Le Mans Classic: The greats at La Sarthe

The French department of La Sarthe does not lack historical or tourist attractions; However, it is better known because since 1923 the most famous and oldest endurance race in the world has been held on its circuit near Le Mans. The popularity of Le Mans is important even in social terms.

Everybody would want to sign up for Le Mans races, and they have not only participated professional pilots and world champions, but also amateurs from the world of politics or entertainment. From Juan-Manuel Fangio to Steve McQueen, it would not be risky to say that all motor enthusiasts with enough dollars, francs or euros in their pockets have been through Le Mans.

Given that the authentic 24 Hours of La Mans is only accessible with top professional teams, why not create a classic knockoff or substitute where those who dreamed of the famous endurance event can have the illusion of fighting. with the heroes of the past?

This is precisely the idea that Patrick Peter put into practice when creating his company Peter Auto, organizer of famous recreations such as Tour Auto Optic 2000 (for the Tour de France), Spa Classic (for the 24 hours of Francorchamps) and its flagship Le Mans Classic (for the 24 hours of Le Mans). Let's remember that Peter Auto also organized a classic Tour of Spain.

In 2014 the seventh edition of the Le Mans Classic was reached, which took place on July 4, 5 and 6, with a very varied palette of cars manufactured from 1923 to 1979, distributed by categories in 6 different starting grids. The massive influx of public confirms the popular success with more than one hundred thousand spectators.

SUCCESSFUL PARTICIPATION

The success of the Le Mans Classic has been so notorious that it threatens the true 24-hour event in terms of popularity, though naturally not in sporting terms. A success to which the election of July contributes to enjoy favorable weather conditions (although not guaranteed), the biannual periodicity, as well as the registrations of personalities from the world of business, entertainment or politics.

As an example of the appeal of the Le Mans Classic, in 2014, François Fillon, French Prime Minister until 2012, and Miguel Arias Cañete, Spanish minister until his resignation to be elected European deputy in May 2014.

In the paddock, inside and outside the cars, it is possible to meet former 24-hour winners, such as Emanuele Pirro (5 times winner), Gijs van Lennep (2 times winner) or Jürgen Barth (1 win in 1977). One of the most assiduous drivers of the 24 hours is Emmanuel Collard, who has participated 20 times and was enrolled in the classic test aboard a Porsche 910.

With 19 participations, Andy Wallace does not fall short and attends the classic recreation with a Jaguar-D from 1955. Gérard Larrousse, double winner of the 24 hours with Matra, was returning to the circuit with a Porsche 911 RSR.

Sebastien Loeb, a nine-time World Rally Championship winner and second place winner in the 24 hours of 2006, was in charge of starting on Saturday the 5th at five in the afternoon.

Six categories

Participants, with a total enrollment of 400 cars in round numbers, They were grouped into 6 different categories forming as many output grids:

[su_quote] ♦ Rack 1: Pioneers, for cars manufactured between 1923 and 1939;

♦ Grill 2: The return of the greens, for cars manufactured between 1949 and 1956. The title refers to the green color of British cars, which dominated the test in the XNUMXs;

♦ Grill 3: The red years, for cars manufactured between 1957 and 1961. The allusion to the color red clearly indicates the victories of Ferrari.

♦ Grill 4: The American accelerator, for cars manufactured between 1962 and 1965. Referring to the comeback of the Ford GT40, which dethroned Ferrari.

♦ Grid 5: The arrival of Porsche, for cars manufactured between 1966 and 1971. Period in which Porsche prepared its ascent to victory in the general classification.

♦ Grill 6: Ford, Matra, Porsche, for cars manufactured between 1972 and 1979. More open time in the struggle of the different brands. [/ su_quote]

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THE SPANISH NAVY

At le mans Spanish participation is higher than in other European events.

The Spanish teams stood out on Grill 2, where they were more numerous and we found enrolled:

♠ José María Fernández and Miguel Arias Cañete, who participated with two cars, a 26 Talbot Lago T1951 GS and a 1952 Nash Healey, with which Carlos de Miguel also participated;

♠ Luis Delso, Carlos Quiroga and José Macías, with Lancia Aurelia B20 from 1953;

♠ Carlos Betrán, Pablo Tarrero and Guillermo Velasco with Porsche 356 from 1954;

♠ Carlos Díez, Luis López and José Antonio Zorrila, also with a 356 Porsche 1956.

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On Grid 4 they appeared: ♠ Carlos de Miguel, Miguel Arias Cañete and Luis Delso, with Ferrari 275 GTB from 1964; ♠ Carlos de Miguel and Luis Delso, with Jaguar E from 1963; ♠ Carlos Beltrán and Artur Carulla, with Porsche 904 GTS from 1964. Possibly, the most interesting car in the Spanish teams is the latter since it is related to the history of motor sport in our country. The car belonged to the driver Juan Fernández, who used it in competition.

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When it was put up for sale at the auction organized by Gooding & Co in Pebble Beach in August 2013, a Spanish fan considered that the car should return to Spain and, despite the dissuasive estimate of between 1.750.000,00 and 2.250.000,00, 24 dollars, went to the auction to finally be awarded lot number 904, with frame 057/1.595.000,00 at 99053 dollars. According to the Gooding & Co catalog, the Porsche carries engine number 904 and gearbox number 056/XNUMX. As incidents, José María Fernández and Miguel Arias had breakdowns with their two cars, as well as the Jaguar E of Delso and Miguel was immobilized in the pits with a serious lubrication failure that had dangerously overheated the engine.

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A monstrous event

Le Mans is a monster of industrial (tourism industry), economic (it is an important engine for the region's economy), sports, cultural and social dimensions, which feeds on the fans of the participants and the spectators, with a huge participation of companies of the auxiliary industry and, in particular, of all the clubs of big and small brands.

Le Mans Classic is the opportunity for the largest concentration of clubs of national and international brands. In particular, Alpine and Porsche stand out for their overwhelming number. It seems that all the Alpines manufactured meet at Le Mans. As for Porsche, Marc Joly, editor-in-chief of Flat 6 magazine estimated , that there were a thousand who invaded an extensive area adjacent to the paddock.

Ferrari, Maserati, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, BMW, Aston Martin, Jaguar, TVR, Viper, Datsun, Jensen, Venturi, Lamborghini, Lotus, Bentley, are some names that I extract from the list of clubs that appear in the official program and that occupies a page in three columns with small print.

As the newspaper headlines "Le Maine Libre del Grand Mans" in a lengthy two-page article, Le Mans Classic is "A passion that is worth billions (of euros), attracting collectors from around the world with cars that cost real fortunes and that they circulate on the track."

Whether on the starting grid, in the pits, in the paddock, in the club car parks or in the entire area surrounding the circuit, the spectator will not have time to get bored for a moment. The visit for just one day is insufficient, being necessary to schedule a stay of at least two full days, not forgetting that on Friday and Saturday nights the activities last until two in the morning.

THE RULES

A look at the rules of the event is always interesting, since it gives us an idea not only of the rules of the game, but also of the type of cars that we can expect. The regulation specifies that Cars of a model that participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans between 1923 and 1979 are eligible, priority being given to the horses that have actually competed in the race.

Having held the race 82 times with an average of 50 participating cars, we will realize that it is not short of "real" candidates; as those admissible in practice are many more, since they can be the same models even if it is not precisely the one that ran. At this point, the rules are similar to other historical re-enactments such as the London-Brighton rally or the historic Thousand Miles.

Only 75 cars are allowed on each grid that can start (81 are allowed in practice). As for the drivers, 4 are allowed to share a car and the same driver can participate with several different teams, with the limitation of not being able to participate in three grids successively.

Each race lasts 45 minutes, with a mandatory stop between minutes 15 and 30, at which time a driver change can be made (which is not mandatory). As a minimum, the stop must last a minute and a half, and refueling is prohibited during the course of the race.

Cars

As we have seen in the regulations, Le Mans Classic emphasizes the participation of cars that have been entered in the past in the real test of the 24-hour endurance race. In this way, there are many authentic ex-participants in the 24 Hours of Le Mans who can be admired during a walk through the paddock. With about 450 registered, it would be impossible to make a rich and detailed presentation of all of them. We will limit ourselves to a selection that may be of general interest to readers.

Simultaneous tests, races and exhibitions take place on and off the track. Racing cars rub shoulders with sports cars and cars of all kinds and origins. The viewer you must schedule your time and know where to go, to avoid finding yourself wandering aimlessly, such is the amount of distractions that come your way.

FRENCH CARS

A) ALPINE

A revered product to the French, the Alpine is very popular and was represented in every possible way, from early models to racing prototypes. We will highlight a 210 cc A1500 that participated in the 24 hours of 1966 (abandoned) and an interesting M65 that participated in 1965, being the first 1300 cc car to complete a lap at more than 200 km / h.

Another important car was the 442cc V6 A2000B with which Jabouille and Depallier raced 24 hours in 1978, which this time was lined up for Jean Ragnotti and Alain Serpaggi.

B) MATRA

In French terms, you can't talk about Le Mans without talking about Matra. As a firm specializing in aerospace, ballistics and missile construction, Matra decided to support the French automotive industry by bringing its experience gained in the field of aerodynamics and missile experimentation, building cars that were as fast as the devices of the military industry.

The ground-based Matras did indeed resemble missiles in their speed, but they posed other problems. They had to reach their destination without crashing and, above all, they had to have brakes, an unnecessary accessory in ballistics. Worthily represented, Matra had the 660-01 from 1971, from the team formed by Henri Pescarolo and Graham Hill. The car was returning to the circuit with Richard Mille, Romain Dumas and Yvan Mahé.

C) TALBOT

As we have mentioned, Fernández and Arias Cañete participated with a 26 Talbot Lago T1951 GS. If something can be said about the car, it is that it was not the prettiest in the paddock, especially due to its large, rough-looking front air inlet.

D) OTHERS

Two Facel Vega, a large FV1 cabriolet from 1955 and a Facelia cabriolet from 1960, made for a beautiful picture at an exhibition dedicated to French bodywork, which also featured a rare 1925 Chenard & Walker Tank.

ITALIAN CARS

1- FERRARI

Apart from the competition, it is necessary to highlight a private collector who moved his favorite cars setting them in a magnificent workshop perfectly made in its decorative aspect. The well-known 330GTO and several 250GTs stood out, including a Bertone EW prototype.

As indicated, Carlos de Miguel, Miguel Arias Cañete and Luis Delso participated with a Ferrari 275 GTB from 1964 and numerous Daytonas, TRs could also be admired, as well as, among those of Spanish origin, a 348 that participated in Le Mans in 1994 with the team formed by Alfonso de Orleans, Tomás Saldaña and Andrés Vilariño.

2- MASERATI

The Maserati centenary was celebrated with a special exhibition, but it was made up more of current models, to advertise the new cars, than by historical representatives. A Ghibli cabriolet and a 3500GT Touring, which were the most interesting of the bunch, were almost unnoticed.

3- ALFA ROMEO

One of the cars with the best history of this brand was the 8C from 1935 with which the Belgians Roland and Nicolas D'Ieteren (father and son) were registered, very enthusiastic about motorsport in all its facets. Worthily defending the possibilities of the 8C, in the night session for grid 1, they qualified in seventh place at an average of 117,3 km / h. The average of the winner (Talbot Lago of 1939) was 124,1 km / h.

Lancia, Fiat, Lamborghini were not lacking on and off the circuit.

GERMAN CARS

PORSCHE

With its return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2014, Porsche's presence was also numerous and prominent in the classic edition.

In addition to the 356 and 904 of the Spanish teams already mentioned, an authentic legion of 906, 907 and 908 could be admired, although none overshadowed 917 by Brazilian surgeon Carlos Monteverde, painted in exactly the same colors as the victorious 917 in the 24 hours of 1970.

Another notable Porsche was the 936 owned by Ulrich Schumacher, Maximilian Werner and Heiko Ostmann, with the particularity of being a car similar to the one that won the 24 hours in 1977, driven by Jacky Ickx, Hurley Haywood and Jürgen Barth.

In the photo in view of the readers, Jürgen Bart (first left with glasses) observes the incidents of a pit stop.

SPANISH ENROLLMENTS

Spanish license plates are beginning to proliferate both in the paddock, in service vehicles, at club meetings or as mere visitors. We will highlight a Porsche 912 in the great concentration of the brand, a SEAT 600D with a Madrid registration, a surprising Renault 4L with a Jaén registration, as well as a Marcos sports car.

TRUCKS

Every day is more fashionable go to the classic competitions taking the car in an appropriate truck, If possible, the same ones that were used in their time by the official teams. Historic pieces such as the 3 Commer TS1960 from Escudería Ecosse, which was auctioned in London on December 1, 2013, are once again admired in the Le Mans paddock.

Among others, we will highlight a Mercedes-Benz truck from the Porsche-Gulf team and an OM 150 from the Ferrari team.

Some results

To provide some data in terms of results, from the endless list of categories, tests and rankings, we will highlight the following:

[su_quote] ♦ On grid 2, Alex Buncombe stood out, the fastest in a Jaguar C, who claimed two victories.

♦ Gary Pearson and Chris Harris dominated grid 3, in a Jaguar D.

♦ On grid 4, Hans Hugenholtz arrived first with a Ford GT40, as expected.

♦ Grid 5, one of the most spectacular as it was full of prototypes, was very followed by the public who admired David Hart, who won three races with his Lola T70 Mk3B. [/ su_quote]

Artcurial Auction

Auction houses often take advantage of international events to organize sales that attract both pilots and collectors and fans in general. At the Le Mans auction organized by Artcurial, We will highlight the following results achieved:

[su_quote] → Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster with hard-top from 1961, 1.115.600,00 euros, being the most expensive car of the weekend.

→ Porsche 911 2,7 Carrera RS from 1973, 580.504,00 euros

→ Porsche 911 2,2 S from 1970, 149.000,00 euros

→ Dino 246 GT from 1972, 255.200,00 euros. [/ su_quote]

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THE RIDICULOUSNESS OF THE LABEL

The organizer of the Le Mans Classic recommends the attending public to dress in clothing chic, that is to say, elegant, and that he refrains from wearing jeans or shorts, T-shirts, hats and tennis shoes in the paddock. In an event that theoretically lasts 24 hours, but actually lasts for three days, the weather conditions at Le Mans can change from sun and heat to heavy rain and cold. The type of clothing cannot be imposed on spectators who face long hours of bad weather. In fact, on Friday the 4th it was sunny and hot, while on Saturday morning it dawned raining and with a noticeable drop in temperatures.

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On the other hand, if cars manufactured up to 1979 are admitted, then accessories from that era cannot be banned either. There will be readers who were not born before 1979, but the subscriber already attended the royal races long before that date and knows exactly how he dressed. Impose pants, jackets and city shoes in the paddock it is outright ridiculous. The spirit of imitating events like the Goodwood Revival it threatens to be extended to tests involving more or less recent cars, which is an anachronism. On the other hand, the pilots use fireproof coveralls and full face helmets that did not exist at the time they intend to recreate, not to mention the accessories and improvements that are allowed in the cars. If the cars are not equipped as in their time, why should the spectators be? Fortunately, the audience has better common sense and the immensely general trend was to ignore the organizer's recommendations in this regard.

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FINAL NOTE

I will add that I was very honored to have the rare privilege of using in the press room the same desk where the Belgian pilot and journalist Paul Frère, winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1960, worked. Formula 1 and prototypes, Frère devoted himself to journalism and wrote several motorsport books. In the Le Mans press room, a plaque recalls the desk he used to write his chronicles.

Assessment

INTEREST FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF ...

… The quantity and quality of classic racing cars: 10/10

… The list of participants: 10/10

… The atmosphere: 10/10

… The shops of articles related to the automobile: 10/10

DISADVANTAGES

- Massive influx of public, queues, waiting.

- Massive traffic jams.

- Great distances to travel on foot.

- Very expensive prices. General standing admission without access to paddock and grandstands 63,00 euros for three days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). General admission on Sunday 39,00 euros. Access to the paddock 45,00 euros. Places in covered grandstands 45,00 euros. Parking outside the circuit 18,00 euros. Add yourselves, without forgetting to reserve 10,00 euros for the official program, very complete and necessary with the lists of participants, schedules and recommendations.

Finally, it would be desirable to abolish the tourist trains that go around the circuit on the auxiliary roads that surround it on the outside. For tourists who are not involved in the tests, there is no doubt that there is much incentive to ride the little train admiring the landscape. However, at the same time, when driving at 20 km / h they cause huge traffic jams and waste of time for those looking for a car park or moving from one place to another on the circuit.

Many were the drivers who complained about the overheating of the engines of their classic cars when they were stuck for long minutes behind the little trains.

 

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