Le Mans 2008 Review
Once again, Club Tertre Rouge enjoyed its annual raid to Le Mans to join over 250,000 spectators in the North West region of France and witnessed a spell-binding, race-long battle between Peugeot and Audi. There was also another fantastic GT1 class win for Aston Martin's DBR9 - all top-class action in the 2008 Vingt Quatre Heures du Mans.
This year's event was eagerly awaited, not just for the Club Tertre Rouge party, but also in anticipation of the likelihood of one of the most closely contested sports car races of all time, featuring a host of major car manufacturers including Audi, Peugeot, Porsche, Chevrolet, Aston Martin and Ferrari. Fans and enthusiasts were not to be disappointed, with another memorable Le Mans weekend and a classic race.
In the leading LMP1 class, spectators witnessed an epic race-long duel between Audi and Peugeot - both using diesel-powered cars - that finished with a third win in a row for Audi with its R10. In the second Prototype class, LMP2, Porsche dominated with its RS Spyder. While in arguably the most popular and well-followed class, GT1, Aston Martin and Corvette once again renewed their 'era-defining' rivalry. This produced another tantalisingly close battle that ended in Aston Martin (the DBR9s now liveried in the iconic pale blue/orange Gulf colours) winning for a second, consecutive, year. Finally, in the GT2 class, Ferrari was victorious as its F430 GTC bettered the much-fancied Porsche 911 GT3 RSRs.
Further down the field, the Aston Martin-powered Lola LMP1 prototype made an impressive debut, finishing 9th overall. This was despite having lost much time in the pits with body damage after an early, quite serious, accident. On Sunday the car appeared to run like clockwork - maybe a portent for 2009?
Away from the track, Club Tertre Rouge (CTR), which is organised by Nicholas Mee & Company with the support this year of Aon Insurance, Classic & Sports Finance and classicdriver.com, once again provided inimitable weekend hospitality. Catering for 25 Aston Martin and racing enthusiasts, CTR also hosted a memorable pre-race party on the Friday night for over 150 guests.
Hosted again at CTR's home-from-home at the 'Le Mans 2008 - Club Tertre Rouge', located on the outskirts of Ruaudin and conveniently just 2km from the Tertre Rouge corner, Club Tertre Rouge allows guests to fully enjoy the Le Mans experience by providing comfortable accommodation, shuttle transport, ample sustenance and a great atmosphere. The CTR team provided the 'inside knowledge' and experience to allow guests to fully enjoy their Le Mans 24 Hours weekend!
On Friday evening Club Tertre Rouge welcomed over 150 guests to its Le Mans welcome party, along with a memorable selection of Aston Martin cars. Conceived to provide friends and contacts of Club Tertre Rouge with a welcome sanctuary from the circuit, the barbecue party and champagne reception - a regular feature of CTR's Le Mans package - guarantees to stoke up the anticipation of the race, particularly with appearances by competing teams and drivers.
Club Tertre Rouge this year also arranged for a band from the UK to provide musical entertainment. 'Who's Ya Daddy' certainly did not disappoint, attracting strong vocal support from party-goers, well into the early hours.
Friday night also saw a visit by drivers Peter Hardman and Nick Leventis, racing a DBR9 in GT1 that weekend for the Strakka Racing Team. The guests were afforded an opportunity to gain a fascinating insight into driving in the great race.
Many proud Aston Martin-owning guests arrived in their cars, displaying an impressive collection ranging from a freshly restored DB4GT and DB5 convertible, through a selection of 1980s V8s to many 'new era' cars such as a DB9 and several Vanquishes.
The Club Tertre Rouge organisers inspected the cars on display and presented two awards during the course of the evening. The award for the best presented car went to a fabulous 1988 V8 Efi (registration number C4 CBK) and, much to the crowd's delight, the 'Spirit of Le Mans' award went to a modified 450bhp Lagonda, driven to the event by an enthusiastic AMOC member. Both owners proudly accepted their invitations to jump on stage and collect their prizes.
So, 2008 turned out to be another fantastic year for both the Le Mans 24 Hours race and Club Tertre Rouge. An excellent and action-packed weekend was enjoyed by all!
The full photo gallery of this year's event can be viewed at www.clubtertrerouge.co.uk
Club Tertre Rouge are already counting down the days to the 2009 Le Mans 24 Hours and are planning this year's event (the 50th anniversary of Aston Martin's historic 1959 outright win), which promises that the Club Tertre Rouge offering will be the biggest and best yet.
Please contact us should you be interested in registering your interest in joining the party this year - either as guests for the full weekend, or simply attending the Friday evening event.
Places for the 2009 Club Tertre Rouge weekend package are limited, so please contact us as soon as possible in order to avoid disappointment.
Club Tertre Rouge
Neal Garrard or Nicholas Mee
Nicholas Mee & Company
Brackenberry Garage
12 Wellesley Avenue
London W6 OUP
Email: info@nicholasmee.co.uk
Tel: +44(0)208 741 8822
Photos: Club Tertre Rouge / Tim Cottingham ©
