Last weekend at the 'ring

[m25jambuster]

Left the UK via Dover on Friday 05 Oct heading for Nurburgring. The ferry crossing was really smooth and we departed the ferry into sunshine, sunshine that stayed with us until we got back home on Monday 08 Oct!!! The ride through France and Belgium was uneventful and the deeper into Belgium we got the less UK vehicles we saw. Road quality was superb as is the attitude towards motorcyclists. As soon as we got into Germay we got off the Autobahn and onto the twisty back roads. Good old SatNav guided us all the way to the B&B, which was only about 20 minutes from the 'ring. The B&B was a petrolheads heaven, its run by a Brit who hasnt been back to the UK in 14 years apart from visiting family a few times a year. It was more a case of "welcome to my home" than welcome to the B&B. Beers in the fridge are just put on the tab and you settle up when you leave (more of that later!!!).
Saturday dawns and its sunshine and blue sky so head for the Eifel mountain roads after breakfast, we had already decided that we would head to the ring for opening time at about 530pm. We clocked up over 200 miles during the day blasting round some excellent mountain roads and only saw a handful of cars throughout the day. Got to the 'ring at about 515pm and already it was heaving in the car parks as the sun was still out and the forecast was good. All sorts of exotic bikes and cars there. Met up with a friend of mine who had taken his ex-BTCC BMW M3 down there and he offered our group some car laps if we wanted them as did his friend in his Porsche 968. The track opened at 530pm and it was chaos, cars and bikes everywhere. We all decided to watch what goes on for a while and then head out so in the meantime went to the office to buy the lap tickets. I bought a four lap ticket as this is a cheaper way of getting laps and its valid until end of 2007. After about an hour we decided to go and do a lap. Got through the barrier and hit the bends, nothing can ever prepare you for a lap of the 'ring. Its complete high octace insaity and you have no idea where the track goes sometimes. Then just when you think you are doing well some mad car or bike driver screams past like you are going backwards. My friend in his M3 is up ahead at about mile 4 so he indicates for me to stay behind him so I can see some of the lines around the track. As we get towards the end of the lap at about mile 12, we come out of the mini carousel which is the 2nd to last corner, as we approcah the final corner the yellow flags are being waved and everyone slows down. As we go round the corner we see the remains of a motorcycle laying across the grass on the left side and the armco barrier has obviously taken a big hit. No sign of the rider but plenty of people have stopped to help so we make our way slowly back to the car park. Having got off the bike I have mixed feelings, what an adrenaline rush but could have done without seeing such a hard impact on my first ever lap. Not too sure about Sunday now and it appears that all the other lads in the group feel the same. So back to the B&B for a few beers. Get back to the B&B and there is an obvious look of relief on our hosts face. He had heard about the bike accident at the 'ring and had found out that it was a brit bike but couldnt get the full details. He had hoped that it wasnt us and was glad to see us all back ok. Plenty of 'on tab' beers on Saturday night.
Wake up n Sunday morning to a foggy but dry day so we watch the F1 while eating a full english breakfast. We get to the 'ring at about 1030am and our host has come along also today, he has ridden the 'ring for the last 14 years so has some idea where the 13 miles of track goes!!!! We learn upon our arrival that there have already been four incidents causing track closure and this has been due to the mist and dampness earlier and at this stage bikes are being heldback for safety reasons. We also find out unofficially that the accidet lasnight was a bad one as the rider of the bike had been flipped over the armco and into the trees, they had to take the armco down to get to him. Wrod was going around the car park that he had not made it. Not the ideal start after the way yesterday finished. Anyway at about midday all is good and I decide to head out. Clear my head of all negative thoughts and get on with it. Have a great lap and get back feeling really good and full of confidence. The others in the group do the same and feel the same. Nevrves are settled. Then kill a couple of hours by looking at all the flash cars and bikes that are there before heading out again. The lap starts well and I am definately in my stride until through the woods at Adenau forrest I see smoke up ahead. I am now thinking major crash again and prepare myself for yellow flags. Nothing. Except a smokey diesel camper van going round the track full of a german family!!!! Told you it was nuts here. So get my head down and get on again. At about mile 10 come across a black BMW M3 hard into the armco facing the wrong way up the track, waved yellows again and expensive looking damage but the driver is out the car and ok. Get back to the car park to find that it had spun right in front of one of our group and my mate on his bike narrowly missed the car as it went off the track. We all decide that the place is mad but cat help but want to do more laps. At this stage the car drivers that we had met up with offer us some passenger laps in the car and I get to go in the ex-BTCC M3. Nothing could prepare me for what was coming. The driver, who is a friend of mine in a race instructor and tyre tester, he has driven the 'ring for about 15 years. I have never had so much fun in a car and only one Porsche overtook us on the whole lap and that was driven by Sabine Schmitt who showed Top Gears Jeremy Clarkson around in a transit van!!! At the end of the lap I decide to wait for half an hour before going out on the bike again as I feel that if I get straight on the bike after the car lap I could have an accident through trying to emulate what has just been experienced. I get my last lap in at about 530pm ad get back just before a big crash involving 3 bikes and 2 cars. The track doesnt reopen again as it was due to close at 645pm anyway. We head back to the B&B for more 'tab beer'. As soon as we get back we hit the beer and we are not even out of our leathers before we start going on about the day over beer. At about midnight we decide it would be a good idea to get some sleep as we have a long day in the saddle the next day to get back to the UK. Wake the following morning to yet more sunshine and dry roads. One full english breakfast and I'm ready to get going. Pay up the bill for the B&B and we head off. Have a good run across Germany, Belgium and France and get to Calais at 4pm. We are all depressed by now. Meet up with a load of brit bikers who have been to Magny Cours to watch the final World Superbike race and to see James Toseland get the title. Exit the ferry at Dover and immediately come to the conclusion that UK roads are crap as are most car drivers, especially the attitude to bikers in the UK. Get home about 45 minutes later. A long four days, nearly 1000 miles and alot of adrenaline at the ring. And all in the dry!!! Would I do it again??? YES. Already provisionally booked some accomodation for various dates at the 'ring next year!!!
All in all the trip cost around £200 for the four day weekend and thats including B&B, eating out and fuel and even the 'tab beers'!!!!!
Makes the UK look expensive huh???

[stoney]

Nice report Keith! Its addictive isn't it.

There's some pics of you here:
http://bridgetogantry.com/index.php?opt ... &Itemid=70
http://www.mw-sportfoto.de/

[m25jambuster]

Stoney - cheers for finding that pic. I knew about Bridge to Gantry as Dale Lomas was staying at our B&B so we had already lined him up for the Sunday to do some pics. The ones with me and the yellow EVO were a bit set up!!! Dale is also the online editor for Performance Bikes so a handy bloke to have in the contacts list on the mobile!!!
When I wrote the post I wanted to do something that would give an insight to others who may be considering going there for the first time.

[Yogi Bear]

Nice report Keiff

Sounds like you had a Blast. Might have to give it a bash...

I'd need to get a sexy bike like yours tho...

Ali

[PBBoxer]

Nice report keith

Whens the Boxertrix Ring Long Weekend then??

Local chap from this area was killed at teh ring a week or two ago on his blackbird , bummer. Got to respect teh place havent you. I loved it but saw loads of crashes.

[m25jambuster]

Paul - the accident I talked about in the report was the bloke on the Blackbird. He was there with a guy on a K1200S on a 56 plate if I remember rightly. He was a really nice bloke. Spoke with him in the car park for a while.

[davegooch]

This is a copy of a post I put on another forum (our bikeclub website!) after my trip to Germany in August - I think I was a little more pedestrian than the original poster here...


Has anyone here ridden the Nurburgring? I did one lap last week - 13.6 miles (or so) of complete madness!!

There were any number of either fast, exotic, or both, vehicles there - Porsches, BMWs, hot hatches, a Nissan Skyline, Dodge Viper, GSXRs, MVs, Ducatis etc etc. We reckoned that at any one time there must have been a couple of million or more pounds worth being thrashed around the track.

Most of you know that while I'm not the quickest rider out there, I'm not exactly slow, and I very rarely, if ever, get passed by cars on the road. Well, in my entire lap I overtook two vehicles, and one of those was a recovery truck with a car & bike on the back - the other WAS a Porsche though, but just about everything else on the track, including some minis just flew past me.

In my defence I rather suspect that most of the others there had done dozens, if not hundreds, of laps, whereas I've never even done a track day before!! I should also mention the rules at the 'Ring - you can go as quickly as you like, within the scope of German traffic law, which basically says you can go as fast as the rider or driver, and machine, are capable of, so if you have a crash you have almost by definition gone too fast. They also only permit passing or overtaking on the left!! If you do come off, you are also liable for all the costs involved, including recovery off the track, any repairs, the time of the marshals & staff, and the lost earnings of the circuit if the track has to be closed at all. I was very conscious of all of that, as a result I was taking it very steady, spending half my time watching my mirrors, and sticking to the right for most of the lap - which did mess up quite a few of my lines!!

None of the others I was with fancied going round, as it seemed VERY busy - whether that was normal we don't know - but I decided to have a go while I had the chance. I'm glad I did as although we did go back a couple of times later on in the week the circuit wasn't open to the public, and we didn't fancy waiting 2 or 3 hours for it to re-open. Would I go round again - Hell Yes!! And I'd be quicker next time!!

By the way, one final note, I've heard various prices per lap being mentioned, €5 or €10 etc - at the moment if you buy one lap it costs €19, 4 laps costs €64, and the price come down the more laps you buy (in one go), or an annual season ticket costs €895 (I think) which is roughly £600 or so. If I lived out there I'd be very tempted......