So...
The Nurburgring
I'll start off by saying, this place is petrolhead nirvana. It's everything you'd imagine it to be, and a whole lot more. Sure, it's a rich man's playground but luckily they also let people like me go there!
I went with two pals, in a Civic Type-R, standard apart from drilled/ grooved brakes and an Audi R8 V10, also standard.
We met at Le Shuttle and just had time for what would be the first of numerous trips to fast food outlets.
At Dover by
David James, on Flickr
The drive through France, Belgium and Germany was fine apart from epic traffic on the Brussels ring road and a constant battle against the relentless heat inside the Astra. I've never lusted after aircon, but after 6 hrs of searing heat (which eventually made me feel physically sick), I was about to keel over. It was almost unbearable at times.
Anyway, we got to our home for the next four days, and what a treat....!
House view by
David James, on Flickr
We stayed at a place called Hain, a sleepy village with epic views. Our place had a glass fronted living area, which looked out at magnificent scenery. Sort of like the place a Bond villain would own, just as a getaway from the rigours of running an evil empire.
It was a 30 min drive to the 'ring, so quite convenient.
We went for an initial ride out in the Civic to scope the place out on the evening of our arrival and immediately realised, the whole place was so big and magnificent, we had to ask a friendly local in a Fiat Uno Turbo (remember them?!) where the Nordschleife entrance was.
When you find the place, you visit a very nondescript cabin to buy your laps on the 'Green Hell'.
Five laps (to use any time in the next 3 years) costs 150 Euros.
After a disappointingly **** night's sleep, we returned the next day and parked up in the overflow paddock.
At Nurburg by
David James, on Flickr
Something for everyone here! The sheer variety of vehicles is great. There were plenty of UK, German, Italian, French registrations there and without exception, people are happy to talk and socialise with like-minded individuals.
Onto the track. With Green Hell card in hand, you filter towards the track entrance, scan your card and off you go!
Start by
David James, on Flickr
I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a bit daunting as you join the track. You're mixing it with some seriously fast machinery, just waiting to tear past you.
As above, I found the Astra very out of its depth! I'm sure half the problem was me; the idiot braking for corners you could take flat out etc, but it was my first time there! I'm not sure how long it would take you to learn the track but after 5 laps, I was slowly remembering where a few corners were
The biggest problem I had was with the GSi's handling. Where it feels relatively taught on public roads, it felt sloppy and wooden on the track. The steering seemed very slow and when the car lost grip, it drifted quite neutrally, which then scrubbed off any speed you'd built up, leaving you rolling and floundering out of the corner, which then showed up the C18XE's lack of grunt. If you messed up in the Civic or R8, you'd have so much more power, you could almost redeem yourself with the throttle out of the corner. The Astra was also quite unsettled on twisty sections like
Schwalbenschwanz, the back would bounce around a bit, making you close to crapping yourself at times
On track2 by
David James, on Flickr
On track by
David James, on Flickr
I suppose I was a bit spoilt by the (much newer and more capable) Type-R and R8. They both felt safer and faster. I think I was holding up many cars and having a constant stream of Porsche GT3's and BMW M-divisions up your jacksey, then screaming past at 150mph takes concentration
We then let the cars cool down and decided to take a ride out in one of the many 'ring taxis' touting for business!
Apex taxi by
David James, on Flickr
This thing was utterly amazing. You pay your... ummm... 250+ euros and a proper driver takes you for a hot lap in a very modified BMW M3. I have never been around corners so fast in my life. A really incredible experience and well worth it. The guy really knew how to drive, very humbling!
Pictures of your fleet are compulsory (and make you look like a proper noob) but we didn't care!
Evening by
David James, on Flickr
Would I go back? Definately! Would I take the Astra GSi? Not without some mods. I knew it would be a little out of its comfort zone, but I didn't feel as if I was enjoying it as much as the others. Maybe I was expecting a little too much?
Whatevs, it was an amazing experience. If you're even the tiniest bit into cars, you'll love the Nurburgring
The atmosphere is so good and everyone is happy to talk and show you their cars.