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The pre-race and first in-race report from Le Mans

The 2013, 90th anniversary edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans has begun, tragedy marking the opening laps with the death of Allan Simonsen. We're at the track now as a guest of Audi and plan to stay through the evening, and even we haven't been able to find out what caused the accident - the only video is from just after the incident, and beyond the statement from ACO there's been no more news. The Aston Martin in the LM GTE Am class and its all-Danish drivers had taken pole in its class and was one of the favorites to win.
The pre-race report will come first, and even thought we can't spoil the race because we're only five hours into it at the time of writing, we'll put all of the news at the end in case you don't even want the updates.
Or you can go straight to the high-res galleries above.

Where to watch and follow the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year

In less than 24 hours the flag will drop on Audi's title defense at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Toyota's best ever chance to win and Porsche's return to le grand defi. The Le Mans organizers have kept as au courant with broadcast options as they have with power unit technology, so you'll be able to find a place to watch or listen no matter what your preferred method. Friend-of-Autoblog Reilly Brennan has again put together an exhaustive "couch kit" of viewing options, which you can check out at his site. Here's the short list: Le Mans Site Le Mans TV Le Mans Facebook page Le Mans Twitter page FIA WEC Live timing Audi Sport stream Corvette Racing stream Nissan NISMO stream Entry list and grid Spotter's Guide You can watch or listen to the excellent Radio Le Mans, app, Autosport will have hourly updates and a live blog, the ACO has a Le Mans app. Fox will broadcast the event over a combination of Fox Sports 1, 2 and its Fox Sports Go App from 8:30 EST Saturday morning until 9:30 am EST Monday morning. Hit up Reilly Brennan's site for even more options and details like Eurosport and Daily Motion, and good watching – this should be a spectacular race. News Source: Reilly Brennan Motorsports Audi Porsche Toyota

Weekly Recap: Ferrari, Ford and Porsche power up for Geneva

Monday was Groundhog Day. Tuesday, apparently, was Sports Car Day. The Ferrari 488 GTB, the Ford Focus RS and the Porsche Cayman GT4 all debuted within hours of each other ahead of their rollouts at the Geneva Motor Show. Three sporty machines, three vastly different approaches – and a lot of implications for enthusiasts. That's a day worth repeating. It also illustrates the opportunities automakers see in the performance market, which is expected to grow in the coming years. Ford estimates the segment has expanded 14 percent in Europe and surged 70 percent in North America since 2009. The Detroit Auto Show was evidence of this, and performance cars of every stripe debuted, including the Acura NSX, Ford GT, Alfa Romeo 4C Spider and several others. This isn't a fad. Performance cars aren't going away. The question is why? Stricter CAFE standards are looming in the United States, as are tighter emissions regulations in Europe. And no one expects gas prices to remain low in America. None of this matters for sports cars, and automakers are increasingly using them to elevate their images. That's why Dodge rolled out two 707-horsepower Hellcats last year. It's why Ford has decided to resurrect the GT for road and track. It's why in the depths of bankruptcy, General Motors continued work on the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, not to mention the Z06. "Great brands are made one car at a time," Ford of Europe president Jim Farley said at the reveal of the Focus RS. Still, companies make those cars for different reasons. View 5 Photos Mainstream brands like Ford and Dodge want to build cars that get people talking, excite their bases and drive more potential customers into the showroom. They probably don't buy a Focus RS or a Hellcat, but suddenly the regular Focus hatch looks a bit hotter, and that V6 Charger seems to be just a touch more muscular. The halo of performance is alive and well in the eyes of automakers and their customers. "It's one of the most effective catalysts for ingenuity and innovation," said Joe Bakaj, vice president of product development for Ford of Europe. That also leads to a trickle-down effect. Some of the technologies inevitably make their way to other products. It's hard to think the new all-wheel-drive system in the Focus RS that distributes torque front to rear and side to side won't be used in other vehicles. It's different for Ferrari and Porsche.