Maison Blanche much improved.
Discussion
Indeed.The new layout is great and the numbered pitches were really rather spacious.
In fact, I'd go as far as saying that the only people who moaned about the 'lack of space' were the greedy buggers who traditionally turned up early and took more than their fair share.
A thumbs up for the 'new' MB.
Having two sets of toilets at each end helped, too
blueST said:
Are motorhomes still allowed? And would one fit on an allocated pitch? Might be going luxury next year but only if we can stay on MB.
There were plenty around our pitch.Had a good stay there, would definitely go back. Shame that on Sunday night a bunch of retards built a fire on the track (the one within the site that is, not the "proper" one) and made a significant hole in it. Real shame as previously the tarmac looked recent and in good nick.
MB was MUCH better if very quiet...
I was impressed at the ground quality, I'd been concerned that it was going to be a mudbath as most of the grass is very new. However where we were (towards the back wall) the ground was very sandy and I'm guessing that they've put down vast amounts of sand to aid the drainage.
Our pitches were OK, storm drains on two (out of four) pitches so anyone wanting to pitch a number of tents might have been in trouble or somone with just one pitch and one tent - bit like Houx really although no trees!
The weeds on the centre section were over two feet tall so a strimmer would have been handy for that bit!
I think the ACO played cautious and sold very little space as they weren't sure if it really was going to be ready.
edited to add Motorhomes were fine although some of the pitches were very V shaped and would have required lots of levelling. Technically a pitch is 7m x 5m so many motorhomes would fit on one pitch but there is always a danger of a pitch that you just can't make it fit on.
I was impressed at the ground quality, I'd been concerned that it was going to be a mudbath as most of the grass is very new. However where we were (towards the back wall) the ground was very sandy and I'm guessing that they've put down vast amounts of sand to aid the drainage.
Our pitches were OK, storm drains on two (out of four) pitches so anyone wanting to pitch a number of tents might have been in trouble or somone with just one pitch and one tent - bit like Houx really although no trees!
The weeds on the centre section were over two feet tall so a strimmer would have been handy for that bit!
I think the ACO played cautious and sold very little space as they weren't sure if it really was going to be ready.
edited to add Motorhomes were fine although some of the pitches were very V shaped and would have required lots of levelling. Technically a pitch is 7m x 5m so many motorhomes would fit on one pitch but there is always a danger of a pitch that you just can't make it fit on.
Edited by Piglet on Tuesday 17th June 13:25
Edited by Piglet on Tuesday 17th June 14:05
Piglet said:
edited to add Motorhomes were fine although some of the pitches were very V shaped and would have required lots of levelling. Technically a pitch is 7m x 5m so many motorhomes would fit on one pitch but there is always a danger of a pitch that you just can't make it fit on.
Edited by Piglet on Tuesday 17th June 13:25
MB was 100% better this year. We had a great pitch, the view down the Porsche Curves was amazing and we were within staggering distance of loos / showers with very small queues. The real bonus was decent security that stayed on for Sunady night scanning the cars in / out thus removing Msr Pikey from the equation. We nipped up to Arnage fairly safe in the knowledge that our kit would still be there.
Yes the idiots opposite us with the Ford Transit 'ST' (says it all really) made that stupid fire and got the security riled but otherwise it was a good tour. That said we did end up on Friday night with a naked fat chap in a gimp mask wearing tight gold shorts in our gazebo and a Dutch bloke with a dog that nicked some merguez sauages but that made the trip even more memorable....have booked same pitches again (hopefully)for next year.
BTW apologies to anyone who came over say hello as I was a broken man by Saturday caused by the DfH maniacs.....
Yes the idiots opposite us with the Ford Transit 'ST' (says it all really) made that stupid fire and got the security riled but otherwise it was a good tour. That said we did end up on Friday night with a naked fat chap in a gimp mask wearing tight gold shorts in our gazebo and a Dutch bloke with a dog that nicked some merguez sauages but that made the trip even more memorable....have booked same pitches again (hopefully)for next year.
BTW apologies to anyone who came over say hello as I was a broken man by Saturday caused by the DfH maniacs.....
I have to say I didn't like the "revamped" Maison Blanche. Granted, the viewing area at the lower end of the Porsche Curve is fantastic. I thought it would be packed there but never had any difficulty finding a good spot to view from.
We were told by the ACO that MB was sold out, yet there were loads of pitches that had not been taken up. I travelled with two friends and we had a pitch each. Two together in V and one in AB. In V we were crammed in like sardines with barely enough space for a car and a tent each. My other friend had his pitch all by himself and it would have been alot better if we could have all pitched together. I'm not against allocated pitches, however it would be better if there could be a degree of flexibility that allowed friends to pitch together albeit within an allocated area.
As for the "security", it seemed that their only purpose was to ensure that you had pitched in your allocated space and not parked on the roadways. As for their presence during race time, they were sadly lacking, at the time you would have thought they would be most needed.
Personally I thought MB was quite quiet this year and I missed the big pyrotechnic displays of yesteryear.
We were told by the ACO that MB was sold out, yet there were loads of pitches that had not been taken up. I travelled with two friends and we had a pitch each. Two together in V and one in AB. In V we were crammed in like sardines with barely enough space for a car and a tent each. My other friend had his pitch all by himself and it would have been alot better if we could have all pitched together. I'm not against allocated pitches, however it would be better if there could be a degree of flexibility that allowed friends to pitch together albeit within an allocated area.
As for the "security", it seemed that their only purpose was to ensure that you had pitched in your allocated space and not parked on the roadways. As for their presence during race time, they were sadly lacking, at the time you would have thought they would be most needed.
Personally I thought MB was quite quiet this year and I missed the big pyrotechnic displays of yesteryear.
Class One - You should have made your bookings together as a group. Surely you knew before you got there that you might not be together? We managed to get 16 pitches allocated together without too much trouble?? More organization needed.
Also we had our friendly security guys around every couple of hours which was reassuring. The declined the offered beers but watched the footie for a bit on our telly. Visible security is a deterrent and that has been lacking for the last few years. A couple of years back I had the badges prised off the bonnet and flanks of my Ferrari....anything that stops that behavior is all good in my book.
As Piglet said above I think the ACO were a bit cagey about numbers and pitches but trust me, 3 years ago we arrived en masse at MB lunchtime Thursday and almost had a punch up trying to find any space left at all. This year some of our gang landed Friday pm and had no stress at all. OK that might lessen the atmosphere a little but I'm prepared to accept that in exchange for not having to take even more days off work and getting grief from the wife just so that I can pitch a tent in a field!
Also we had our friendly security guys around every couple of hours which was reassuring. The declined the offered beers but watched the footie for a bit on our telly. Visible security is a deterrent and that has been lacking for the last few years. A couple of years back I had the badges prised off the bonnet and flanks of my Ferrari....anything that stops that behavior is all good in my book.
As Piglet said above I think the ACO were a bit cagey about numbers and pitches but trust me, 3 years ago we arrived en masse at MB lunchtime Thursday and almost had a punch up trying to find any space left at all. This year some of our gang landed Friday pm and had no stress at all. OK that might lessen the atmosphere a little but I'm prepared to accept that in exchange for not having to take even more days off work and getting grief from the wife just so that I can pitch a tent in a field!
I agree Buttmonkey, allocated pitches are always going to be a problem if you don't book as a group. There is no point buying individual pitches and then being suprised that they aren't together. We knew a year ago that MB would be allocated, last year's zoning was a pain in the arse but as far as I could see the allocation system worked MUCH better than I had expected (trackside pitches aside that is 
)
I was gobsmacked at the amount of spare space, the Danes (about 20 of them in a coach) who rocked up on Friday (or was it Thursday?) morning, said that they had bought their tickets that morning at the Rotunda - there was clearly loads of space left, I doubt it'll be like that next year.
It was a real shame though, lots of our mob were out of HA as they couldn't get MB tickets and it meant we were all quite spread out.
Security was much better, they were there the whole time unlike last year and they appeared to continue to enforce the same rules all week rather than giving up on Wednesday as is more usual.
I probably saw you at the DfH party, I was the one in an orange hat
) I was gobsmacked at the amount of spare space, the Danes (about 20 of them in a coach) who rocked up on Friday (or was it Thursday?) morning, said that they had bought their tickets that morning at the Rotunda - there was clearly loads of space left, I doubt it'll be like that next year.
It was a real shame though, lots of our mob were out of HA as they couldn't get MB tickets and it meant we were all quite spread out. Security was much better, they were there the whole time unlike last year and they appeared to continue to enforce the same rules all week rather than giving up on Wednesday as is more usual.
I probably saw you at the DfH party, I was the one in an orange hat
Buttmonkey said:
trust me, 3 years ago we arrived en masse at MB lunchtime Thursday and almost had a punch up trying to find any space left at all.
As did we. As I said, it's only the selfish tossers who take up all the space that were whining about the numbered pitches.Buttmonkey said:
This year some of our gang landed Friday pm and had no stress at all. OK that might lessen the atmosphere a little but I'm prepared to accept that in exchange for not having to take even more days off work and getting grief from the wife just so that I can pitch a tent in a field!
Indeed.We did book as a group however, the ACO split our booking and put some of us in Blue Nord. We've been camping in MB since '95 (some earlier) so by the time that was sorted out pitches had been split. At least we fared better than many who didn't even get offered MB this year even though they'd been camping there for 20+ years in some cases.
Class one - I might be alone on this one but learn as we did and forget buying your tickets from the ACO. We use a booking agent and yes we pay a small premium but its a small price to pay compared to being cocked about by the ACO. Wegave up on them years ago. This year we put our booking in, told them to group us together and they did. First class.
Piglet - I was the one lying on the floor in the recovery position.....too much Dutch Dolly for my system to process...
Piglet - I was the one lying on the floor in the recovery position.....too much Dutch Dolly for my system to process...
Class One said:
We did book as a group however, the ACO split our booking and put some of us in Blue Nord. We've been camping in MB since '95 (some earlier) so by the time that was sorted out pitches had been split. At least we fared better than many who didn't even get offered MB this year even though they'd been camping there for 20+ years in some cases.
They split your order from one order form over two campsites? That's unusual - they are usually consistent in sending everyone to Bleu or BSJ on the same order form. I ordered last June (before the race) and was allocated BSJ - luckily I managed to pick up four tickets from a "magic lister".
Buttmonkey that Dutch Dolly was evil, my OH isn't known for his inability to drink but I had to get up three times in the night to take him outside to piss as he was destroying the bleeding tent by falling around everytime he tried to stand up
Christ knows what was in it, I'm not sure I want to know! Buttmonkey said:
Tony260Z said:
Still, cracking weekend. Now counting down to the next one :-)
Minty - Can I suggest you guys don't peak too early on the ferry GOING to Le Mans next year??? Also, B.A's porn addiction needs sorting!And yes, there was a significant peak on the ferry. Bing took until Saturday morning to walk in a straight line...
Piglet said:
Buttmonkey that Dutch Dolly was evil, my OH isn't known for his inability to drink but I had to get up three times in the night to take him outside to piss as he was destroying the bleeding tent by falling around everytime he tried to stand up Christ knows what was in it, I'm not sure I want to know!
As some nutter in an orange cap explained to me on Sunday night, Dutch Dolly consists of Grand Marnier, Gin and Fanta Tropical!! No idea how much of each but it was the right colour and after an hour on that I felt an urgent need to lie down.......mind you this was from a group of lads who brought their own mobile bar to Le Mans..... Christ knows what was in it, I'm not sure I want to know! Gassing Station | Le Mans | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff