My messed up additional thoughts and posts about how to learn this track:
Do you have project cars 1 or 2? If so, that's how I learnt the track back then:
Go into hotlap mode, select one of the three Nordschleife Sectors and select 3 ghosts that are 1,2,3 seconds quicker than you. For the beginning just pick P10, P50 and P100 or something.
Then you follow the quicker cars through the sectors. Do one sector until you learnt it.
Then you select the next sector and do the same.
When you know all 3 sectors you try the whole lap
1. Some general thoughts:
One part of this "strings attaching + building bridges" to memorize the track are the categories. So I go like
"first kerb on the right. *100m later* and second kerb on the right".
Then later
"this is the first left kink, and now a 90° right hander, oversteer at the exit, and the second kink. Now comes a long bend with difficult throttle/brake control and then into the first tight left. Up into another 90° right hander, aaaand the next tight left.".
It's mostly that I remember it in 2-3 repetitions.
Like
"the 90° right hander after the first kink is a lot tighter than the one after the second kink".
Or
"the first tight left is tighter and slower than the second tight left".
A good example is the sector 3 twisty section where its 2 times downhill left + right. The first is fully over the kerbs, the second absolutely no kerbs, apart from the last exit. Also the first left+right is in 4th gear while the second left+right is in 3rd gear.
Anyway, the more ways you find to look at the same things in a different way, the stronger the net of memories becomes. This is important as building such a net of memory strings is always tedious but you can either be efficient while doing it (finding different ways to look at the same thing) or in-efficient (just repeating one way to look at it)!
I found that I only needed to create such a memory-net for the Nordschleife yet. Most other tracks can be remembered by just driving around. But of course other tracks also have better separated sectors.
Like monza... Chicane, chicane, 2x lesmo, chicane, parabolica
the Nordschleife seems to be an endless combination of strange corners. It's the only track where I have sheets with notes for
2. A basic, written, corner by corner guide: Categories = C1 etc.
-
T1 (C5, tight left)
:
Very sharp, very slow, stay on the brakes until you clip the inside kerb and then go for a good exit
- T2 (C1, high speed bend)
:
4th gear, 50% throttle right hander. Turn in a bit too early and take the outside kerb to the limit
- T3+4 (C7, left/right under braking)
:
Brake on the straight, lift brakes, do the left hander. Full brake again, lift brakes, do the right hander.
- T5+6 (C2, right side kerb)
:
First 'pattern' starts: left, brake, right inside kerb carefully, full throttle left. Brake, right inside kerb carefully, full throttle left.
----- Hatzenbach completed -----
- Flugplatz (C1, high speed bend) double right hander
:
Slowly and carefully lift your throttle to bring a bit weight to the front. Turn in slowly and carefully to not overuse the fronts. The moment you start to turn, back on throttle!
- Schwedenkreuz (C3, high speed bump) left hand with bump
:
Slooowly lift the throttle and turn in way too early. The car will move a lot to the right over the bump! When the bump comes open the steering and go slightly back on throttle to give some weight to the rear without risking a drift!
- Aremberg: (C4, 90° right hander)
:
Brake when the tarmac patch colour changes! Stay in 3rd gear and try to "roll" until the apex. Don't try to go the ideal line from the outside. Just clip the inside kerb and go early back on throttle without touching the outside kerb!
- Fuchsröhre: just go as straight as possible
- Adenauer Forst, end of Sector 1 (C7, C5, C4)
:
You fly up the hill with 270 km/h. Start to brake in the middle of the uphill straight!
Lift the brakes before turning in or you'll wipe out! (left/right under braking)
Aim for the inside kerb, take it fully. The moment you have all 4 tyres stable again, BRAKE!!
2 gears down to 3rd, lift the brakes, roll through the right hander on the very inside.
Go back on throttle and let the car move to the left. Aim for the trees. For real, aim for the trees lol.
When you see the left hander coming close, brake in a straight line and brake into the trees. (difficult tight left)
Brake, brake, brake, then turn in while still braking and just trust the car.
Keep turning and bring the car around the left inside kerb so you'll end up on the very left for the following 90° right!
Lift the throttle, aim for a late apex for the right hander and as early on the throttle as possible! (90° right hander)
--- End of Sector 1---
- Metzgesfeld: double left hander, very fast (C1, high speed bend).
Important to not have too much weight shifting!
Brake a little, down 1 gear to 4th. Lift the brakes and go around on the very inside, use the cambered track and roll through it with 70% throttle! (similar to Flugplatz)
Then once the car is straight again, brake for the left hander (C6, left kink 1). It's important to not hit the inside kerb here but also to stay on the very inside! Trailbrake to the apex until the oversteer hits you. Go back on throttle and go uphill in a straight line, trusting the exit!
- Kallenhard (C4, 90° right hander):
Similar to Aremberg and mirrored version of the left kink before.
Brake very very early, down to 2nd gear! Stay at the inside, use the cambered track! Be careful for oversteer and the kerb at the exit!
- Spiegelkurve (C6, left kink 2)
:
Repetition of Metzgesfeld but this time without braking. Swing the car around, go as tightly as you can for the inside!
Don't turn to the right too early, never hit the right kerb!
The exit has enough space on the left!
- 3 fach rechts, triple right hand (C1, high speed bend):
Repetition of the double left hander into Metzgesfeld. Brake a little, then go back to about 50% throttle and carefully try to roll as fast as it gets through all 3 right handers.
Back on throttle until you see the right hander coming close. Brake a bit later than you want to!
- Wehrseifen (C5, 1st tight left)
:
After you tapped the brakes later than you would've liked to, give a push to the throttle to gain to get a bit of speed. Then once the mini straight comes, BRAAAAAKKKKEEEEEE!
Extremely tight left hairpin. 2nd gear or even 1st).
Brake and brake and brake and try to get a bit to the middle of the track. Aim for a late apex of the left hander and back on throttle.
This corner reminds me of the left hander of Adenauer Forst where you aim for the trees.
Last corner is a C4, 90° right hander, similar to Kallenhard. Early on the throttle, stay at the inside but there will be some oversteer happening at the exit!
- Breidscheid (C5, 2nd tight left)
:
Similar to Wehrseifen. Mini straight and into a very tight double apex left hander. Brake earlier than you want to!!!!
Brake, brake and brake.
Understeer to the inside and pray you're not hitting the outside kerb+wall but also hope you're fast enough to not lose a full second...
- Ex Mühle (C4, Another 90° right hander, yay!)
:
Stay at the inside, early on throttle, oversteer will happen at the exit!
- Little full throttle part
- Bergwerk (90° right hander)
:
Brake about at the middle of the straight after the slight left kink. Stay at the inside, early on throttle, oversteer will happen at the exit!
- FFFFUUUUULLLLL THHHRRROOOTTTLLLEEEE PPAAAARRTTTT:
Stay in 5th gear and mash that f*cker into the rev limit! If you really hit the rev limit raise the gear ratio of 5th gear
It's left left left, right right. A slight left again and you'll see a real bend to the left.
- Mutkurve (C11, specials)
:
No pattern here, only praying! You brake as late as possible, only a tab while actually keeping the foot on the throttle! You shift down to 4th and hope it will get in and then you lift the left foot, put the pedal to the metal right at the left hand kerb and hammer through that corner.
Goal is 220 km/h but everything above 200 km/h is balls to the walls so... yeah!
- Klostertal (C3, high speed bump)
:
Following right hander after Mutkurve: lift to about 70% of throttle, turn in, put the foot down again. (similar to Schwedenkreuz)
- Steilstrecke (C4, 90° right hander)
:
You aim for the left hand kerb that sticks out a bit. Brake when you pass this little part that sticks out. Brake while keeping the car at the very left side.
Hold the brakes! The car will automatically move to the right hand though, aim for the inside again!
Half and carefully on the throttle, drift the car through this strange right hander.
Oversteer will happen!
---- somewhere around here Sector 2 ends!---
- Karussell (C8)
:
Right before you see it there's a sticking out kerb at the right like there is for Steilstrecke. Hammer down the brakes right before passing this part of the kerb!
You'll see the car moving to the middle of the road and the concrete inside starting on your left. Wait a little before turning in and jumping into it. You lift the brakes but don't push the throttle. Roll with about 10% throttle into the concrete cambered part!
Hold the steering wheel at about 90° and try to not hit the inside while not getting spit out!
Play with the throttle to keep the line. Turning won't help much here...
Then when you see the tiniest bit of straightening up again, PUSH DOWN THE THROTTLE!!!
You won't be able to hold the car inside of the concrete but you won't need to. You'll get spit out right to the next apex!
- Uphill double left (C7, left/right under braking)
:
Not a real pattern here, just clip the 4th gear and turn in to the second left hander similar to Spiegelkurve! Down to 3rd gear and don't hit any kerbs. Just run through this in the middle of the road!
- Hohe Acht (C9, Sector 3: Twisty Part)
:
You fly uphill in 3rd gear. Brake and turn in way too slowly! You'll hit the inside kerb if you turn in normally. Like I did in my video!
Roll through it, don't hit a kerb!
Now a repetition starts. I'll write up the whole repetition part now so you'll see it when watching: Numbers are the gears!
3rd right, 4th right, 4th left+right (C2, clip the kerbs!).
3rd right, 4th straight, 3rd left+right (NO kerbs!).
3rd right.
You have 2x a right hander following a downhill left+right combination. First time is fast, second time is slow. It also reminds me of the Hatzenbach repetition!
Then
Eiskurve (C11, specials)
:
Brake a bit early, keep it to the inside and again, aim for the trees!
Once you see the exit in the middle of your windscreen you just put your foot down and open the steering wheel. You'll mash over the right hand kerb and "cut the exit".
Mostly the car will oversteer on the throttle at the apex so you'll just open the steering to counter the drift and the car will move across the exit kerb.
- Pflanzgarten 1 (C1, high speed bend + C3, high speed bump)
:
Full throttle downhill, brake right after the jump but go back to a little bit of throttle to catch the rear! Double right hander, reminding me of Flugplatz and Metzgesfeld.
Full throttle in 4th gear from there.
It's very important for the next blind little left turn to instantly turn in to the left the moment the car starts to move to the right after being on the edge for the double right hander and moving to the left.
- Pflanzgarten 2 (C3, high speed bump)
:
Another left handed downhill jump, similar to Schwedenkreuz and the one after Mutkurve!
The car will make a major move to the right over the jump.
This time you don't brake, just keep the throttle pinned!
Turn in early, like for the other high speed bumps.
Now similar to "Eiskurve" you do the right hander, open up the steering and hit the left kerb while going straight.
Then the
Stefan Bellof S (C1/10, high speed bends) appears:
It's a direct repetition in itself. Right hander, open steering, go over the left kerb. Right hander, open steering, over the left kerb.
You don't really drive an S curve there, you just turn a few times to the right and let the car go straight through the left turns!
- Schwalbenschwanz (C11, C4)
:
Entry: This is a very complex corner (C11, specials)...
The first right hander is similar to Metzgesfeld and 3 fach rechts. You brake, lift a little and try to keep the grip on all 4 wheels without major weight shifting. Keep a bit of trailbraking and throttle together to make it quickly through this right hander.
You'll have to brake a bit earlier than you'd think while staying in the middle of the road!
C4, 90° left hander: You approach it from the middle or the right, brake a little but not too much or you'll lose the rear! Aim for the inside but rather for the middle really.. Difficult corner! I hit the inside in the video...
Big fat scary kerb on the exit. I take it but you really shouldn't... If you crash here you'll lose a lot of time!
This corner is a massive mix of understeer and oversteer. Just try to steer through it, a bit slower rather than too fast!
- Kleines Karussell:
Similar to the big one, you go into it a bit later than you'd think and accelerate a lot earlier than you'd want to!
Approach it from the middle of the road, brake, stay in 3rd and roll through it. When it catches you, go for the throttle and let it spit you out!
- Galgenkopf (double C1, high speed bends)
:
Very very difficult corner. Lot of time to be gained or lost here!
You approach it from 4th gear, middle of the road. Brake a little but not too much. Just a love tap!
Keep it to the inside but DO NOT HIT THE INSIDE KERB!
And full throttle from here!!
Now for the last right hander you come from uphill.
Keep it to the veeeeerryyyy left right at the hilltop.
Once it starts to go downhill TURN IN!!!!!! But: wait a little, lol!
No for real, you'll see it going downhill while being at the hilltop and you start to turn in a liiiitttle bit. Then you'll see the the kerb starting at the right inside. The moment you even see a pixel of this TURN IN!
The problem: if you turn in when you actually see the kerb, it's too late. If you turn in a little bit too early you'll have to correct it.
You'll just miss the inside kerb due to understeer when it really goes downhill. Keep it at the front end grip limit, stay at the inside and keep the right foot planted!
You'll think you won't make it and would crash to the left outside at the exit but.. You don't
Once you are past the apex open the steering and off you go to the long straight!
- Tiergarten (almost done!), (C7, left/right under braking + C2, right side kerb)
:
It's balls, balls and balls. After the left kink, lift the throttle and roll through the left/right! (8:14 in the vid).
Then BRRRAAAAKKKKEEEE!!!!!!
Down to 4th, shoot past the inside armco and pray. Lift the brakes to not cause oversteering at the apex and BRAKE AGAIN!!!!!
Down to 2nd, go slightly across the right inside kerb and hammer down the throttle!
Try not to hit the outside barrier when entering the GP circuit.
The kerb on the right side is a bit like the kerbs at Hatzenbach and the first repetition in the twisty section of sector 3.
---- Lap done----
