2006 FORMULA 1™ Grand Prix of Europe Nürburgring 05 - 07 May
 The
original Nurburgring, the Nordschleife, ran for an awe-inspiring 22.5
kilometres (14 miles). It was so long and so complicated that drivers simply
could not remember a racing line. The Nurburgring was, in fact, two
circuits: the Nordschleife and the Sudschleife. In total they had an amazing
172 corners.
It was safety which sealed the demise of the legendary track. Following
Niki Lauda's terrifying accident there in 1976 in which he suffered
horrendous burns, the Nurburgring's license to hold Formula One events was
withdrawn.
The track underwent huge redevelopment to create a new circuit and in the
spring of 1984 a race was held featuring 20 identical Mercedes 190Es and a
grid composed of some of the best-ever Formula One drivers. Niki Lauda,
Carlos Reutemann, Keke Rosberg, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, James Hunt,
Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Phil Hill, John Surtees and Denny Hulme were
just a few of the names to take part. Senna, then a relative youngster, won
from Lauda and Reutemann.
The European Grand Prix was held at the new track later that year, and
again in 1985, but it disappeared again after commercial difficulties. With
the ascendancy of Michael Schumacher, from nearby Kerpen, the track was once
again back in Formula One in 1995. Posing as the Luxembourg Grand Prix for
1997 and 1998, it has, since then, taken the name of the European Grand
Prix.
The track may not be as challenging as the old circuit, but it is still
possible to take a trip down memory lane - literally. For just a few euros
one can take a car onto the old track and soak up what was one of the most
feared and yet respected circuits in the history of motorsport.
The Nurburgring is located in the Eifel region of Germany, 60km
north-west of Koblenz and 90km south-west of Koln. Road connections are good
to the major international airports of Koln/Bonn and Dusseldorf Rhein Ruhr
which is some 120 km away.
From Cologne take the A1-E29 motorway and take the Nurburgring exit. From
Koblenz take the A48-E44 motorway then the A61 towards Cologne, and take the
Wehr Nurburgring exit.
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The
north Rhine region of Germany is recognised for its unspoilt beauty and
nowhere is that description more justified than in the Eifel Mountains, the
home of the Nurburgring. The countryside hasn’t changed for centuries,
except for the building of the two tracks: the glorious Nordschliefe in 1925
and the shorter version, which is where the European Grand Prix is held, in
1982.
President
Hotel Bonn
Flandrischer
Hof Hotel Cologne