Beginners at the Nurburgring
Discussion
Assuming I don't want to do a TF day, how do I get enough track-time to be considered a non-novice? The DN days look fantastic, but they're quite explicit that they're not for novices. Would love to spend some time on the track but I don't want to be the guy that everyone's complaining about in the paddock for being a slow coach!
Cheers!
Cheers!
I would go over for a day or two and get some tuition, it's as good a place as ever to start.
Lots of folk in the area offering it but having used Jaco before i can recommend him
http://www.jacos-paddock.co.uk/ main site
http://www.jacos-paddock.co.uk/nurburgring-driving... tuition page
Lots of folk in the area offering it but having used Jaco before i can recommend him
http://www.jacos-paddock.co.uk/ main site
http://www.jacos-paddock.co.uk/nurburgring-driving... tuition page
Edited by mgv8dave on Wednesday 10th August 19:24
Nobody will be complaining about you if you just stick to the accepted rules of track driving (stay left, and well out the way)
You could go on any day of the week and there'll still be 911 GT3's blitzing passed at warp speed.
I think you're only seen as 'mildly experienced' one you've got 50+ laps under your belt. Even then, there's lesser experienced / worse drivers there (just by asking you've already proved you're no numpty)
Short answer; you're going to have a scary time any which way you go. Just do it, and drive like a gran (tho one blessed with the spacial awareness of Batman)
You could go on any day of the week and there'll still be 911 GT3's blitzing passed at warp speed.
I think you're only seen as 'mildly experienced' one you've got 50+ laps under your belt. Even then, there's lesser experienced / worse drivers there (just by asking you've already proved you're no numpty)
Short answer; you're going to have a scary time any which way you go. Just do it, and drive like a gran (tho one blessed with the spacial awareness of Batman)
BobToc said:
Assuming I don't want to do a TF day, how do I get enough track-time to be considered a non-novice? The DN days look fantastic, but they're quite explicit that they're not for novices. Would love to spend some time on the track but I don't want to be the guy that everyone's complaining about in the paddock for being a slow coach!
Cheers!
My 1st ever track day in my own car (350z at the time) was a tourist weekend at the Ring. I didn't drive like a nutter and certainly wasn't the slowest (or the fastest for that matter). A veteran of our group told me to drive it like a country lane that I didn't know and it seemed to do the trick.Cheers!
As people have mentioned, as long as you keep your wits about you and keep to the right when the GT3's come flying past (plus the odd plumbing van complete with roof ladders) then you will be fine. Keep your windows open and chances are you will hear them before you see them as well ;-)
I am taking my ISF next month 9th - 13th of Sept so see you there ;-)
I went to Nurburg after about a dozen laps on action days at Combe in a very slow car - as it turned out, quite good prep for the standard of driving on a TF day. 
On TF, so long as you remember that it's not a race track but a winding country road with no speed limit and drive accordingly you'll be fine. You will spend a lot of time looking in your mirrors trying to spot 911 GT3s as mentioned above.
Practice like mad on a console if you can - I found it much easier to memorise the circuit that way rather than looking at a map.
On TF, so long as you remember that it's not a race track but a winding country road with no speed limit and drive accordingly you'll be fine. You will spend a lot of time looking in your mirrors trying to spot 911 GT3s as mentioned above.
Practice like mad on a console if you can - I found it much easier to memorise the circuit that way rather than looking at a map.
Don't worry about what others the paddock think of you. There will always be someone worse and someone better. Particularly at the 'Ring, where the road is challenging and risky, you're better off leaving your ego at the door and treating it like a fast B road rather than a racetrack.
BobToc said:
I don't want to be the guy that everyone's complaining about in the paddock for being a slow coach!
I had the same fear on my first track day, but quickly learned from passing slower traffic that being slow is absolutely nothing at all for anyone to get mad about or even talk about. Paddock talk much more likely to be about someone acting rude, or intentionally holding someone up through the corners to then clear off on the straights.Coming up to a relatively slow guy that's courteous and moves over when it's safe to do so is a complete non event. They're the good guys. They're the guys that get a thumbs up or a wave when they get passed. Everyone loves them.
I've only ever been to a handful of track days, but I've never heard a bad word said about someone slow and thoughtful. Heard a bit about obviously selfish or dangerous driving.
Learn the track off by heart on iRacing or Assetto Corsa first. Both have laser scanned tracks. The version on GT6 doesn't prepare you for the reality of the curbs, the laser scanned versions show you exactly why most must be avoided.
Having intimate knowledge of where the track goes and roughly what to expect won't mean when you hit it for real you'll be able to fly along, but it means those first few relatively cautious laps will still be at a decent pace.
routari said:
BobToc said:
I don't want to be the guy that everyone's complaining about in the paddock for being a slow coach!
I had the same fear on my first track day, but quickly learned from passing slower traffic that being slow is absolutely nothing at all for anyone to get mad about or even talk about. Paddock talk much more likely to be about someone acting rude, or intentionally holding someone up through the corners to then clear off on the straights.Coming up to a relatively slow guy that's courteous and moves over when it's safe to do so is a complete non event. They're the good guys. They're the guys that get a thumbs up or a wave when they get passed. Everyone loves them.
I've only ever been to a handful of track days, but I've never heard a bad word said about someone slow and thoughtful. Heard a bit about obviously selfish or dangerous driving.
Learn the track off by heart on iRacing or Assetto Corsa first. Both have laser scanned tracks. The version on GT6 doesn't prepare you for the reality of the curbs, the laser scanned versions show you exactly why most must be avoided.
Having intimate knowledge of where the track goes and roughly what to expect won't mean when you hit it for real you'll be able to fly along, but it means those first few relatively cautious laps will still be at a decent pace.
I can second all of this!
It's the fast guys who cause the most problems... stick some dick head with half an idea of the circuit in the most powerful car on track and that's when things go wrong.
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