Nurburgring with Speed Limits

"RWS Motorsport" (rwsmotorsport) 04/17/2015 at 16:10 • Filed to: Nurburgring

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This weekend saw the first race at the Nurburgring since Jann Mardenboroughs awful accident at Flugplatz. Im not going to comment on either the cause of the accident, but I will add my 2 pennies worth to the solution. However, not until you watch this video:

That is footage from onboard the Falken Tyres Porsche (not the same one as in TUSCC). Can you honestly say the track still isnt impressive and utterly mental even with 4 speed limited sections.

Now, for my opinion on the speed limits.

Its the best solution to a monumentally awkward problem. You cant create a ring specific car/variant for GT3, it will kill all the guest entries that make the 24h more special than the other ‘normal’ VLN races.

Changing the track itself, hmm, not going to be popular.

Changing the catch fencing, safety area etc, take more than 6 weeks to change, and thats all they had before the 24h, let alone before this qualifying race and the other VLN race before the 24h. This is the long term solution (if you ask me) but it is a long term solution. It cant happen quickly, so the speed limits have to work for now.

Personally, all I can say is bloody well done to the organisers for making a swift, intelligent decision which can be easily enforced, managed, and requires no changes to anything other than some slight GPS management (above and beyond the code 60 they already have anyway).

Tareim - V8 powered > RWS Motorsport 04/17/2015 at 16:26

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I think it has made it far too processional now, they have lost some great overtaking opportunities, especially down the Döttinger Höhe I just couldn’t help but think put your foot down, over take! but they couldn’t due to the stupid speed limit

Hermann > RWS Motorsport 04/17/2015 at 16:29

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It’s a clever solution for these races for now. Minor races probably don’t achieve speed enough to take flug at the flugplatz anyway, so they probably don’t need to enforce it to them.

I know it’s a historic race track, but they could update, not really change, some of these stretches like the Mulsanne, adding a slight kink or something to make drivers slow down. It wouldn’t change the layout, as they could just put cones and apexes to the kink for races that require limits.

I know it wouldn’t be popular. But it’s probably better in the long term.

RWS Motorsport > Hermann 04/17/2015 at 16:50

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I think they could change the safety provisions, catch fencing, gravel traps, moving spectators back at critical areas etc rather than changing the track, but I take your point, that Le Mans has hardly suffered since the Chicanes on the Mulsanne.

I think pretty much all the VLN races have GT3 cars in them though, teams like Falken Porsche, Frikadelli Porsche, Schuberth BMW, Schultze Nissan etc, run in pretty much everything so everything has these cars in them (and bear in mind, the ban that was brought in, covered everything faster than a TTRS, so all the Porsche Cup cars were banned too. about 1/3rd of the grid were dropped.

Tareim - V8 powered > Hermann 04/17/2015 at 16:50

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well as the accident only happened at flugplatz why does the Döttinger Höhe have to suffer a speed limit? also putting cones down would be a very temporary measure as you can be sure they are going to get knocked out of the way, even cause some problems if people run them over

RWS Motorsport > Tareim - V8 powered 04/17/2015 at 16:53

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I agree, its a shame that the Dottinger Hohe has been restricted, as the drafting battles down there are (were) brilliant, but personally id rather have a huge grid of amazing GT3 machinery, fighting all the way round the track, and sadly being abit processional down the Dottinger Hohe, than loose all the guest entries because they are banned/forced to change their spec. Just my opinion of course..

Hermann > Tareim - V8 powered 04/17/2015 at 16:57

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I mean cones/apex/plastic wall things like the Chicanes they add to the Mulsanne in La Sarthe. The road just got a reroute that’s used when necessary:

RallyWrench > RWS Motorsport 04/17/2015 at 17:44

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I agree, it’s certainly the best solution they could have implemented on such a short timeline.

mwoodski > RWS Motorsport 04/18/2015 at 17:34

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What’s the situation around the run up to Flugplatz? What would stop them from paving it entirely between the armco and setting up a temporary chicane with some kerbs and tire bundles?

RWS Motorsport > mwoodski 04/18/2015 at 18:04

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I think its possible, but I dont know how much land either side of the track the Ring owns. Its very narrow down there, so might not be that easy, and theres a bridge over the road at the bottom of the hill on the run up to flugplatz, so no chicane is possible there.

Tarmac run off sadly wouldnt have helped in the Mardenborough crash, as he was already airbourne by the time he was into the run off.

mwoodski > RWS Motorsport 04/18/2015 at 18:19

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Oh, I know.

I’m just trying to think of something to do to lift the temporary speed limit, haha.