Campsite security

[Zed 44]

This is my first year at Le Mans and it's just me and my wife. We are both in our mid-sixties. I have heard about the threat of theft from the so-called "" brigade. We will be on Maison Blanche. I would be interested to know:
1. How much of a threat is this?
2. Is it best to leave someone around your tent/car to guard it?
3. Are cars at risk of being stolen or vandalised?
4. Are the theives there all the time or do they tend to invade post-race?
5. Does Maison Blanche have any kind of security?

Thanks for any help you may be able to give me.

[fordyx]

We've only ever stayed on Beaujour and only really worry about security post race / Monday morning. But in my opinion its just like any mass camp site, just be sensible with your valuables. I've never seen any issues with cars, but I have a 'not so desireable' VW T4 Caravelle.
However, there is a French family out there that does have an awful lot of scratches on their car due to our flipping gazebo taking lift off and landing right on top of it whilst we slept :-S

[Truckosaurus]

Zed 44 said:

1. How much of a threat is this?

Nothing worth losing sleep over as long as you are sensible.

Zed 44 said:

2. Is it best to leave someone around your tent/car to guard it?

Not until the end of the race when the hoards arrive to search for goodies. There is a lot of disposed camping gear each year so it's not surprising that locals come and find stuff to re-use or sell at a carboot. As was mentioned on the other thread about Sunday night, that's the only time I'd not leave anything unsupervised as people will assume it has been left behind and take it.

Zed 44 said:

3. Are cars at risk of being stolen or vandalised?

Minimal, certainly no more than in any public carpark.

Zed 44 said:

4. Are the theives there all the time or do they tend to invade post-race?

Post-race the gate security goes home so anyone can access the campsites from the outside world.

Zed 44 said:

5. Does Maison Blanche have any kind of security?

Just checking tickets to get into the circuit, anyone with a general entrance ticket can walk freely onto the MB campsite.

In 14 years of attending the only losses we've experienced is one umbrella and a cheapo electric coolbox (which was found abandoned in the next aisle once the theif realised how shoddy it was.)

Just keep all valuables locked in your car and you'll be fine.

[//j17]

First off most people don't have any issues. Yes you hear horror stories but then everyone like to rant about their problems and few people rant about how they went to Le Mans, didn't get caught speeding, didn't have anything stolen and didn't enjoy the whole weekend.

1) Get to know your neighbors as they are your best line of defense, and you are theirs. If you share a few beers and a few laughs you get to know what faces fit in which groups and make it clear your watching them when someone you don't recognize wanders in.

2) There IS security on Maison Blanche but it's only there to check camping passes/general access tickets. It's NOT there to only let campers on to the site - mainly because there are no barriers/ticket control between the camping and the MB viewing area/village.

3) Just be sensible. If it's valuable, lock it in the boot of your car.

Personally I think our groups theft tally over the year is:
- 1x solar-powered LED light (£2)
- 2x crates of beer, both used as emergency gazebo guy rope anchors on different years (£5 each)

Considering we spend ~£30 per-trip on BBQs that we then just leave behind, hardly anything to get upset about.

[robmlufc]

We have stayed in MB for six years now, never had anything go missing. As people have said just be sensible and lock valuables in the car and get to know the neighbours over warm beer and undercooked sausages! Its quite a chilled out laid back campsite with its fair share of nice cars so you get a few spectators wandering through having a look and taking a few photos. Only things I have seen vandalised have been a few cars attacked by flying gazebos so make sure everything is pegged down well as you occasionally get freak mini tornados popping up!

[Springbok]

In my opinion the two critical times are when the race starts and when it finishes as the camp sites will be practically empty.

Lock anything of any value in the boot of your car - out of sight.

Always worked for me.

Have a great time.

[A Curtis]

Springbok said:

In my opinion the two critical times are when the race starts and when it finishes as the camp sites will be practically empty.

Lock anything of any value in the boot of your car - out of sight.

Always worked for me.

Have a great time.

Can only echo this ^

Personally if I lost my tent/chairs it wouldn't be the end of the world, stuff like beer etc in tent and valuables like camera + lenses, ipod/wallet etc in a bag in the car locked at all times. Can't do much more!

Only the neighbour stuff is good advice! Some nice guys next to us at Beausejour put our meat in their fridge for 2 days over the weekend for us last year, nice guys!

[Nick M]

And if you want to be ultra-cautious, look for little nooks and crannies in your car - rather than obvious places like the glove-box - to put things like passports, spare credit card, house-keys, etc.

Just don't forget that you put your passport right at the bottom of a fully-loaded boot full of camping stuff when you get to Calais....

[Slurms]

And make sure you say Hi to the guys around you so they will notice if someone is wandering off with your stuff!