Track Guide: Nordschleife

• 2010-01-01
• NFSDrew
• 3 Comments

  Happy New Years!!  I hope everyone had a great & safe New Years! We're going to start off 2010 with a track guide featuring, in my opinion, the most epic track in the world.  Today track guide features the Nordschleife. Known simply as ‘The Ring’ to the people who dare to drive it, Nürburgring makes its debut in the Need for Speed universe in SHIFT. The track - which is actually a one-way toll road that was originally four tracks, only Nordschleife is still in use - was finished in 1927 and is unique in that anyone with a street-legal vehicle can drive the nearly 21-kilometre civilian track when it’s open, which is usually on weekends. The cost to do one lap is €22. It has nearly 100 total corners and several people are killed driving on it every year. If a driver crashes, it is their responsibility to indicate their situation to others on the track. It’s common for Nordschleife to be closed several times a day to clean up crashed cars or help injured drivers. While Nordschleife doesn’t have a general speed limit, police are known to follow overly aggressive drivers with helicopters. Despite its age, the track still provides a challenge to professional and amateur racers alike, with former Formula One driver Michael Schumacher holding the F-1 lap record, just shy of 1:30. Schumacher has two S-curves on the road named after him. Nordschleife promises to be a ‘must-drive’ for racers trying their luck with SHIFT, especially with the Porsche GT3, which, according to the German carmaker, completed a lap of the ring in eight minutes. SHIFT (shift.needforspeed.com) is in stores now. See if you can come in under eight starting September 15. Enjoy!       Tomorrow track guide will feature another great track, Ebisu.- NFSDrew