Last month Lewis from Takona headed to Le Mans 2023 road trip style to make some memories and rekindle ones from yesteryear.
Last month I headed to the centenary race of the Le Mans 24 hours, and I couldn’t really tell you what the results were other than Ferrari winning on their return to the race after 50 years. What I can tell you is how much my best friends and I laughed while sitting in a bar in the city centre (a lot), how we had to constantly tell my father-in-law to keep up with the convoy on the way down, how many stickers I managed to hide on the Chausseur XJS that was in the group (3), and how this was possibly the best way I could have spent my 30th birthday.
I’m telling you this because motorsport isn’t just about the racing, a lot of its draw is the people. As in most aspects of life, it’s the journey you take that you remember, not necessarily the results when you get there. This couldn’t be more true of the road to Le Mans. For weeks leading up to the race social media was full of people stickering up their cars, sharing travel plans, discussing where best to stop and meet up for photos. Predominantly focusing on the drive, and the people. Having a common purpose brings us together, and this is no exception.
When I was a teenager my dad and his mates did the Le Mans trip for 4 consecutive years, with the last year seeing a convoy of around 25 cars head out for the trip, think Gumball 3000 rally but less decadent and with fewer hotel rooms trashed. These trips left a pretty substantial impact on me, forming some of my core car memories that have come with me through my life, and formed one of the main reasons I wanted to go again this year.
I couldn’t tell you any of the facts about the races the years I went with my dad, but I can tell you that the C6 corvettes could be heard from over a mile away, the ferry is an incredibly slow way to get to France, geckos can be caught if you cool them down with a hose pipe (a past time of my brother and I while there), and that road trips with your mates are some of the most fun things you can do.
When I started Takona, road trips and events were on my list of goals, things that create hugely impactful positive memories, something I’ve had first hand experience of.
The beauty of Le Mans is that it’s a whole weekend which allows you the opportunity to dip in and out of the action. You’re not travelling to a three-hour race, where you stay pretty much stationary for fear of losing your prime viewing spot, battling hour-long queues for toilets between the lower-class races and the main event, and horrendous traffic in and out on the same day.
You can be rather leisurely in your approach, heading down on the Friday for some of the parades and show pieces with minimal stress, and returning Saturday afternoon to watch the start.
This year we hung around the track till Saturday evening to catch some night racing, as well as running across the site in the pouring rain to catch 5 minutes of Mika’s set that I had promised to get a video of for my other half.
Returning Sunday after a leisurely stroll through the city and a nice spot of breakfast at Pauls, which I am adamant is the French equivalent of Greggs and I’m writing it in here so that it’s on the record (a joke made at my expense the whole weekend), all very relaxed, not very racy at all. Even as the race was coming to a close there wasn’t too much hustle and bustle, for example, a man sat in front of us trackside was playing on a Gameboy until the last 10 minutes of the race.
We all stood and applauded the drivers on the parade lap, a tear in the eyes of all in attendance of Ferrari’s mighty return to the race, cheered triumphantly for the Nascar as it thundered past one final time, and then meandered onto the track once the gates had been opened. After photos under the Dunlop bridge, laughing at teenagers stealing Rolex boards, and a final mooch around the stands we headed back to the city for dinner and a final few drinks.
Throughout this story, I have given maybe two facts about the race itself, yet recounted many memories, some over 15 years old. This is the point I’m trying to make about road trips, they leave a lasting impression on you. No amount of Instagram posts or tweets are going to convey the sheer sense of joy felt sitting around a table in a foreign city with some of your favourite people, having driven in your favourite cars there together. You have to live it.
