The 2006 Petit Le Mans

[KAMKA-Z]

I'm surprised that GT hasn't had Road Atlanta yet. After finding out that they would have the endurance races I thought for sure that they would have Petit LeMans. It's almost as if while they missed a few great American cars they managed to miss a few great American tracks as well.

I guess that is what happens when we are better known for NASCAR.

My initial thoughts after first running Apricot Hill in GT3 were that it was somewhat inspired by Road Atlanta. The esses, elevation changes, and some of the surrounding terrain reminded me of my own trip to Road Atlanta to see the SCCA Runoffs back in the 80s. It just needs Kudzu.

I picked up LeMans 24 Hours at a local store's used bin for something like $8. I've tried it a bit but I think I'd need to spend some more serious time with it to make a real evaluation. It seemed real quirky with my madcatz wheel. The track feels way narrow compared to GT3.

 

[m.piedgros]

You mean like, La Sarthe and Suzuka and stuff? I couldn't agree more, and Suzuka just didn't recognize it.

m.piedgros

 

[JohnBM01]

Someone picked a GREAT time for me to not be able to check out a big event. I'll have to go to the dentist Thursday morning and may not be too active for a few days. Anyhow, let me try to go ahead with FACT OR FICTION. Here's how it works:

(x.) -statement regarding the race event-

Label the statement as a FACT if it is highly likely we will see this happen in the upcoming race. Label the statement as FICTION if it is highly unlikely to happen. This idea of FACT OR FICTION has been inspired by ESPN programming. But I made this into a racing deal. I may want to reflect on the results by posting whatever happens. So let's do some FACT OR FICTION!



ROAD ATLANTA - FACT OR FICTION?

1.) The Creation Autosportif team will place either third (or better) overall and/or third (or better) in P1.

2.) Audi Sport North America and Dyson Racing have two entries for the P1 grid. So we can expect to see one or both team cars for Audi Sport North America and/or Dyson not see the checkered flag.

3.) Panoz will upset Ferrari, Porsche, and BMW in the GT2 class with a win on Panoz's home ground.

4.) In true American style, Corvette will finish 1-2 in GT1 regardless of whichever car finishes first.

5.) One or both of the Aston Martins will finish many laps down because of contact or completely DNF.

6.) Either or both Risi Competizione Ferraris will finish 3rd or better in GT2.

7.) The Radical SR9 entry will upset Porsche and Intersport with a win in P2.

8.) At least two one-entry teams (like Highcroft and B-K Motorsports, for example) will not finish in P1 and P2.

9.) The race will reach finish in the 10 hour mark instead of the 1,000 mile distance.

10.) Both Dyson entries will finish outside the Top 3 overall and in P1.


I'll hopefully be fine after this weekend. So what do you think about this batch of FACT OR FICTION questions, people?

 

[m.piedgros]

ROAD ATLANTA - FACT OR FICTION?

1.) The Creation Autosportif team will place either third (or better) overall and/or third (or better) in P1.

Fiction.

2.) Audi Sport North America and Dyson Racing have two entries for the P1 grid. So we can expect to see one or both team cars for Audi Sport North America and/or Dyson not see the checkered flag.

Fiction.

3.) Panoz will upset Ferrari, Porsche, and BMW in the GT2 class with a win on Panoz's home ground.

Well, is LNT there to do it for them? We all know Multimatic won't! Just kidding, fiction though, fiction.

4.) In true American style, Corvette will finish 1-2 in GT1 regardless of whichever car finishes first.

Fiction.

5.) One or both of the Aston Martins will finish many laps down because of contact or completely DNF.

Fiction. At the 10 hour mark at Le mans in 2006 and 2005 they seemed okay. They've done a lot of growing here in the States since 2005, they were brilliant at the Sebring 12 Hour. Need I say more?

6.) Either or both Risi Competizione Ferraris will finish 3rd or better in GT2.

Faction. ONE Risi Competizione Ferrari will finish 3rd or better in GT2.

7.) The Radical SR9 entry will upset Porsche and Intersport with a win in P2.

Fiction. It will be close though. Real close.

8.) At least two one-entry teams (like Highcroft and B-K Motorsports, for example) will not finish in P1 and P2.

Fact.

9.) The race will reach finish in the 10 hour mark instead of the 1,000 mile distance.

Fiction. I have a feeling the pace will be great this year. Unless the slow P2, GT1 andGT2 drivers go brain dead in the next 24 hours, I don't think we'll see too many problems.

10.) Both Dyson entries will finish outside the Top 3 overall and in P1.

Fiction. Assumung they run with the ACO regs, they will earn their invite to Le Mans.

m.piedgros

 

[dougiemeats]

Before I do the Fact or Fiction?, I must say that I am very excited about this race. Not only will we see great action from all classes, Lowes/Fernandez Racing will unveil their Lola Acura and Porsche will announce their 997 customer program. This should be a good weekend.

For those attending, be safe and have fun!

 

[JohnBM01]

My mouth is still a bit okay. I'm chancing waking up past 3:40 AM to make some posts here. I don't know if I'll be able to see this race.

How about giving the FACT OR FICTION questions a go, my Fighting Illini (dougiemeats)?

 

[dougiemeats]

Firstly, I hope you feel better soon John, and I hope you get a chance to see this race. 👍 Now, on to the Fact or Fiction!

1.) The Creation Autosportif team will place either third (or better) overall and/or third (or better) in P1.

Fact. Creation is a strong team and they will fight for that podium spot.

2.) Audi Sport North America and Dyson Racing have two entries for the P1 grid. So we can expect to see one or both team cars for Audi Sport North America and/or Dyson not see the checkered flag.

Fact. Recently, Dyson seems to be a practice/qualifying/sprint race kind of team. I expect at least on of the Dysons to drop out of this long race.

3.) Panoz will upset Ferrari, Porsche, and BMW in the GT2 class with a win on Panoz's home ground.

Fiction. I want the home team to win, but unfortunately, Ferrari and Porsche have other plans in mind.

4.) In true American style, Corvette will finish 1-2 in GT1 regardless of whichever car finishes first.

Fiction. Corvette will win the race, but there will be at least one Aston Martin between the two yellow cars.

5.) One or both of the Aston Martins will finish many laps down because of contact or completely DNF.

Fact. One will finish many laps down, but the other will capture a podium spot.

6.) Either or both Risi Competizione Ferraris will finish 3rd or better in GT2.

Fact. Risi Competizione will get a podium this weekend. They might even win it all.

7.) The Radical SR9 entry will upset Porsche and Intersport with a win in P2.

Fiction. This is a new car, so I cannot see it being competitive this early. However, Porsche has had problems during long races and when the track isn't as smooth as glass. So this could be very interesting.

8.) At least two one-entry teams (like Highcroft and B-K Motorsports, for example) will not finish in P1 and P2.

Fact. Any long-distance race is tough for one-entry teams.

9.) The race will reach finish in the 10 hour mark instead of the 1,000 mile distance.

Fiction. Audi will set a blistering pace and will reach 1,000 miles before the 10-hour mark.

10.) Both Dyson entries will finish outside the Top 3 overall and in P1.

Fact. With more competition, this is very likely. Although it saddens me to say this because I'm a Dyson fan.

 

[McLaren]

Gah! They're intereputing the race for some 3 hour Nascar race! Wtf!

I could understand if the Petit race was in another country with time frames, but jesus, why do Nascar get to interupt everything because it's more popular.

What makes it worse is this. It's a FRICKEN practice! Why would you watch a 3 hour Practice session...Jesus Speed.

 

[dougiemeats]

Gives me time to watch some college football

But yeah, I know what you mean. We live in a NASCAR-nation, so we'll have to accept the fact that one of America's great races will be interrupted for stock car practice.

 

[Kylehnat]

I don't like it when they interrupt cool stuff (real racing) to put in some NASCAR stuff, but come on, the last 7 hours are airing uninterrupted! That's plenty good enough for me. Besides, there's always On-Board Pass, if you want to cough up a few bucks to watch the whole thing, with in-cars shots and such.

 

[RACECAR]

awesome racing so far. that was a good battle the Zytek and the Creation cars had. I 've always wonder how they compared in racing conditions.

BTW, "Johnny Mowlem is no Longer a Prototype Virgin"

 

[m.piedgros]

Yeah. Favorite quote of the race. Does that compare to my introduction to a certain "Hold on to your holihocks(sp.?) boys!"? Thats's a toughy! Very good race though. Really enjoyed it.

m.piedgros

 

[samj_13]

Yeah. Favorite quote of the race. Does that compare to my introduction to a certain "Hold on to your holihocks(sp.?) boys!"? Thats's a toughy! Very good race though. Really enjoyed it.

m.piedgros

So it's over now? What were the standings in the classes?

 

[McLaren]

So it's over now? What were the standings in the classes?

Audi took P1.
Porsche took P2.
Aston took GT1.
And a lucky-as-hell Porsche team won in its class.

 

[dougiemeats]

And a lucky-as-hell Porsche team won in its class.

Well, the team is based in Las Vegas

 

[JohnBM01]

FACT OR FICTION? - RESULTS

* Creation gets a podium either overall and/or in P1.
RESULT: FICTION
They were close... just not enough to get to 3rd overall.

* Two P1 teams with two cars will see either or both teams lose one of those team cars apiece.
RESULT: FACT
One of the Dyson Lolas was out of the race with turbo problems. So this was a fact.

* Panoz upsets Porsche, BMW, and Ferrari in GT2 for GT2 win.
RESULT: FICTION
Panoz held in there, just not enough to win.

* Corvette 1-2 for GT1.
RESULT: FICTION
No All-American victory. Then again, I'm not Mr. All-America. It was an Aston Martin 1-2. And last I checked, Aston Martin was not an American company.

* Aston Martin will have a horrible day.
RESULT: FICTION
Aston Martin finished 1-2 while Corvette were struggling.

* Risi Competizione will see either or both Ferraris finish in GT2 podium.
RESULT: FACT
One of the Ferraris made it to the podium. When I say "either or both," I mean that one such car from the team will finish while another may not. Both cars may make the statement true. So this turned out to be a fact.

* Radical upsets Porsche and Intersport in P2.
RESULT: FICTION
I don't think the Radical was much of a contender after some rough luck. Porsche held on to not only win, but win 1-2 in class.

* Two or more one-entry teams will DNF.
RESULT: F(?)
-no supporting data-

* 10 Hours before 1,000 miles.
RESULT: FICTON
The race reached the mileage distance before the time was up.

* Both Dyson entries won't get a podium in P1 and overall.
RESULT: FACT
That one Dyson done blowed up. Yeah, tough break for Dyson.


I'll offer extra commentary in a future post.


The final race of the season will be on the West Coast at Laguna Seca. I'll have my FACT OR FICTION as well as plenty of comments when that comes around for the weekend of October 21(?).

 

[dougiemeats]

Watching Jon Field hold off the Porsche's charge for several laps reminds me of why I love sports car racing so much.

He didn't have the budget and resources of Penske and Porsche. Nor did he have the advantage of Michelins and factory drivers. But none of that mattered to him during his stint, because that Porsche wasn't going to pass him.

Brilliant drive

 

[m.piedgros]

The other Dyson crashed. So both were out. Aston Martin is owned by Ford, a lot of parts on Aston's are built as Ford products. Of course the sale of Aston Martin and Ford's English luxury division is pending so I doubt they'll be American for long.

m.piedgros

 

[m.piedgros]

All Intersport drivers are on the same level as the Porsche factory drivers. One couldn't survive in ALMS if he (or she) were a "gentle(wo)men" driver (as Grand Am and FIA GT3 call them.)

m.piedgros

Sorry double post.

 

[FoolKiller]

Despite a very sunburned face the race was awesome. I took 275 pictures and got 13 short videos. A couple of videos even allow for you to hear the difference between the R10 and every other car on the track. I will start putting them online as soon as I sort them and pick the few I wish to share. There are enough poor quality shots that I don't want people making fun of my poor photography skills. I will try and get eth videos up on You Tube once I get them converted and compressed to something other that Motion Jpeg WMV files. I'd like to make them DVD compatible (Mpeg 2).

Not having Speed I haven't been able to watch most of the races and I had no clue how quiet the R10 was. It sounded more like you would think a UFO should sound. If another car was nearby you couldn't hear anything from the R10.

Contrast that with the Courage Mazda and OUCH! I was walking alongside the track (meaning about 15-20 feet away) and it went by and I actually felt the vibrations and ringing of my left eardrum. It was painfully loud.

Speaking of the Mazda, I hoped to see more of it but GT1 and 2 cars were passing it. Were they just holding back or was it having a lot of trouble? I know it wasn't running after 309 laps. I didn't have a radio, so I didn't get to hear much of the actual race call. It seemed to shoot a lot of flame out the back and I could notice the brake glow going into turn 6 by lap 3. I also noticed that early in the race it appeared to be braking earlier and earlier. There were three sets of dotted lines going into turn 6 and most of the LMP cars were passing the third before braking and the GT1 and 2 cars were starting to brake between the second and third. The Mazda was braking by the first line on a few runs. It just seemed to be holding back and not even trying.

The GT1 race was really fun to watch, especially as a few time GT2 traffic played a role. Then at one point I suddenly realized that the Corvette didn't go by. I said something to my friend and a guy wearing all Michelin clothes (employee?) next to me wearing a headset radio told me they had to replace the brakes. Well, it WAS exciting.

And talking with this guy was my biggest mistake of the day. He suddenly decided I looked like fun to talk to. He ranted for 20 minutes about how the Audis never puncture a tire and he wished they would just once. He was even sitting there timing cars and watching them through binoculars (I have no clue why, we were right up on the track), and the whole time he kept complaining about how Audi is too good. It was hard not to tell him that if the other teams wanted to beat them regularly they needed to be better.

I am sure this guy jumped for joy when the Audi broke its suspension, which was nerve racking from my vantage point at the turn 10 chicanes. We had decided to sit there for the last hour or so of the race and it came through the chicanes and the right tires went up on the curbs on the way out and as it started going straight up the hill smoke suddenly came off the tires. Everyone stood up, but he kept the car under control and made it to the pits.

The luck of the Dyson team was unfortunate. I got pictures of both cars on the tow truck. That is something I am sure they wish I wouldn't share, but I will. They seemed to be ready to go as I was walking out of the track and saw their truck sitting by the entrance, loaded up and ready to go.

OK well, that is all I have to say right now. I am still busy at work catching up.

If you have any questions ask away and I will do my best to answer.

The other Dyson crashed. So both were out. Aston Martin is owned by Ford, a lot of parts on Aston's are built as Ford products. Of course the sale of Aston Martin and Ford's English luxury division is pending so I doubt they'll be American for long.

I tried making an offer to Aston Martin at their hospitality tent, but the security guard didn't take me seriously when I told him that I intended to pay when my investment in Powerball paid off next week. It is their fault for setting up next to a place serving beer. The BMW tent next door was much more friendly, but they were all just standing around making fun of Porsches, so I left. They did let me check out the M coupe and talk to the girls though. A couple of the guys even shared a table with us when we ate lunch.

 

[RACECAR]

Despite a very sunburned face the race was awesome. I took 275 pictures and got 13 short videos. A couple of videos even allow for you to hear the difference between the R10 and every other car on the track. I will start putting them online as soon as I sort them and pick the few I wish to share. There are enough poor quality shots that I don't want people making fun of my poor photography skills. I will try and get eth videos up on You Tube once I get them converted and compressed to something other that Motion Jpeg WMV files. I'd like to make them DVD compatible (Mpeg 2).

Not having Speed I haven't been able to watch most of the races and I had no clue how quiet the R10 was. It sounded more like you would think a UFO should sound. If another car was nearby you couldn't hear anything from the R10.

Contrast that with the Courage Mazda and OUCH! I was walking alongside the track (meaning about 15-20 feet away) and it went by and I actually felt the vibrations and ringing of my left eardrum. It was painfully loud.

Speaking of the Mazda, I hoped to see more of it but GT1 and 2 cars were passing it. Were they just holding back or was it having a lot of trouble? I know it wasn't running after 309 laps. I didn't have a radio, so I didn't get to hear much of the actual race call. It seemed to shoot a lot of flame out the back and I could notice the brake glow going into turn 6 by lap 3. I also noticed that early in the race it appeared to be braking earlier and earlier. There were three sets of dotted lines going into turn 6 and most of the LMP cars were passing the third before braking and the GT1 and 2 cars were starting to brake between the second and third. The Mazda was braking by the first line on a few runs. It just seemed to be holding back and not even trying.

The GT1 race was really fun to watch, especially as a few time GT2 traffic played a role. Then at one point I suddenly realized that the Corvette didn't go by. I said something to my friend and a guy wearing all Michelin clothes (employee?) next to me wearing a headset radio told me they had to replace the brakes. Well, it WAS exciting.

And talking with this guy was my biggest mistake of the day. He suddenly decided I looked like fun to talk to. He ranted for 20 minutes about how the Audis never puncture a tire and he wished they would just once. He was even sitting there timing cars and watching them through binoculars (I have no clue why, we were right up on the track), and the whole time he kept complaining about how Audi is too good. It was hard not to tell him that if the other teams wanted to beat them regularly they needed to be better.

I am sure this guy jumped for joy when the Audi broke its suspension, which was nerve racking from my vantage point at the turn 10 chicanes. We had decided to sit there for the last hour or so of the race and it came through the chicanes and the right tires went up on the curbs on the way out and as it started going straight up the hill smoke suddenly came off the tires. Everyone stood up, but he kept the car under control and made it to the pits.

The luck of the Dyson team was unfortunate. I got pictures of both cars on the tow truck. That is something I am sure they wish I wouldn't share, but I will. They seemed to be ready to go as I was walking out of the track and saw their truck sitting by the entrance, loaded up and ready to go.

OK well, that is all I have to say right now. I am still busy at work catching up.

If you have any questions ask away and I will do my best to answer.


I tried making an offer to Aston Martin at their hospitality tent, but the security guard didn't take me seriously when I told him that I intended to pay when my investment in Powerball paid off next week. It is their fault for setting up next to a place serving beer. The BMW tent next door was much more friendly, but they were all just standing around making fun of Porsches, so I left. They did let me check out the M coupe and talk to the girls though. A couple of the guys even shared a table with us when we ate lunch.

Courage Mazda- OUCH! oh man I feel sorry for you. seeing as I've heard the 787B's engine note, I can only imagine the pain in the ears that came from hearing the No. 8 car.
and talking to this guy was my biggest mistake of the day. that sucks, and he was ranting. last time I checked, thats what that show Windtunnel was for .
but they were just all standing around making fun of Porsches rather ironic considering they haven't beaten Porsche in any races and to top it off aren't gonna even be competing next season.
They did let me check out the M coupe and talk to the girls though.
you lucky punk!

 

[m.piedgros]

The brakes lighting up on the cars (-- answer to your #8 conerns). Perfectly normal. The brakes get well above 1000 degrees. Must have been the contrast with wheel color that got your attention. The rotory motor has been some what trouble some but having been up close and personal with it in the past (in the Paddock - 2 or three feet away) I had the opposite reaction. I love a loud firing spewing racecar. There is nothing better! I'm glad you had fun, these cars are the greatest, most exotic in North America as of now. (Though Champ Cars of today and tommorow fight the ALMS cars hard!) You should get Speed if available, you need to get more exposure to all (as hard as it is to find on Speed, glares at a NASCAR fan) sorts of this kind of road racing. A couple weeks ago I got my first exposure to 2006 LMS. Great stuff. If you like ALMS think bigger grids better sponsors, it's incredible. But I digress (most of this post has been random!)

m.piedgros

P.S. Dyson '07, look out they're back!

 

[FoolKiller]

The brakes lighting up on the cars (-- answer to your #8 conerns). Perfectly normal. The brakes get well above 1000 degrees. Must have been the contrast with wheel color that got your attention.

I'm aware that teh brakes always glow, and in my pictures you can see many of them any time the sun went behind a cloud and from about dusk on, but the Mazda just seemed to be brighter, but it could have been the wheel contrast. I know the Corvettes' showed easily too. I just became concerned when his braking distance kept getting farther and farther back to the point that GT2 cars were out braking him and then speeding away through the curves. It just didn't appear to be trying.

The rotory motor has been some what trouble some but having been up close and personal with it in the past (in the Paddock - 2 or three feet away) I had the opposite reaction. I love a loud firing spewing racecar. There is nothing better!

I wanted to get to the paddock in time to check it out, but only had a chance to see the Audis. I spent too much time watching the Panoz race and by the time I got back down to the paddock only a handful of cars were left and they were making their way out to the track.

You should get Speed if available, you need to get more exposure to all (as hard as it is to find on Speed, glares at a NASCAR fan) sorts of this kind of road racing.

Find a way to convince my wife that $20 a month is worth expanding the cable package so I can watch Speed and G4 and I am all for it. This is an argument I have lost many times over. I got her to quit watching Lifetime and so now I can't even try and convince her that she will get to watch Lifetime Movie Network and WE. I shot myself in the foot there.

A couple weeks ago I got my first exposure to 2006 LMS. Great stuff. If you like ALMS think bigger grids better sponsors, it's incredible.

I try to rent any ALMS and LMS review DVDs that Netflix picks up, but they are fare and few between. Besides, watching a 24 hour race crammed into 2 hours of footage and an hour of talking (SHUTUP AND SHOW ME THe GORAM RACE!!!) doesn't do any proper justice.

At least I can watch the ALMS sprint races during the summer, and I was able to catch the Monaco Grand Prix for F1. I keep tabs on http://www.tvracer.com/ and constantly scan every weekend for any non-NASCAR related racing that is on a channel I get and then get set up to record, just in case I get busy. Unfortunately this time of year it is mostly Outlaws and monster trucks.

I am tempted to email ALMS and suggest that they put the race DVDs out for rent as I can't bring myself to pay $35 for the sprint races and $75 for the endurance races. Plus, it could get the word out more as a race fan who only knows Indy, Champ Car, and mostly NASCAR walks through his local Blockbuster or browses Netflix and sees a DVD for a 10-12 hour race and picks it up out of pure curiosity. Suddenly, new fan!

Or it would be like my case was after Gran Turismo first came out and I decided to try and find the race series that used these cars and courses. That is how I discovered ALMS. If I could have rented a DVD I would have been a fan much sooner. Instead I saw there was this race in Atlanta and asked a friend if he wanted to go. After that I was hooked. I probably would have been much more informed and excited had I more than a few randomn Internet video clips and pictures to look at. I would have rented a DVD immediately.


I think the fan base is growing and we could find this becoming more mainstream and NASCAR eventually having to share more time with ALMS. According to the Web site they sold over 90,000 tickets to Petit LeMans. That is bigger than the Super Bowl and approaching NASCAR numbers. Would it be possible to add some more endurance races in the future if attendance numbers keep growing for events like this? I mean, I could make it to Mid-Ohio just as easily as I can Atlanta, they are equal distances, but I am not driving 6-7 hours and paying for hotels and whatnot to watch 2 hours and 45 minutes worth of racing. Give me 6 hours or more (I like a 1-1 driving to racing ratio) and I will show up.

And now I've rambled.

 

[dougiemeats]

I'm glad to hear that you had a good time. Can't wait to see the pictures you took of the event.

As for more endurance races, I doubt you'll see this. I think you're better off going to Europe and Japan, where all the Le Mans-based series races are around 6 hours in length. Although you wouldn't be happy about the time-of-travel to race-length ratio

The ALMS seems to aim for more rounds with sprint races making up the majority of the season. The LMS and JLMC tend to go for longer races, but with fewer rounds in a season.

ALMS - 12 races - 9 sprint
LMS - 5 races - all endurance
JLMC - 3 races - all endurance

Personally, I prefer the American-style with more races. I find that often in the Le Mans Series, they don't get the consistency that the ALMS gets. Sure they have larger grids, but many teams don't race the full season. In the ALMS, you can expect most teams to stick around for every round. It's all a matter of preference, and I'm sure some will disagree with me, but I'm excited about the 12-race schedule next year.

 

[m.piedgros]

I love American Le Mans series. The two and three quarter events are great. I just look over my shoulder whenever I call it an endurace racing series knowing the NASCAR guys are probably racing a 600 mile event with no driver changes. lol Different deal all together there though. If I ever get the opportunity racing team I'd probably elect to stay here in North America. Unless Graham Nash's Saleen team calls and begs me to drive for them .

m.piedgros

 

[dougiemeats]

If I ever get the opportunity racing team I'd probably elect to stay here in North America. Unless Graham Nash's Saleen team calls and begs me to drive for them .

Ha! Personally I'd drive for Luc Alphand. That air-conditioned Corvette must be nice during the French summer.

 

[FoolKiller]

I'm glad to hear that you had a good time. Can't wait to see the pictures you took of the event.

You must mean these.
https://www.gtplanet.net/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=153
It isn't finished yet, but it does have 110 pictures as of this posting.

The ALMS seems to aim for more rounds with sprint races making up the majority of the season. The LMS and JLMC tend to go for longer races, but with fewer rounds in a season.

ALMS - 12 races - 9 sprint
LMS - 5 races - all endurance
JLMC - 3 races - all endurance

Personally, I prefer the American-style with more races. I find that often in the Le Mans Series, they don't get the consistency that the ALMS gets. Sure they have larger grids, but many teams don't race the full season. In the ALMS, you can expect most teams to stick around for every round. It's all a matter of preference, and I'm sure some will disagree with me, but I'm excited about the 12-race schedule next year.

I didn't realize it would be such a sacrifice for more endurances. I prefer to have a longer season with shorter races too. It probably works best for American audiences that way anyway. It allows for more network coverage and fits the short attention span some of us Americans have. Now if they would just give the sprints full live coverage instead of popping in somehwre in the middle on a pre-recorded broadcast.

As long as at least one endurance is within driving distance I will be happy. Maybe if they could lengthen the season a bit more they could squeeze in one more local endurance race, even if it is shorter (6 hours).

I love American Le Mans series. The two and three quarter events are great. I just look over my shoulder whenever I call it an endurace racing series knowing the NASCAR guys are probably racing a 600 mile event with no driver changes. lol Different deal all together there though.

Just remember NASCAR is doing 500 miles in an oval and they are wrecking twice as much. Oh, and they have to bump and nudge each other out of the way to win despite the width of the track. Too many NASCAR fan friends like to counter that with "rubbing is racing." Thanks Robert Duval, but if you have to risk another man's life to win instead of using your skill alone then get off the track. There's no room for intentional wrecks at 180mph.


EDIT: My photo album is finished - 181 pictures. I'll post the videos once I get them compressed and uploaded.

 

[Kylehnat]

The rotory motor has been some what trouble some but having been up close and personal with it in the past (in the Paddock - 2 or three feet away) I had the opposite reaction. I love a loud firing spewing racecar. There is nothing better!

There's loud, and then there's the Mazda Courage. The Corvettes are loud; the Astons are loud; the Dysons are loud. The Mazda is on a whole other level completely. Earplugs are always essential at these races, but any given car isn't too painfully loud by itself, except the Mazda. It just hurts. It sounds great, but it hurts like the dickens with no hearing protection. Even with earplugs in, it's still loud. And as eardrum-assaulting as it is, it's still quieter than the 787B .

 

[JohnBM01]

I'll just want to briefly talk about the caution deals. I think the Petit Le Mans ended up with about five cautions. One of the things Speed analyst, Dorsey S. talked about was about "sharing the track." In my view, there is greater disparity in speeds in the ALMS than in Rolex Sports Cars. You have only two classes in the Rolex ranks while you have four classes in the ALMS. If you want to learn track discipline and making smart decisions on track, just look at the ALMS. The GT machines have to try to get out of the way of the prototypes. The prototype drivers have to make smart passes to make sure that their car doesn't become part of a track's scenery. But all kinds of tough luck and hard hits fueled a lot of cautions.

With the five or so Safety Car (or Pace Car) periods, do you think the race was sloppy, a little slow, or just right?

 

[FoolKiller]

I'll just want to briefly talk about the caution deals. I think the Petit Le Mans ended up with about five cautions. One of the things Speed analyst, Dorsey S. talked about was about "sharing the track." In my view, there is greater disparity in speeds in the ALMS than in Rolex Sports Cars. You have only two classes in the Rolex ranks while you have four classes in the ALMS. If you want to learn track discipline and making smart decisions on track, just look at the ALMS. The GT machines have to try to get out of the way of the prototypes. The prototype drivers have to make smart passes to make sure that their car doesn't become part of a track's scenery. But all kinds of tough luck and hard hits fueled a lot of cautions.

With the five or so Safety Car (or Pace Car) periods, do you think the race was sloppy, a little slow, or just right?

You mean situations like this:

From being there it occasionally felt like it was sloppy as you would see a LMP car come up behind a GT2 car and flash his lights and then the pass would take place in the next turn, causing someone to get off the racing line. Other times I saw LMP cars make passes on straights while a GT1 was attempting to pass a GT2 or they would even pass a lower class during a battle. I actually have a video of cars going three wide into a turn. It happens right at the end and you have to watch for it because I didn't see it while filming but noticed after I plugged my camera into the TV in the hotel.

However, when you consider there were only five full course caution periods (as opposed to some other unnamed popular American racing spoorts) in roughly 9:16 then I guess it was relatively clean. The only period that required a long time to clean up was when the Dyson went into the wall. And considering the only other race-ending accident was the #62 Ferrari I think they showed a good amount of skill in being able to properly make these passes. A lot of issues I saw were within class and usually only ended up with the cars needing to pit after a couple of laps.

I guess I would say that there was some slop but it was overall a good race. There seemed to be less care for the other classes in the last few hours as the pace picked up and things started going from holding steady to trying hard. You can see the pace difference in my pictures. In the early ones I was holding the camera still and caught clear static images of the cars, but in the later ones not even high-speed shooting could prevent blur. I even started having trouble tracking the LMP cars for a clear shot. At a certain point it went from just getting through the day to trying to win and there appeared to be less concern for the other classes.

My above shot is from about 6:00 PM when it noticeably became more aggresive and faster paced as the sun started going behind the treetops. In the above incident both cars flew into the last turn with the Highcroft going inside and I couldn't tell whether he just hogged the road or the Panoz didn't give him room for the pass, but you can see the end result. The Panoz was in the pits two laps later. If nobody makes room for each other then someone has to be removed.

Later after it became dark and I was sitting at the turn 10 chicanes the #22 BMW got spun off the track. (I took a pic of him getting out of the car, but it wasn't clear) I still can't tell whether he just made a mistake himself or whether a Panoz that was trying to pass nudged him. Either way I would be mad. There was something like 5 minutes left in the race.


Those are just some of my observations, but it was an overall clean race. The pace seemed just right while being there in person. I would say that compared to some of the incidents I have seen in other race series that it was a very professional race. For ALMS it was probably a bit more sloppy than desired but the endurances always seem to bring out the problems. It's easy to stay clean in sprints but after 9 hours you are bound to have a few incidents.