"BeauM" (BeauM)
09/27/2015 at 01:17 • Filed to: None
15
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"BeauM" (BeauM)
09/27/2015 at 01:17 • Filed to: None | 15
| 4 |
I just got back from a trip to Germany. My wife planned everything, so we did a lot of castle sightseeing and other tourist activities. The one thing I insisted on was driving the Nurburgring. To do so, we ended up driving most of the way across Germany, but it was worth it.
The day before I was to drive, I got very nervous. I had never driven anything on a track except a gocart. I almost decided to just take a Ring Taxi ride. But it was too late.
I rented a Suzuki Swift from Rent 4 Ring. Top notch outfit, they made me very comfortable. I had to go through a safety briefing, get situated in the car, and learn Ring etiquette. Taking the advice of just about everyone, I decided to have an instructor go with me. I’m so glad I did.
Here I am with my track pass, trying to not look as scared as I was:
Getting fitted in the seat, learing the controls:
The swift only has around 140hp. It has no engine modifications, all the upgrades are in the suspension, brakes, tires and chassis.
Me with my car. The balaclava was kid of a PITA.
Then I got in and staged for my two laps, so I don’t have any pics. I took my GoPro, but it wasn’t turned on for the first lap. That’s OK, there were lots of yellow flags that lap, but I missed getting an Audi TT with the front end destroyed on video. I got he second lap on video though.
I got passed by a lot of cars. I’m not a heroic driver. I was scared, nervous and doing my best to follow what the instructor said.
It was an amazing experience, I had about as much fun as you can with your pants on. All I could think about for the next few days was getting my own race car.
-Beau
yitznewton
> BeauM
09/27/2015 at 01:53 |
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Great writeup! I think “only” 140 hp is probably a good number for a first trip to the Ring. How much prep did you do beforehand, with maps/videos/whatever? I suppose having a live instructor was better. Come to think of it, now that you mention that, I can’t imagine doing a first Ring trip without it.
How was the experience of being passed? I’ve seen a lot of aggressive behavior on Ring videos, and that would probably be my biggest concern going out there.
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BeauM
> yitznewton
09/27/2015 at 02:00 |
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I was CONSTANTLY looking in my mirrors. Thats why I stay to the right most of the time, people come up on you really fast. I wasn’t out there to set a record, I just wanted to make it without crashing. There were at least 5 crashes in the 2 hours or so I was around the Ring.
I really didn’t do any prep. I’ve driven the track in Forza, but I didn’t do any laps before I went. Which the instructors told me was a good thing. They said the folks that come in saying they know what they are doing because they did 500 laps in the game are the most likely to damage a car. :)
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yitznewton
> BeauM
09/27/2015 at 03:04 |
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For my track day in my hole-in-the-wall track, I watched a bunch of video beforehand... it allowed me to get a sense of the order of the turns and where I would be on the track, but the experience of orientation (angle and elevation) was missing. For a track of the size of the Nordschleife, I can’t imagine learning and remembering all the corners without driving them a bunch.
Tom McParland
> BeauM
09/27/2015 at 10:53 |
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Wow...thanks for sharing. Driving the Ring is on my bucket-list as well. Also, great $kaybait shirt, I got the same one.