This.

I trust you gents, and valid opinions. I just gave my initial thoughts of what I observed in the first non NASCAR race that I've seen. I'll watch some of next year Le Mans, mostly to see how the Vettes do, and maybe the race as a whole will be better and more entertaining.

Bon joure

My daughter and her family lived in France for 3 years. Even though Lemans is dominated by European teams, Corvettes are very well known and liked in France. After all, Chevrolet was a Frenchman. :thumbs:

By the way, Nascar....gimme a break. Opps, another left turn! How exciting..

Probably nobody was really all that happy. One of their colleagues was killed at the beginning of the race.

As for everybody grouping together to come across the finish line the race had already been settled by the time the clock ran around to 24 hours all they had to do was not screw up for the last hour since their competitors were too far behind.

The only place you see NASCAR banging fenders is on the slower tracks. When they start running the speeds the LeMans cars were running they don't bump either. Too risky to do anything but bump drafting which occurs on road courses as well. If you put them in a 24 hour race they wouldn't bang fenders at all since that is good way not to finish a race. A car may be able to be banged around for 3 or 4 hours but not 24.

NASCAR has an issue with boring races as well since they don't emphasize the difference in makes like they used to, the tendency to throw a yellow flag when one car gets a large lead (remember the old days when the winners would lap everybody including the 2nd place car?), the fact they have trouble turning right and even when they do in two races they eliminate the most challenging portions of the tracks. Almost forgot, they are afraid to run in the rain.

Bill

And Corvette had poor qualifying times this year. So hopefully next year that will translate to the Corvettes getting fewer restrictions and they'll be able to cruise on by the Astons as easily as the Astons passed the Vettes this year. Then of course Aston will complain that the Corvettes were given an unfair advantage! LOL Where does it end??

It wasn't clear to me what was up with those lost 4 seconds. Were the lost seconds after the restrictions were put in place or before? The Corvette crew was commenting about how their times were down so much and they couldn't put their fingers on why. I got the impression they weren't referring to the restrictors but something else in addition to the restrictors. Sounds like Corvette was doubly screwed before the race even started.

:cheers:
Fair enough. I think we can all agree that us Vette Enthusiasts are already looking toward the next race/next year's LeMans!

But our troubles are obviously paled in comparison to the loss of A. Simonson. RIP:sadangel:

The Corvettes lost time before the additional weight, and then also had the weight put in. The Corvette's were slightly below mid-pack during practice and got a weight penalty (I have no idea why, if they already were well behind). To be fair, the Aston's also got a weight penalty and the 911's a restrictor increase, while the Vipers got less weight and a bigger fuel tank.

I heard the announcers discuss that this was the Corvette's first run on the European endurance car tire, and that they needed time to dial the car in to the tire. I have no idea what the deal is with the tire other than it is a Le Mans spec tire, but the interview with the Corvette team seemed to indicate the same thing.

Good Job Dlinderman ..*cheers*

Yeah the vettes looked slow this year, I did not keep up with the restriction placed on every car, but it looked like the Astons had no problem passing them. I think this might due to what some posters pointed out as the weight penalties and restrictors imposed on the vettes.

Coasting across the finish line looked pretty weak to me. It was as if they had decided that the battle was over and it was agreed who had won long before the race was over. Weak.:thumbs:

Yeah and you sir are god's gift to all things motorsport and those guys who just finished racing FOR 24 FRIGGIN HOURS STRAIGHT are weak.

:crazy:

Not getting into the pi$$ing contest here, but hearing from someone enjoying watching cars going around a circle for hours, that traditional road racing is boring.... can't help but crack a smile here.
Good new is there's enough variety of entertainment out there to make everyone happy. :cheers:

Of course the TV experience (as with every sport) doesn't come close to walking the track, going from turn one to the Tertre Rouge, standing in the middle of the Hunaudieres and watch them go by you at 300mph (that part was even more fun before the chicane was put in place to limit the speed to something under 400mph ;)), crossing to the inside of the track on the Dunlop bridge and walking the paddocks.

It was an intense edition, unfortunately tarnished by the loss of a young man.

Corvette will do better next year I'm sure! :thumbs:

I watched as much of the race as humanly possible. Also noticed there was a BIGGER emphasis of Corvette's history AT Le Mans during commercial breaks compared to last year. C4 and C5 GrandSport name plate got part of its heritage from C3's racing AT Le Mans.

I thought the coverage and the race itself was excellent when watching all classes. Remember this is a 8 plus mile track and the weather varied at different parts. Around 4:00 am, the cars in the higher classes were crashing left and right when it started down pouring. The second crash is what knocked Aston Martin out of the lead around the same time. The first Aston Martin crash was unfortunate (RIP). AM has even temporarily taken their website down due to the drivers death.

I think 2011 was more fun to watch because Corvette won and the team was battling for the lead with Ferrari, Aston Martin and Porsche not to mention the car was faster.

This year the Corvette team had to go to work and grind it out, moving from the tenth position to 4th. It was a slow process.

Snake will be there in 2014 to cheer on the C7R at Le Mans.

I love NASCAR. Lived in Daytona for awhile.

The cars in LeMans do more miles in one race than the entire NASCAR season. One engine. To finish is a great accomplishment. It's about endurance more than flat out speed and rubbing. More importantly is MOST of the cars are closer to stock than Stock cars and the tech goes directly to manufactured cars we drive everyday.

A few things about the finish at Le Mans and the so called coasting across the finish line. On most occasions the top teams have a comfortable lead so they back off a little, but on the final lap or so (depending on the advantage over the second place car they will slow down to allow their other team cars to catch up so they are all in the finish line picture. Many times you will also see of class cars try and bunch up with the top finisher. This is of course based on the amount of lead they have over their opponent.

I have seen at time in Le Mans where a certain class leading car does not have a great advantage over second place car and they need to push right to the finish. Also for those that watch NASCAR you need to remember this in multi class racing so there are 4 different classes racing at the same time on the same track for 24 straight hours.

I would also suggest for those diehard NASCAR fans, to tune into an ALMS race this year and watch the complete race. They talk about the great drivers of NASCAR, but watch the drivers in ALMS and see how they can turn left and right while fighting with cars in their own class, being overtaking by a much faster prototype or passing a slow GTC car.

Next as for the Corvette and performance issue. I am not aware of any added weight, as I understand it they were 15 Kg lighter then the weight mandated in the ALMS series. What I did hear, is that although they always run on Michelin tires, they were given a compound they have never run before in the ALMS series. These were the ones that the WEC ( the World Endurance Series)teams which were the top runs in the GT class this year run have been using. So with the bad weather and limited testing at Le Mans the Corvette team started off handicapped. Now they may have had other restriction and maybe weight was added, but I do know that they were originally set to weight less then they do min ALMS.

Gees, I used to be one of NASCAR's best supporters, but in my opinion, they're now in the same league as WrestleMania.

It really bothers me when Toyota is portrayed as a performance vehicle running an OHV V8...which is certainly a race derived engine since they have never had a push rod V8. I don't suppose you could buy any of the engines over the counter at GM or Ford either, but at least they have a heritage to something they once made.

Sorry, but that statement is not accurate.

The overall winner Audi #2 prototype completed 348 laps at a distance of 8.469 miles per lap for a total of 2947.2 miles. Not bad, especially given the roughly five hours of caution/safety car laps.

NASCAR Cup cars race a total of 36 races in a season, with the average race being approximately 300 miles (rough estimate, I admit). Even with my unscientific and likely underestimate of the average race distance, that is over 10,000 miles in a season for the NASCAR Cup cars. Of course, they rebuild the engines after every race.

I don't know why we are going on and on about sports cars versus stock cars. I enjoy all types of racing, some more than others on certain tracks at certain times, but variety is good to have. I just like to clarify when people make incorrect assumptions about different types of racing.
:thumbs:

I agree with you on the mileage, but if you factor in the record number of full course cautions, the slower pace due to weather the total miles that would have been driven under past races, would have been a lot more miles and the big point is, they do it with the same engine and drive train. I was once a big NASCAR fan, but I have lost all respect for it over the past 4-5 years. I have nothing against those that like it, but for me I would not waste my time watching it.
What really started this discussing was the post about how boring the 24 hour race was to one member, that has never watch a 24 hour race from Le mans or any sports car race and he was basing his opinion on watching the first hour and the last half hour. He said he thinks that the banging and rubbing in NASCAR is much better racing and he really likes the Daytona and Talladega races.

That was real sad about Simonson. What is puzzling is that the AM still looked like one after it stopped. The C6R had a brake fail a few years ago in FL and it slammed into the wall at high speed. From what I remember the car finished the race also. AM should look at safety as a driver should not lose their life for going a little wide.

Corvette Racing did look slow compared to the others. Probably not all restrictions but they sure didn't help any.

You cannot judge how one accident to another, there are many factors in the outcome. I will say, however that the AM yesterday seemed to have bent a lot more then other chassis and they may (and I am sure they will) look at the chassis for any issue that may have caused it to deform as it did.
I as well as many other send out our prayers to the Simonson family on their lose.

Some crashes are puzzling indeed in their impacts on the driver.
You see cars flying in the air, rolling over 6 times on landing, catching on fire, and the driver trotting away afterwards, and some very mild looking crashes of cars hitting a wall sideways but staying complete and on its wheels, and the driver losing his life. Bummer indeed.
Le Mans has gotten as safe as it can get though throughout the years.
The trigger point (toward increasing safety) was the Mercedes accident of 1955 ejecting Levegh who got killed on impact. The car litterally took off and exploded, throwing projectiles on fire in the crowd (no fence then) and killing 83. I wasn't born then, but my parents had friends at the track that year, they were lucky not to have been on the path of the wreck, but they were obviously traumatized by the horror of the scene.
It took decades before Mercedes would finally come back to the race.

The only problem limiting what can be done with respect to safety is at the very spot where Simonson lost control: The track meets a chunk of road that is actually part of the public roadways, closed for the race every year. The Hunaudieres straightaway is just a road that takes you to the village of Mulsanne, the rest of the year.
Side anecdote: The terra cota building that I'm sure some of you have seen (very quickly) to the left of the straight away, feet away from the road / track when cars were filmed hitting 300mph, is a restaurant that belongs to a friend of mine. (not far from where they were showing some guys playing petanque at one point of the coverage...) :D
Despite the cat litter and the guard rail before the trees bordering the road at this very spot, it proved fatal for Allan. RIP.

Well said, but I do believe there were a few contributing factors to this unfortunate accident that took a life. The actual accident was filmed from the dash cam of the #74 Corvette. It shows the Aston Martin got both tires on the drivers side in the blue paints area just off track. That painted area can be extremely slippery when wet and all the weight of the car was shifted to that side of the car in the curve and that along with the fact that the Corvette was closing fast on the AM, may have had some factor also in the driver losing a little concentration on his racing line as he was also watching the closing of the Corvette,
With that said, we all know that driving a car at high speeds is a dangerous business and this can happen at any time. On the other hand this was the first fatality in 27 years at le Mans and lets hope it is the last.