The Nordschleife is the northern section of the original Nürburgring which used to extend south of the village and included the South Curve, where the present Grand Prix track now is and which was home to the pit lane and start straight, and the Südschleife, which looped down through Müllenbach but has almost disappeared nowadays under public roads. Some of the Rassrück section can still be seen running alongside the L93 road with the upper section now forming access roads for the modern GP circuit.

Visiting the Ring today means riding the Nordschleife, over 12 miles of bendy ups and downs with a few straightish bits thrown in; the map shows the basic layout. The old car park at the top of Hohen-Rain was getting far too crowded as the 'Ring became more popular, especially with cars, so in the late 90s the new much larger car park was opened down on the main straight, hence the start point is now on the straight between the 18 and 19km marks. Unfortunately the new car park also meant new ticket barriers and automation, so the days of getting free laps were over.

The change to the car park also meant the loss of the full main straight and the challenge of maxing it under the bridge. A shame, but no way would the old set-up work with the traffic the 'Ring has to take now.

OK, first off we should get one thing straight here - the Nürburgring is a very dangerous place to be on a motorbike. That's why they stopped racing there, and those guys get paid to take risks. It is quite possible you will be killed at the Ring, plastered onto the armco barrier and smashed to bits. This is no trackday. And it's not even as if you can just poodle round and enjoy the view. Dozens of mad bastards in outrageous cars and nutters on bikes cutting you up on every bend will soon make you realise this place is not for sightseeing.

Apart from the obvious dangers of blind bends, no runoff, armco, loads of bikers with varying levels of skill and mad Germans in high powered cars, one of the biggest causes of crashes is oil spills, usually from cars blowing their engines. Porsches seem to be particularly adept at this. If you're following a fast car and it spills its guts you have little time to take any avoiding action. Keep an eye out for spectators waving frantically - it may not be because you're riding like Valentino.

If you drop oil on the circuit you'll be charged for the cleanup ... £1000 for a long trail, so pull over pronto if your engine blows and warn others of any spill. And if other vehicles crash on your oil your insurance company will be looking at a very big payout.

Any crashes involving more than 2 vehicles automatically involve plod. Make sure all your papers are OK and that you are fully insured, otherwise you will wind up in chokey.

Overtaking can be tricky, and it's easy to get impatient with a slower vehicle, but don't overtake on the right unless they indicate left and make it clear they've seen you. Hit someone and it's your fault. If you're not sure, it's safest to wait until they pull to the right to give you room.

As the ring is a public road all the usual insurance stuff applies, so you should be covered if you dump the bike and if someone takes you out you can claim against them. As Germans drive on the right then that is where you should be unless you are overtaking. As far as we know, the only odd thing is if someone crashes into the back of you when you're wobbling about on the left side of the circuit and don't get out of the way - apparently under German law you're to blame. So use your mirrors, and if someone comes up behind you assume he's quick and will want to get by!

Many people on the circuit are driving or riding with 100% concentration, and may not realise that someone faster is behind and trying to get by. Don't be impatient and be careful if you force an overtake. No one here is getting paid except the ambulance guys. For bikers it's worth remembering that there are some very quick cars out there, especially noticeable in the tighter sections where their superior grip really gives them a speed advantage. If you hear the dreaded squeak of rubber behind you get out of the way ... you can always try to get your own back in the uphill sections. But don't piss quickish cars off by being limp and holding them up through the bends and then blasting off along the straights so they can't get past. Much better to let them go and try and keep with them - you may learn how to do bends!

Every year we see more English riders at the Ring, and a lot of them don't check their mirrors for faster traffic - or if they do, they're not bothering to get out of the way. You may be top dog at Donnington, but you'll be dog slow on the Nordschleife until you've done many laps and learned the circuit. Experienced ringers reckon it takes between 50 and 100 laps to master the circuit. So use your mirrors and let the quick guys past - one day it'll be you!

You can't get away from weather, it's all over the place. The Ring is located in the Eifel Mountains, so local weather conditions are not always the same as in the general region. Most times if you go in the summer months you should have dry sunny weather, but go in April, May or September and it can be very cold, with low clouds obscuring the course and making everything dank and wet. Last April it even snowed. The circuit is not a good place to be when it's wet, as it gets very slippery from all the rubber deposited on the track, and with little runoff you don't want to be sliding off.

As the track dries watch out for damp patches in the shaded areas under trees. The last place to dry out is normally Bergwerk, so take special care here even if the rest of the Ring appears to be dry.

The 'Ring can be a dangerous place. It isn't about lap times, it's about having fun and letting others have their fun in whatever vehicle they choose. If everyone shows a little respect we can all enjoy ourselves and go home smiling.

The last F1 GP was on 1st August 1976, the year of Lauda's terrible crash approaching Bergwerk. The race was won by James Hunt, averaging around 7:24 for each of the 14 laps ... and the start was wet!

Lap records:

Nordschleife plus south curve (1.2 miles longer)

Formula 1	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari	7:06.4	119.8 mph	German GP 1975
Bike	Marco Lucchinelli	Suzuki 500	8:22.2	101.7 mph	German GP 1980

Nordschleife

Record	Stefan Bellof	Porsche 956	6:25.80		1983
Group C	Derek Bell	Porsche 956	6:25.91	120.7 mph	1,000 km Renner 1985
Production	Robert Neam	Caterham 7	7:55.21		1999
Bike	Helmut Daehne	Honda RC30	7:49.70		1993

"Nothing gave me more satisfaction than to win at the Nurburgring, and yet, I was always afraid. When I left home for the German Grand Prix I always used to pause at the end of the driveway and take a long look back." Jackie Stewart

2 things you don't want to meet at the Ring - the emergency helicopter .......

and Koblenz Bundeswehr krankenhaus, the nearest major hospital

Click the photo for this most interesting site showing the 'Ring as it was originally and then after the major rebuild in 1971, including the strangely naked Wehrseifen - and the smokey old Beemer..

Unfortunately some of the best sites describing the old 'Ring are only in the German language and so are a bit of a mystery to those of us without der Sprache.

Still, have a gander at the photos - you will be surprised just what a narrow little lane of hedgerows those Grand Prix guys used to race down ...

(pictures by Hans Gustafsson and Lennart Jarmyr)