Learn about racing terminology with a little history of the LeMans start that was once the standard for motorcycle racing events around the world.
Motorcyclists in general, and racers in particular, sometimes exhibit patterns of speech that suggest they have their own language. For instance, you might hear a motorcycle rider say, “The clutch went out.” The clutch didn’t go anywhere; what he really meant was that, plain and simple, the clutch stopped functioning properly.
Or, you might hear a racer exclaim after a spirited practice session on the racetrack, “The tires aren’t biting in Turn 2,” as if he were actually fishing for rubber in … Turn 2. In reality the bike’s tires were losing traction somewhere through that turn.
You also might hear someone say at a track day gathering, “I dove into Turn 5, clipped the apex perfectly, then stood it up.” Translation: He rode fast and furious into Turn 5, maintained a smooth and steady line through the corner’s apex that allowed him to accelerate hard at the turn’s exit after stabilizing the bike into an upright position for full tire tread contact, thus allowing him to twist the throttle for maximum acceleration. (Clearly, though, the racer’s original explanation is much easier to say or listen to!)
Here’s an easier one to decipher: “I was running in first place for a change!” Usually that means the racer was leading the race. But, it could also describe, in factual detail, that the motorcycle racer was indeed running, putting left foot in front of right foot in front of left foot, and so on, and that he actually was in first place at the time. How does he do that?
Easy. The motorcycle race included a LeMans start that required the racers run across the racetrack to their respective motorcycles, swing a leg over the bike, start the engine and then accelerate hard to Turn 1 on their motorcycles. The first rider to reach his bike in the foot race is technically leading the race at that very moment.
LeMans starts have been a part of motorsport racing for years. As the term suggests, these “sprint” races originated at the 24 Hours of LeMans endurance automobile race, the first being 1923. But after half a century the automotive racing world deemed LeMans starts were too dangerous because many drivers, in their haste to be first, skipped fastening their seat belts. Eventually a fatality occurred, prompting the omission.
Among the major motorcycle races to feature a LeMans start is the 24-hour Bol d’Or in Europe. Many other world championship endurance motorcycle races adopted that start method, too, and LeMans starts were popular in American club racing during the 1950s and 1960s. The AFM (American Federation of Motorcyclists) and ACA (American Cycle Association) in California were especially fond of LeMans starts for races featuring modified production bikes. Most recently AHRMA (American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association) adopted LeMans starts for its CB160 class. Similar starts were used for desert races and cross-country enduros.
Are LeMans starts necessary in order to feature good racing? Not necessarily, but as a former racer who experienced LeMans starts during my formative years in AFM and ACA competition, there’s a bit of suspense that builds up for the start that you otherwise don’t get while sitting on a motorcycle at the start grid, its engine fired up and ready to race. And for those few tense moments before the starter waves the flag or blasts the horn to signal the sprint, a racer’s legs turn to rubber. Well, in reality, they don’t turn to rubber, but you get the picture. Well, you really don’t get a picture, but, you know what I mean. You know what I mean?
