24h Le Mans
Hawk-eyed pit marshals have been surveying every move in team garages since the first 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1923. Their working conditions have changed considerably since then, and especially since the 1970s, but the marshals’ legendary diligence has never waned.
In the 1970s, there were some significant safety improvements such as the low protective walls and the installation of a guardrail between the track and the pit lane. At the same time, ESCRA, a Le Mans-based business school specialised in the auto industry, became a partner of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and supplied a new generation of marshals for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The race provided a great opportunity for the students to hone their technical skills and the young recruits were a real bonus for the ACO.
The years went by and fuel attendants became a thing of the past, while pit data were increasingly computerised, giving the race management team and stewards a comprehensive view of operations in the pits. Meanwhile, refuelling became more complex with aviation-type filling and deaerators.
In the 1980s, catastrophe was avoided by ever vigilant marshals after someone had intentionally shut off the fuel supply to the Porsche garages. At that time, the fuel supply pipes were above ground, located in the passageway behind the garages where any ill-intentioned individual could easily shut off the supply. However, the pit marshals, forever on the alert, stepped in and sorted things in a matter of minutes and none of the Porsche entries suffered refuelling issues as a result of the incident.
Bernard Mexi headed the team of pit marshals but when he moved over to race management, he was replaced by Jean-Marc Desnues, who would later become Deputy Managing Director of the ACO. His steadfastness was renowned. Such steadfastness was certainly required in 1982 when the marshals were forced to remove the Mirage fielded by Mario Andretti and his son Michael from the starting grid as it had been fitted with an unapproved oil cooler after the test sessions. Regardless of Andretti’s popularity and status as former Formula One world champion, Alain Bertaut, head steward, and his team stood their ground and Andretti was not permitted to race.
Other instalments in our series on the 24 Hours of Le Mans pit marshals:
Pit marshals (1) - Trail blazers
Pit marshals (2) - The post-war rennaissance
