The Worst Day at The 24hrs of Lemans |The Bad Blonde Car History 1955 Le Mans Tragedy. Post-WWII, the Le Mans is jumping with competition from major automotive brands like Aston Martin, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz, and Jaguar. A fierce competition of automotive titans. The increased speed of the race cars was not matched in the safety of the course. By 1955, top speeds for the leading cars were over 270 km/h (170 mph) Also during this time not only was the track not safe for drivers but also spectator safety was not at the forefront. The 1955 Le Mans disaster started with Jaguar D-type driver Mike Hawthorn slowing to enter the pit (signaling this with a wave and braking quickly with disk brakes) on the of Austin-Healy 100S driver Lance Macklin, Macklin with a slowing Jaguar in front of him swerved to the left in front of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR driven by Pierre Levegh. At 120 MPH Levegh was not able to avoid the car but did raise his hand warning Mercedes-Benz driver Fangio. The Mercedes rode up onto the rear-left corner of the Healey which essentially acted like a ramp and then launched the Mercedes into the air over a protective berm at 125mph. Two major factors resulting from track layout– there was no designated deceleration lane for cars coming into the pits, and also that just before the main straight, there was a slight right-hand kink in the road just after which Hawthorn began to brake. The Mercedes-Benz and it’s organs essentially turned into shrapnel with the hood, engine, radiator flying through the crowded spectator area. The hood slicing through the crowd land decapitating the crowded spectators. Levegh was thrown from the tumbling car, hitting the ground and crushing his skull which killed him instantly. Jaguar driver Duncan Hamilton, watching from the pit said "The scene on the other side of the road was indescribable. The dead and dying were everywhere; the cries of pain, anguish, and despair screamed catastrophe. I stood as if in a dream, too horrified to even think." The co-driver of Levegh, John Fitch waiting to over at the wheel, stood with Levegh’s wife and both watched the catastrophe unfold. The 300 SLR featured a body made of an ultra-lightweight magnesium alloy called Elektron. The fuel fire caused the alloy to burst into white-hot flames showering the crowd and track with magnesium embers. Unfamiliar with magnesium fires, the rescue workers made it worse by pouring water onto the inferno. Mercedes-Benz while in first and second position decided to not finish the race and asked the Jaguar team to respond in kind out of respect for the deceased. Jaguar declined. In total 84 spectators lost their lives and over 100 were injured (some estimate the toll to be even higher). It is the most catastrophic crash in motorsport history. Jaguar with Hawthorn would win the race and Hawthorn would be photographed smiling sipping champagne from the podium. A French magazine published it with the headline “to your health” There has been no precise point of blame for the tragedy. Did Hawthorn break to quickly getting into the pit? Was Mackling’s swerving wreckless? Was Levegh not able to handle the speeds of the Mercedes-Benz SLR? Hawthorn’s autobiography apparently really miffed Macklin, causing a libel suit to be filed but never resolved as Hawthorn would be killed in a car accident while overtaking a Mercedes in his Jaguar.