Hugh and I went camping at Le Mans for the 24hr sports car race. We had a great time and were lucky enough to know a friend whose son worked for the Aston Martin race team. We managed to get some pit passes for a few hours and have a poke around the pit garages. The surprising thing for me was how much plumbing and ‘ancillary’ stuff was hidden under the bodywork. The engine seemed incidental to the rest of the car. It was also pointed out that the cars also have air-conditioning fitted to keep the drivers cool in the cockpit.

I started going to Le Mans in 1986 watching every race until ’93, from the dominance of the Porsche 962 through the Jaguar and Mercedes victories to the Mazda and Peugeot. Before the new pit complex was built I remember being able to sit on the roof of the old pits and look down into the pit-lane. Watching the cars at night hit 240mph on the Mulsanne straight from the Armco before the chicanes were added was pretty special.

Surprisingly not a lot has changed. The atmosphere is still great, the campsite toilets still terrible and some extra viewing at the Porsche Curves. The most notable change was the catering. In ‘the old days’ the catering behind the pit grandstands was a motley collection of ‘mom and pop’ burger/sausage and fries grill stands. Often the chef was surly, unshaven, dressed in a very grubby ‘white’ apron with a roll-up cigarette hanging out of his mouth whilst cooking.

Now the catering has gone all a bit corporate, with standard fare, standard prices and no soul. I kind of missed the unhygienic stands of the past.