[Sport] Le Mans 2013 retrospective

A week ago I wondered whether my trip to Le Mans this year would live up to my first visit, just over one year previously. Well it turns out that despite being a very different experience, it definitely could. The whole week seemed to fly by. Yet at the same time it seemed, particularly at the start of the week, to last for ages. I will also say that there are several reasons, both good and bad, for why I won’t be forgetting this year’s event in a hurry.

Standing on the track looking down the pit straight towards the Ford Chicanes.

Actually being able to get onto part of the track was magical. (Credit: David Brown)

The trip down to Le Mans was uneventful, except for the weather which was very stormy indeed. Driving out of the Eurotunnel we were greeted by thunder and lightning, and that lasted a good portion of the way through France. The rain was so heavy that at some points we couldn’t see, even with the wipers on maximum!

We got to the track by lunchtime on Wednesday, and managed to set up camp, go shopping, and eat our first barbecue of the week before the start of the first practice session. Those first two days, full of practice and qualifying sessions, were glorious. The spectacle of the cars on track was as good as ever, and we tried out a few different viewing areas compared to 2012, including the Indianapolis/Arnage section that I really wanted to visit (and at which I acquired a large number of insect bites!). The weather was overcast but mostly dry, although there was a very heavy shower just before the Thursday afternoon session. On/off, will it/won’t it rain showers were somewhat of a theme for the week actually.

Our campsite for the week. Note the extra-rain protection on the gazebo! (Credit: David Brown)

The one damper was the number of red flags. Over the four sessions we had six red flags, including three that brought sessions to a premature end. The problem seemed to be excessive Armco barrier damage; every time there was an accident the barrier seemed to need repairing, which caused frustratingly lengthy delays. This too would be a theme for the week.

On Friday we decided to forgo the driver parade, although I still ended up in Le Mans centre at the time for reasons which will be explained elsewhere. Instead we had a leisurely day. My housemate and I went to see the announcement of Nissan’s electric-power garage 56 entry for 2014, and followed that up with a trip onto the track itself (a rare honour, and actually the first time I’ve set foot on a race track) to see the 90^th year display. This was a set of cars, one from each decade the race has been running. They were arranged in individual marquees, running from the first corner up to the Dunlop bridge, and they were beautiful. My personal highlight was the Peugeot 905 from 19xx; the Peugeots of the Group C era have always been some of my favourite race cars. The others then went on the pit lane walkabout, whilst I took my trip into Le Mans. I was disappointed to miss the pit lane, but it wasn’t all bad as I found out that the trams on Sunday would be a lot more regular than I thought, and I wouldn’t have to leave the race early after all.

On the left, the Mazda 787. The only rotary engined car to win Le Mans, it makes a noise you'll never forget! On the right, the Peugeot 905B. One of my favourite Group C sportscars. 

I would have loved to see these running on track. (Credit: David Brown)

Friday also saw the culmination of one of this year’s car-related disaster. A set of keys were locked inside the car they were supposed to open, and the farce that ensued in trying to get them back was incredibly funny for all of us except the affected party!

The support races this year were the Trofeo Ferrari (a one-make Ferrari 458 series), which I wasn’t particularly bother by, and Le Mans Legends (cars from 1949 to 1965). There were some beautiful cars in this race, and it truly was a race. Despite the astounding value of some of the cars they were being driven really hard, albeit at wildly varying lap times. It’s been a while since I saw any historic racing (something which I used to see a lot of with my Dad), but these cars reminded me why I used to love it so much.

The Lister Jaguar that eventually won the Le Mans Legends race. A beautiful car. (Credit: David Brown)

The main race was a lot better than I thought it would be this year. I will happily admit that I was wrong about P1. Toyota put up a stronger fight than I expected, helped partly by the greasy conditions. It was noticeable that they dropped off the pace significantly in the dry, and they were clearly burning fuel faster to try to keep up, as their range advantage wasn’t as great as predicted. Audi also showed unusual reliability problems, which effectively took the reigning champions out of the fight for the win. Instead it was two against two, and could have gone either way right up to the last half hour or so, particularly if the rain at the end of the race had been heavier or during green flag running.

Some of the P1 challengers. Left to right: the number 3 Audi R18 e-tron quattro; the Strakka HPD-Honda; the number 7 Toyota TS030 2013. (Credit: David Brown)

P2 was as competitive as expected, and one of the highlights of the race. It was actually quite hard to keep up with thanks to the rapid changes of position and close-running of multiple cars. A lot of the cars made it to the end as well, although the class also included a couple of horribly slow entries that trundled around getting in the way of everyone, including the GT cars!

Some of the P2 entries. Left to right: the Caterham sponsored Greaves Zytek-Nissan; the KCMG Morgan-Nissan; the beautiful Oak Morgan-Nissan art car.

The art car was a copy of a sculpture made by a local artist, who covered an old Morgan chassis in old road signs. (Credit: David Brown)

Speaking of GT, the Pro class was a real dogfight. The advantage Aston Martin had displayed at test day had disappeared, and the factory Porsches were nipping at their heels.  There were two Astons and a Porsche running within a minute of each other for three-quarters of the race until a crash for the leading Aston in the rain. Those three had been separated from the rest of the field right at the start of the race by the three safety car system run at Le Mans, but the second Porsche eventually caught up and ultimately demoted the remaining Aston to 3^rd.

GT-Pro runners. Left to right: One of the many AF Corsa Ferrari 458 Italias; the Aston Martin 'art car'; one of the new Porsche 911 (991) run by the works Porsche team. (Credit: David Brown)

The Am class was, sadly, much closer than test day and qualifying suggested. I say sadly because one of the reasons this race will stick in my memory is the tragedy that befell Aston Martin in the first ten minutes of the race. Their leading car, driven by Allan Simonsen, had a huge crash at Tertre Rouge. We only saw the aftermath on the big screen but the passenger’s side door was ripped off, and we knew it was bad by how long the two medical cars and ambulance stayed at the scene. We heard slightly later that Simonsen was conscious when taken from the car, but several hours later there an official press release was read out. As soon as it started I feared the worst, but hoped I was wrong. I was not, and it was announced that Simonsen had died of his injuries.

Looking through my pictures it seems I managed to miss getting one of the number 95 Aston Martin.

 But this one's rather good. (Credit: wot.motortrend.com)

It cast a shadow over the rest of the weekend for me. I managed to forget about it for a lot of the race, but interviews with other drivers, particularly from the GT classes, brought it back to the forefront. Some of them were clearly struggling to deal with what had happened, and lost for words during the interviews. Then at the end of the race I was almost in tears listening to the tributes, and the commentators trying not to break apart. It was a truly awful event, and I cannot imagine how those spectators who witnessed the accident first hand are feeling, let alone those who actually knew Allan Simonsen. I only know of him through his driving, but whenever I turned on a GT series he seemed to be there, at the front of the field and going quickly. In qualifying at Le Mans this year he was so fast that he caused every other car in his class to be penalised for being too slow compared to his time! He was spectacular to watch, and a great talent who obviously loved racing, but sadly paid the ultimate price.

RIP Allan Simonsen.

Memorial painting by Ian Cook. (Credit: autoguide.com)