Its my first time at Le Mans—nothing prepared me for the massive that is the start of the 75^th 24hrs du Mans. The grid rolls off for a formation lap led by the Audi R8 Safety Carr–pretty cool! Then there’s quiet for about five minutes as they run the eight miles of Circuit La Sarthe (race pace is 3.30 or so). As the cars approach the grandstands erupt—airhorns, smokebombs, (orange for the Dutch fans), hysteria. The Safety Car ducks into the pit and then fifty five howling racers shriek by. Its Peugeot, Peugeot, Peugeot, Audi (McNish), Audi (Luhr), Aston,  Audi (Biela) and forty eight more. It probably takes about twenty seconds for the grid to pass but it still feels like an hour. Rolling thunder then quiet. The adrenaline kicks. Lap Two is more of the same! Check the pics. Thanks to James Tate for extra pics. Hit the jump for another gallery.

And more…