08-2015 Mont Dore-Chambon sur Lac : the pinnacle of hillclimbing. This was the tenth round of the National Championship. It's a venue, on the slopes of the Massif du Sancy, that everyone wants to participate in at some stage in their competitive career.
The climb, of over 5 kms, is one of the longest, excellent for spectators, who can see most of the course, set in grandiose scenery. It's a most testing climb for drivers, with fast bends which flow, one after another, leaving little room for error at such fast speeds. There were 194 entrants in the ' modern' section, and 37 Historics, all wanting to participate in what is the equivalent, in hillclimbing circles, of the Monaco Grand Prix in Formula One.
The first practice was held in very wet conditions, due to incessant showers, and Vincent Lagache in his Marcadier AMK showed his prowess in the rain by recording the fastest time, very closely followed by Gilles Coursoux. Second practice was a bit of a lottery because of the passing showers followed by sunny spells: fastest was Jean-Marc Debeaune in his Van Diemen. Vincent sadly had engine problems resulting from the wet conditions.
The first timed run on Sunday saw the return of the sun. Vincent, however, was penalised by the measures he had taken the previous day to prevent water entering his engine, which now had restricted breathing, and hence restricted power delivery. Gilles was quicker on this first competitive run. Then the rain returned. Vincent's weekend was capped by a horrendous aquaplaning moment which miraculously left the Marcadier undamaged. Not so the Van Diemen of Debeaune, who had a very big 'off', though fortunately the driver was unhurt. Due to his first timed run, Debeaune was fastest overall, followed by Gilles Coursoux, who mastered the soaking conditions, and by Vincent Lagache, who had a weekend to forget....
