So anyone watching Le Mans this year?

[davethewookie]

Seems like it's been an awesome race this year, proper battling all through the night and still at it like hammer and tongues! I live in New Zealand where's the no Sky coverage so the internet streamings been taking a hammering! Wish I was there again!

[Moppie]

Welcome Dave!


Would love to be at Le Mans, such a massive event.

Igor, who started AF, has raced with several of the Drivers in Japanese Super GT.



Have some big incidents in the race so far, with two big crashes:
http://youtu.be/4jnibRyrK-o

Later into the evening:
http://youtu.be/-SETNVd7k1E

[davethewookie]

To be fair fella, both of the Audi crashes looked horrific, I was quite alarmed at the way the carbon splintered so easily! But even in the last few hours the leading GT Pro car, the 'vette lost it and punted off one of the 911's and just ten mins ago a Pescarolo went off in a big way. The extra greasy rain just coming down now is really messing things up for everyone!

[davethewookie]

Any for anyone currently watching, the frankly disgusting behaviour of Peugueot, using a car 4 laps down to hold up the leading Audi and borderline ramming them off the track, getting away with it because crooked French marshalls won't tell off a French car, man it's just insane.

Pretty high drama though!

[vincentmcfiel26]

I am. Been watching it since it started this afternoon. I'm quite amazed at how much the Peugeot 908 dominates the Audi's. Even the new R15+. And the more I see this Audi R15+ the more I want it in the game.

[Moppie]

Originally Posted by davethewookie

To be fair fella, both of the Audi crashes looked horrific, I was quite alarmed at the way the carbon splintered so easily! But even in the last few hours the leading GT Pro car, the 'vette lost it and punted off one of the 911's and just ten mins ago a Pescarolo went off in a big way. The extra greasy rain just coming down now is really messing things up for everyone!

I was amazed he got out and walked away though.
Clearly pretty shaken and sore, but otherwise unharmed.

Doesn't it always rain at Le Mans, isn't that half the fun?

[davethewookie]

It's a very interesting watch. The way the slippier Peugeots make pace over the Audis on the straights is almost comical, but the German cars are just stuck to the deck in the turns and make a mockery of the Pugs. Aero at work obviously...

[Moppie]

Originally Posted by davethewookie

It's a very interesting watch. The way the slippier Peugeots make pace over the Audis on the straights is almost comical, but the German cars are just stuck to the deck in the turns and make a mockery of the Pugs. Aero at work obviously...

Makes you wonder what happen if they were able to run adaptive wings?

[davethewookie]

It's around this sort of time now that even the most lack-lustre fans at the circuit come out of their tents and tune in trackside. Just over an hour left, and I just do not know anyone by this point in France who isn't tempted from their hangovers back to the track.

That place is electric! Seeing it all come together is just so magical!

Real good to see too that the second Corvette is leading the Pro GT class still (even though it's close) as not winning on their 100th anniversary year would really sting, especially after how many times they've won their class over the years.

[Moppie]

Originally Posted by davethewookie

It's around this sort of time now that even the most lack-lustre fans at the circuit come out of their tents and tune in trackside. Just over an hour left, and I just do not know anyone by this point in France who isn't tempted from their hangovers back to the track.

That place is electric! Seeing it all come together is just so magical!

Real good to see too that the second Corvette is leading the Pro GT class still (even though it's close) as not winning on their 100th anniversary year would really sting, especially after how many times they've won their class over the years.

So the Vettes are leading Pro GT and the Germans and French are fighting it out at the top?


Any predictions with only a hour to go?

[davethewookie]

I'd say crashes withstanding that the Vette is home safe, and honestly it's a worthy class win. As for the big guns, I honestly really want Audi to win, the have had such lousy luck with the crashes and have been subject to some appalling driving and politics and favoritism from the French, they deserve it. However, pit stops still to come, mixed weather conditions and only a minute in it, one odd decision and it's all gone.

When the race closes I'll have been up for basically the whole thing and only have 5hrs til I get up for a day at work in front of big wigs, and yet I can't take my eyes off the coverage!

[davethewookie]

Some great conversation going on on the Eurosport Sky feed (online) about how the modern day engineering in race cars is paying dividends allowing the two Audi drivers to survive unhurt. Quite inspirational when you think of the good old days of racing where people died often...

Also quite cool to see one of the Flying Lizard GT3 RSRs still going, I was only looking this last week at images a photography colleague of mine took of them in the studio before they left for France for the Lizard publicity shots. Beautiful things!

[davethewookie]

Holy hell! So both the lead Audi, and the second place Pug have just come in. Audi takes on tires and fuel, Pug just fuel, and after all this time racing Audi leads by 7secs. *shakes head*

[davethewookie]

The best bit of TV I've watched in years!

[igor@af]

That was absolutely fantastic!
Peugeot is way too dirty. Disgraceful.
I am happy that Audi has persevered through all of that mess.
Congratulations especially to Andre Lotterer and Benoit Treluyer - both Super GT drivers here in Japan!