Le Mans Classic Parade Lap 2025
Discussion
Hi People
This is my 1st Classic, have done a few 24 hours, but wanted to do the classic and drive the track in the Mustang. I usually get the tram from where I am staying.
But I am a bit concerned about track insurance? I am going to try to let all the speedsters go ahead and have a more relaxed drive even if it's just 2 laps. I take it (stupid question time) I person I spoke to said "don't hang back to much it's easy to take the wrong direction" I think he was pulling my leg.
But I am based at Rue Francois De Malherbe about 4 miles away, so not sure what time to get to Le Mans, where to meet the other drivers I am booked into the Pistonheads carpark for the Friday.
If anyone can give advice to a newbie, that would be most kind, and Yes i have a full face helmet which I have used for Wings & Wheels a few years back, that was a great show.
Hope you can relax my concerns, and if you do advise track insurance who you do use? Had one quote for £317 it that the going price?
thanks again
This is my 1st Classic, have done a few 24 hours, but wanted to do the classic and drive the track in the Mustang. I usually get the tram from where I am staying.
But I am a bit concerned about track insurance? I am going to try to let all the speedsters go ahead and have a more relaxed drive even if it's just 2 laps. I take it (stupid question time) I person I spoke to said "don't hang back to much it's easy to take the wrong direction" I think he was pulling my leg.
But I am based at Rue Francois De Malherbe about 4 miles away, so not sure what time to get to Le Mans, where to meet the other drivers I am booked into the Pistonheads carpark for the Friday.
If anyone can give advice to a newbie, that would be most kind, and Yes i have a full face helmet which I have used for Wings & Wheels a few years back, that was a great show.
Hope you can relax my concerns, and if you do advise track insurance who you do use? Had one quote for £317 it that the going price?
thanks again
goldengooner said:
Hi People
This is my 1st Classic, have done a few 24 hours, but wanted to do the classic and drive the track in the Mustang. I usually get the tram from where I am staying.
But I am a bit concerned about track insurance? I am going to try to let all the speedsters go ahead and have a more relaxed drive even if it's just 2 laps. I take it (stupid question time) I person I spoke to said "don't hang back to much it's easy to take the wrong direction" I think he was pulling my leg.
But I am based at Rue Francois De Malherbe about 4 miles away, so not sure what time to get to Le Mans, where to meet the other drivers I am booked into the Pistonheads carpark for the Friday.
If anyone can give advice to a newbie, that would be most kind, and Yes i have a full face helmet which I have used for Wings & Wheels a few years back, that was a great show.
Hope you can relax my concerns, and if you do advise track insurance who you do use? Had one quote for £317 it that the going price?
thanks again
Have you bought your "parade laps" pass.This is my 1st Classic, have done a few 24 hours, but wanted to do the classic and drive the track in the Mustang. I usually get the tram from where I am staying.
But I am a bit concerned about track insurance? I am going to try to let all the speedsters go ahead and have a more relaxed drive even if it's just 2 laps. I take it (stupid question time) I person I spoke to said "don't hang back to much it's easy to take the wrong direction" I think he was pulling my leg.
But I am based at Rue Francois De Malherbe about 4 miles away, so not sure what time to get to Le Mans, where to meet the other drivers I am booked into the Pistonheads carpark for the Friday.
If anyone can give advice to a newbie, that would be most kind, and Yes i have a full face helmet which I have used for Wings & Wheels a few years back, that was a great show.
Hope you can relax my concerns, and if you do advise track insurance who you do use? Had one quote for £317 it that the going price?
thanks again
You need to be at your designated collection place around 30 minutes before going out.
It's hit and miss as to where you will fit into the group so you won't be able to control that.
It's pretty straightforward -
Slow cars keep to the right.
Faster cars overtake on the left.
The Mulsanne Straight is actually quite narrow.
So the very fast cars mix it with the fast cars on the left.
It's pretty much similar to watching a few laps of one of the 24hr races.
Slower cars keep out of the way by keeping right - on a straight or on the exit to a chicane / corner.
It's up to you about insurance.
I couldn't get any that was without a £10K excess.
If anyone knows something helpful about insurance let us know.
Any questions remaining just ask.
goldengooner said:
Thanks RGG
Yes have paid for the parade pass
I missed the bit about first tickets.Yes have paid for the parade pass
Your pass should have a time on it.
You will need the be at the 1st Tickets collection area - their infield parking up place X number of minutes before the actual time on the pass - I think it 30 minutes - if you email 1st Tickets they will give you actual timing info.
There is a pace car at the front of each session....the rule is "don't overtake the pace car"!
The advice regarding being at the collection point is spot on.
I did the parade laps a couple of yrs ago...we were almost last heading on to the track and made some serious progress down Mulsanne Straight which was my plan as everyone else scooted off in to the distance! We got 2 full laps of the circuit in and I caught the others by Porsche Curves.
I didn't take out insurance for the laps, but neither do I for track days. The Pistonheads/1st Tickets session I was in was purely Brits (08.00 on the Saturday) so we had a good chat with everyone beforehand and checked everyone understood the overtaking on the left on straights only and not to hassle people in the braking zones.
My only strong bit of advice is to be very careful for the Dunlop Chicane....it is much narrower than you think and you don't want to be going in to it side by side with another car. People get lulled in to "giving it the beans" on the start finish straight and if you've got faster cars around they need to respect the slower traffic ahead. You will exit the parade laps on the other side of the Dunlop bridge at the end of your session & you can drive straight out of the circuit if you need to.
Also just give your car a good checkover the night before for peace of mind and remove anything loose in the boot/inside the car as you don't want to be distracted by something sliding around if you decide to do some spirited cornering at somewhere like either of the chicanes on Mulsanne or especially Indianapolis as the camber might encourage you to if you have the space to do so
And if you have a Go-pro or similar, make sure it's in the car with all the necessary bits, with a big enough memory card and fully charged up!!
The advice regarding being at the collection point is spot on.
I did the parade laps a couple of yrs ago...we were almost last heading on to the track and made some serious progress down Mulsanne Straight which was my plan as everyone else scooted off in to the distance! We got 2 full laps of the circuit in and I caught the others by Porsche Curves.
I didn't take out insurance for the laps, but neither do I for track days. The Pistonheads/1st Tickets session I was in was purely Brits (08.00 on the Saturday) so we had a good chat with everyone beforehand and checked everyone understood the overtaking on the left on straights only and not to hassle people in the braking zones.
My only strong bit of advice is to be very careful for the Dunlop Chicane....it is much narrower than you think and you don't want to be going in to it side by side with another car. People get lulled in to "giving it the beans" on the start finish straight and if you've got faster cars around they need to respect the slower traffic ahead. You will exit the parade laps on the other side of the Dunlop bridge at the end of your session & you can drive straight out of the circuit if you need to.
Also just give your car a good checkover the night before for peace of mind and remove anything loose in the boot/inside the car as you don't want to be distracted by something sliding around if you decide to do some spirited cornering at somewhere like either of the chicanes on Mulsanne or especially Indianapolis as the camber might encourage you to if you have the space to do so
And if you have a Go-pro or similar, make sure it's in the car with all the necessary bits, with a big enough memory card and fully charged up!!
thanks for all the advice MrC986
I think around the corners I will be a total bottle job, done a trackday a few years back at Castle Coombe it was a nightmare, all the escorts and other cars went after the few Mustang's. The last times i let her fly was on the Autobahn's and the now no more Wings and Wheels show. 148mph in the rain, but that was just 2 of us side by side.
Don't have a go-pro, have a 3D camera which when watched back you feel you are in the car, and actually move as the wheels do :-)
I'm with 1st tickets but I think it's the Friday,
I think around the corners I will be a total bottle job, done a trackday a few years back at Castle Coombe it was a nightmare, all the escorts and other cars went after the few Mustang's. The last times i let her fly was on the Autobahn's and the now no more Wings and Wheels show. 148mph in the rain, but that was just 2 of us side by side.
Don't have a go-pro, have a 3D camera which when watched back you feel you are in the car, and actually move as the wheels do :-)
I'm with 1st tickets but I think it's the Friday,
Just be cautious of other cars/drivers. I ended up in quite a group and had to have eyes everywhere. Progress was very stop start. Saw a few people over cook it. Was very mindful watching those around me.
As advised, if you can hold back it would be better.
I would go into it with the mindset of enjoying the experience driving the full lap rather than going for all out speed in a ‘track day’ sort of way.
I would do it again when I go back to the classic.
As advised, if you can hold back it would be better.
I would go into it with the mindset of enjoying the experience driving the full lap rather than going for all out speed in a ‘track day’ sort of way.
I would do it again when I go back to the classic.
This is a good video to watch, yes it's 2014, but shows you what to do.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oYFbHjivRM
I am just going to stick to the right, let the speedsters go, if it's a clear road might open her up a bit, but these bends can come at you pretty fast. So will aim to keep a few cars ahead of me in the distance so can see when they slow down.
My main worry is getting to the collection point on time :-), saw on the program today that the parades start at 8am on the Friday
Does anyone know the address of the collection point and the pistonheads parking zone for afterwards?
thanks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oYFbHjivRM
I am just going to stick to the right, let the speedsters go, if it's a clear road might open her up a bit, but these bends can come at you pretty fast. So will aim to keep a few cars ahead of me in the distance so can see when they slow down.
My main worry is getting to the collection point on time :-), saw on the program today that the parades start at 8am on the Friday
Does anyone know the address of the collection point and the pistonheads parking zone for afterwards?
thanks
goldengooner said:
This is a good video to watch, yes it's 2014, but shows you what to do.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oYFbHjivRM
I am just going to stick to the right, let the speedsters go, if it's a clear road might open her up a bit, but these bends can come at you pretty fast. So will aim to keep a few cars ahead of me in the distance so can see when they slow down.
My main worry is getting to the collection point on time :-), saw on the program today that the parades start at 8am on the Friday
Does anyone know the address of the collection point and the pistonheads parking zone for afterwards?
thanks
If it is the same as I went, you entered the club areas roughly where the arrow is. Follow a route and head onto the Bugatti circuit. Club parking is sign posted and you should get a number to look for. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oYFbHjivRM
I am just going to stick to the right, let the speedsters go, if it's a clear road might open her up a bit, but these bends can come at you pretty fast. So will aim to keep a few cars ahead of me in the distance so can see when they slow down.
My main worry is getting to the collection point on time :-), saw on the program today that the parades start at 8am on the Friday
Does anyone know the address of the collection point and the pistonheads parking zone for afterwards?
thanks
Where the circle is, was where we formed up for the parade laps.
LM240 is correct although we initially gathered where Garage Vert is on the aerial view which was the location of the PH parking in 2022. Brian at 1st Tickets is very helpful although I’d give him about a few days to get all his Classic customer packs posted out & then contact him. We don’t actually arrive until Friday late morning & our parade laps are on the Saturday (& our travel packs are due imminently) so I can’t help any further at the moment....
You ll see where all the club parking is. (All around the green area marked). Towards the parade lap entry will be the much bigger clubs like French Porsche club. Smaller ones go back along the Bugatti circuit.
Usually if the laps are arranged through them, gather with them and someone will direct you off at the right time.
We came in on the morning from off circuit. In at Porsche curves and drove up the inside of the circuit. That time of day they ll be no traffic around. Classic was very different to the 24hrs. Pretty much anytime we came and went there was no hold ups.
The 24hrs gets priority, but I wish I was doing Classic again. Different vibe. Any racing is nice to see but results irrelevant. I only planned out the odd class I wanted to see, particularly the group C cars. Most the time was spent looking at cars on the paddock or club areas.
Usually if the laps are arranged through them, gather with them and someone will direct you off at the right time.
We came in on the morning from off circuit. In at Porsche curves and drove up the inside of the circuit. That time of day they ll be no traffic around. Classic was very different to the 24hrs. Pretty much anytime we came and went there was no hold ups.
The 24hrs gets priority, but I wish I was doing Classic again. Different vibe. Any racing is nice to see but results irrelevant. I only planned out the odd class I wanted to see, particularly the group C cars. Most the time was spent looking at cars on the paddock or club areas.
Edited by LM240 on Saturday 21st June 18:55
I did the track laps in 2023. I've never done a track day, but for me the Le Mans laps are far more cautious and slower than track day laps would be, both because of the variety of cars and the sheer numbers. We had a few yellow flags too. I wasn't told about any over taking rules and it seemed pretty much a do as you please affair. Having said that I didn't come across any Max Verstappen impersonators and it was all pretty sensible.
Slightly dull video below.
Slightly dull video below.
Got my tickets with the 2 stickers, i take it that allows me into the Piston heads parking and onto the track? Can't see a time in the letter or where to meet, have received 2 links to maps which to me are a bit confusing :-(
I'm after a gps for the meeting point and the piston heads car parking for goggle maps
here are the links, maybe i'm being thick !
https://1st-tickets.co.uk/app/uploads/2025/06/Plan...
https://1st-tickets.co.uk/app/uploads/2025/06/Plan...
it says Parade Clubs 3 on the red sticker
So i'm on the track from 08:50 to 09:15 the 3rd and last parade out
and P3 on the Green sticker
Which is the Parking at Vert
Need to pop along there on the Thursday and drop some pins for goggle maps
I'm after a gps for the meeting point and the piston heads car parking for goggle maps
here are the links, maybe i'm being thick !
https://1st-tickets.co.uk/app/uploads/2025/06/Plan...
https://1st-tickets.co.uk/app/uploads/2025/06/Plan...
it says Parade Clubs 3 on the red sticker
So i'm on the track from 08:50 to 09:15 the 3rd and last parade out
and P3 on the Green sticker
Which is the Parking at Vert
Need to pop along there on the Thursday and drop some pins for goggle maps
Edited by goldengooner on Tuesday 24th June 15:49
I'm doing the parade lap on Friday at 0820.
From reading above, it looks like I use this gate...
https://www.google.com/maps/@47.9587992,0.2196889,...
then go down the left side of the hairpin on the Bugatti circuit to the pre-grille area.
Is that correct?
Also, can I park at Pistonheads (I have a ticket) and then leave at around 1030, returning around 1400, or am I there for the day?
From reading above, it looks like I use this gate...
https://www.google.com/maps/@47.9587992,0.2196889,...
then go down the left side of the hairpin on the Bugatti circuit to the pre-grille area.
Is that correct?
Also, can I park at Pistonheads (I have a ticket) and then leave at around 1030, returning around 1400, or am I there for the day?
If you've booked with 1st Tickets, theyve just issued detailed instructions to me for our parade laps including which entry gate and arrival times etc.
The instructions say...The PistonHeads parking area (no 57 on the Club Display area Map) is in the VERT (green) area on the Bugatti Circuit. You must enter the circuit via PORTE GARAGE VERT (see Sat Nav details below) near the MMA Arena. Please follow the green club signs around the circuit and the Circulation Plan for display vehicles.
Please note: if you try and enter via another gate, you will be turned away.
'
PORTE GARAGE VERT
(Chemin. aux Bœufs, Lat: 47° 57' 32.11" N, Long: 0° 13' 10.11" E)
What3Words location: ///drifter.terminology.mended
Parade lap procedure
IMPORTANT: CRASH HELMETS ARE MANDATORY (either full face or open)
The participating cars will be collected from the club display areas by the organiser’s team approximately 30 minutes before the session. In order to have sufficient time in case of any traffic delays, we recommend parking at least 45 minutes before your scheduled parade lap time.
Your Parade Clubs sticker must be on display for the Marshalls at all times. The organiser’s team will take you to the pre-grid area where your parade lap sticker will be scanned/checked. The Peter Auto team will then direct you to form up behind the pace car. You will be kept in the pre-grid area until all the participants are collected.
Once the session starts, you will be directed on to the track, following the pace car. Whilst on the track you may overtake other participants, but must respect the pace of the leading car. You must not overtake the pace car for any reason.
The sessions usually consist of 1 x out lap and 1 x in lap, depending on time, there may be an opportunity for a further lap, but the length of the session is determined by the event organisers.
After the session you will be directed back to the club display areas. You may then choose to leave your vehicle on display throughout the weekend and can leave and return as required.
Hope the above helps and if you lose your instructions, theyre still here with the exception of your time slot!
The instructions say...The PistonHeads parking area (no 57 on the Club Display area Map) is in the VERT (green) area on the Bugatti Circuit. You must enter the circuit via PORTE GARAGE VERT (see Sat Nav details below) near the MMA Arena. Please follow the green club signs around the circuit and the Circulation Plan for display vehicles.
Please note: if you try and enter via another gate, you will be turned away.
'
PORTE GARAGE VERT
(Chemin. aux Bœufs, Lat: 47° 57' 32.11" N, Long: 0° 13' 10.11" E)
What3Words location: ///drifter.terminology.mended
Parade lap procedure
IMPORTANT: CRASH HELMETS ARE MANDATORY (either full face or open)
The participating cars will be collected from the club display areas by the organiser’s team approximately 30 minutes before the session. In order to have sufficient time in case of any traffic delays, we recommend parking at least 45 minutes before your scheduled parade lap time.
Your Parade Clubs sticker must be on display for the Marshalls at all times. The organiser’s team will take you to the pre-grid area where your parade lap sticker will be scanned/checked. The Peter Auto team will then direct you to form up behind the pace car. You will be kept in the pre-grid area until all the participants are collected.
Once the session starts, you will be directed on to the track, following the pace car. Whilst on the track you may overtake other participants, but must respect the pace of the leading car. You must not overtake the pace car for any reason.
The sessions usually consist of 1 x out lap and 1 x in lap, depending on time, there may be an opportunity for a further lap, but the length of the session is determined by the event organisers.
After the session you will be directed back to the club display areas. You may then choose to leave your vehicle on display throughout the weekend and can leave and return as required.
Hope the above helps and if you lose your instructions, theyre still here with the exception of your time slot!
Edited by MrC986 on Thursday 26th June 11:15
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