Have any of you been on The Ring (“Northern Loop”/Green Hell/14.173 mi)?? Please vote in the poll below. Also, if you have been please share your stories! I have not been to the Nürburgring yet, but I definitely plan to do so. I have seen tons of videos of other cars driving on it and I’ve seen Top Gear’s episodes about it and it is one track I must experience.
From Autoweek:
Green Hell is how Jackie Stewart described the original 14.2-mile Nordschleife (North loop) of the Nürburgring race circuit. It is where Niki Lauda’s near fatal accident in 1976 led to its abandonment as a Formula One venue and the construction of a modern 3.2-mile circuit adjacent to it.
Here’s a video of Jeremey Clarkson being driven around The Ring by Sabine Schmitz in an M5:
Here’s a video of Jeremy Clarkson racing Sabine around The Ring:
Here’s a video of a racing driver (Barry Horne) showing a student how to drive The Green Hell:
Looking forward to your comments on this blog post. You can type up your comments in the comments-area below.
Enjoy!
Comment from Johan on LinkedIn (submitted by Izabel): Just saw your post about the Nurburgring. I’ve been there a couple time and did 1 round by car and +/- 10 by motorbike (Suzuki GSX-R 750). It’s about time that I go again since last time was a couple years ago and it’s only about 275 kilometers from where I live.
In the winter it is also possible to ride the ring in the snow on a quad (www.zakspeed.de). The best thing on the ring is the height difference which gives the ride an extra dimension.
Johan
p.s.1 The picture that goes with the blogpost is the GP track, the movies are shot on the “Nordschleife” (northern loop) which is the old circuit. Both circuits are next to each other and can be connected.
p.s.2 My girlfriend has the same bubblegum pink laptop as you do
WOW!! I want to be Sabine!!!
Hi Johan
Thanks for the comment
. I’ve updated the blog post to clarify that I was indeed referring to the Green Hell, and not the new GP circuit.
Happy Posting!
Izabel
Hi guys
Great post! Sabine rocks! Top Gear rocks! This site rocks!!!
Keep up the great posts!
Nazmul.
Hi Johan
Have you ever been around the Green Hell on a quad, in winter? That sounds pretty interesting
. I saw this great video of a guy driving a 996 in the snow around The Ring (http://www.coochas.com/porsche/Resources/996.12nordschleifewinter.wmv), which inspired me to find some snow covered roads near where I lived and drive sideways… too much fun!!! 
. My car didn’t have PSM, so it was even more fun 
.
Elevation changes are great fun on a track… there’s a great (but underrated) track in the US called VIR – http://virclub.com/. It has lots of elevation changes, is about 3 – 4 miles long (depending on the configuration you run), and is loads of fun! I would love to drive the Green Hell one day
.
The Nordschleife is a very difficult and dangerous track. Next to the track there is mostly a small area of grass. and then the metal fences. A small mistake
can cause a lot of damage. There is always a good chance for some rain or moisture in the morning on the track.It takes at least a couple of daus learning the track. Nobody can go there at full speed after 2 or 3 round. that is suicide.
A good way for PCA members is to join “Scuderia Hanseat” .(Google)
They have a profesionally organised driving course (1000km in 3 days)
ih have done that now 7 times over the last 5 years. We used to go with the PCA Germany region every year untill it was eliminated.
The name: the green hell ,really has its meaning if you are not well trained
Yes, I had the pleasure of doing a driver school on the ‘ring. I happened to be in Germany on business with a fellow car nut and we both had wanted to experience it for ourselves.
We used RSR Nürburg (http://www.rsrnurbug.com) for the rentals and instruction. They did a good job, lead-follow with radios. I guarantee you will be much faster following them than trying to figure it all out yourself. We were soon passing much more powerful cars because we had the advantage of the instructors’ local knowledge. The track is seriously fast, with more elevation changes than you think (almost 1000 ft over the course), but passing is still controlled. Many corners are blind, quick, with virtually no run-off room…and no corner workers. First thing you do is program the Nürburgring emergency number into your mobile phone in case you come upon the unfortunately frequent wreck.
You’ll see an interesting mix of autos on the ‘ring…from exotics (Carrera GT, Lambos, etc.) to a 40-seat tour bus (not kidding).
If you go, I recommend staying at the Dorint hotel at the track (it’s literally meters from the track…but be prepared for it to be loud). Also make a stop at a local restaurant, the Pistenklause. It’s a great watering hole/restaurant filled with racing memorabilia. One can only imagine the stories swapped here. Getting to Nürburg can be a headache unless you rent a car, as it’s a surprisingly small town in the woods. Public transport to/from doesn’t really exist.
If you want to do the famous ring taxi, book well in advance as it’s sold out for weeks. Cancellations are first come first serve (and passed out on Monday…I think). We didn’t do the taxi, but was passed by Sabine. There is another company that does ring demo rides in a Viper. RSR Nürburg offers them as well (in a GT3RS…was expensive, but quite a blast).
Cheers,
-Erik
Keep it shiny side up!
Wow thanks Erik. I am saving all this information. I am going to do it! I will!!! Not sure when but I will post pics and stories
I have gotten brochures from PCA about a European vacation with Porsches and you get to pick what you want to drive, a 911 or Cayman and I think this is the same thing. I will have to go check to. It was quite reasonably priced too. It is my dream vacation, though, i think if i went to visit Germany I would never come back to the US 
I would go work as a Porsche mechanic somewhere and drive my car on the The Ring everyday, hehehe:)
Also, the Dorint hotel sounds perfect. I cant imagine a better thing to wake up to
I just drove a 911 carrera for the first time today. I was speeding all day.
Not a problem…if you have more questions, let me know. I actually wrote up the story in more detail for possible use in our PCA newsletter.
The Dorint hotel was nice, but no frills…I opened the door to my room with screaming motorcycles outside. Of course, like any gear-head, I opened up the window and sat on the balcony to watch. If you plan to watch a more popular race, book well in advance. If you want to do the 24 hour race at the ‘ring, a lot of people camp. (the source of much of the graffiti are the campers from the rock the ‘ring concert campers)
Cheers,
-Erik
Yes please share your article about your time there. That would be awesome. Please register for an account and post it. Let me know if you have any questions.
It really surprises me that the instructor in the bottom video is a real racing instructor – his hands are in the wrong positions on the steering wheel for the whole length of the video, he would have little control on the limits.
He seems to know the circuit fairly well though.
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