Nurbergring - first timer help
Discussion
I am planning a trip to the Nurbergring in early/mid summer but have never been before.
I think we will have to go for a weekend date and therefore need to know the following :-
i) Is there a way to guarantee track time, i.e. in the form of some sort of track day ?
ii) How much does it cost to go on ?
iii) What are the hotels in the area like ?
iv)How long does the drive take ?
v) Is it worth it ?
vi) Whats a good lap time ?
Lot of questions i know, but any info would be appreciated....
I think we will have to go for a weekend date and therefore need to know the following :-
i) Is there a way to guarantee track time, i.e. in the form of some sort of track day ?
ii) How much does it cost to go on ?
iii) What are the hotels in the area like ?
iv)How long does the drive take ?
v) Is it worth it ?
vi) Whats a good lap time ?
Lot of questions i know, but any info would be appreciated....
tricky69 said:
i) Is there a way to guarantee track time, i.e. in the form of some sort of track day ?
ii) How much does it cost to go on ?
iii) What are the hotels in the area like ?
iv)How long does the drive take ?
v) Is it worth it ?
vi) Whats a good lap time ?
i) no, not on a public day, there are 1 or 2 track days there a year though
ii) depends how many laps you do, see bens site
iii) b&b's everywhere very cheap and good, hotels expensive
iv) to get there? from calais about 5 hrs
v) yes
vi) DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!!! this is a sure fire way to crash - i know about 50 people who have been to the ring and EVERYONE has crashed at least once.
tricky69 said:
i) Is there a way to guarantee track time, i.e. in the form of some sort of track day ?
ii) How much does it cost to go on ?
iii) What are the hotels in the area like ?
iv)How long does the drive take ?
v) Is it worth it ?
vi) Whats a good lap time ?
i) no, not on a public day, there are 1 or 2 track days there a year though
ii) depends how many laps you do, see bens site
iii) b&b's everywhere very cheap and good, hotels expensive
iv) to get there? from calais about 5 hrs
v) yes
vi) DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!!! this is a sure fire way to crash - i know about 50 people who have been to the ring and EVERYONE has crashed at least once.
tricky69 said:
I am planning a trip to the Nurbergring in early/mid summer but have never been before.
See www.nurburgring.org.uk
tricky69 said:
i) Is there a way to guarantee track time, i.e. in the form of some sort of track day ?
Don't think so. Just turn up, buy a ticket.
tricky69 said:
ii) How much does it cost to go on ?
About a tenner I think.
tricky69 said:
iii) What are the hotels in the area like ?
About average for the region - i.e. very good.
tricky69 said:
iv)How long does the drive take ?
Depends how fast you drive !
Expect three hours from Channel port to Germany,
and another hour or two hacking through Germany.
tricky69 said:
v) Is it worth it ?
I think yes. Catch it on a quiet day, when the Porsche Turbos aren't trying to do 300kmh, and it's a very formative experience.
Mixing it with the Mums in the people carriers is fun.
tricky69 said:
vi) Whats a good lap time ?
Jeremy Clarkson struggled all day to do better than ten minutes.
Harry's number 1 tip.
If you are passed by a crappy Mk1 Golf GTi/Opel Ascona or similar, don't take exception and try to wind up your sports car to follow them, after taking umbrage that such a mediocre machine should be passing you. The driver behind the wheel will be a local, the ropey bodywork will hide a chassis and engine set up specifically for playing on the 'Ring, and he will have driven the circuit hundreds of times. Every year, people crash, and some injure themselves/die, because they think they can go as quickly as these boys & girls. Don't be tempted.
If you are passed by a crappy Mk1 Golf GTi/Opel Ascona or similar, don't take exception and try to wind up your sports car to follow them, after taking umbrage that such a mediocre machine should be passing you. The driver behind the wheel will be a local, the ropey bodywork will hide a chassis and engine set up specifically for playing on the 'Ring, and he will have driven the circuit hundreds of times. Every year, people crash, and some injure themselves/die, because they think they can go as quickly as these boys & girls. Don't be tempted.
I've done a few slow laps last year, but am going with some mates for a two day course with BMW at the end of May. Direction by instructors without having the public on the track is a great, if expensive way to learn, but considering the risks of pushing on without knwoing the track well, it's a good investment.
>> Edited by Zod on Tuesday 8th March 10:56
>> Edited by Zod on Tuesday 8th March 10:56
tricky69 said:
I am planning a trip to the Nurbergring in early/mid summer but have never been before.
I think we will have to go for a weekend date and therefore need to know the following :-
i) Is there a way to guarantee track time, i.e. in the form of some sort of track day ?
ii) How much does it cost to go on ?
iii) What are the hotels in the area like ?
iv)How long does the drive take ?
v) Is it worth it ?
vi) Whats a good lap time ?
Lot of questions i know, but any info would be appreciated....
Ok,
1) Not really, its either open or closed, check out some of the links that others have put on here, should give you public opening days.
2) Its about 14 Euros a go, or you can buy a book of 7 (I think can never remember) for about 60 ish or a Jakestarte ( sp!!) which is a credit card with unlimited laps for a whole year. No idea how much
3) Only ever stayed in one place The Hotel Wilhelmshoe, about 14k from the 'Ring, I've been going there for 5 yrs, my old man has been for 15 odd years. Top place, beautiful scenery, next door to a garage as well.....
4) From France, about 4- 5 hrs depending on traffic/stops etc (always have a stop at SPA before you head onto the German A-roads through the Forests.
5) One of the best things you will ever do.
6) Don't even consider it. You don't know it and you probably never will. I've been round hundreds of times and I still can't remember every bend/camber/dip/local in stripped out FIesta/Golf MK1/2/Alfa 33/BMW E30 etc.
Its a wonderful place. I usually go for The Oldtimer GP at the beginning of August, a superb weekend, old racing (ex F1 etc, Can-Am) Plus every possible road car you could imagine on show. (The first year I went, there were 22 F40's.....)
Be careful on the Nordshleife, it is dangerous, don't be a hero and leave your stopwatch at home. Just get round, that will be enough I assure you!!!
Be wary of Locals in non-descript stuff, they live there, they know what they are doing and will eat you up. Also be wary of bikers, they hunt in packs!!!
If you want to have a fast lap, book up the RIng Taxi. Its an M5 driven by the lovely Sabine (used to be Willy Martini I think) flat out and crossed up. Book in advance and its about 100 euros (between 3 though) and is just a superb experience. There is also a Dodge Viper always lurking about (GT style spec) which does around the 8 minute mark I think, but its 250 euros a lap.
Do go, it is superb, and I'll go on about it all day!!!!
Harry Flashman said:
Harry's number 1 tip.
If you are passed by a crappy Mk1 Golf GTi/Opel Ascona or similar, don't take exception and try to wind up your sports car to follow them, after taking umbrage that such a mediocre machine should be passing you. The driver behind the wheel will be a local, the ropey bodywork will hide a chassis and engine set up specifically for playing on the 'Ring, and he will have driven the circuit hundreds of times. Every year, people crash, and some injure themselves/die, because they think they can go as quickly as these boys & girls. Don't be tempted.
Harry's right.
Bl00dy Hell can those things shift! How some kid who looks no more than 16 make a car which is about 10 years older than him go so fappin quick is beyond me. Yup, you expect piggie turbos to motor quickly (and they do), but beware of the things that look like the belong in the local breakers yard.
You are not as unsafe if you are in a car. A large proportion of the people killed (2 per week - ish) are bikers. IF you are planning to go on a bike, think about a learning trip with four wheels first ...
Oli.
>> Edited by zcacogp on Tuesday 8th March 14:57
You can check the timetable to make sure no one has hired the track during the day..
http://213.239.207.198/nuerburgring.de/index.php?id=275&L=1
http://213.239.207.198/nuerburgring.de/index.php?id=275&L=1
wilberforce said:
im interested in this, but what happens if you break down on the other side of the channel? cant see my little RAC man taking me home from there, obviously you would check your car over before but, sod law would be the tiny thing you miss breaks half way to germany,
regards
will
Get extended for Euro cover, (AA do this dunno about RAC) cheap for newer cars, bit more pricey for over 10yrs old tho, but still a heck of a lot cheaper then Wolfgang & Helmuts towing services GMbH bringing you all the way home!
tricky69 said:
Excellent, thanks for all the info guys....
Is a weekend stint long enough to do it ?
i.e. just saturday and sunday ?
Personally from last yrs trip I wasnt a fan of the Sat & Sun afternoons, just so unbelivably crowded & really not my idea of fun, & it wasnt even silly busy like the time davyboy had last yr when it took him somat like 20 mins in a queue just to get off the track after a lap! at the less busy times tho, by 'eck it is magical.
I can only imageing that thsi yr it will be even worse after everyones seen Clarkson doing it & wants to go & give it a go in sub 10 mins, I forsee quite a few crashed brit cars in '05 trying to pip the fuzzy headed one then!
wilberforce said:
im interested in this, but what happens if you break down on the other side of the channel? cant see my little RAC man taking me home from there, obviously you would check your car over before but, sod law would be the tiny thing you miss breaks half way to germany,
regards
will
Check your UK breakdown cover. Mine, maybe yours, gives full Euro cover.
Also check your insurance. Lots of UK policies give green card (third party *only*) cover. Mine, maybe yours, gives fully comprehensive insurance cover all over Europe.
Not sure what the insurance company would say if the first line of my UK claim form said "I was driving at 240 kmh ..."
zcacogp said:
... people killed (2 per week - ish) ...
Sensationalist magazine bollox.
Less then 5 people have lost their lives on the Nordschleife in the past 3 years. The tally for 2004 was no more than 1 (possibly 0 - the figure escapes me momentarily).
But there are many more seriously injured. The circuit will usually have a couple of closures on a weekend day, which requires police and airlift attendance.
Rest assured if you spin, which you most likely will if you think you know the track after playing computer games, you will almost certainly hit something.
Be very, very aware of what is around you at all times, and always expect the person you are overtaking not to have seen you unless they have made it very clear.
Drive safe, and enjoy it!
The AA specifically exclude the Nordschliefe from their cover. Check the small print. There have also been numerous debates about the level of vehicle/3rd party cover on the ringas well, but at the end of the day its just a one way public toll road.
There was a post about a year aho about how to join ADAC (the german equivalent of the AA). They also sponsor a lot of the racing at the ring....
ALWAYS do a couple of sighting laps if you go out at what seems like a quiet time. There may be oil/antifreeze on the track, which is bad if you're in a car, but potentially fatal if you're on a bike: RIP Jorund Seim.
If it's wet, get some local advice on how some of the bends' cambers and surface changes are likely to catch you out. Some of the 'racing lines' are different in the wet, as you are often afforded more grip by taking non standard entries into bends.
Enjoy the trip. If you decide to go via Eupen/Monschau (as per the directions on Ben's site) and your car has stiff suspension, I challenge anyone to go over about 40mph on the road between belgium and germany!!!
There was a post about a year aho about how to join ADAC (the german equivalent of the AA). They also sponsor a lot of the racing at the ring....
ALWAYS do a couple of sighting laps if you go out at what seems like a quiet time. There may be oil/antifreeze on the track, which is bad if you're in a car, but potentially fatal if you're on a bike: RIP Jorund Seim.
If it's wet, get some local advice on how some of the bends' cambers and surface changes are likely to catch you out. Some of the 'racing lines' are different in the wet, as you are often afforded more grip by taking non standard entries into bends.
Enjoy the trip. If you decide to go via Eupen/Monschau (as per the directions on Ben's site) and your car has stiff suspension, I challenge anyone to go over about 40mph on the road between belgium and germany!!!
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