16 replies to this topic

[Rainer Nyberg]

Just curious, if somebody knows if the drivers were paired with a quick runner, who could gain an advantage during the start. Or did always the quickest runner start the car?

Or was it just not of any importance? Its 24 hours after all.

[ian senior]

I remember Jacky Ickx strolling leisurely across the track one year, so he probably thought it wasn't worth busting a gut to gain a tiny advantage in a race that lasted 24 hours. On the other hand, it could be that he was just lazy.

[Pedro 917]

Ickx strolled to his GT40 at the start of the 1969 race which he won after an exiting battle with the Porsche 908 of Herrmann in the final laps. By strolling to his car, Ickx was merely protesting against the starting method that he found unnecessary because in doing so, slower cars got mixed up with the faster ones causing some extra dangerous situations during the first laps where the faster cars had to overtake the slower ones in dense traffic. It was just a show element, good for the spectators but dangerous for the drivers. It was also in contradiction with timed practice and "pole position". He scored another point when John Woolfe crashed to his death in the first lap (Maison Blanche), taking out Amon's Ferrari in the process.
As from 1970, there was a rolling start.

[Holger Merten]

Yes Luc. But Ickx protested also at the same time against the fact that some drivers did not take time to close the seat belts. Some drivers drove the first stint, without ever closing the belts.

[SEdward]

And one even got the gear stick stuck in the leg of his trousers when he jumped into the car!

Edward.

[ian senior]

Wasn't there a proposal to modify the Le Mans start by sitting one driver in the car and then, as the flag fell, having the second driver sprint across the road to press the start button? Or did I imagine this?

[Nanni Dietrich]

I remember too, Ian Senior.
Or perhaps the proposal was: first driver had to be into the car, and the second running across the track, had to touch with a hand the car to start.
1970?

[Holger Merten]

That's not true?

[D-Type]

No, Ian, you didn't imagine it. As Nanni says, it was probably in 1970 following Ickx's protest which did emphasise the point about belts. I think it may have been compounded by a suspicion that John Woolfe may not have had his belts fastened properly. The proposal was for the co-driver to run across and switch on an external ignition switch. The idea was that you could maintain the tradition without compromising safety. Then people realised that it was all a bit silly as the point of the tradition had been lost. Remember that originally at Le Mans the driver had to cross the road, erect the hood, start the car and drive away. All to demonstrate that it was a normal touring car.

Another idea was to form up the grid with dead engines and on the flag everyone would hit the starter. They realised the risk of one car not firing up and quietly dropped that option.

I'm out of touch with the present situation - is it a rolling start? If so they may have gone through a period of conventional standing starts.

Coming back to the initial question, the likes of Stirling Moss would sprint across the track to try to get ahead of any first lap accidents and to minimise the number of overtaking manouvres they would have to make.

Those drivers who were too portly to jump over the door would wedge the door latch with a coin so they wouldn't have to fumble finding the door handle.

[Macca]

There are innumerable humorous tales of Le Mans starts:

Hawthorn running before the flag, so Moss shouted "Mike, you b*st*rd!" causing Mike to laugh so much he was last away

Duncan Hamilton surreptitiously turning off a friendly rival's ignition switch at Goodwood - but the laugh was on Duncan when he gave it a bootful, spun 180 and had to wait for everyone else to go

Innes Ireland deciding to practise starts in a D-Type (when driving for Ecurie Ecosse IIRC) at the team's base, whereupon a senior figure shouted across the yard "Ireland! Ye'll bend the car!" causing a shamefaced retreat


But some drivers were particularly good at them - though it helped to be on pole. Moss was invariably first away; and there are memorable pictures of Jim Clark moving first in a Zgato DB4 at Goodwood, and well ahead into the first bend at Le Mans in 1961 in the DBR1.

Graham Hill was always quick too, which is surprising considering his size and height and his bandy leg from his motorbike crash; he was first away at Le Mans in 1966 in the Alan Mann Mk II.



And then there were the cartoons; a driver or car being left over, two drivers in the same car, and so forth.



Paul M

[VAR1016]

I loved that story about Mike Hawthorn.

I suspect that he used to get annoyed with Moss's competitive athletics.

Anyway on one occasion, he leapt forward just before the flag dropped and Moss called out "You bastard, Hawthorn!"

At this point Hawthorn was helpless with laughter and was amongst the last away.

PdeRL

[D-Type]

Originally posted by VAR1016
I loved that story about Mike Hawthorn.

I suspect that he used to get annoyed with Moss's competitive athletics.

Anyway on one occasion, he leapt forward just before the flag dropped and Moss called out "You bastard, Hawthorn!"

At this point Hawthorn was helpless with laughter and was amongst the last away.

PdeRL

Nurburgring 1958

[WDH74]

I recall reading about Harry Schell tackling the driver next to him at one start.

Of course, there's also the famous series of photos showing Colin Chapman winning the foot race across the tarmac, and being unable to fit himself into his Lotus Eleven and ending up last away.

-William

[Ian Stewart]

Originally posted by Rainer Nyberg
Or did always the quickest runner start the car?

Never, although the quickest driver often did the first spell - depending on team tactics.

Best incident I recall was the distinguished Aston Martin driver who ran like the wind, vaulted in, and stuck one leg through the steering wheel....



He will remain anonymous (I hope)!

[Roger Clark]

Originally posted by SEdward
And one even got the gear stick stuck in the leg of his trousers when he jumped into the car!

Edward.

Fangio, Le Mans 1955?

[Henri Greuter]

Originally posted by Roger Clark

Fangio, Le Mans 1955?

Yep!

Which was also the proof that not always the fastest runner made the dash!
Fangio's teammate was Stirling Moss and Stirling was generally the fastest to get away in any Le Mans start, whatever the track was.

Henri Greuter

[Graham Clayton]

Apparently Porsche fitted the ignition to the left of the steering column in its cars to help its drivers get a quick getaway during the era of the dash across the track.

Here is an interesting compilation of Le Mans start photos featuring the drivers running to their cars, and the cars accelerating away from the pits:

http://passionnemans...art_lemans.html