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Forums › The Car › Photoshoot Gallery › Nurburgring Trip, now got the bug, I will be back!! |
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 Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 7:41 am |
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Joined: Feb 07, 2010
Posts: 801
Trade Rating: +2
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As some of you may know this year was my 1st trip the Nurburgring. Not that I was excited or anything, its something I have wanted to do since I could drive, done hundreds of laps of it on the forza and needed to go and live the dream. Happened like all good things, mentioned it to a mate in the pub, he was up for it. Got a couple of others involved and off we went.
Didnt take us long to get it booked up, just looked on the internet for the touristenfahrten date, chose a weekend and book accommodation and a boat.
The date we picked didnt have alot of track time, we booked it knowing that it might open up after VLN Saturday evening but would be open all Sunday. This was on purpose, the idea of this trip was to get to know the area, and find out how it all worked, without feeling the need to put the car through huge amounts of laps on the track.
So this is how it all started out:
4am. 2 Cars 4 people loaded up for the ring, to be at the ferry port for just before 7.
Packed included clothes obviously!! trolley jack, some tools, helmets, oil and brake fluid.
Also had European break down cover just in case!!
Chose the ferry as it was cheaper than the tunnel, had food and a chance to kick back and relax.
Got to the other side around half 9 local time and drove on down the E40 all the way to Nurburg pretty much. Once you get to the final hour you come of the motorway on to B roads, loads of great bends, hairpins and views!! Winding you down into the forest.
We rocked up around half 2 at our hotel, Burgstube. Great owners Martin and Heidi welcomed us, we were told to make ourselfs at home and then come back down when we were ready for a saftey briefing as we were 1st timers.
www.burgstube.com/
So after we got ourself settled we went down for the safety briefing, now this wasnt some causal chat about the do's and don'ts out there it was serious. We were sat down to watch a video of a lap, showing us where it all could go wrong so easily (every coner and straight). Each time Martin would stop the tape point to his "crash map" on the wall to talk us through some else's miss fortune. Then he went into liabilities the fact your not insured going to jail yada yada yada. This killed the mood well and truely, I already knew the risks but this brought it home. This was a no messing brief, shock and oar style. Martin is now known as the fun sponge!!
We then moved onto talking about the VLN race the next day, basically a 6hr endurance race where lots of difference classed car compete, from clio 182' to le mans group B style cars. He talked us through where was best to go watch round the track, going down to the paddock and looking and all the necessaries bits. Then his mate who was competing walked in moans about binning the car during practise. Brilliant!!!
Then came some good news "touristenfahrten days after a VLN is when the track is a its most grippy, however if it rains after the race the track is a its most slippy, like ice" wise words. Sun was shining so great!!
That even we went for a walk and then back up to a restaurant by the hotel for food this is where we also discovered bitburger beer. If you take nothing away from this report, try some of this next time you find it on tap its amazing. After a few to many we went to bed for VLN the next day.
VLN next day was great to watch although there is alot of walking to get to the good spots round the track and these are not well made foot paths. We stopped of at a few spots to watch.
after this we went and explored a bit more around the area.
Then we went back for food, for dinner we went to Sabine Smit's ( one off top gear on anything ring related) parents Pistenklause Restaurant. We had steak on the stone, was recommend to be by a friend so had to try it.
I would recommend it to it was great.
I had a coke as I wanted to chuck my so called "petrol head" friends who were scared to be driven fast round the local roads out of the car and I went for blast.
This went well hammering round the twisties and hairpins coming out hairpins in 4wd drift ;). Also definitely found a local in an arbarth 500 that was racing me up the hill side fast and furious style, hit 130 on a straight road that runs parallel to the ring main straight. Then slowed up and had a look at the ring car park, he pulled in and complimented me on my flames from the exhaust and asked a few questions.
I then shot of to the hotel to catch up on some bitburger before bed and the big day. 
Woke up to find rain, the words of martin ringing in my ears about the track being at its slippiest if it rains after VLN, made me feel crap and scared haha. Went down for breakfast for Hiedi tp start telling us not to bother going out and go back to bed. So what did we do??
My mate not driving, went down and hired a swift, we bought some laps and headed on out. Him in the Swift with passenger and me in the TT with passenger.
Yes it was slippy but the just mean we slowed down and took in the track. Only had one nutter in a Clio RS come past other than that no cars on the road! I was very glad I had played it on the xbox to know the ruff layout, but did not expect the gradients there mental.
After completing a lap and looking around the car park the sun came out and we went and watch for a bit, and during the course of the day headed back out to completed a few more DRY laps between ring closure's due to accidents.
Some finally of me out on track 
And some shots of the track:
Dry laps were great fun, except when the following happens:
Ibiza curpa R nearly rear ends you twice because hes a d**k.
Compete 911 GT3 club of 6 cars comes fly past through high speeds bends not waiting for you to move out the way and the come either side of you.
Out of my own interest to see how easy this 10 minute lap was I timed using a GPS app my 1st dry lap was a 10.52, not to bad. Martin was expecting 1st timers to be more into the 13 mins. This only improve around half a minute as there was a lot of cars on track and I kept coming across safety cars and accidents. That time may sound slow to you, but for me a time of that kind of pace meant a fun safe lap without me taking any risks more that already being there.
After this we left a 7pm to be back at the ferry for midnight. This made it along day!! Very glad to get back to bed!
I will do this again but next time I will do 4 days, bring chairs to sit and watch the action on, and make sure I have decent shoes to walk miles in. haha
Any questions let me know!
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 7:43 am |
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Joined: Feb 10, 2010
Posts: 4014
Trade Rating: +2
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Great Pics, loving that Corsa.
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Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 11:10 am |
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Joined: Jan 26, 2010
Posts: 3432
Trade Rating: +1
Location: Kent
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Good to hear you made it back  looks amazing the atmosphere must be even better! will catch up on fb hear all the bits you haven't said
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Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 5:04 am |
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Joined: Feb 07, 2010
Posts: 801
Trade Rating: +2
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| Dillon wrote: |
| Good to hear you made it back looks amazing the atmosphere must be even better! will catch up on fb hear all the bits you haven't said |
What are you suggesting I might not have said about haha
Also saw a white what looked like 180, but had wrc edition on it. Is this a really 206 edition?
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Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2012 6:30 am |
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Joined: Feb 07, 2010
Posts: 3666
Trade Rating: +59
Location: Scotland
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| Rich196 wrote: |
| Dillon wrote: |
| Good to hear you made it back looks amazing the atmosphere must be even better! will catch up on fb hear all the bits you haven't said |
What are you suggesting I might not have said about haha
Also saw a white what looked like 180, but had wrc edition on it. Is this a really 206 edition? |
It will be a RC.
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'04 Obsidian Black 206 GTi 138 | |
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