r4_rick

Saturday...finally become a Subaru owner (01 Forester turbo s)
Sunday......Belgian GP (lucky enough to be with the Jaguar team)
Monday....Drove the Nurburgring, wow what an experience, as all the motoring mags say, one of life's ultimate driving experiences.

Those 3.0 Z4s are superb, handling, gearchange, engine (sounds superb...almost TVR like). sat nav helped too !!, and not having to worry about thrashing your own car. Driving the ring is just awesome, some of the Porsches were flying around. Great to be surrounded by like minded folks

Talking of which there was a very nice STi8 there reg no S300B DO, anyone know of him ?

Today was not too expensive either, easyjet fly to Cologne from East Mids, you can get that really cheap if you book early enough, add on 56 euros for 5 laps of the ring, say 40 for fuel and 109 for the car, split between 2, not an expensive day in the scheme of things.

nice to make the most of a bank holiday !

CHRIS_D

that'll be gary

posts on here as Gutmann Pug mate

chris

MarvSTi5

Beats decorating !!

PALATINE

congrats on the forester mate!
www.subaruforester.com

r4_rick

thanks palatine you have pm

anyone know of when the cambelt should be changed on the forester turbo s 01 ?

stevem2k

earlier of 4yrs/60k as I recall for an 01 rick. Service Book will confirm


Steve

davyboy

I was there as well in the Clio C172 CUP

Dave

Gutmann pug

That will be me in S300B DO .........

r4_rick

Gutman Pug and Davyboy

Is that the best day out or what !!!!!!!

I remember Davyboy howling past in the Cup !, still it was my first everlap, what route did you guys take to the ring ?

I just looked on the easyjet site, book now for March 05 and you can fly for £11 return !, still with cars like your I can appreciate the desire to drive there.

davyboy

The cup was moving rather fast at times!

Gutmann pug

dover calais .brussels, liege, aachen (ish) 258 to the ring ........ sorted.

davyboy

lambos, 360s, gt3rs, Carrera gts the cars there this weekend the for Scuderia course was simply breath taking. I am sure footage will be forthcoming......

Highlights were:-
9:04 BTG in the Cup ( I accidently recorded this lap - just need some web space)

A lap in a genuine 1972 2.7 911 rs, that lap will stay with me for a very long time. For a car that is so valuable to be driven at full pelt was incredible!

being on the track at the same time as the cars mentioned above

Low points
Seeing a 360 CS, 996 turbo, 996 gts crashed
Rain

njkmr

Davy Davy wake up lad.lol!!!!!!!!

davyboy

Just as a taster....................

Gutmann pug

Hightlights

8.41 following challenge stradale
quicker lap racing CSL
whooping stradale and 911 turbo etc etc in the wet
Eating steak, drinking beer, talking shxit and driving fast

Low points
Problem with car whilst racing CSL throttle stuck fully open (gulp)
Problem with car on way home (not being discussed untill fully sorted with third party)
23 1/2 hour recovery from Brussels.

Flingstam

Hey guys,

I was also there for the first time in my amazing Toyota Starlet Glanza V. It rocked big time. I think my fastest lap time was in the low 7's... Yeah, I know, only kidding.

It's fun to be faster than people in much more powerful cars, mainly because their driver's weren't trying as hard as me. That track shows up the level of commitment of the drivers more than any other I know of. Mistakes are not tolerated, 'cause there ain't no run off. Fortunately, my car tolerates incompetent driving a lot more than most. So incompetent driving was what I demonstrated. Safe, buit not pretty. Lots of fun, though.

I was held up by a BMW M3 CSL being driven by a big girl's blouse in the wet, probably because he was terrified of stuffing it into the scenery. If our positions had been reversed, I'm sure I would have been just as slow as he was. I wouldn't have been in everyone else's way nearly as much, though.

Guttman Pug overtook us 3 times on the way to the 'Ring. His fuel consumption must be pretty poor, unless he was warming up by doing laps of Belgium. He also had a comical "running in, please pass" sticker on his rear screen. That would explain how he was only running laps in the high 8's. That's about 40 seconds more than Walter Rohrl can do all day every day in a Porsche GT3, so I guess Mr Pug needs a little more practice. Only kidding, again.

Davyboy, I trust you and your lady are going to get a Formula 1 booster cushion and HANS for the little girl you were flying around with. We were wearing crash helmets, and my car was equipped with bucket seat and 3-point harness, just to be on the safe side. Being punted into the armco by a lunatic trying to set a fast time in that place doesn't bear thinking about. Having said that, there were a few people haring around in cabriolets wearing nothing stronger than a cotton T-shirt and smoking cigarettes while driving with one elbow out the window. Scary, and that was just the dodgy 'taches and mullets.

My car boiled it's brake fluid on the 3rd lap, and ate it's front discs on the 6th (my pads are/were well 'ard). Uprating the braking for next time seems like a pretty good idea. Learning to drive without hammering the brakes so much is a more difficult option, probably.

Cheers,

F

Dazza01

Forgive me for being thick, but how does SAT NAV help you drive the ring

davyboy

When she is in the car, the car is not flying......her safety is paramount.

I think the ring can be enjoyed safely and let kids see it.

Shall I wrap her in cotton wool too?

Gutmann pug

Flingstam .........

First overtake .......caught ya
second ................after petrol stop
Third....................food stop and no way i could sit behind you lot and that big lorry all the way along the bumpy road, would have driven me potty

Since when has fule consumption ever been a consideration where the ring is concerned? ...... I only get 7 laps to a tank when im there guuuulp

I have been overtaken by Walter Rohrl at the ring before and I think you will find he runs quicker than stated in his everyday hack.

Davyboy is by far the safest driver I have been in a car with. I wouldnt let my other half in with him if I didnt think so. He also has a reputation for his driving miss daisy speeds when young Hollie is on board.

Sat Nav at the ring would be hilarius .......''in 100 yards turn leeeeeeeft ...arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh crash''

Nice to see you along anyway. I was gonna come say hello but i never saw you with your car, or on the track for that matter.

2 weeks to go and its back there again tick tock tick tock

Gutmann pug

The external roads around the ring are more dangerous than the ring itself by the way

Flingstam

Guys,

I in no way meant to insinuate that Davyboy is anything other than a very safe driver. I'm sure that he's the safest driver on the track when his daughter is in the car. What I was talking about is the nutcases on the track who drive fast without any regard for other track users. I saw a few at the weekend. A couple of them came very close to killing bikers, and some of the bikers appeared to have death wishes too. Being a safe driver doesn't mean that you're going to be safe, unfortunately.

As it was my first time at the 'Ring, I only did 6 laps and spread them out over two days. I also only went out when it was reasonably quiet. Wouldn't want to get too carried away, or in the way of too many aggressive people. When I wasn't driving, I was passengering in one of the other three cars in the group, or spectating, or eating.

I will return to the Ring too, probably once Rich has his Skyline GT-R fully SVA'd. That will be fun.

Cheers,

f

davyboy

Understood. I know some people would think it crazy.......

Funnily enough we nearly killed some bikers on Saturday evening......in the wet a guy carrying a passenger came off 6 feet in front of us! Nearly ran the bugger over!

6 Laps.................you should be ashamed of yourself!

I do that before breakfast!

170 laps and counting........well not any more, but I suspect that is a fairly close lap count.

Gutmann pug

The whole place is crazy but thats why its so appealing. As for crazy driving im not convinced. The worst drivers are those who dont understand the overtaking rules and indicate or move to the wrong side of the track........If you know the rules, watch your mirrors and get the hell out the way of anything which catches you your safe as can be on any track............... Oh and always drive within your limits of course.

Next time you go mate you will start to learn it and the time after you will get quicker etc etc ..... It goes on and on and on

Oh and Davey Boy .....just a slight correction ... You do 6 laps before breakfast but they are normally in my car coz your still feeling a little wooley headed from the night before

davyboy

lol

I managed it Sunday morning...........I set a curfew on myself

r4_rick

in answer to the sat nav question.....

getting from cologne to the ring without a hardcopy map.

....I take it I am not on my own....place is intoxicating for petrol heads and boy was i shaking after first lap...being in the passenger seat with my good lady driving her 1st ever lap on a track was interesting too !

How does doing the ring compare to say a track day at snetterton ?

Rick

davyboy

It doesn't!

I have not done one track day this 'ring season, as that would be money I could spend going to the 'ring.

The 'ring is all intoxicating, and is now the source for an awful lot of my income!

Next on the list for me is the Scuderia driving course and the GLP timed event.

Gutmann pug

GLP bring it on .......... If i can find someone to sit next to me of course haha.

2 weeks and counting Dave

As a person said on another thread a while back ........''The ring is nothing special as a track, I would much rather drive Castle combe'' .......... Any comments from anyone who has just got back from Germany???? ...

olliecampbell

iTrader: (3)

When youve done the ring, do they give you that little sticker to go on the back of your car or do you have to pay extra for that?

Ive always wondered

Gutmann pug

You have to buy the sticker yourself

Flingstam

Castle Combe is a very good racing circuit. The Nurburgring Nordschliefe is one of the greatest driving experiences on earth. Too dangerous to use as a race track other than a couple of days a year, it provides an amazing adrenalin rush for those wishing to press on. It also acts as the most amazing laxative...

By the end of my 3rd lap (on which I'd overtaken a Porsche 944, and was doing the same to an M3), I was so wired with adrenalin that I was shaking, and I had to take a long break to calm down. I also needed to give my car a rest, as I'd just boiled the brake fluid. I can't think of anywhere you can drive an "ordinary" car that gives you such a buzz. It's so long and with so many corners that it's really challenging to drive, the weather conditions can be different for every mile that you drive, and it requires maximum concentration even when you're not pushing, as you have to make sure you're not in the way of a flying GT3 (or Mk1 Golf, for that matter). Modern race circuits don't even come close (although I really like Donington).

Oh yeah, and the stickers come in many different sizes and colours. There's some lovely pastel shades, gold, flourescent green...