Monday, October 13, 2014

Racing is Life. Anything Before or After is Just Waiting

If you're a member of PKW Racing's Steam group, then you have seen this adage. This is for those of you that might wonder where that came from. I made this trailer from the movie, check it out!




Le Mans is one of the most accurate racing movies ever made. Historians say that this movie is an incredibly accurate portrayal of 24 Hours of Le Mans as it was at the time of filming. This movie was a pet project of McQueen’s, who was a serious racer himself, finishing 2nd in the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring. Mario Andretti beat him by only 23 second. Oh yeah, and McQueen’s left foot was in a cast at the time!

The Porsche 908/2 that McQueen campaigned in the 12 hours of Sebring was then entered into the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans as a camera car for the movie. It actually finished 9th place overall, and 2nd place in the P3.0 class. Enzo Ferrari refused to provide the Ferrari 512’s used in the movie unless they won the race… you’ll have to see for yourself if he provided them or not. ;)

The 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans was significant not only because of this film, but also because it was the first race which used new pitwalls to protect the pit crews. It was also the first Le Mans ever where the drivers started the race inside the car, instead of using the drivers running start from previous years. McQueen had intended to drive in the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans himself, but the backers to his film threatened to drop their support if he did, due to the inherent risks of the race. So, faced with the option of driving for 24 hours in the race, or an entire summer while filming the movie, he chose the movie.

Though Le Mans wasn’t successful in the box office, it has become a cult classic. The movie is like a car lovers wet dream. It’s not until 36 minutes into the movie that Steve McQueen speaks his first line. The movie isn’t about storyline, or plot, or sex, or violence. It’s about racing, pure and simple. The American audience didn’t understand this when it was released, but since then it has become a must-see for every serious gearhead. So check it out now!

Buy the Le Mans DVD Today!
http://amzn.to/1ndEp5Y

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