RE: Ringside seat: tourist laps under threat

[Fireblade69]

redgriff500 said:

Isle Of Man - closer and cheaper.

If you go with a reasonable sized group they will (or did for us a few yrs ago) close the Mountain Section so you get the complete road.

I'm unsure why the Isle Of Man gets overlooked as Europe keeps tightening its once relaxed attitude to speed and the Ring is a financial disaster if you make a mistake.

EDIT - OK I'm starting to see why it's less popular, ferry crossing in the summer is £220 upwards

Edited by redgriff500 on Friday 20th January 21:07

Possible alternative were it not for the fact that the no speed limit does have some caveats and they seem to be a bit vague. Be intersting to see what the road closure will cost you though.

[McSam]

Nürburg. It's spelt Nürburg, and the umlaut doesn't get any less important every time you guys ignore it on a major motoring website. Being arsed to press ALT+0252 is all it takes to look like you understand..

[lexxluther]

It seems to me we are paying the price for making the Ring popular!! I've been on the Ring pilgrimage for a few years now and it's become so busy that the major vehicle brands have noticed. They all want to link their brand to a good lap time for their tin box. With help from Top Gear and Fifth Gear and others to lift its popularity the advertising seems to big and cheap. So could it be more a safety issue as to why the manufacturers get president over the public? I mean how many of us see a car bent at the side of the road and just go past and then get back on it. I know I do. Yes we pay but did you ever get any impression the staff of the ring care about the injured? No it's just the money they want! And so if it's the money they want who does the biggest revenue come from? I like most of you would love to know.
For me now the ring will be a visit of the atmosphere in the PistonClause more than a hot lap because of how crowded the Tarmac has become over a hot weekend.

Sad to see the road ahead looks like a British hi way . Black holes and grim hold ups.

Cheers.

[Great Pretender]

mrmr96 said:

Will the "prestige" of a "good ring time" for a sports car become less valued by car buyers if they can't actually take such cars to said track?!

It's not impossible to imagine; in the same way that walking on the moon must be one of life's better experiences, but is all but impossible to appreciate for most of us.

Ergo a 'ring time could soon be as relevant as a car's maximum towing capacity or the lowest temperature at which it can operate without freezing solid.

Worrying times indeed.

[Dan Trent]

McSam said:

Nürburg. It's spelt Nürburg, and the umlaut doesn't get any less important every time you guys ignore it on a major motoring website. Being arsed to press ALT+0252 is all it takes to look like you understand..

I feel your pain but my man Riggers warns me the content management system/some browsers "don't like umlauts". We could so the correct thing and write as Nuerburg instead but then we'd have to do it with everything and you'd end up writing 'Roehrl' and people would say "Walter who?" So it's not perfect but perhaps the least bad compromise.

Cheers!

Edited by Dan Trent on Saturday 21st January 08:42

[Life Saab Itch]

As highlighted by Dan's post above, PH mobile doesn't recognise them, so if they get quoted they go back to code.

Just like the pound sign. £.

[dazerc]

McSam said:

Nürburg. It's spelt Nürburg, and the umlaut doesn't get any less important every time you guys ignore it on a major motoring website. Being arsed to press ALT+0252 is all it takes to look like you understand..

Doesn't work on my pc or laptop. So give them a break

Edited by dazerc on Saturday 21st January 08:38

[Guybrush]

Hell, overborrowing, grandiose schemes, jacking up prices...has the ousted Labour government taken over the Nürburgring?

[Motorrad]

McSam said:

Nürburg. It's spelt Nürburg, and the umlaut doesn't get any less important every time you guys ignore it on a major motoring website. Being arsed to press ALT+0252 is all it takes to look like you understand..

I wouldn't worry about it, at least they aren't calling it the Nuremburgring.

This story highlights why I don't even consider visiting the place these days.

[GTRene]

its getting really expensive per lap anyway...26,-euro...I thought it was about 12,-euro per lap in 2002!!

but there is also some good news...there is a new circuit in Germany even closer to my home and its a special one ! not flat and well located.

it is called: Bilster Berg Driving Resort, Walter Róhrl has also helped making it.

I translated it a bit from our carforum... which also has planned some track-days in 2012 the first year (this year) it will be open (its that new)

[quote]The name ' small Nürburgring' is appropriate at this circuit, Walter Röhrl also helped to make it. All elements which turn the Nordschleife into a spectacle, are here also present; points where your car can come of the ground, blind turnings and unevennesses, you retrieve it all on Bilster Berg Drive Resort.
[/quote]

here you can find out more, its in Dutch but there is also a little video>>

http://www.driving-fun.com/2632/active/Bilster-Ber...

ow, here is the website link>> it will go open in Juli 2012

http://www.bilster-berg.de/

ow...here the Bilster website in English >> http://www.bilster-berg.de/en/home.html

Edited by GTRene on Saturday 21st January 09:09

[kellys hero]

cooldude27uk said:

mrmr96 said:

Will the "prestige" of a "good ring time" for a sports car become less valued by car buyers if they can't actually take such cars to said track?!

That is actually a very good point... take the public interest out of the track and the prestige of a good ring time is meaningless. They need to find a happy medium....

Totally agree, for buyers of cars that are tested on the Ring and with a proportion of the marketing aimed at the halo effect etc, I am sure a lot of the customers feel that they to could do a lap if they want to, many won't or haven't but the point is they could. Once any possibility of driving the legendary circuit is gone advertising reference to it is irrelevant which would then no doubt have knock on effect to the relevance of manufactures testing their maybe..

I made it across in 2009, doubt I would ever go back but I ticked a box. Possibly just in time.

[dandare1001]

It would be interesting to compare the revenue from TF to manufacturers' rentals. The Nuerburgring is a business, after all, so I assume they've looked at that.

There may be a (slightly weaker) alternative later this year: http://www.bilster-berg.de/en/home.html

I don't know if there'll be TF days, but it appears to be open for clubs and manufacturers alike, so could alleviate the crowding at the 'Ring and introduce some healthy competition.

[dandare1001]

@GTRENE You must have posted that as I wrote. Well done.
regards
Daniel

[GTRene]

dandare1001 said:

@GTRENE You must have posted that as I wrote. Well done.
regards
Daniel

same thoughts Daniel
our carforum/club is going there for 1 or 2 trackdays in 2012 I'm sure there is some room for other serious people who respect other cars/drivers too (no hooligans please) to join in.

ah 2 times it is>>

http://www.driving-fun.com/trackdays.aspx

on 16-08-2012 and on 31-10-2012

Edited by GTRene on Saturday 21st January 09:20

[snorkel sucker]

Me and a fee friends are considering making 2012 the year we pop our ring cherries and im in charge of sorting out the trip.

I noticed last week that the general days seemed to be very few, making a weekend trip a must, and increasing overall trip costs.

So, the trip itself now hangs in the balance and we're wondering whether it's worth going all that way to drive a more than likely hectic, busy track, or pay a lot less and take a trip o a uk circuit and do a trackday there.

Such a shame the ring owners are pushing people away

[anonymous-user]

snorkel sucker said:

Me and a fee friends are considering making 2012 the year we pop our ring cherries and im in charge of sorting out the trip.

I noticed last week that the general days seemed to be very few, making a weekend trip a must, and increasing overall trip costs.

So, the trip itself now hangs in the balance and we're wondering whether it's worth going all that way to drive a more than likely hectic, busy track, or pay a lot less and take a trip o a uk circuit and do a trackday there.

Such a shame the ring owners are pushing people away

Have a look into this. It's not cheap but it's the best way to experience the 'ring, no 3rd party insurance worries either. I did it last year and had a great time.

http://www.circuit-days.co.uk/nurburgring.asp#col2

[McSam]

Dan Trent said:

McSam said:

Nürburg. It's spelt Nürburg, and the umlaut doesn't get any less important every time you guys ignore it on a major motoring website. Being arsed to press ALT+0252 is all it takes to look like you understand..

I feel your pain but my man Riggers warns me the content management system/some browsers "don't like umlauts". We could so the correct thing and write as Nuerburg instead but then we'd have to do it with everything and you'd end up writing 'Roehrl' and people would say "Walter who?" So it's not perfect but perhaps the least bad compromise.

Cheers!

Thanks for the info - I wasn't aware that any browsers still had issue with it. It's quite frustrating for a German speaker who sees it spelt wrong everywhere, dropping an umlaut really does change meaning of the word, and I always want PH to look as good as it can! If it's something you've considered and decided you can't do for continuity/viewing reasons, though, then fair enough and we'll cope

[Dale Lomas]

I wrote the article on a Mac, bought over here, with umlauts and everything. But as Dan says, a lot of CMSs can't cope with it. It's odd, but all the umlauts above are coming out as code for me, not as ü or Ü. Ok, let me test some more and see what they come out as... çÇ éÉáÁ

Nothing to see here, move along now....

BACK ON TOPIC (well, slightly less OFF topic)...

BILSTERBERG! Everybody's quite excited about this, myself included. Ground breaking very soon and I'm already booked on one of the first trackdays too... can't wait.

[Dan7357]

I have been going for the last 6-7 years and seen it going downhill. Ok I only do one or two laps when I am there, but I go with around 15 friends, more for the drive and social event.(oh, and steak on a stone)

It seems when Top Gear showed the UK what they were missing out on it changed, you started getting people who just wanted to lap under 10 mins no matter what car they were driving.

It then changed again when the new shops and hotels were built.

I was looking into sorting another trip for this year, but the thought of no parking, traffic everywhere just does not do it for me.

Do they not know how they are killing the place..The passion for cars and having a good petrolhead meet is gone, its all about money now.

More TF days would make more people come, making more money. You would think being German they would put the people first. I understand car makers want to use it too, but can't one person sort a balance out?


I vote we all buy some land, and build the 'Ring 2, right here in the UK.

[ellis427]

was planning to stay a few extra days after this years 24hours again to get on the circuit, guess that plans fked...

guess spa it is then