Stag do, 'ring trip. Pointers please.

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As the title, a friend is thinking of doing a trip to the 'ring for his stag do, 16 months away, so theres no rush,we are just at the thinking about it stage, but I figure here is a good place for pointers. :)

Whats the best way to do it? Weekend or in the week, places to stay?, fly or drive?, own car or hire car?, other places to do whilst in Germany?

Thanks.
 
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As the title, a friend is thinking of doing a trip to the 'ring for his stag do, 16 months away, so theres no rush,we are just at the thinking about it stage, but I figure here is a good place for pointers. :)

Whats the best way to do it? Weekend or in the week, places to stay?, fly or drive?, own car or hire car?, other places to do whilst in Germany?

Thanks.

Let him know what he is going to be missing out on

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution_in_Germany#Forms_of_female_prostitution
 
This is a great idea, a few pointers -

The ring does not publish its track opening guide until around feb, and it changes quite often to accomodate manufacturer testing etc etc, so its best to only book a couple of months in advance to avoid getting there only to find that its shut.

If you can, try to go during the week as its much quieter and avoid bank holidays (uk and european) like the plague! Some of the best lapping i have done over there is when the track is only open in the evening as its generally only the locals that bother going.

Theres not much in the way of nightlife... or anything else near the ring, so you may want to look at combining a couple of days there with a trip to Amsterdam etc.

Stop off at Spa on the way down, you pretty much have to drive right past it anyway and theres nearly always something going on thats free to spectate :)

Make sure you go to the Pistenklaus at least once!
 
This is a great idea, a few pointers -

The ring does not publish its track opening guide until around feb, and it changes quite often to accomodate manufacturer testing etc etc, so its best to only book a couple of months in advance to avoid getting there only to find that its shut.

If you can, try to go during the week as its much quieter and avoid bank holidays (uk and european) like the plague! Some of the best lapping i have done over there is when the track is only open in the evening as its generally only the locals that bother going.

Theres not much in the way of nightlife... or anything else near the ring, so you may want to look at combining a couple of days there with a trip to Amsterdam etc.

Stop off at Spa on the way down, you pretty much have to drive right past it anyway and theres nearly always something going on thats free to spectate :)

Make sure you go to the Pistenklaus at least once!

Cheers Ben, thats just the kind of info I was looking for. it will be discussed @ out next planning meeting!
 
I'd say the opposite, you'll have a lot more fun for less money doing a track day in this country. Everything I read about the 'ring these days is negative.

My mate, who's "do" it is, has been there & done that, he wants something special, I think the 'ring should do it! :D

Didn't know they allowed racing HGV's on the ring. ;)
I'd love to wang my Scania around any track......:D
 
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My mate, who's "do" it is, has been there & done that, he wants something special, I think the 'ring should do it! :D

I think the problem with the 'ring is that the expectations exceed the reality nowadays. Constant closures, plenty of idiots trying to kill themselves as you, massive problems if you do break anything etc.
 
Although a little tricky given how far away it is but I would try and go when there's a VLN race taking place also which are on Saturdays, go to vln.de to give a rough idea of dates and frequency. Usually a 4+ hour endurance race with 200+ cars on the grid and unless you want to go in the grandstands on the GP section, its free to watch too elsewhere around the track, good party atmosphere with the diehards/regulars having BBQs and plenty of beer!

As Im sure youre just going for the experience and the chance to just do a lap or two rather than trying to set any lap records, I would probably do something like the above and do said laps on the fri/sat/sun. No doubt it'll be a lot busier but that way you get more of the 'nurburgring experience' with the overflowing carparks and atmosphere, it can get crazy busy but certainly is something to experience, as during the week it can be quite quiet and with little to do locally, isnt always the most exciting of days. Of course being quieter, if it is open on that evening its definitely better for doing a hot lap.

As has also been said the opening times are published a the beginning of each year around Feb, even then theyre subject to change at the last minute (personal experience!) so definitely try and hedge your bets a bit when booking your trip!
 
So how does it work in terms of insurance? As I've heard some 'horror stories'. Is there anyone who does a comprehensive 'ring' insurance cover or is there always potential liability?
 
I think the problem with the 'ring is that the expectations exceed the reality nowadays. Constant closures, plenty of idiots trying to kill themselves as you, massive problems if you do break anything etc.

All true but also all greatly exaggerated imo, even with all the downsides, the upsides still outweigh them and are worth it to visit a still truly unique place.

Closures can and do happen but as above, dont put all your eggs in one basket and go just for Easter Sunday for example when its almost guaranteed to be ridiculously busy with hourly closures. Err on the side of caution with any lap you do and youll be fine :)
 
So how does it work in terms of insurance? As I've heard some 'horror stories'. Is there anyone who does a comprehensive 'ring' insurance cover or is there always potential liability?

As far as I'm aware there is no policy that will cover you on a tourist day, not even third party only. The closest you can get is to hire a car from one of the specialist ring companies, even then the liability costs are capped and excesses are still in the thousands.

So either drive very carefully and well below the limit, or drive enthusiastically and hope that you don't crash. Unless you have oodles of cash to spare that is.

A big crash even with no injuries can be life changingly expensive.
 
Whoa! In that case, I'm surprised anyone does it.

Considering the caliber of cars which frequent that track. One slip up, you could end up wiping out some seriously expensive metal as well as damaging the track. Not taking into account any injuries you cause you'd also be liable.

Are people not aware - or do people simply try their luck and hope nothing happens?
 
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