Text and images by Richard Dredge (15 Aug 06)

Everybody knows about the 24-hour race that takes place at Le Mans every year, but on a bi-annual basis there's a much better event that happens at the same site. It's called the Le Mans Classic and it features 24 hours of racing by old cars, and in many cases even older drivers, a couple of weeks or so after the main event.

Having heard about this fabulous weekend after some friends went to the 2004 event, I decided I'd better stoke up my 1969 Triumph Vitesse and make a bee-line for La Sarthe for this year's effort. Even better, a load of friends decided to bring their Triumphs along, so we had ourselves a convoy right the way down through France. 10-4 good buddy and all that.

Having covered the old-car scene for years, I've been to plenty of large and small classic events, including the "real" Le Mans 24-hour race. It sounds like a cliché, but I think the Classic may just be the best car event I've ever attended because it has everything.

There's close racing, ultra-rare (if not necessarily valuable) cars scattered all over the place, but a laid-back atmosphere that you don't always get at British events. Where else would you find a pair of Bugatti Veyrons ambling about in the company of a Pagani Zonda, with no fanfare? Most importantly, though, aside from the pits during racing, the public has access to everything throughout the weekend.

To put things into perspective, there were nearly 400 cars racing on July 7-9, while 150 clubs exhibited more than 5000 vehicles - many of which you've probably never even heard of, never mind seen in the metal (or plastic as many of them were). With the traditional running start re-enacted for the first race, there were plenty of nostalgic touches in evidence - it was just a shame that the Goodwood Festival of Speed stole some of the Classic's thunder by taking place over the same weekend. For many, that was like having to choose between spending the weekend with either Eva Herzigova or Heidi Klum but not both - a predicament I frequently find myself in. (Editor's Note : No, he doesn't.)

Because some of the cars competing are even older than this magazine's editor, thrashing them mercilessly for 24 hours wouldn't be especially good for their health. With some of the cars on the grid dating back to the 1920s, the answer is to have 24 hours of competition, but made up of a series of races to give everyone a break. That's why there are six sets of cars, each of which races for three-quarters of an hour or so.

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