Wired:
The Monaco Grand Prix may be the car world’s glitziest race, the Indy 500 its most historic, but the 24 Hours of Le Mans wins the award for most masochistic—and therefore the most important to manufacturers and fans alike. The annual race—happening this weekend—offers the chance to prove who has not just the best technology, but the ability to harness it for a full 24 hours without disaster, at a place where disaster tends to reign supreme.
What started in 1923 as a race for small European manufacturers and aristocrat drivers evolved into a proving ground for the world’s biggest carmakers. It’s where Bentley and Porsche would prove their mettle, Ford would crush Ferrari to settle a beef, and, in 1955, fast cars and an even faster track claim 80 lives in the worst crash in motorsports history.
Le Mans doesn’t get the coverage of other motorsports but I find it a fascinating race. I just watched Amazon’s “Le Mans: Racing is Everything” series and it was, unfortunately, antiseptic. A shame because they got amazing access to the drivers and teams.
Oh thanks for reminding me…. turns on Eurosport…
The 1971 Steve McQueen movie still holds up. The movie / doco Audi did a few years ago was pretty good too.
Steve McQueen’s “Le Mans” is excellent and well worth tracking down (although not as good as “Grand Prix”, to which McQueen apparently had the rights but was unable to complete a film).
Mercedes, unfortunately for them, experienced another all-time “crash highlight reel” moment at the 1999 running of Le Mans, after which they withdrew from endurance racing. Their CLRs had experienced aerodynamic flips during practice and warmup, and Mercedes added a few small flaps at the front to solve it. Or so they thought.
Just search for “1999 Mercedes CLR flip Le Mans” and you’ll find the clip. The car landed on its wheels in a clearing in the woods. The driver, Peter Dumbreck, was stunned but suffered no serious injuries.
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Audi’s Le Mans documentary is called Truth in 24 and it’s excellent: