2022 Le Mans Classic - Plateau 1 - 1923 to 1939

 

Robert Kauffman in his 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Zagato Le Mans.  He finished tenth on scratch.  This is the 1934 Raymond Sommer and Luigi Chinetti  Le Mans winning car. so very special  Here it rounds the Dunlop Chicane in Plateau One's first race on Saturday evening.

Pre-WW2 Le Mans was held sixteen times between 1923 and 1939.  Bentley won five times, Alfa Romeo four times and Bugatti and Lorraine-Dietrich won twice each.  Plateau 1 at the Le Mans Classic gives owners of pre-war Le Mans cars the chance to live their dreams of racing at Le Mans even if the circuit is very different today in 2022.  There are now lots more corners and chicanes and the part of the circuit that went into the town has long since disappeared. 

Photos of the most successful cars at in this year's Le Mans Classic and representatives of most of the marques are seen below.  I took photos of the first race which took place on Saturday evening as the sun was getting low in the sky at the Esses and the Dunlop Chicane.  I also visited the paddock on Thursday afternoon.

The variety of cars in this plateau can be seen in this photo taken at the Esses.  Bugatti, BMW, Bentley 
, Morgan etc.

The winner on scratch was this 1925 Bugatti T35 driven by Duncan Pittaway and Tim Dutton.  Here it leads a group in the Esses early in race 1.

In second place was 1932 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 MM Spider Zagato driven by Martin Halusa and Alex Ames.

In third place was 1939 BMW 328 Roadster driven by Albert Otten and Martin Griffiths.

In fourth place was this 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Monza of David Cooke.  

In fifth place was this 1937 Lagonda LG45 driven by Florian Brandt.

In sixth place was this 1939 Aston Martin Speed Model driven by Steve Skipworth and James Dean.

In seventh place was this 1936 Aston Martin Speed Model driven by Alan Middleton and T Best

In eighth place was this 1937 Aston Martin Speed Model driven by Heinz Stamm and Peter Dubsky.

In ninth place was this 1937 Lagonda LG45 Rapide driven by Martin Bugler.

In fifth place in the Index of Performance was this 1938 HRG 1500 driven by F and Savinien Legeleux 

In sixth place in the IoP was this 1929 Bentley 4 1/2 litre driven by Martin Overington.

In eighth place in the IoP was this 1932 Bugatti T51 of F Cointreau and P Cousseau.

On the first laps the two Talbot AV105s of Birch and Burnett led but it was not to be their year.

The 1939 Talbot-Lago didn't do well either.

A joy to see drivers of period cars having open faced helmets.  This is a 1936 Singer Nine Le Mans.

A Bugatti T35 driver enjoying himself.

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web à condition de créditer le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com, et de fournir un lien vers cette page.

A 1936 Delage D6 3 litre.

1936 Riley TT Sprite.

1924 Chenard et Walcker Sport T3 - the oldest car in the race but it finished 39th out of 75.

1929 Chrysler 75.

1932 Citroën C4 Spider

Katarina Kyvalova finished second amongst the many Bentley's in the "Bentley Belles" 1928 4 1/2 litre.

1934 MG K3 Magnette.

Le Mans Classic 2016 - Plateau 1 - 1923 to 1939

The winning 1939 Talbot-Lago leaves the pre-grid early on Sunday morning.  This was a pre-war GP car that was converted into a 2 seater sports car and competed at Le Mans in the early fifties. It was rather faster than the other cars in this plateau.

The first Le Mans 24 hours was held in 1923 and was held every year up to the start of WW2 except for 1936.  Between 1924 and 1930 Bentley won 5 times whilst Alfa Romeo won four times in a row between 1931 and 1935.  French marques became successful in the three years preceding WW2.

Work being done in the paddock on the 1934 Talbot 105 of Hinderer/Stretton

1929 Bentley 4.5L Blower of J.Ernst

Preperation in the paddock on one of the thirties BMWs

The 1930 Riley Brooklans of Potter and Standing.

1936 Delage D6-70  Special

The 1935 Aston Martin Ulster of E.Bradley

This wonderful vintage Bentley 3 litre Special that the works team raced at le Mans in 1925 took time at the Le Mans start to put the convertible top up which is what it would have been required to do in period.  Fantastic!   One of my favourite parts of the day and they finished 22nd on scratch.  Well done to Messrs Turner and Medcalf.

Bentley Detail

Aston Martin leads Bugatti out of the Esses.

A lovely 1934 Alvis Speed 20 being worked on in the paddock.

The eighth place 1934 Talbot AV 105 Alpine of Schaefer and Brandt.

The 1934 Talbot 105 that finished second in the hands of Bronson and Burnett.  

The third placed 1938 BMW 328 of Bally/Leeseur.

The magnificent 1937 Lagonda LG 45 that finished in fourth place.  Lagonda of course won Le Mans in 1935.

John Etherton asserts his copyright to all of the photos on this blogpost.  However, you may post the photos elsewhere on the web as long as you credit the photographer, John Etherton, and this blog post, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com and provide a link to this page.

John Etherton affirme son droit d'auteur à l'ensemble des photos sur ce billet de blog. Cependant, vous pouvez poster des photos ailleurs sur le web aussi longtemps que vous créditez le photographe, John Etherton, et ce blog, Rouenlesafx@blogspot.com et fournissez un lien vers cette page.