The Internet? It'll never catch on...

The archive of the first three years of Race24.com is now available, at www.Race24.com/original The pages are exactly as they were at the end of the 2001 season, when our coverage moved to the official WorldEndurance.com site.

Race24 was concieved in September 1998 while I was trying to follow what was happening at the Bol d'Or by watching Eurosport; there was plenty of coverage of the front runners but nothing about the teams I was interested in.

"Why don't we set up a website and update it from the circuit", I thought. At the very least, I reckoned we could get away with blagging some free press passes and watch the race from the warmth of the media centre rather than huddled in the grandstand near the Dunlop bridge.

Le Mans media centre, April 1999.

So there we were, happily tucking into the free buffet (ah, those were the days) and plucking up the courage to ask Jamie Whitham an idiotic question, when an email arrived from someone we'd never met. We had an audience!

Ten years on, the site is still going, and still a success. There'll be some changes for 2009, but for now, get clicking and enjoy a trip back in time...

Martin Gelder, February 2009

Race24.com, April 1999.

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