A video of a 6m:41sec lap of the Nurburgring!
 

Download Link: http://w1.movies.taner.net/Nurburgring-956.mov

Well, if you know anything about the Nurburgring, you'll know that a 6m:41sec lap is seriously fast, but, for the car in the video, it's not even close to its maximum pace!

See Derek Bell give a demo lap of the Nurburgring race circuit a Porsche 956C. This must be seen to be believed. At one point in the lap (after Aremburg, on the way down to the Fuchsrohre) he is passed by Jack Ickx who is on a qualifying lap, also in a 956C Porsche. Ickx passes Bell like he was stopped!

Anyway, this video gives you a different perspective on the Nurburgring, and the difficulty level of this amazing circuit, when seeing it through the on car camera of a really fast car.

If you are wondering, the record qualifying lap of the Nurburgring is held by the late Stefan Bellof, and is 6m:11sec. He did this lap in a Porsche 956C. He later died in a sports car accident at the Spa Francorchamps circuit..

BTW, I might try and compress this video further still, and I could send it perhaps to anyone who really wants it, but can't download it from the site above properly..

The commentator on the video is Derek Bell, in case you are wondering.

Oh lame, just tried it, but it said "unable to download appropriate compressor" or something like that. What compressor did you use, and also, does the whole thing pre-load before it starts playing in the window?

PS - did you convert this one by yourself from a video?

Man I might have to get GPL just for the Nurburgring...:)

SpeedPuppy: Derek Bell here doesn't exactly cruise around the Nurburgring, so, you'll have to replay the video a few times.. (Some parts of the track fly by at stupendous speeds). Perhaps make some notes of the advice he gives.. It could come in handy for GPL..

And it requires Quicktime 5.0 or 5.1.. I just use Quicktime 5.1 anyhow, and it works fine. The picture quality is quite good too, it's not too blocky or grainy.

Domagoj: No, it was already on the internet. And BTW, use the latest Apple Quicktime 5.1, and it will work.

It's an awesome video! Trust me about that. It's bloody scary to see the pace that these Group C race cars carry around the Nurburgring. I've also got a video of a 3.8 litre inline-6 BMW M5 doing a quick lap around the Nurburgring, and it is compelling to compare the differences in speed in the following areas of the track:

- Pflanzgarten
- Höhe Acht
- Wipperman (very, very fast turn)
- Flugplatz -> Schwedenkreuz (the 956C is flat out through here, doesn't even lift off the throttle)
- Aremburg -> Fuchsrohre (Watch Jack Ickx on his qualifying lap fly past Bell like he is stopped! Ickx was on a really hot lap, and, if gives you an idea of the sort of speed these things have.)

Also, watch the speed of the 956C through the final turn before the long back straight (Schwalbenschwanz) or, Doettinger Höhe as Derek Bell appears to have identified it as.)

In parts of the circuit where the M5 is doing 200km/hr (like the fast section leading up to the mini-Karusell), the 956C is doing something like 300km/hr. :eek:

And on the long back straight, where the M5 hits 250km/hr, the 956C is doing 300km/hr, and getting close to its rev limiter half way down the straight.




I also have another video of the Nurburgring, but its on video cassette, and I can't convert it. It shows video footage of Stefan Bellof's heroic 6m:11second record qualifying lap in a later model Porsche 956C. That's scary watching that.. Stefan Bellof was truly a heroic race driver! A shame that he died.

But, I could never grow tired of watching the 1980s/early 90s Group C cars, or the older 917 Porsches and the Ferrari 512s of the 1970s. The Group C cars are the fastest and wildest machines to ever race at Le Mans, with the manic WM Peugeots clocked at an insane 405km/hr down Mulsanne straight.)

Hey Chris!

Thanks for sharing this link,mate.I just downloaded it after 4 hours waiting:rolleyes: .And i must say it was well worth the wait!!What an excellent video.Ahh there gose Jacky Ickx passing by so fast.Man...the speeds are amazing!I could not belive certain corners could be taken at that speed!6min-11secs is AMAZING as the qualifying record!Its really a shame that the record holder later on :( .He really has amzing talent to get 6:11:eek: !

Yours,
Ashwin

On some corners, which look fairly tight, Derek Bell seems to just about go flat-out through them!!

But, it's also remembering that the 956C has full ground-effects bodywork design, which helps massively. This really makes the thing stick to the road like glue.

Notice how over the Flugplatz it doesn't get airborne like the old GP cars (Lotus 49B et al). This is because of the ground effects. You wouldn't want to get airborne here anyhow, as you'd miss the turn in point for the next right hand bend in the road, and possibly crash.

And, if you are wondering, the actual top speed of the 956C is 247mph (at Le Mans).

But you are right about Stefan Bellof, he was an amazing talent. I still don't think his 6m:11 lap record has been beaten, or the 6:26 race lap record which he set, for that matter.

Theoretically, you could possibly beat the 6m:11 lap record in real life, using a Dauer 962 Le Mans, and, a driver with exceptional skill (perhaps Jean Alesi, or Michael Schumacher). I don't believe that any other road legal car would be able to beat the 6m:11 lap record that Bellof set.. I doubt a Mclaren F1 LM could do it. And I'm certain that an F50 GT1 wouldn't be of any use either..

When Bellof died, many in the Porsche racing division were shocked, beyond belief. Bellof's race mechanic (and close friend) Dr Klaus Bischoff (now working at the Porsche museum) immediately quit the racing division. (It really upset him).