GT/Sportscar Racing 2017 Season

[MikeT66]

Not sure if anyone saw the coverage from IMSA of the Daytona 24hrs. Absolutely fantastic racing, with the new Ford GT marginally ahead of the new Porsche 911RS which was a split second ahead of the third placed Ferrari 488 - all after a full 24 hours of racing.

Ford's history of the Daytona 24 Hours goes all the way back to 1966 - the first 24 hours race at the circuit - which was duly won by Englishman (and GT40 development driver) Ken Miles and Lloyd Ruby, taking the flag in a GT40. Last year's race was a bit of a disappointment as it was the first race of the new Ford GT, but great to see them win this year after a brilliant and close fight. Well worth seeking out the highlights if you like watching fantastic machinery in close racing.
http://imsatv.imsa.com/videos/series/SportscarChampionship

 

[gingerdave]

You've jogged my memory.I went to the 1966Lemans race very controversial finish where Miles should have one except for team politics.Ffs I must be so old. :grin:

 

[MikeT66]

[post]360329[/post] You've jogged my memory.I went to the 1966Lemans race very controversial finish where Miles should have one except for team politics.Ffs I must be so old. :grin:

Yes, that was a bit of a f**k-up - whether intended or not by Ford, Dave. Not sure if you've read 'Go Like Hell' from AJ Baime on the development and subsequent 1966 Le Mans victory - absolutely brilliant book (even Mrs.T66 loved it). For those who haven't, it chronicles Ken Miles' pivotal role as a development driver and he was clearly winning when told to slow down so Bruce McLaren could catch up for that photo finish - the ACO of course deemed that as the McLaren/Amon car had started further back than the Miles/Hulme car, so had therefore travelled further.

What makes it worse, of course, is that had he deservedly won, he would have been the first (and still only) driver to have won Daytona, Sebring and Le Mans in the same year, and he sadly died testing the GT40's successor shortly after the Le Mans race. Carroll Shelby himself believed that Ken should have been given the victory, and even had suspicions that Miles had been deducted a lap or so.

I'm ever so slightly jealous that you were actually there :grin: - a genuinely historic moment and even to attend, I'm sure. I bet those Ford V8's sounded pretty amazing. I've seen a GT40-only race at the Goodwood Revival, and it was like Satan's bellowing rage as they thundered past - superb. Do you have any photos or memorabilia?

 

[gingerdave]

That was my first visit to Lemans.The story went like this...W?e arrived at the car park where we set up camp.Went off to watch the start of the race then returned to our camp.When we got there someone had parked next to us in a brand new Mercedes Pagoda roof W113.Guy came over and informed us it was Stirling Moss driving it.Awhile later he came back and was happy to chat(this is not long after his accident at Goodwood).He said he wasn't staying jumped in the Merc ,flat battery.Nobody had any jump leads so I'm tasked with running him into town for some leads at a garage he knew.Busy town that weekend but at every junction gendarmes recognised him and stopped all the traffic.Me in me 2 year old Cortina GT with the most famous driver in the world!!!!!.We got back jumped his car and before leaving he gave us a bunch of passes to get in the Porsche pits and the TV tower.Ive still got the sun visor he autographed for me.

 

[MikeT66]

What a superb story, Dave! Lucky man - it sounds like a truly priceless memory. I can't imagine how different the journey to the race, as well as the race itself, would be when compared to today. And all that way in a Cortina! Brilliant. :grin:

 

[gingerdave]

Actually journey very much the same as today , Southampton ? To Le havre.Biggest difference was viewing the race with very few restrictions.Drive down road parallel to Mulsanne Straight,park up and walk through forest to Mulsanne Straight .Pitch dark pre the Mulsanne chicanes, lean on fence chatting to gendarmes and marshals watching cars just10 ft away doing 220 mph.You can feel the airpressure from cars before you hear them!.Cortina only let me down once in 70 k miles.It was 3 months old and I was camping along the Med in France.I give it such a caning in the Alps that I had gone through the disc pads and wrecked the discs.Took it to Ford agent they said they hadn't got spares for discs for Cortina yet so had to skim discs (all under warranty)life was very different then :grin: Oh and GT 40s weren't the best sound the Chapparall took that honour.

 

[DOH]

Did it sound like this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWlfkAjZeac

 

[gingerdave]

:grin: :grin: a bit.Was strange because when it pulled out of the pits it just surged out of site with no gear change because it only had 2 forward gears .I think low was good for about 110 mph..That does sound a bit bonkers!

 

[MikeT66]

Two forward Gears? That sounds familiar, and I believe it withdrew due to transmission failure.

Your desciption of the race sounds awesome, Dave. Was really tempted to go last year to cheer on the Fords (it was my 50th birthday that year, so apt) and take Mrs.T66 along, too. I spoke to a friend that had been going for a decade or so, who thought for a moment before saying "Ladies and Le Mans don't really go together... for one thing there's the toilets....". :lol: I'd still love to make it, though.

The GT40s weren't ever the most sonorous of cars - at the Revival (the only time I've seen a few grouped together and driven in anger) they were more like a thunderous bark than a screaming or rumbling delight. Still my favourite car, regardless.

Your whole trip still sounds like a proper adventure, though. We take modern cars reliability for granted, these days, I think - I'd even be amazed if my Puma failed to start one morning, so I'm sure it must have been very different in a Cortina (Mk1 with ban-the-bomb tail lights, I trust?) in 1966. Thanks for posting, Dave!

 

[Wild E. Coyote]

Well, the topic name is close enough. This year's LeMans was absolute thriller. Toyota's curse is continuing, Porsche won, but had to fight for it as almost the Jacky Chan's LMP2 Oreca won after the leading Porsche expired with dead engine.

But, the absolute highlight was the epic battle of Aston and Corvette that lasted the last half an hour and Aston literally overtoook the Corvette on the last lap!

 

[Dal]

This years Le Mans was a superb race!

I just hope the basic failure of the LMP1 cars this year (at one point it looked like the LMP2 were going to win which would have been a real coup) doesn't mean the class will be scrapped. Although getting rid of the half dozen cars in the LMP1 class and adding to the 30 odd LMP2 class would make the racing even better!

That Aston and the Corvette were trading places for hours. Superb.

Give me one 24h race (either Le Mans 24h or Nurburgring 24h) any day compared to a full season of F1 for excitement. Must get to Le Mans one year as the N24 was superb last year!

 

[MikeT66]

Thread resurrection! There was some classic racing last year - it's a shame the whole sportscar series gets overlooked in the media in favour of turgid F1. Le Mans was brilliant - even if an obsolete Aston Martin took the honours in a favourable Balance Of Power configuration. I'd rather watch rallying/BTCC before F1, anyway.

Daytona 24hrs is coming up again and the start of the sportscar season. As a bit of a Ford fan, I'll be keeping an eye on the IMSA racing (Ford GTs) and Continental Tire Sportscar Cahallenge (Mustang GT4s) in the USA and the Ford GTs in WEC/Le Mans.

Daytona looks especially close this year - all GTLM cars within a second of each other (barring the new BMW M8, that is) in qualifying (Roar Before The 24, last weekend). I keep promising a trip to Le Mans 24hrs/Daytona 24hrs/Sebring 12hrs, but my money keeps disappearing somewhere into thin air. :roll:

 

[the old gimmer]

Team FRP breaking hard into the first chicane Mulsanne Straight,Le mans 2011.

 

[MikeT66]

[post]367142[/post] Team FRP breaking hard into the first chicane Mulsanne Straight,Le mans 2011.

What's the story behind that photo? Looks like a good trip. Was it Le Mans/Le Mans Classic week?

Also on the GT/racing theme, sad to see Dan Gurney has passed away. A truly great driver with a lot of Ford history, including that 1967 Le Mans victory with AJ Foyt in the GT40 MkIV.

 

[the old gimmer]

Well the story goes back to the beginning of time, I think my interest in the 24 Hueres du Mans” started back in 1970 when they released the film “Le Mans “ with Steve McQueen, although I wasn’t able to go to the see the race for years. By chance I was at Silverstone in 1988 where I saw the Jaguar XJR-9 which had won Le Mans that year, that just did it for me.

As the new millennium approached, 2000 I booked my campsites tickets and headed off to my first 24 Hueres du Mans, Audi won. That was it like so many others I was well and truly hooked and have visited the Race ever year since.

One shouldn’t forget the famous trip organised by Ford which saw 25 FRP’s going to the Race all expenses paid.

2011 saw me and mate of mine going to the Race in our FRP’s, where we meet up with a couple of other owners as you can imagine we had a great time.

This year is going to be no different, campsite and entrance tickets booked, unfortunately the FRP’s in the garage at the moment so I’m going in this instead.



Don’t believe all the hype about Le Mans, tickets can easily be obtained from the French tourist board in Le Mans at reasonable prices. If you need any other info send me a PM.


[youtube]youtube]

 

[the old gimmer]

If Carlsburg made videos of Le Mans this would probably be the best one in the world !
https://youtu.be/8zUFfMg1dHg ( copy and paste to watch)

 

[MikeT66]

Oooh - will watch that later (currently at work so might not be a good use of company time!). I re-watch this frequently - Le Mans, 1968, Ford GT40, Stirling Moss commentary and some tremendous contemporary scenes...
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMzgeEWqXPQ[/youtube]

Love the McQueen Le Mans movie.

That's a fab little tale of your visit to Le Mans. Always promise to go, but then there's the Le Mans Classic, Goodwood Revival, etc vying for my (scarce) spare cash! As for the XK8, I always thought they looked like a fully-grown Puma in a way - but then they did share the same designer, I believe.

 

[MikeT66]

Well, I managed to watch about six hours of the Rolex 24hrs at Daytona Speedway courtesy of IMSA.tv.

As always, some great racing. The cars’ differing performance is levelled somewhat by the ‘Balance of Power’, and in qualifying all looked pretty close – especially in the GTLM category. After 24 hours, though, the two Ford GTs were well out in front, thanks to a largely trouble-free run… apart from someone cross-threading a wheel-nut on the eventual winner #67 car – that poor chap could have been demoted to working in a Kwik Fit garage this morning had the car subsequently struggled! So, a 1-2 for Ford and a great start to the 2018 sportscar racing season.

 

[Wild E. Coyote]

And today is THE day! Toyota is in the most unenvious position IMHO. The race is theirs to lose...

 

[tuonokid]

/www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/features/how-ginetta-plans-win-2018-24-hours-le-mans
I'm shouting up for Ginetta particularly because they're local to me and also because when my friend Martin Sorenson (MS-DIY) came to Ford fair with me last year we turned up at the factory and were given a 2hr tour around the factory by one of the bosses. We even got to see and take pictures of all the LMP cars.... awesome!!!