I can't believe it's already been a week since we travelled down Le Mans, I've now had time to write up what we got up to along the way, the highs and lows, the adrenaline rush because of driving on such a famous track, and of course the good company, the chilling, banter and great food which is half of doing something like this.
Le Mans is very easy to get to from the UK, a morning ferry means you'll get to your chosen accommodation well before sunset so lots of time to freshen up and find a place for dinner. The roads down were superb, if you take the toll roads the total is around £30.00 each way, non-toll roads are slower but the scenery is very special so I'd allow 6 hours from Calais.
On our arrival at the Brit Hotel I felt rather under-dressed to say the least, we faced a car park full of super cars and track toys that totalled maybe £2M including a brand new F12 Ferrari, as the majority of the number plates were Jersey and Guernsey I soon understood the situation, lol
Despite the stares we were all there safe and sound so we checked in, drank a large cold beer and freshened up before heading round the corner for some dinner at the steak grill restaurant.
Saturday's start was easy and the weather was spot on for the day, dry and sunny, perfect
So off to the track, changed my car over onto E85 race fuel, did the drivers briefing and then a sighting with Mrs CC's in her 2.4.
Delta Racing who organise the weekends events were great to be fair, they were very laid back, it wasn't a race so just "enjoy yourself and be safe". Any issues come and see them, any problems come and see them so with this we went off, checked our cars and prepared to drive in my opinion one of the most famous tracks in Europe, the pit lane horn was already sounding which was giving me flash backs and goose bumps of watching the Steve McQueen film "Le Mans", you needed to be there
The morning session was faultless, no break downs or red flags, other drivers on track were very courteous and gave plenty of room for us to overtake. The Fiat Coupes were holding their own, we tussled with a few but as mine has a few more horses I was just enjoying trying to get my lines and breaking distances right.
Lunch was spent at a pleasant restaurant in Arnage, two hours for lunch so plenty of time to relax, eat buckets of moules marniere and reflect on how to improve the afternoon session. 1.5 miles back to the track, check fluids and tyres and off we went again.
The track in the afternoon was faster, there seemed to be a fresh batch of cars on track that were putting their foot down so as I'd learnt the lines in the morning it was time to start having some fun. The raw power of my Coupe was awesome, running the E85 map meant my temps were 10 to 15 degrees lower, so the highest temp I saw all day was around 95 degrees and it was a very hot day. The engine ran superbly, no hesitation and pulling right through to redline, it just stormed on like a steam train in every gear and sounding so at home on track.
Many other cars just indicated and moved out the way, the Radicals would buzz around me in the bends as they handle so well but as soon as I came out of the corners with them I just squeezed the loud pedal and I was past them quicker then anything, the same went for the GT3's, BMW's, Lambos and a 458 owner who actually checked his dash as I went past smiling. Ronnie was a true Rocket and I can't thank Jake and Dan enough, we built a great car which was endorsed by the legend Keith Flint on the day as "F***ing Fast"
I didn't have the same effect on track with a GT4RS though, he had more power and better handling so I hung on to the rear of him for as long as I could but I started to get untidy and nearly binned it in the kitty litter so lifted off to cool down, great fun trying though
I'd been running on and off for 4 hours in the afternoon hard and like most things in life, good things came to an end when something either in the box or diff went
bang while I was changing from 2nd to 3rd!
I'm unsure what the problem is yet but the RAC are repatriating the car before the end of the month so I'll find out then.
Oh well, Fix It Again Tomorrow, and I did follow my technicians instructions which were" go hard or go home"
In all we all had loads of fun on track, Mrs CC now needs a new set of tyres as the new ones fitted before we went are now knackered, she drove the wheels off her 2.4 and certainly held her own against some much bigger and faster cars, next track day she'll have some 888's for sure.
Saturday night was spent drinking a few beers and chatting about the day, Sunday we recovered and looked round the
Le Mans Museum which was really interesting. They hold many Le Mans winning cars as well as prototypes, rarities and to be quite frank, oddities
Monday morning my car was picked up on a low loader for storage
so we packed and came back to the UK to be faced with......
Massive thanks to Reuben and Laura for being the pit van crew, fuel van and convoy leader to and from Le Mans
Nick, Mike for also coming along to join in the weekend's fun and frolics, and to Joe and Gill for travelling up to watch from the South in their wicked new camper, I've gota get me one of them along with a trailer so I can take my broken cars home should an issue arise again, and lets face it, it will happen again I'm sure, lol
My biggest appreciation goes to Mrs CC for her patients and understanding with a project like this, we will buy that new sofa one day
It might not have been Spa but it was a very close second, Le Mans was great value for money as an OPL day, Oulton park is the same money so you can judge for yourself which I'd choose again
I wouldn't describe this circuit as boring, far from it. It's fast and technical and one to be driven if you like pushing your Coupe. It's taught me what I need to improve with my driving and the next changes to the car, also a greater understanding of the importance of the aerodynamics and future designs to increase corner speeds, but that's what it's about so onwards and upwards
Hope you enjoyed the post, further pics and videos on the weekends events can be found below as well as our FCSS Facebook page
Le Mans pictures Le Mans Museum Video courtesy of
MJ productions.https://www.facebook.com/fiatcoupes
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