Aysedasi's Le Mans

By 1.15 p.m., it was time to make our way back to the cars (bearing in mind the longer walk than usual), and head back to the main circuit for the last few hours of the race.  We were back into the garage rouge at about 1.45 p.m., and, more importantly, found somewhere for the three cars to park fairly quickly for the first time.  In fact, we managed to park close to the main entrance, which would be a bonus for a quick getaway after the race.

So by 2.00 p.m. we were heading back into the circuit for the last time.  I knew that once again Ian would try to end up on the tribunes, but I was keen to head off to the shops first, hopefully to buy a couple of mementos of the race for Toby and James.  So I left the others trouping along the crowded tribunes once again and made my way to the shops down behind the grandstands.  It was actually quite a difficult task to find things that were suitable, but, in the end, I picked up some Le Mans keyrings and models of the ORECA Vipers from a couple of years ago, which were rather smart.

It was by now around 3.00 pm and with only an hour of the race to go there was no time to wander off anywhere else in view of the need to be back to the cars as soon as possible after the finish.  I decided to watch the end of the race from the inside of the Dunlop Chicane, as that would leave me very close to the exit.  In the end, the hoped-for last minute battle between the BMW and Toyota never materialised due to a puncture for the Toyota, but at least it made it back into the race to register second place.  Third and fourth went to the two brand new Audi roadsters, a highly creditable performance in terms of reliability, if not outright speed.

So, the 67th Vingt-Quatre Heures du Mans came to an end at the traditional time of 4.00 pm with a victory for BMW, thoroughly well-deserved, one has to say, notwithstanding the fact that I had dearly wanted to see a Toyota victory this year.  The current “Mr. Le Mans”, Yannick Dalmas, had done it again, registering his fourth victory in the race, equalling the likes of Henri Pescarolo and Olivier Gendebien.  Who would bet against him going on to challenge Derek Bell (5 wins) and Jacky Ickx (6 wins) in the next few years?