Dave Murry's Le Mans Journal
Submission #9
"Race Day: 7:30 PM"

I guess the old image of the race driver sitting around, brooding about what's to come, is truly dead. Who has the time to brood?

Just before the race, I met a Porsche legend, Manfred Jantke, in the hospitality tent. And while I didn't eat, I definitely got some food for thought. Manfred told me that the most important thing at Le Mans is consistency, not necessarily quickness. Sometimes, he said, choosing a higher gear conserves wear-and-tear on the car, crucial in a race like this. And, since rain is predicted, he recommends lots of Rain-X on my visor, especially since I'm driving an open car.

"In the rain," he said, "you must have the courage to 'walk'...even if a car is blazing by you, don't get caught in the trap of thinking 'He's making me look bad'. It's a long race, and team play is vital to success. On the Joest team," he continued, "all three drivers work together as one, whereas on the Toyota team, the drivers are essentially hired guns, and once inside the car, each driver tends to be more focused on individual accomplishments." Hmm.

I helped the Speedvision folks cover the start of the race. After the start and a visit to the pits, I headed back to the little trailer I'm sharing with Bob Wollek to rest for an hour or two as my team mates work their double shifts.

Soon, it was time to get my gear on. I guess everyone wants to know how you feel just before you go out. Interestingly enough, I felt fine. More important, I felt focused.

Number 8 slid to a halt, and I start the driver change. I vault the left side of the car and stand in the cockpit to sort out the seatbelts. Pierre's seat goes out, my seat in. I sit and belt in. First the lap belts, then the crotch belt, finally the shoulder belts. All this is going on as the team re-fuels the car. Nothing else can happen while that is going on for safety reasons. Re-fuelling done, the car goes up on the air jacks and they put on the fresh rubber. I "reef" down on them as hard as I can.

The team manager waves me out. This is finally it!

The on the first couple of laps, I'm feeling out the car and still trying to learn a complicated track that I have less than 20 laps on. Pretty soon, I realize that the car is the best its been all weekend. Absolutely AWESOME.

My confidence begins to build and I'm going deeper and deeper under braking trusting my instincts more and more. Then I almost get caught out by a turn called Maison Blanc d'White House

I tell you, I would have crashed had it not been for some great advise from my more experienced teammates. Pierre and James told me that most rookies who crash do so at Maison Blanc. Your instinct as a driver is to go deeper and deeper into a corner, braking later and later and taking later and later apexes. You just can't do that at Maison Blanc.

Well, I did. But I got away with it. I late apexed, which put me in the middle of the road. Then that darn road crown that I talked about the other day kicked in again. If you aren't ready for it , the g-forces and the off-camber nature of the turn combine to hurl you towards the wall that protects the famous "White House Restaurant". Well, it may protect the restaurant, but it wreaks havoc on carbon fiber body work. But the boys' words of wisdom kept me off the wall. It nice to have great team mates.

And I'm just lovin' the Porsche curves now! You just can't believe how phenomenally fast they are! You are at redline in 4th gear. That sorta works out to 140 mph through a turn that most people sane people wouldn't take at more than 45! Yow!

I'm still having problems with Indianapolis, though. I'm loosing time there, and I know I can do better. It's a blind turn that requires a leap of faith to get through. Again, I've got to trust my instincts more and brake at the 100 meter board. I know it can be done.

I gave myself a little scare right after my pit stop. Tire warmers, I found out, do a great job of getting tires "just about" up to temperature! I pulled out of the pits and headed into the Dunlop chicane. Skate city, boy! I almost lost it! By the next corner, however, they were fine. Another lesson learned.

My second stint over, I pull into the pits and hand the car back to James. They tell me I was leading the prototype class and that we were 6th overall. NO WAY! I just can't grasp that during my first trip here, my team actually lead its class. I'll need a little time to reflect on that one, I think.

So right now I need some water, some dry clothes and something to eat. In a couple of hours I'll be back I the saddle again.

Talk to you in the wee hours.

David Murry

Photos courtesy of www.cyberspeedmedia.com