[LM24] Newbie 24hr 1st timer

[Mogi_Notts]

Hi, Im off to the Le Mans 24hr this year for the 1st time, does anyone know about rules for the circuit.

i.e at UK circuits you can take food and small camping stoves and a cooler filled with beer and food to the circuit to cook nice bacon butties in the morning prior to the racing, can you take this also in france?

We are not camping but commuting from a villa around 50 mins away but plan to stop from Saturday afternoon overnight until Sunday evening.

Are you allowed to put up a fishing type brolly and sit outside on chairs on the viewing banks all night?

Just wondered how strict they are over there!

Thanks all

[CTD]

Originally Posted by Mogi_Notts

Hi, Im off to the Le Mans 24hr this year for the 1st time, does anyone know about rules for the circuit.

i.e at UK circuits you can take food and small camping stoves and a cooler filled with beer and food to the circuit to cook nice bacon butties in the morning prior to the racing, can you take this also in france?

We are not camping but commuting from a villa around 50 mins away but plan to stop from Saturday afternoon overnight until Sunday evening.

Are you allowed to put up a fishing type brolly and sit outside on chairs on the viewing banks all night?

Just wondered how strict they are over there!

Thanks all

Hello, and Welcome to Ten-Tenths, hope you stay .

I don't know exactly if what you ask is illegal, buy having issues seeing someone stopping or regulation it.
However Glass containers (that's beer and wine inclusive) is forbidden at the track!

[GT6]

There are very few restrictions about what you can take into the circuit, but a few things that might help
At times there is a glass ban and the security will check and insist that you leave glass bottles behind before entering the circuit.
If you can carry it then you can take it into the circuit.
Plenty of spots to sit and watch, especially after a few hours of the race, when everyone starts to move around.
The best thing about Le mans is the size of things, the main viewing area covers a length of track from tertre rouge corner right the way down
to the Porsche curves, and that on your first trip will seem to take ages, and will be almost impossible if you are carrying chairs, fishing tent etc.
The reason most people camp is so they can take chairs and watch from the banking close to the campsite but then walk to other area's and the village without having to carry everything. However if you have a good parking space you can leave all that stuff in the car. If you have a car make sure you use it to venture out to the other viewing area's arnarge at night is unbelievable.
You will love the race and the atmosphere but to really enjoy it to the full you should get there much earlier the practice sessions and everything that happens on Friday and saturday morning are all part of the event.

[PascaLM]

Hello Mogi_Notts.
First of all, you should come on the saturday morning, as soon as you can because the roads heading to the circuit are very busy from 10h00. Once, I had waited 90 minutes to make the last 1000m. Furthermore, if you don't have a reserved car park, you would be parked far from the entrance if you come at the beginning of the afternoon. If your car is parked closely enough, you can do a "pit stop" and refuel your rucksacks with beers, sandwiches and whatever you want, and take warmer clothes and a small electric light for the night. As GT6 said, don't carry to much things because there are many km of walking.
There's another good reason to come earlier : we organise a forum meeting, at noon, in the village of the circuit. I will start the thread about it in several weeks here.

[Gingers4Justice]

I'm not sure about cookers - I'm pretty certain you can't have one by the side of the track. There are plenty of food outlets, however, offering all sorts of food for the entirety of the race.

I've seen all sorts of things that fans use to watch the race all night with, but perhaps the best I've seen are those pop-up tents you get on beaches.

It changes from year-to-year but sometimes, it gets very, very cold at dawn, so without wishing to sound like your mother - do wrap up warmly.

[Gingers4Justice]

Originally Posted by PascaLM

Hello Mogi_Notts.
As GT6 said, don't carry to much things because there are many km of walking.

Yes, this is an important point actually. Don't underestimate the size of the place, as many do and will. You don't really understand the scale of Le Mans until you've been there but you will do more walking than you think.

[PascaLM]

You can have a look to these threads too :
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=136187
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=131413
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=133552

[Simmi]

Plenty of walking but don't be afraid to sling a camping chair over your shoulder. We've done that the last couple of years and it doesn't kill you. It's great to sink into a chair somewhere like Tetre Rouge or Mulsanne and watch the action.

[wewantourdarbyback]

I will second getting there in the morning, not just because of the nightmare that is traffic, but also because in GA areas good places to stand/sit are at a real premium.

(Last year a large amount were moved on in front of us after scaling the barriers to set next to the catch fence, we'd been there since 8.30 to get a place at the front)

[NelisB]

Originally Posted by Gingers4Justice

I'm not sure about cookers - I'm pretty certain you can't have one by the side of the track. There are plenty of food outlets, however, offering all sorts of food for the entirety of the race.

I've seen all sorts of things that fans use to watch the race all night with, but perhaps the best I've seen are those pop-up tents you get on beaches.

It changes from year-to-year but sometimes, it gets very, very cold at dawn, so without wishing to sound like your mother - do wrap up warmly.

I've used a small camping stove at the circuit last year to make a espresso in the morning. No troubles with getting it to the circuit. I don't know if it's allowed but they won't stop you taking it to the circuit.

[GT6]

Originally Posted by NelisB

I've used a small camping stove at the circuit last year to make a espresso in the morning. No troubles with getting it to the circuit. I don't know if it's allowed but they won't stop you taking it to the circuit.

But if they do stop you and say no then what do you do then, you can drink a couple of bottles of beer before going in or just accept the loss but a stove and express maker are a little more expensive

[Aysedasi]

At the risk of Simon jumping in to remind me about bacon in the mornings (), I well remember as we arrived on Saturday morning just as warm-up started in 2010, someone was actually on the concrete tribunes opposite the start/finish line frying bacon......

[GT6]

I wonder who that was, I just love the thought of it, but think that bacon should be kept to safer places the smell of bacon frying could cause panic.

[NelisB]

Originally Posted by GT6

But if they do stop you and say no then what do you do then, you can drink a couple of bottles of beer before going in or just accept the loss but a stove and express maker are a little more expensive

That's true but the only loss would be a small canister of butane. That's doable to me. I just like to have a nice espresso in the small hours of the morning.