Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate · DE
The Green Hell. The legendary 12.9-mile Nordschleife through the Eifel mountains is the ultimate proving ground for road cars and racers alike, with 154 corners and over 1,000 feet of elevation change.
The Nürburgring is really two circuits. The modern GP-Strecke is a conventional, well-appointed Grand Prix venue. The Nordschleife alongside it is something else entirely: more than 20 kilometres and roughly 150 corners through the Eifel hills, with blind crests, changing camber and gradients that launch cars clear of the road. The Karussell is its emblem, a banked concrete hairpin taken by dropping the inside wheels into the trough; Flugplatz, Bergwerk and Pflanzgarten each carry their own reputation.
For visitors the Nordschleife is unusual in that you can drive it yourself during public Touristenfahrten sessions, which is why the circuit draws enthusiasts year-round rather than only on race weekends. Spectating on the long lap means choosing one location and staying there. Public transport into the Eifel is awkward, so most people drive.
Construction of the original 28 km Gesamtstrecke began in September 1925 as a public works project in a depressed region, and the circuit opened on 18 June 1927. The Nordschleife loop went on to host 22 Formula One World Championship rounds between 1951 and 1976, making it one of the longest circuits ever used in the championship.
Its Grand Prix career ended abruptly. On the second lap of the 1976 German Grand Prix, Niki Lauda's Ferrari left the road at Bergwerk after a suspected suspension failure and caught fire; he was very badly burned. Formula 1 never returned to the old circuit. A modern Grand Prix track, the GP-Strecke, opened alongside it in 1984, allowing the Nordschleife to survive for racing, testing and public use.
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