On Saturday, June 18, at 5:00 p.m. local time, the Le Mans 24- hour race got under way at Circuit de la Sarthe near Le Mans, France, as it has since 1923. The course uses local roads that are open to public use during the rest of the year. For 2006, 50 competitors started the race around the closed 13.65-kilometre circuit, but only 27 cars crossed the finish line 24 hours later.