Friday in Nogaro

20. June 2014Nogaro - The third round of the FIA European Truck Racing Championship in Nogaro in southwestern France is one of the few three-day events in what’s the most popular FIA motor racing series in Europe after Formula 1. The met forecast of a blazing weekend has been spot-on, at least for this first day. By noon the air temperature had risen to 34°C under almost clear skies; out in the sun it felt like more than 45°. The track temperature was measured at over 57°.
First up in Nogaro were the obligatory taxi rides for the VIPs and the press, and the one hour scheduled for this activity was nowhere near adequate given the rush. At the press conference that followed, Truck Race Organisation (TRO) president Fabien Calvet reiterated what a great PR idea it had been to provide the bakeries in the area some 100,000 paper bags advertising the event.
Then there was the bonus practice session that all drivers who volunteer for the taxi rides are allowed to take part in, followed by the regular free practice. MAN drivers Jochen Hahn (GER) with a lap of 1:54.248s, Markus Bösiger (SUI) with 1:54.376, Norbert Kiss (HUN) 1:54.624, René Reinert (GER) 1:54.663, and Antonio Albacete (ESP) with 1:54.824 were the only truck racers who managed times within the magical 1:55s mark.
A parade through Nogaro of almost all the ETRC trucks followed in the evening. The centre of this tiny borough of 3,000 was closed for traffic and had filled up with fans long before the race trucks arrived. Long tables were set up on either side of the street, at which the truck racers autographed copies of the TRO poster. Following a long tradition, the evening was wrapped up with a group photograph.

Impressions: