<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"         More than 45,000 spectators showed up. So did the BMW Sauber Formula 1 Team including BMW Motorsports Director/team principal Mario Theissen, pilot Nick Heidfeld and a pre-year F1.06 car. It was the last Saturday of April, and the N\u00FCrburgring Nordschleife located in Germany&amp;#039;s Eifel area welcomed Formula 1 back on the track after 31 years. This happened during an &amp;quot;Experience BMW Motorsport Day&amp;quot; held in conjunction with the VLN Endurance Championship.           The 12.9-mile-long circuit is also known as the &amp;quot;Green Hell,&amp;quot; and legend tells us it was Jackie Stewart who dubbed it that. The name was \u2014 and is \u2014 just right for a legendary track that demands respect. Even today, with its most difficult curves flattened and its meanest bends stretched out, the N\u00FCrburgring is still the most ambitious circuit in the world. All carmakers come here to test their new vehicles as some 1000 Nordschleife-miles will simulate a whole vehicle&amp;#039;s lifespan. Or to paraphrase Frank Sinatra, &amp;quot;If it can make it there....&amp;quot;   Formula 1 left the legenday track in 1976. Because racing cars became too fast for a circuit that other critics said had no safety zones but lots of trees next to the winding track. Serious accidents, including Niki Lauda&amp;#039;s horrific fiery crash that year, justified the decision. Still, the glory of the Green Hell is special, and many professional race drivers even practice &amp;quot;driving&amp;quot; it on their PlayStations before attempting the real thing.   During the April event, some race fans hoped to see a new lap record beat Stefan Bellof&amp;#039;s stunning 6:11.13 with a 956 in 1983 \u2014 the numbers are printed on the tarmac \u2014 but officially that didn\u00B4t come true: BMW Sauber announced a turtle time of 8:34 for Nick Heidfeld&amp;#039;s second of three laps in the BMW F1.06. As Mario Theissen further explained: &amp;quot;We had implored Nick to be careful. The day was a homage to the fans and to this unique circuit in the world of racing. For once, lap times were a secondary consideration.&amp;quot;   At first glance, one might believe this, as the cars ran with hard demonstration tires, maximum ground clearance and a short transmission ratio. But the truth is, has finally broken the 24-year-old Nordschleife record. Our sources say their timing showed a blasting 5:58, some even had 5:57 on the clock!   Less than 6 minutes \u2014 this is even more impressive, as the Nordschleife still is a tricky track. And it gives a good idea about motorsport development over three decades. In fact, Quick Nick could have been even faster: With 170.9 mph, he quickly hit the ratio-limited top speed on the long straight called D\u00F6ttinger H\u00F6he. &amp;quot;I was really shaken up there and at the Bergwerk section. It was an amazing experience and even better than I expected,&amp;quot; said a happy Heidfeld &amp;quot;I will never forget today as long as I live!&amp;quot;   That goes for for the rest of us Nordschleife enthusiasts, too. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/news/a13092/hidden-glory-at-the-green-hell/>