Nurburgring, 90 years ago the first stone
Being developed at the Nurburgring or having covered a record lap on the Nordschheife has become from this time a sort of imprimatur for any self-respecting car. It is the law of “green hell”, as enthusiasts call these almost 23 kilometers of ups and downs, of curves and – why not – of breathtaking jumps where, as they say, “the real qualities of a car. And of those who are behind the wheel, of course.
The legend of the N’ring dates back over a century ago when Kaiser Wilhelm II, annoyed for not having seen on the Taunus circuit the victory of a German driver and a car (won by Felice Nazzaro on Fiat 8-B), he decided that even Germany should have a permanent facility to develop its cars and train its pilots. Then came the First World War and the subsequent economic crisis. In short, there was nothing else to think about and the project remained in the classic drawer.
Instead, it was the German economic crisis of the early 1920s that suggested to the new German government that the road to reducing unemployment should pass through the implementation of a series of projects that would give people something useful to do and the country new infrastructure. Among these was the creation of a giant permanent circuit capable of creating new jobs and boosting the economy in the Eifel region.
September 27 of ninety years ago
from the parts of Adenau the first stone of the Nurburgring was therefore placed, a path that developed on the hills adjacent to the ancient castle of the Nurburg (year 1167). The work, divided into four sections of 7 kilometers each, engaged about 3,000 workers for two years and required an investment of 15 million marks. In the end, however, the result was the desired one: a unique system in the world and the relaunch of the local economy.
On June 18, 1927 the Nurburgring hosted its first race and entered the legend. And if everyone still celebrates his 172 curves (84 on the right and 88 on the left), each of which has different radii, inclinations and inclinations, what about the jumps that often see the cars engaged? The images of the cars that face the Dottinger Hohe with all four wheels lifted around the world, but the observation that a point on the circuit is called Flugplatz or flying field says a lot about what happens when the cars pass you . One of the most photographed and famous points, however, undoubtedly remains the Karussel, a very long sopralevata curve that individually breaks more or less in half a path that more than that of a racetrack seems that of a mountain road,
Originally the Nürburgring consisted of two distinct tracks – the Nordscheife (north ring) of 22,834 km and the Sudschleife (south ring) of 7,747 km then abandoned in the Second World War – which combined to create a single large circuit of 28,265 km . The object of profound changes at the beginning of the Eighties, the plant today foresees the GP Strecke (grand prix circuit) of 5.1 km and the mythical Nordschleife, albeit reduced to 20.832 km. Even now, as it was originally, the two tracks can be combined together to create a unique circuit of 25.378 km that is still used today, for example, on the occasion of the 24 Hours for touring and touring cars.
However, the most important race hosted by the ‘Ring’ – as the Nurburgring is nicknamed – remains the German Grand Prix, which ran uninterruptedly from 1927 to 1976, with the only exceptions of 1959 and 1970, when races at the Avus and Hockenheim. Formula 1 has then returned to it less permanently since 1985 (victory for Michele Alboreto on Ferrari), hosting the Grand Prix races of Germany, Luxembourg and Europe on GP Strecke. Since 1953 the Nurburgring has also been the theater of the homonymous 1000 km for sports and touring cars.
When not engaged for competitions or tests, the Nordschleife is accessible for a fee to the public of enthusiasts who want to discover the thrill of driving on this legendary circuit.