Tuesday is generally a low-key day around the track. It’s the only down time the teams have to practice pit stop strategy and make sure their garages are cleaned and organized. It’s also the day for fans to meet their favorite drivers and get their autographs and take pictures with them.
Continue reading ’2013 24 Hours of Le Mans: Day 2 – Autographs and Practice’
Scrutineering is a very important stage of any race, at Le Mans especially, as it’s arguably the most important event in motorsports. Many media, fans and residents of the town gather to catch a glimpse of their favorite car and or drivers. Le Mans scrutineering typically happens on the Sunday/Monday before race weekend.
The teams and their cars arrive just outside of the city center, the teams will then unload the cars and push them into corral which the ACO as constructed. Then it goes into a technical tent, which is blocked from view, this is where Audi unveils their engines, suspension setups to the ACO. If any of a number or pre-determined criteria are not meet the car will be ineligible to compete.
The ACO stewards go over every detail on the cars. By taking careful measurements and using pre-measured pieces of aluminum, wood and scales to make sure the cars are up to their exacting specifications. The external safety features of the cars are also double checked such as the brake lights, headlights and windshield wipers.
As expected, Audi Sport Team Joest passed the inspections with no issues. The teams then follow this with a fun photo shoot where the center square of town plays backdrop to the team’s group pictures. We were lucky enough to have front row seats and hopefully this set of pictures shows you what this process is like! Full Gallery after the jump.
Two more weeks until the Le Mans 24 Hours celebrates its 90th anniversary. The passive safety of a car protects the driver against injuries in an accident and helps absorb impact energy. But active safety has long been gaining importance in racing as well. Modern assistance systems such as the ones used in the Audi R18 e-tron quattro defuse dangerous situations in the preliminary stages.
