Both a co-worker and a neighbor mentioned this within a 24 hour period so I thought I'd post it here. This guy sure can drive!
That's a 13 mile track so he averaged a little under 120 mph (or 200 kph if you prefer). Hitler had that track built in 1927. There was a barn near the end of one of the long straightaways that drivers used as a braking point. One winter they tore it down the barn and a couple drivers stuffed it into the guardrail.
Actually, Hitler had nothing to do with the building of the track. It was first considered in the early '20s, proposed and approved in early '25, and the cornerstone laid in September of that year. Hitler didn't come along until much later and the Nazis used the course to showcase the German engineering of the Mercedes and Auto Union GP cars. Impressive as the video is, it looked to me to be in a car that was too heavy, on the wrong tires, and not ideally geared. It definitely appeared to be a handful at times. The other thing that stood out was that it had a floor shifter (which I liked) and not shift paddles.
I'm not much of a road course watcher, but I went to Pacific Raceways to buy my tickets for the NHRA Northwest Nationals and met the new Marketing Manager. As I was leaving he asked if I wanted to take my Avalanche around the road course. Well No Sheet Sherlock! I followed one of his track guys Silverado around the course 4 laps! Fun times! The Avalanche felt pretty good through most of it, although that Camaro sure looks fast!
It is a shame that car is so butt ugly. It is obviously a stellar performer. Driver absolutely had it on the ragged edge around most of the circuit.
Man, wonder if that driver has to have a custom molded seat to cradle his massive plums..... That was some serious driving, when he came out of that final straight at 171 those corners were coming up fast, I honestly couldnt believe how well the car (and driver) handled it. Cool piece, now where's that d*mn money tree I planted!!
I'm not familiar with these cars, but, when they switched camera views to the passenger floorboard looking up toward the driver, there is what appears to be a paddle behind the steering wheel. Here are some other times to consider as the Camaro did 7:16:04 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Nürburgring_Nordschleife_lap_times Here is a group of articles.... https://www.topspeed.com/cars/nurburgring-nurburgring/ke999.html
The German people think Hitler had the track built, they're the ones who told me that. I don't know why they would say that, it's not like they're proud of Hitler. Hitler started making political speeches almost intermediately after WWI and was gaining power by the mid 20s, By the mid 30s he was in full control of Germany. Yes, it was built to showcase/test cars the same reason they built Indy. Anyway, I attended many races there while I was stationed in Germany. There's a part of the track that was so steep it difficult to walk up it, that part is still brick. The carousel was built to by-pass that part of the track.
Hitler didn't come to power in Germany until 1933, so if the track was built in 1927, Hitler most likely had nothing to do with it. The VW Beetle however, is another matter.
Hitler was making political speeches immediately after WWI, 1919. He was moving up in the early 20s, had some power by the mid 20s and was in total control by 33. Are you suggesting he started at the top? I lived in Germany 2 years and the German people all say Hitler built the track. Why would they say that if it weren't true, they aren't proud of the 3rd Reich and have no intention of bragging about him.
Guy knows the track obviously. The car is squirrely, driver has a handful there, it definitely is not a smooth run. My guess is the tires are not up to the weight of the car. Thanks for posting. Mikey
As far as Hitler goes, he didn't build the track but when he came to power apparently supported Grand Prix racing as a way to show off German technical expertise. So, for Germans, it probably became like George Washington slept here in the northeastern United States. Here's an interesting paste with a British twist at the bottom of the 6th paragraph: https://driversnirvana.wordpress.com/ring-guide/
