LM Bucket List

LM Bucket List

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dredgey

Original Poster:

327 posts

220 months

Friday 25th May 2018
quotequote all
Our group often mention the fact that “Every Le Mans is different.”

Each year we try to add a new element and have a few things ticked off and wondered if anyone can advise on my ‘To Do’ list or even just suggest any additional elements I’ve not thought of. Feel free to add your own bucket list for inspiration!

Done:
Pit Walk
Arnage at dusk/night/dawn
Hilcopter ride during race
Parade
Mulsanne corner at night
Stella Bar
Lunch in Arnage
Piston heads meet (is this still going? whistle )
Ferris wheel
Museum

To Do:
Meal in town on the Friday; recommendations?
Grandstand above pits; I’ve heard this is free during qualifying?
Bar along Mulsanne straight; what’s this called and where?
Great British Welcome (is this the right name?); worth the effort?

Thoughts welcome!


Edited by dredgey on Friday 25th May 19:18


Edited by dredgey on Tuesday 29th May 19:21

Truckosaurus

11,183 posts

283 months

Friday 25th May 2018
quotequote all
dredgey said:
Meal in town on the Friday; recommendations?
Get the tram into the Place de la Republique, grab a seat at one of the outdoor bars and take it from there.

dredgey said:
Grandstand above pits; I’ve heard this is free during qualifying?
All the stands (other than the ACO building ones) are open during qualifying, well worth going up to the pits stand if you're over that side when something is happening.

dredgey said:
Great British Welcome (is this the right name?); worth the effort?
Classic British Welcome. I like it, you get to see a load of cars, some traffic queues but not too bad.

Another thing to add to your list might be to visit the Hotel de France in Chartre sur le Loir for a better class of entertainment (for good or ill). https://lhoteldefrance.fr/patrimoine-automobile/

Hammond1073

109 posts

110 months

Friday 25th May 2018
quotequote all
Great British Welcome is definitely worth the trip.
In my opinion, Friday is one of the best days.
Car show on the Mulsanne first, followed by the pit walk then on to the Great British Welcome and finish with the driver parade.

ThirstyMonk

513 posts

283 months

Friday 25th May 2018
quotequote all
Walking through the pits during Thursday qualifying
Mulsanne corner for the start
Arnage from 23:00 - 03:00
Walk a lap of the track on Friday
Chartres sur le Loire on Friday
Sitting on the wall by the chinese restaurant in the early hours, I think they've blocked the view with fencing now...
Having a chat with Hugh Chamberlain on how teams interpreted the weight rules... it was a standout moment for me - not cheating (they were cheating, but they got away with it because of the cunning engineering that they employed), as engineering their way out of the weight restrictions...

Edited by ThirstyMonk on Friday 25th May 21:27

ellroy

7,000 posts

224 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
The big wheel is a different view of the race circuit, got some good photos from there of the Ford chicane.

Going to walk down to the original Maison Blanche this year, not done that before.

Also, the museum is worth a visit and it’s got a celebration of Gulf racing on this year.

wsn03

1,923 posts

100 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
Best Mulsanne straight location is Hotel Arbor because it also has access to a chicane.

I also enjoy a meal at Auberge Des Hunaudieres, ive heard the Chinese by there is good too if thats your thing

MDT

455 posts

171 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
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If you are going for the Classic, Get yourself sorted out for one of the 'parade' sessions. Fantastic to get to drive the full circuit.

//j17

4,471 posts

222 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
ellroy said:
Also, the museum is worth a visit and it’s got a celebration of Gulf racing on this year.
...and the fact the toilets are usually clean and stocked with loo roll.

ellroy

7,000 posts

224 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
Shhhhhh!

dredgey

Original Poster:

327 posts

220 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
ellroy said:
The big wheel is a different view of the race circuit, got some good photos from there of the Ford chicane.

Going to walk down to the original Maison Blanche this year, not done that before.

Also, the museum is worth a visit and it’s got a celebration of Gulf racing on this year.
Whoops, forgot to put on the done list; Ferris wheel and museum! Both great!

Any recommendadtions for which restaurants in Le Mans centre on Friday?

Pericoloso

44,044 posts

162 months

Tuesday 29th May 2018
quotequote all
This isn't really LM related but the Grand Prix de l' age Dor always seems to be scheduled the weekend before the LM24.

If I was going to LM .I'd go a week early and head to Dijon Prenois first.

As a racing fan ,it's a no brainer.

MrC986

3,481 posts

190 months

Wednesday 30th May 2018
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We splurged some cash last year and took a helicopter flight at about 8pm on the Saturday evening - the weather was perfect and we saw a completely different aspect of the circuit (and also the scale of the whole event). If you've the money, I'd recommend doing it.

//j17

4,471 posts

222 months

Wednesday 30th May 2018
quotequote all
dredgey said:
Any recommendadtions for which restaurants in Le Mans centre on Friday?
No specific recommendations (never been sober-enough post parade to remember restaurant names) but the little cobbled quater off the north side of Place de la Republique and across the main roads is a good hunting ground. Had to the corner of the square where the tram going AWAY from the circuit exits the square and take the little alley the slips off to the right of that. Then just a little left/right shimmy as you cross the main road at the bottom and up the alley just to the left of the curry house.

C70R

17,596 posts

103 months

Wednesday 30th May 2018
quotequote all
Great thread! We've been visiting LM for over a decade, and still have a lot to do. We tend to treat the trip more as an opportunity for a group of mates to catch up, with the distraction of a race going on around us. We may only watch 6-7 hours of racing at the track (it's on our TV for the full 24), but still get a massive kick out of the trip. That's what makes LM so much better than F1 - it's not a mad dash in and out, and there's no fear of leaving your seat in case of missing a key overtake.

Done:
- Commando cross-country/hedgerow expedition to sit behind the armco on the Mulsanne at 1am
- Dodgems at night
- Pit walk
- Garage visits (thanks to friends in 'high' places
- Drive a lap of (most of) the track
- Watch the start at Tertre Rouge

To Do:
- Drivers' parade
- Helicopter ride
- Arnage at dawn
- Museum
- See the end of the race (we leave early for an overnight stopover every year)
- Karting
- Stay up for the full 24hrs

Jack Mansfield

3,256 posts

89 months

PH TEAM

Wednesday 30th May 2018
quotequote all
Hi all

Sorry to butt in, but we saw you mentioned the possibility of heading to the Classic British Welcome... It really is a great event and sets off the weekend nicely (especially if the weather is good like last year)! We'll be there as well in our own area, lot's more info on the event here if you fancy it.

Plus Dave, who runs the event, is on hand in the comments (or via email) if you have any questions!

Hopefully see you there smile

Jack

woof

8,456 posts

276 months

Thursday 31st May 2018
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Out of interest. How much is the helicopter ride and how long are you up in the air ?

JT3K

314 posts

129 months

Thursday 31st May 2018
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IIRC helicopter is ~£90 for 20 mins. Can't be sure of that though

RobbyJ

1,565 posts

221 months

Thursday 31st May 2018
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We did the helicopter ride last year about an hour before the end of the race, it was fantastic. From memory it was around 115 Euros and lasted around 12 minutes (but seemed much longer).

The highlight was being able to shelter in their waiting area tent and drink as many free soft drinks as possible away from the heat before jumping into the shaky old hair drier that is the squirrel helicopter.