LE MANS TRIP JUNE 2004
Club camping area in front of the
Chateau
Fred and Doris Sanderson from Loughborough
Parking Bleu Mad Friday
Side of the track
Old Le Mans town
Trip organiser Mike Sheavills
Action at Porche Virage
Sunset at Porche Virage
Tucked up for the night
Parking at Virage Porche
Le Mans 2004 – Fred and Doris Sanderson
Persuasion was the name of the game, how were they going to get us to go to
Le Mans. It was many years since we had slept in a tent, a small one at that,
but a little arm-twisting and the loan of a tent we could stand up in and we
were committed to the experience that took our breath away. We drove to Dover
catching the 3am ferry to Calais and on to Chateau Chanteloup arriving at 1pm on
Thursday, tired but ready for anything that Le Mans was going to throw at us.
Friday morning saw us heading in convoy for the race track and a drive down
the Mulsanne Straight and then parking up to watch the parade of cars which was
great fun, there were cars from many countries but mostly British. A walk around
the pits seeing the cars being prepared for the next day was very interesting,
it would be great if the bodywork on the MR2 could be removed and replaced as
easily as the race cars.
7am on the day of the race saw us heading for Porsche Corner the usual spot
for the club to stand and view the proceedings. Waiting for the 4 o'clock start
was long but pleasant sitting in the sun watching the various vehicles driving
around the track - plus the odd beer.
4 O'CLOCK and the start of the cars flashing past for the next 24 hours made
the nerve ends tingle. We watched for the next 2 hours and then went back to the
Chateau to have a good steak and a glass or two of wine and then bed with the
alarm set for 2am . A quick drive to Arnage corner, well it should have been but
we got lost but made it in the end. What a spectacle, the noise of the engines
being tortured, the scream of the tyres and the almost white hot brake discs as
the cars braked hard were breathtaking to say the least, as they shot away from
Arnage up through the gear box from 60 to 220 mph in seconds.
Back to Porsche Curve to watch the rest of the race and to sit back and
reflect on Le Mans 2004 and how much we had enjoyed the experience, you may see
more on TV at home but you don't feel the atmosphere.
FRED and DORIS SANDERSON
