Le Mans 24hrs at the Bugatti Circuit, Le Mans on the 22 and 23rd of April 1978
The day before, Russ and I had left Brands at 1630 to stock up on food, coffee and petrol and catch the 11pm ferry from Dover to Calais on an organised coach trip. On board Russ and I had steak n chips for £3.25 for two including drinks thanks to a waiter who didn’t know what he was doing. On arrival at Calais we loaded our luggage onto an air conditioned coach after the 1hr 20m crossing, the coach was driven by Belgian Asheish and Bob was our courier – left my firms VW Golf in the car park of a nearby sports centre. We tried to sleep on the coach and had brekkie at 0400 – chocolate + coffee, stopping in the town of Le Mans for mid morning, arriving at the track for midday. Russ and I were the first of our party into the circuit – admission was £8 and a programme less than a quid with hourly printed updates throughout the race. In the middle of the circuit was The Village which had fun fairs, food emporiums, cinemas + stalls etc. With the race starting at 1600 we had lunch in the coach and were on the roof of the pit grandstand for 3pm.
At 4pm the works Hondas sped into the distance as predicted, it took two laps for riders to sort themselves out into an order and it was riders Christian Leon and Stan Woods who led in the early stages – the French RCB visibly faster than ours. With our travelling catching up on us we had an early kip in the coach, venturing out once in the middle of the night to appreciate racing in the dark and all that means. At 0700 on the Sunday morning we went to have a shower in The Village – 1fr and it was good to feel clean and human again. After breakfast of croissants we enjoyed sunbathing in the amazingly good weather.
Overnight, the GB Honda team had retired with a broken alternator and a suspected broken crank, also the John Cowie/Bernie Toleman bike had lost second place due to a faulty handlebar and rejoined in fifth place. Brit rider – Gary Green, sharing a French Japauto machine with Marc Fontan had crashed and continued to race with a damaged shoulder – they won a special prize for the most distance covered between 0400 and 1030 – an incredible 503 miles. The French works Honda looked unbeatable with a 20 lap lead; however Jean Claude Chemerin failed to come past the grandstand, the crowd eagerly awaited his arrival and he had to push in with encouragement from his team, once in the pits his mechanics worked on the stricken machine and he was back on the road fairly quickly.
Still in brilliant sunshine we had fed and watered awaiting the end at 1600 on the Sunday afternoon, tensions and atmosphere rising at 3 with one or two retirements including Mead + Tomkinson’s Nessie, who did come back out near 4 to tour round, take the flag and try and gain some points. With the final two laps the crowd edge forward, ignored officials and policemen. Chemerin toured round on the final lap and the steel ring was broken and tens of thousands of idiots rushed forward onto the track amongst the slowing machines – it seemed 2 Brits and 30k+ French. I had my own chance of fame and shook the blistered hands of J C Chemerin and John Cowie, after much back slapping Gary Green came home in 6th place, Dave Goldsmith/Mike Trimby were 14th and poor Nessie 20th with riders Hodgkinson/B Berger.
It took ages for the crowds to dissipate and Russ and I were last back at the bus – little trouble leaving the circuit and we were soon on our way back to Paris. Even on a Sunday the city seemed like rush hour – the bus broke down on the ring road with a ruptured fuel pipe and it took 1 hour + to fix, we were next to Charles de Galle airport and enjoyed views of Concorde. We soon boarded the Free Enterprise II ferry as foot passengers for the 1hr 28m crossing and it was good to find the car in one piece and speed up the A1 arriving at Bingham at 1930 to collapse into a heap.
The 24hrs du Mans at Le Mans on the 27th – 30th April 1979
with Russ staying the night at Aslockton we were able to get up at a reasonable hour and have a leisurely breakfast before saying goodbye to Julie and Joyce who had come over earlier this year to help J during her pregnancy. We left Notts at 0800 and took the Fosse then the M1 and M2 all the way to Dover, with lots of wee – stops for Russ’ bladder. We arrived at 1300 for the 1430 ferry over to France on the Townsend Thorasson Free Enterprise II. On board we enjoyed a three course meal served by a very effeminate waiter, put our watches forward by 1 hour and left Calais at 1630 to travel 259 miles to Le Mans, arriving just before midnight to pitch our tent amongst some noisy bikers from Guernsey, the tent was sort of straight when a small French official showed up and told us to move the tent two feet to the right – we told him NO and made threats about removing his meat + two veg and making earrings out of them. We settled down to sleep in our cocoon outfits.
28th April – it was a rough night’s sleep for both of us, should have taken the Frenchman’s advice! Woke up on hard terrain and in sub zero conditions and we were amazed that our field/car park was a sea of brightly coloured tents, vehicles, sleeping bags and people. It was raining quite steadily so we went off to the town to find a good breakfast; well stuffed we also went shopping for unisex baby clothes – not knowing gender or size of expected infant. Continued to shop in town as the car was parked in the Gare car park and the meter needed feeding every 30 mins this did not take long! Found a very nice restaurant for hot sandwiches (croquet monsieur et madam) + chocolate but the loo was grim, our experience noted years ago. We arrived back at the circuit we left the car on an access road away from the tents as the place was so congested. After sampling the local wine, cheese, breads and cakes we were mysteriously drawn towards the side of the track to appreciate the magic two wheeled vehicles. The entrance fee was FrFr70 (£7) which was the same as last year and this was inclusive of programme, stands + paddock. We were amazed to find the race had begun – always starting at 1600hrs they did this to try and avoid the now tradition pitch invasion at 4 on Sunday afternoon – won’t people just do this at 3 instead? Predictably, local heroes – Jean Claude Chemerin and Christian Leon on the French works Honda was leading.
Interesting combinations made up the field including; Alistair Copeland/Alan Lea (Darvil Construction Honda), Helmet Dahne/Helmet Merkl (Eckhert Honda), Victor Palomo/Mario Lega (Works Ducati), Wes Cooley/Ron Pierce (USA Pops Yoshimura Suzuki), Marty Lunde/Mike Trimby (Harris Kawasaki), Colin Aldridge/Mick Lawrence (Peckett & McNab Kawa entered by the Gunnar Nilsson Cancer Trust), Steve Eldridge/Bernie Toleman (Harris Kawasaki).
Also riding were; Neil Tuxworth/Mike Hunt (Nessie Kawasaki), Jim Wells/Tony Osborne (Kawasaki) Peter Skold (Swedish fighter pilot + one time CZ champion)/Lemart Backstrom (Rickman Kawasaki). Plus, 3 x Yamaha TZ750 Yams with lights + batteries which need changing every pit stop, ridden by successful short circuit scratchers. It was now raining beyond a joke and being well togged up we walked the circuit, one or two riders took bad slides in the wet including the two yanks at the Esses, they got up, kicked the bike back into shape and carried on – as you do! In the evening we toured The Village, mainly trade stands specialising in food, drink, bike bits and entertainment, lots of close circuit TV made it possible to keep an eye on race progress, leader board etc. We also sussed out the really clean showers, at Fr1 a go excellent value, despite hot water running cold very quickly – no problem for we rough tough Brits. Russ wanted to continue sleeping in the tent in his pyjamas so I was quite happy to have the car to myself where I think I slept OK.
29th April – the inside of the car was waterlogged (too much condensation, farts etc) so I was pleased to uncoil my body + legs out of the car and lie on the grass outside in the sunshine. I knocked Russ up at 0830 and he had slept well too! Our breakfast was pate + chutney sandwiches made with day old baguettes + cold choccy milkshake – we couldn’t wait to get trackside after another visit to the cold showers. We walked the circuit and read the hourly bulletins put out by the local paper – Le Manche – Chemerin/Leon still out at the front, Marc Fontan/Guy Bertin(1000 Japauto Honda) lying second, third place were two Brazilian riders – Ferreira/Barchi on the Formula G/Honda Brazil works effort. It seemed the Yanks had gone missing with a wrecked engine, Nessie and Jim Wells were still going as were the two works Dukes, ditto Bernie Toleman and two of the three TZ 750s – amazing.
The morning was spent sunning ourselves and sampling the local delicacies – crepe Suzette, Gran Marnier waffles, sausages and chips etc. Following our pit stop we fuelled up the car and returned to the track for the final hour of racing, standing on the start/finish line we climbed the 12’ high fences and dropped onto the track in front of tired and intolerant policemen, probably not a good idea. This was 1455 and I was dressed in my Union Jack shorts and hat – the Gendarmes seemed totally unimpressed but did try to rugby tackle me to the ground before the last of the bikes flew up the straight for the last time. Russ was by my side and we threw ourselves at the slowing procession – all these men and women riders were gods! Police hats flew into the air, ably assisted by fans and exhausted riders were lifted off machines and given the bumps – good stuff.
It took us a while to clear the circuit and drive slowly up France to arrive at Calais around 9pm, booked ourselves onto the 0045 crossing so we put some French petrol into the car (£1.40/gallon) and had a hearty meal before queuing for the boat.
30th April – We parked on the boat at ten to one and left at 0115 with only a couple of dozen passengers on board – how do they make a profit? For mid night breakfast we had scampi + chips – freshly caught from the boat, no doubt, Russ had a giant chicken – it was then that the strong winds began along with a high and dangerous swell – going out on deck was forbidden. There was a sudden demand for paper bags, boiled sweets and bibles. I was very nearly as sick as a parrot, but Russ was stoical. Even when we alighted the boat I still felt ill and wasn’t really bothered if the customs searched the car or not! We were searched and apart from baby clothes, Le Mans souvenirs and half eaten food we had nothing to declare. Both of us found it hard to stay awake so we stopped at the bottom of the M1 to grab a couple of hours sleep before starting for home.
Results
Christian Leon/J C Chemarin Honda France
Marc Fontac/Guy Bertin Japauto Honda
Walter Barchi/Edmer Ferreira Honda Brazil
J Bangard/J Mannin 1015 Kawasaki
Jacques Luc/Alain Leclere Japauto Honda
W Gierdon/D Auguin Honda
U Le Birhan/P Dubois 1012 Yamaha
P Guy/P Fior 1100 Yamaha
J Agopian/J P Merlin 1047 Honda
J L Brancquart/J P Oudin 901 Honda
Alistair Copeland/Alan Lea 997 Honda
P Chattin/D de Radigues 1015 Kawasaki
R Sibille/M Chamet 1105 Yamaha
F Bedeau/M Lespinos 901 Honda
G Mallot/F Gamis 860 Ducati
S Hodgson/A Goldsmith 998 Gus Khun Suzuki
The 24hrs de Liege ’83 at Spa Francorchamps and the 83 Grand Prix F2 at Zolder, Belgium 19-22nd August 1983,
having enjoyed most of the summer in Guernsey I had returned to the mainland the previous day, a Thursday, to Weymouth. I treated the Kawasaki to petrol, oil, water, clean + chain adjustment before 4 hours sleep and an early rise before leaving home, down a foggy A1 to the Dartford Tunnel and beyond arriving at Dover at 1000. I joined the queue for the midday P&O ferry crossing, in the queue I met father and son Dick and Matt Marshall on their Honda CB750FII as well as Big Jim, elite member of Team Jasper from Lancashire on a Suzuki GS1000. We got on board and soon swapped biking stories, upon landing BJ stayed and waited for the rest of Team Jasper to land in France, I rode along with Dick and Matt, along the motorway through Lille and all the way to the circuit. We had petrol/WC/food stops every 90/100 miles and passed across the border with ease. I was naïve at travelling abroad and imagined I could find a hotel room within a spit of the circuit, after 2 hours of bumbling around I realised this wasn’t going to work and returned to the circuit campsite to find D + M. It was agreed I would spend the next few nights sleeping under their flysheet – uncomfortable but I was very grateful! We found a superb restaurant and enjoyed a five course meal + wine before hitting the sack or ground at around midnight after watching the endurance riders complete two hours of training in the dark.
Saturday – despite being extremely cold during the night and being disturbed by very noisy foreigners who actually bought old bikes into the campsite to rev the socks off to see how long they would run before they blew up – philistines! The other Brits in the campsite were Team Spanish Fly (an aphrodisiac) who were ex SAS boys who came over on bikes and a tranny van for luggage etc. Dick and I walked up to the village to buy provisions and returned bristling with baguettes, cheese, wine, yoghurts, choky, beer, preserve, lait + jambon for breakfast. Mid morning was a good time for a strip wash in the open with cold water in the woods, after which we walked to the circuit for an ice cream and to view the practice for endurance bikes from the grandstand at La Source – I am always impressed when riders enter two stroke bikes – TZs and RGs, hoping they will last the 24hrs!
The race started at 1600 and overall it was a real needle match between Kawasaki (Lafond/Patrick Igoa) and Suzuki (Herve Moneau/Richard Hubin) who were two points adrift at this stage of the season. The second Kwak of Jacques Cornu and Courdray were 12 further points back and with two races left in the championship all was to play for. I have never seen a more emotive crowd as on the start line for this race. As the lights changed Cornu zapped ahead of the Suzuki and the other Kawasaki, we three enjoyed exploring all the circuit, an historic car racing venue weaving its way up + down the Ardennes scenery, in and out of villages and woods. After 3hrs of racing the heavy rains arrived – traditional in this part of Europe., as early evening approached the weather worsened with fog + heavier rain so it was back to Hotel Flysheet for a rest. For a while we sat in the tent chatting and drinking apple juice, I found much in common with Dick (both crackers and obsessed with bikes), as the evening went by Matt’s stomach was empty so we staggered up to a local hostelry for suitable refreshment, after which we took up position in the Bar at La Source hairpin. This was 200 BFr each to get in but included 4 free drinks – a really unique viewing place, a good few hours were spent here into the night encouraging the many riders who were having to push back into the pits from the circuit.
Sunday – it had been a really cold night and the sound of my chattering teeth must have kept the campsite awake. At 0600 I thought I was in the Isle of man as the fog was so dense. Dick and I left Matt asleep as we tried in effort to find a local call box in order to make contact with the outside world – home. Breakkie had been organised and Matt woke up to hot chocolate + warm croissants in abundance! My first visit to Spa was memorable for a number of reasons including it’s narrowness – it is difficult to imagine this track had hosted a car GP for many years – a bit like Cadwell Par in the rain. After breakfast I said goodbye to Dick and Matt as I also wanted to see the F2 European Championship round at nearby Zolder where the Brits were in contention. It didn’t take long on the smooth motorway roads to find myself at this short circuit, in the woods in central Belgium. The marshalling was so bad that one race had to be stopped early and re started three times, despite that, during the races preceding the F2 I noticed Marc Duez (Belgian rally star) win the German F3 race which also involved GB Army Sergeant Bob Burrell in an elderly March 803. Alfonso Toledono won the FF2000 which also involved Fred Crabb and F1 veteran Andre Pillette. Due to the programme running late a saloon race was dropped – good. In the F2 an opening lap incident caused Dave Scott to crash and had to be removed from his car under a red flag, at the restart Christian Danner came out in team mate, Beppe Gabbiani’s spare car. As this was the penultimate round of the F2 championship Jonathon Palmer headed the table and ether Gabbiani or Thackwell had to win the race and the next one to beat JP to the title. This did not occur at Zolder and the good doctor secured the title and a guaranteed place in F1 for next season. Leaving the circuit I was back on the motorway system where I kept at about 100 mph to try and make it back to the port mostly in the daylight.
This I managed to achieve after some fast runs and I arrived at Boulogne at 2147 to dash onto the 2200 boat not stopping for passport or ticket checks – I collapsed onto the boat – you could tell the bikers who had been to Spa – they all looked knackered!
24 hours du Mans at Le Mans, France on the 21 – 22nd of April 1984
– after leaving Donington, Chris and I met the others at McDonalds for lunch and then I returned home to pack and be away at 1615, in my haste the bike fell over in the driveway, breaking the left hand mirror (useful going to France!). However, the weather was lovely and warm as I blasted down the M1, past Silverstone, on through Newbury and all the way to Southampton, arriving at 1915 – two hours and 168 miles later – wow! Enjoyed a pint of real ale at the Frog and Pirate with some fellow motorcycling morons who were a bit rough. Joined the queue for the boat where I met two guys on a Goldwing from Newcastle – Jim Owens and Pascal Visochi. The ferry left at 2200, arriving in France at 0700 - I was able to get a reasonable night’s sleep despite having a large fish bone stuck in my throat.
We all left Le Harvre to head south-east, the weather turned from cool weather to brilliant sunshine by mid morning, riding mainly alone but bumping into fellow travellers, and friends of Pascal along the way. At the circuit I filled up with petrol and food before parking the bike for the weekend and watching open testing. The flag dropped at 3pm and the works Hondas of Fontan/Bertin and Courdray/Igoa swapped the lead for the first couple of hours till the third pit stops after which Fontan’s bike seized and slid the unfortunate rider into the straw bales and catch fencing, rendering him unconscious and his bike ‘totalled’. The works Suzuki of Moneau and de Radigues chased hard to gain second place before spending too much time in the pits. With the new FIM 750 regulations for this category of racing the works Kawasakis were truly based on road machines – not too dissimilar to my GPZ. They were doing well before loosing Sonin/Mannin/Sabille during the darkness leaving Cornu/Bastinini/Bolle to struggle on to the finish. UK’s Team Bike had a road based 750 Honda and had qualified in 14th spot, now they were in the top six – credit to the team + riders Howard Lees, Matt Oxley and Swede Vesa Kultchlati – at the end of the race they had converted this into a very admirable second place, only two laps behind Dutch Suzuki privateers Henk van der Mark and Dirk O Brand. Third place was taken by Gerard Courdray + Patrick Igoa on the French works Honda – for nearly all the 24 hours they had been the fastest bike in the race, however – an electrical problem had meant them spending too much time in the pits towards the end of the race. After third spot, came;
P Guicha/M Granie/D Vuillemin D 777 laps
P Skold/P Linden/A Andersson H 766
D Moyere/C Tiberno/P Soulez H 751
C Bertod/J P Battistini/P Bolle K 746
B Granath/L Backstrom/P Jonsen H 729
J Pasez/C Gourtner/G Huet K 726
H Scherer/J Barch/E Gevine S 723
Bernie Toleman/Mic Hemmings/J Horne H 709
After the end of the race, we packed up our bikes – including copies of the local paper - L’Ouest and set off back up the country to our port, arriving at 2000 for a meal before boarding the boat which departed at 2200. After buying presents, duty free and then crashing out for 6 hours well earned kip we docked at Southampton at 0700 the following morning (Monday).
Eight hours endurance at Donington on the 24th May 1987.
With the boys at East Bridgford for the day I set off in the car for the 1040 kick off. It was extremely cold and the race settled into a pattern of Herve Moineau/Le Bihan (Suz), Jalvert/Simeon (Suz) and Matt Oxley/Geoff Fowler (Yam). In the race there were little or no incidents and it was Moineau ahead of Fowler at the drop of the flag. After the race I shot off to Long Clawson on the Kawasaki for a clubbie motox event, which featured Chris Walker as a schoolboy rider.