ard

Hi,

I searched and found a few threads but not quite what I was looking for. That said, if my question has already been answered feel free to redirect me.

I will be attending this year's 24 hours of LeMans and am looking for tips, gotchas, etc.

I will be driving up from Bordeaux in the (early) morning of the race, June 13th (regrettably other commitments make this the earliest date I can arrive) and departing again soon after the race ends.

What are must dos, must sees beside the start and finish of the race if I have time from say 10am on day of the race start until shortly after the end of the race. Any "not worth it" things I should know? Any special privileges for PCA members / Porsche owners?

I am staying at a private room said to be close to public transportation to the circuit and so far I bought only the general admissions ticket, no grandstand tickets. From some reading I did it seems there are enough public viewing areas that grandstand tickets are a somewhat unnecessary expense, but I'd love to hear thoughts from fellow RLers who have visited.

Many thanks in advance,

/alex

Meenrod

Congratulations! I've been 6 times and to the Classic 4 times and would love to go again. Definitely get the grandstand seating- from my experience, the race gets busier and busier every year so the good 'free of charge' spots are very difficult to get. Also, it is a large circuit, so you will be doing a lot of walking. For those two reasons, a grandstand seat is a welcome respite and definitely worth the money. Plus there is no better way to watch the start and finish.

I would factor in some night time racing- that after all is what makes Le Mans so special. Recommend you get up really early, say 2- 3am (or stay up) and watch until the sun starts to come up- it is a really special experience. Glowing brakes... headlights cresting the hills... amazing. Also, make sure you get around the whole circuit, see all the good corners-

• Dunlop Chicane (and bridge- iconic view)
• The Esses
• Mulsanne straight or end of it-the hairpin is brutal
• Indianapolis / Arnage- this is a great spot for night racing, see the glowing brakes as they wizz by
• And of course, the Porsche curves

Bring lots of cash for food and drinks- I would advise going the whole hog and getting stuck into the French race food. I love it. Fois Gras, champagne, 1664 beer and pigs knuckles... amazing!

Also, there is lots to see and do in and around the pits with small 'car shows' going on on the Bugatti circuit (the smaller circuit inside the Le Mans main circuit). Lots of very cool machinery to see in there - worth taking a stroll over. Finally, make sure you buy an official Le Mans 2020 poster- I got a poster for every year I have been and have them framed in my home.

You'll have an amazing time. I'm jealous!

cgfen

You may be hard pressed to get a good view of start / finish if you don't have grandstand seats.
The "town" of Arnage makes for good viewing of glowing brake rotors, but its busy even @ 2am!

I've been twice, camped with Brit's both times. Much fun.

Enjoy.

Camping, honest.

ard

Meenrod, cgfen, great info - thanks I really appreciate it. BTW cgfen I believe I bought a GIAC chip for my 993 from you YEARS ago :-) Still love it.

Trevor-uk

We go every year from UK. We make a trip of it by starting with a ferry to Spain the weekend before and a wander through the Pyrenees and then up through France to land on the Wednesday. We camp inside the circuit for the full immersive experience! I recommend getting a grandstand seat, if you can, just to give yourself a respite from the walking, the sun, the rain and a guaranteed seat for start/finish. Check out some of the UK-based forums for great information for newcomers to Le Mans - Club Arnage/general discussion, Pistonheads/gassing station/events/le mans. Look at this guide on an agency site -https://www.le-mans-guide.co.uk/

You're in for a treat!