own, this is my setup.
I run a scanner, particularly this one- Uniden BC75XLT: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A1VSO9M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_tCgUyb4PHC6PY
From the scanner I plug in one of these- Boostaroo: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000EIWCFE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_jEgUybB8HB91A
And finally, from the boostaroo I run 3 headsets, specifically these: Koss QZ-99 Noise Reduction Stereophone https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000051SD1/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_8EgUybB8FZXBM
Here is my set up. 3 headsets per splitter and scanner. I have 9 headsets. Additionally, I have my scanners set up to scan all the Hendrick cars, with a priority on the 24 and 5, with mrn in the background. Glad I went out and invested in my own.
Scanner $80: https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Handheld-Scanner-Black-BC75XLT/dp/B00A1VSO9M
Splitter $30: https://www.amazon.com/Upbeat-Audio-T613-BNC-Boostaroo-Application/dp/B000EIWCFE
You can read about it here. It is between 108 and 137 MHz and is AM modulated. Like 2gigch1 said, you need a good antenna. Here is an homemade antenna that works great for me. If it's for plane spotting you can buy an handheld like the Uniden BC75XLT. The better the line of sight, the better the signal will be. If you go the SDR route, there is an awesome project: rtl_airband (works great on raspberry pi). Have fun!