|
Courbe Dunlop
When I close my eyes, I can visualize a lap of any racetrack in the world on which I've raced. It's an exercise taught to me by Le Mans veteran Peter Gregg, and I use it often. I'm flying past the pits right now in fifth gear heading for Turn One. It's particularly difficult: I have to turn right, downshift to third, and brake all at the same time. There are unforgiving gravel traps menacing both sides of the road here, so I need to take great care. If I blow it and go off, I'm stuck with no hope of getting out.
Esses Dunlop
To be quite frank, Turn One is an exercise in slowing down for a little ess-chicane that puts me out under the famous Dunlop Bridge. Then it's downhilll into Turns Four and Five, both of which are fast and slightly banked.
Esses de la foret
I downshift into fourth gear as I enter the forest esses, hold steady on the throttle as I make the turn, then pour on the power as I exit. I hold fourth gear until I reach Turn Six, the famed Tertre Rouge.
Tertre Rouge
I downshift to third going into Tertre Rouge, then turn right as I accelerate onto the world-famous Mulsanne Straight. And then it's hold-on time.
The Mulsanne Straight
In the old days, the long Mulsanne Straight was a place where a driver could relax and move his hands and legs about, but no more. The two added chicanes on the Mulsanne really call for hard work from the drivers, and in 24 hours they can take a heavy toll.
As I reach sixth gear at 7900 rpm--well past the 200-mph mark--I start braking for the first chicane. With the new anti-lock brakes on the Porsches, hauling on the brakes at the 150-meter mark is a real rush, pulling almost 3 g's on your body. It's third gear going into the right-hander; third gear and great care. There is usually gravel on the road here caused by drivers putting a wheel (or an entire car) off into the gravel traps that border this and the entire next chicane. (Sliding into these traps has often cost some big-money teams the win.)
I take fourth gear at the right-hand exit and head down the next straight. Then it's the same routine for the left-side chicane, "Carte S". This time, exiting the chicane, I'm back in sixth gear.
Turns Eleven, Twelve and Thirteen
There's a very fast right-hand jog that I no longer call a corner; then it's over a hump and into Turn Eleven, a gradual right-hander heading down into the much sharper Turn Twelve. I have to go all the way down to second gear for the Twelve, but on the exit I accelerate to sixth gear for another 210-mph straight, which includes a hump as well as little bend to the right. This straight sets the stage for Turn Thirteen, a really fast right-hander. If I misjudge this baby I'm in the guardrail.
Indianapolis
Out of Turn Thirteen I'm hard on the brakes in third gear and turning left into Indianapolis. Then I'm up in fourth gear onto a short straight leading to Arnage, which calls for hard braking, second gear and a sharp right-hand turn.
Arnage
The Arnage corner leads to a gently bending straight before the Porsche curves, which are the most fun on the entire circuit.
Virages Porsche
These are wickedly fast, beginning with a right-hand turn at half-throttle, then an immediate left, a short straight, another left, a squeeze of the throttle for another gentle right-hand bend, another short straight, finishing with a left. The whole set of corners is taken in fourth. And I have to do it just right for a good lap time.
Turns Twenty-one, Twenty-Two and Twenty-Three
I'm now heading down another fifth gear straight into the Ford esses--I think of them as left-right, left-right with a short straight in the middle. The first set is third gear, then down to second for the second left-right. You can't hurry these corners; they are so tight that too much aggression going in will cost precious time coming out. As I clear the right-hand exit of Turn Twenty-Three, I upshift to fifth and pass the pits, completing 8.451 miles in 3 minutes and 53 seconds.
Your turn.
--H.H.
|
