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Nürburgring Trip 2009


stevedohc2b

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I would like to visit the Nürburgring and members have also expressed a interest in doing the same.

 

The open dates are not published for 2009 yet so to be confirmed.

 

The plan at present is summer time possibly between Newark and Tan hill = July.

 

I am told to avoid the weekend as it is very congested.

 

So thinking of a arrive a Wed night and travel back Sat/ Sunday.

 

The accommodation Will be B&B with groups in rooms to camp is not cheap I am told.

 

The ring is not for the faint hearted and is entirely at your own risk please read the whole of the warnings on Ben Lovejoy website.

 

Too many people arrive at the Ring with no appreciation of the risks and no idea of the rules - both official and unofficial. The Ring is not a short-circuit with run-off, gravel-traps and tyre-walls, it is a track declared too dangerous for continued use by professional racing drivers.

 

 

safety & rules video

Read this

and the rest of the site is great for information.

 

 

If you can speak German please come forward as I do not.

 

I do have a first aid at work qualification though.

 

 

At the moment people who have shown interest are.

 

Steve Adams paid

Steve Johnston

Ian Johnson PAID X 2

Derek Overfield

Andy (Windows )

Daren Fasey

John Hamilton-Smith SG7 NG PAID X2

 

Richard and Caroline

martien from the netherlands

RodLane

Hugh & Delia :D Paid

Richard Wharton & Girl friend !

 

 

Thanks

Stephen Altwasser

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After my recent wahay moments at oulton park, I think I will sit this one out! Has anyone else spotted the noise limit of 95dBA? My 2 litre pinto is relatively quiet but still measured 101 at oulton. Might be a problem for some of you. Brian

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I had never heard of Sabine Schmidt Taxi until a few minutes ago, so i googled her. What a lass eh? Germany seems to produce a few women with character, like Hanna Reitsch (dodgy political views but still one of my heroes) . I hadn't thought of going just to watch, I'll see if I can get my pass stamped. Brian

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Guest timswait

I said I was going to email Steve the details of my trips, but I've only just got back off hoilday and found this thread, so I'll put it here instead.

I've been to the ring 4 times now, once with my parents in their Mondeo estate as we were going past, did one slow sightseeing lap, once with the Hood as I was driving to a friend's wedding near, and twice as deidicated trips with Andy (Grim). I fully agree with what Steve says about the dangers, it is a genuinely risky place, and it's not the best place to go to explore the limits of adhesion and hang the back out (save that for Barkston ;) !). However it is an awesome place and as far as I know completely unique in the world. Ridicolously long, set in beatiful contryside, so many corners most of which are fast and almost none of which are just simple constant radius coners. There's nearly 1000 feet of altitude between the highest and lowest points on the track, parts are almost like a roller coaster with dips and crests and cambered corners. Drive it with respect and most importantly BUILD UP SPEED GRADUALLY, and it's my opinion that the enjoyment outweigh the risks. Start off driving like you would on a public road and build up from there. There's plenty of blind corners over crests and corners which tighten unexpectly, and if you carry too much speed in you won't make the corner, and there's very few places on the track which have much in the way of run off before you hit the armco.

As far as details are concerned, Ben Lovejoy's website is excellent and is well worth reading, but some points I think important:

-Overtaking should be done on the left (they drive on the right over there ;) - silly foreign customs!), but don't always rely on other people sticking to this rule. Especially if you're new and going slower there will be a lot of faster vehicles (bikes as well as cars) trying to get past you, so make a point of jumping out their way (indicate to the right, pull to that side of the track and lift off) before they try anything silly. Yes it would be technically their fault if they hit you, but that won't be much consellation. Although it can seem like a bit of a mad house on the track and you feel like you'll get taken out by some charging Porsche the stats actually show a different story. The vast majority of accidents at the ring only involve one vehicle, so actually as long as you drive sensibly and within your own abilities, then the chances of getting involved in someone else's accident aren't too steep.

- Make sure the car's sound before you go. The first half of the lap is mostly downhill and very heavy on the brakes, the second half is mostly uphill (including one very long uphill slog) so is hard on the engine. It's all hard on everything else! You're going in summer and it can be hot (so I'm told, mostly bloody rains when I'm there) so make sure your cooling system is up to it. Make sure the car doesn't leak any fluids. Oil spills can kill, and you can get charged for cleaning up your mess.

- Noise testing isn't too onerous. AFAIK the only way they check noise is a drive by meter out of the pits (so don't gun it until you're out on the track) and apparently sometimes a guy walks round the paddock with a meter (although I've never seen him). If you do see someone in the paddock with a meter then leave the car and go and have a cup of coffee, he can't test the car if it's not running!

-Don't be a dick in the paddock. Revving the engine will encourage a noise test. While we were there this year a Porsche did a wheel spin up to the barrier. A marshall went straight up to him and took his ticket away and told him to leave. I don't know how long her was banned for.

 

The ring taxi looks fun, but it is expensive. Also you'll need to book well in advance (probably before you leave the UK), and don't expect to be driven by Sabine. Since she became a celebrity she doesn't drive the ring taxi very often any more, so you'll probably get someone else. I've not been in it, but it is driven 'enthusiastically' (ie damn fast and mostly sideways :D ). If you get chatting to people in the paddock you'll probably be offered lifts in other people's cars. Everyone there is a complete petrol-head and mostly more than happy to take people for a ride. This does work best if you're female and attractive though.

Going in the week is sensible, it's manic at weekends. It's not open all day everday though. In the summer it's open most weekday evenings and some weekday half days or full days, so aim to go for one of those. Even if it's only open in the evening, you've still got 2 hours track time, and it's mentally exhausting enough that that's a good amount of time. During the day there's plenty to do. There's a museum at the Formula 1 track that's very good, there's a castle with a nice view from the top, you can hire mountain bikes and ride round the dirt trails around the track, you can watch whatever's going on on the track during the day (usually manufacturers test sessions), and there's karting and 4x4ing (although that was closed this year when we went to do it).

 

I'm not sure if I'll be coming next year. I've been the past 3 years in a row now, so I was thinking of having a rest next year and going the one after (by which time I'll hopefully have a Zetec or Duratec :D )

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Guest martien
I would like to visit the Nürburgring and members have also expressed a interest in doing the same.

 

The open dates are not published for 2009 yet so to be confirmed.

 

The plan at present is summer time possibly between Newark and Tan hill = July.

 

I am told to avoid the weekend as it is very congested.

 

So thinking of a arrive a Wed night and travel back Sat/ Sunday.

 

The accommodation Will be B&B with groups in rooms to camp is not cheap I am told.

 

The ring is not for the faint hearted and is entirely at your own risk please read the whole of the warnings on Ben Lovejoy web sight.

 

Too many people arrive at the Ring with no appreciation of the risks and no idea of the rules - both official and unofficial. The Ring is not a short-circuit with run-off, gravel-traps and tyre-walls, it is a track declared too dangerous for continued use by professional racing drivers.

 

 

safety & rules video

Read this

and the rest of the sight is great for information.

 

 

If you can speak German please come forward as I do not.

 

I do have a first aid at work qualification though.

 

 

At the moment people who have shown interest are.

 

Steve Adams

Steve Johnston

Ian Johnson

Derek Overfield

Andy (Windows )java script:bbc_pop()

Daren Fasey

John Hamilton-Smith SG7 NG

Chris Brown ?

Richard and Caroline

 

 

Thanks

Stephen Altwasser

 

well hello there I,m martien from holland

and I speak german what do you want to now

and I;m looking forward to go also to the nurburgring only I go from holland

let me now something plaese I;m also a rhocar member

by :wub:

 

regards martien from the netherlands

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well hello there I,m martien from holland

and I speak german what do you want to now

and I;m looking forward to go also to the nurburgring only I go from holland

let me now something plaese I;m also a rhocar member

by :wub:

 

regards martien from the netherlands

 

Hi Martien,

We don't have a date yet for when we'll be going, but if you went at the same time, maybe we could meet up en-route and you could join our convoy?

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Guest martien
Hi Martien,

We don't have a date yet for when we'll be going, but if you went at the same time, maybe we could meet up en-route and you could join our convoy?

 

well hello steve I'm looking forward to go there let me now when you are planing to go and I join you on your way I think anyware in germany

what I will tell you is that a long time ago I'm a racing driver for a 10 years and a long time ago I'm driving on the nurnburgring and it is verry risky place

but I was a 25 five years old and now I am 56 years old a old guy not

 

my best regards martien :rolleyes:

Edited by martien
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Hi Martien,

Good - The more the merrier. I went to the Nurburgring several years ago. I had two or three laps (as a passenger) in a rapid enough Mazda. I then had a very quick lap (again as a passenger) in a TVR. Awesome! This trip will be different though. This time I'll be driving my pride & joy. I for one, will NOT be going ballistic. Far to risky to start pushing around a circuit such as this (and very far from home) on the limit. It's a long circuit, demands respect and would take a long time to properly learn. Rather just to say I've done some laps, will suffice for me. After all, I have the drive there to enjoy and (all being well) a nice cruise home and not forgetting some good company too. That's the main thing eh? I'm guessing we'll be going during early summer. No doubt we'll be formalizing our plans in due course.

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Guest timswait

Hi again

As far as B&B's are concerned, there'splenty listed on Ben Lovejoy's site. I've stayed in 3- Hotel an der Nordschliefe, Pension Muhlenhart and Hotel Burgstube. All fairly nice and pretty decent prices. Muhlenhart was the cheapest but wasn't walking distance to any bar or restaurant, which was a drawback. I'd say Burgstube was all round best, in the village of Nurburg so nice and central.

For the route there if you get an early ferry from Dover (around 8am sailing) then you can easily get to the ring in one day, in fact you can arrive in time for a few laps before the track closes. The route we've taken has been to use Motorways to Eupen (fairly boring flat contryside that far), and then to take to the A and B roads through Monschau to the ring. They're good fun twisty roads. If you want to take longer over the journey then I'd recommend going south and going through Luxembourg. Lovely steep wooded valleys and good driving roads that are mostly fairly empty.

I've always gone Dover-Dunkerque as it's usually slightly cheaper than Dover-Calais and cuts about 20 miles off the road trip. If you're coming from the North of the UK you might want to look at the ferry routes from the Northern cities to Holland, but I don't have any experience of these myself.

Tim

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Guest richardw1984

im liking the sound of this trip and hopefully my hood will be ready. You done mind a couple of young ones on teh trip do you? may even bring a woman haha see how she likes it round the circuit.

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Thanks for this Tim.

I'll be looking to probably get the Ferry from Hull - Zeebrugge.

Zeebrugge -> Dunkerque is only 60 miles.

We could arrange a meeting point somewhere along the way to Brussels or Aachen??? Could we meet Martien here also?

Yes folks (and before anyone chirps in) I'll be planning on not missing the Ferry on the way back this time also! :D :rolleyes:

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