No doubt every racing fan has heard of Le Mans. The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world’s oldest active sports car event in endurance racing held annually since 1923 near the town of Le Mans, France. A race team has to balance speed against the car’s ability to run for 24 hours without mechanical damage and manage the car’s materials such as tires, brakes and fuel. The endurance of the drivers is also tested as they spend shifts behind the wheel before stopping in the pits and swapping to take over driving duties.
This is not that Le Mans. It’s an endurance race series that takes place all over the United States for cars (or trucks) valued at a maximum of $500 (not counting the necessary racing modifications such as a roll cage). Thus, the name, LeMons. In the hills near South Haven, Michigan, every April since 2010, just about any iteration of vehicle known to man races around a track in one part of the series that has become known as the 24 Hours of LeMons.
This year there were the usual suspects, Bimmers, first-gen’ Camaros, Dodge Novas, Stangs and plenty of oddballs such as Volvo wagons. Thanks to GM Authority, we heard about the 1992 Chevy S-10 of Loose Lugs Racing team, a collection of twenty-something engineers (three from General Motors), with just enough know-how, guts and spare change to field their first entry in the LeMons event.
They did not win, but boy, did they show in a 21-year-old S-10 with a stock 2.8-liter V-6. The Loose Lugs Racing team finished 31st of 71 total cars, with their best lap time coming in at 1:51.6. The team had a lot of trouble during the day, but scored huge by getting the Judge’s Choice Award.
ChevyHardcore.com would like to congratulate Loose Lugs Racing for having the Chevy Hardcore spirit. They were a rookie team in which the oldest member was just 25 years-old, with a beater ’92 S-10 that some on the track considered “just a GM product,” a phrase the team proudly spray-painted on the side of its racer.