DPerceptions

Saturday September 26, 2009 5:30AM EST-Race Day-Pounding rain on the roof of the RV.  I jumped out of bed and went outside to gather up our chairs and tables and make sure everything was under the awning and dry.  Back into bed, I contemplated my slightly damp state and wondered if I could get any more sleep before leaving for the 7:15 photographer meeting in the Tower.  As I was beginning to doze off, I heard a thump outside followed by another thump.  Looking out the window, I realized that the awning brackets had come apart and it was hanging sideways and banging against the side of the RV.  Wonderful.  Kim and I went outside into the dark downpour and jumped through a series of hoops that got the awning back together and stored away in its holder.

6:15AM – Soaked to the bone an decidedly awake, I made coffee and culled files before the meeting.  I threw on my raincoat, grabbed my travel mug of coffee and headed out into the deluge to find our golf car.  Several times during the drive to the tower I drove through 6 inch deep rivers of clay.  Nearing turn 10, I was amazed to see that many of the tents pitched on the downhill had been overrun by the waters.  One particularly large tent had been set smack in the middle of a small river and had over a foot tall berm of mud piled against it’s side.  The river flowed across the road, down the hill, against the tent and around it into a storm drain further down the hill.  Yikes!  I was at that point very appreciative of my dry sleeping area.

Peugeot 908 #07 leads the Audi R15 #2 though T12 during morning warmups for the 2009 Petit Le Mans

7:15AM –  As I reached the tower the rains came down even harder.  I ran into the meeting forgetting my coffee in the car.  So far this morning had been pretty annoying.  The photography meeting went as usual except there were so many photographers it was nearly impossible to hear and most of the people speaking did not remember to use the PA system they had set up.   Those meetings are somewhat odd.  Essentially the same rules exist at every track, the only differences are certain areas being red zones (no go) during the race as opposed to during practice or qualification.  Sometimes there are a few clarifications or they give us the new combinations for the gate locks.  There are always a few people who need to complain about a course worker denying them entry to an area or some other gripe.  Essentially, the meetings are held to help inform the people from area media and people who are new to shooting racing.  These are also the people who don’t seem to show up for these meetings.  You can usually tell who they are when they try to get into the pits while not wearing a fire suit.

10AM – After breakfast and more coffee, I had a pre-race meeting to attend and I shot the tail end of the warmup in the last of the morning rains.  We then headed to the front straight to join in the grid walk.  Even in the rain (it had by this time slowed to a drizzle) the grid was packed to hilt with fans.  In fact it was so packed, I gave up and headed down to turn one to get my spot for the start of the race.  The skies continued to rain off and on pretty much up until the ~11:15 reconnaissance laps.  When the cars went by us in turn one behind the safety car for the first time the track was still wet to the point where you could see the rear tires throwing up a large splash of water.  The rain had stopped, so I prepared to shoot the first lap of the race.  Turn one at the start of the Petit Le Mans can be a daunting place to stand.  Even behind yards of gravel, a tire barrier and finally a concrete barrier, I was ready for cars to come sliding my way.  I prepared one camera to shoot wide and fast in case someone decided to come through the gravel at the start of the race and the other to catch the cars as they came down the last of the pit straight.  A huge fog appeared out of turn 12 and the leaders headed our way.

Three wide at the start of the 2009 Petit Le Mans. Allan McNish goes wide on the outside to take the lead

I continued to shoot turn one for several laps as the rooster tails died down and a dry line started to form. The rain was gone and the race was on.

I was going to cover the pits for the first part of the race, so I left turn one and headed up to the tower to put on a fire suit. Here is one of the few good points of the rain and cool weather; it makes wearing a fire suit in Georgia in September almost bearable. I hit the pits a little after Noon and a few cars had already switched over to dry tires. I watched the Matmut Oreca team refuel and throw on slicks. There was still enough water in their pitbox to cause the car to slide on its way out. I heard over the radio almost immediately that Lapierre had had an off and on, so the track, while drying, was still quite wet in places. Over the next 20 minutes or so, all of the cars came in for slicks, so the pits were a very busy place to be.

The Matmut Oreca AIM pits for fresh tires during the 2009 Petit Le Mans

I had been paying particular attention to the new Drayson Lola all week as the car was completely new to both me and the team. My pit notes showed that Lord Paul Drayson was supposed to be the third driver into the car, but somewhere around one in the afternoon, Paul put on his helmet and jumped into the car after Jonny Cocker finished the first stint. I must admit that I did not pay much attention to his times, but he seemed to be holding his own. About an hour later he got out and gave the car over to Rob Bell. You could tell how elated Paul was as he jumped out of the car and started running around hugging everyone. He was smiling from ear to ear.  This was great to see, the sport needs more people who are as openly enthusiastic as him.

Lord Paul Drayson in the Drayson Racing pitbox - 2009 Petit Le Mans

The rains came and went; usually nothing more than a few drops. Several cars were having problems, mostly with crashes and offs. About 2:30 Kim came down to the pits to pick me up for some lunch. We went back tot he RV and ate while watching the race unfold on television. Then it started to rain again.

Red Flag

As we sat watching the rain come down outside we listened to the Radio Le Mans guys valiantly scramble to fill airtime.  They did an exceptional job of informing and entertaining during the lull in racing.  However, I couldn’t keep the same feeling I had during the 2005 US Grand Prix from creeping into my head. I remember standing with Kim in the front straight at Indy, mouth agape as all of the Michelin shod cars pulled into the garages. I was hugely frustrated, but had been warned the day before by the Williams Team. Much like Indy, I knew the rain was coming, but hoped it would pass.

BMW Rahal Letterman M3 #90 in the rain at the 2009 Petit Le Mans

What most people still don’t seem to understand was that we (Georgia in this case) had over 20 inches of rain the week before the race, there was nowhere for this new rain to go.  The ground was full, there was nothing the track could do other than wait.  I think IMSA, ALMS and Road Atlanta got it right, the red flag and the final checker waved 5 hours later.  At no point in between was it the track in any condition to hold a walk, let alone a motor race.  As a fan I was bummed, but understood.

Once the officials threw the checkers, we jumped into the golf car to head down for the podium ceremonies.  The trophy session (or hat dance as it is called) was obviously subdued, but the Peugeot guys did seem to makes sure McNish was completely soaked with champagne.  I am sure he was appreciative.

The P1 Podium Ceremony at the 2009 Petit Le Mans Powered by Mazda6

One of the most amazing bits of the week were the fans.  We have been going to Petit for years and even through the rain, we have never seen so many people at the track.  I can only assume this means good things for the future of sports car racing.

Thanks for reading and looking! My entire 2009 Petit Le Mans Powered by Mazda 6 gallery is available for viewing and your use at DPerceptions.com