Challenge yourself, be prepared, don’t assume, have a plan, be adaptable and never give up.
23hrs 55mins and the suspension collapsed.
Three weeks before the 1996 Nürburgring 24 Hours, I was offered the chance of a drive — a legendary track, a new car, and a lack of recent racing experience. A challenge and an opportunity I couldn’t resist.
But could I do myself justice? Could I avoid letting the team down?
At the time, I was working at the Mitsubishi Design Centre near Frankfurt, so meeting the UK team beforehand wasn’t an option. However, the legendary 13-mile Nordschleife was within reach so a recce drive was possible. The additional GP circuit loop? That would have to be learned at the event itself.
With fellow designer Tony Pettman strapped in, taking notes, I managed three laps in a hire car before the brakes and tyres cried enough. Far from perfect preparation, but enough to reduce the uncertainties.
Race Weekend – A Quick Learning Curve
Arriving at the track, I assumed – being a UK team – the car would be right-hand drive. It wasn’t. Suddenly, the mental track picture I’d built had to shift by a metre. Initially approaching left-hand corners with the right wheels brushing the grass, and then through them I was missing the clipping points.
During my first practice laps, my times dropped by tens of seconds a lap, yet I was soon on the pace and looking for fractions of seconds everywhere.
The Strategy – A Marathon, Not a Sprint
Our plan was simple: optimise fuel and brake maintenance stops. Each of the three drivers would take two-hour stints – fast, but measured. This was endurance racing, not a club race.
Outright victory was for the works teams. That year 1996, Sabine Reck (Schmitz) became the only female overall winner. Our goal? To win our class.
Adapting to the Unexpected
Eighteen hours in, we were just over a lap behind the class leader. Then, disaster struck as an unexpected failure cost us five laps, equivalent to 55 minutes. But our resourceful, sleep-deprived team fixed the issue. A class win looked out of reach, but a podium finish became the new target.
Our strategy changed. Longer stints. Flat out.
Never Give Up
For 2.5 hours, I had the exhilaration of driving the notorious Nürburgring flat out, through smoke thick with the smell of campers’ BBQs. Halfway through my stint, the ABS failed. Yet, lap after lap, I learned more, and my lap times kept improving.
When I handed over the car, we were closing in on third place. The progression was maintained – never giving up. We closed in on 3rd place, when with 6 minutes left the front suspension of the Subaru collapsed approaching the finish line having completed 100 laps.
Our car, the only Mercedes, passed the stricken car to complete 101 laps for 3rd place in class, a great team effort.
Lessons Beyond Racing
Racing, like business, is unpredictable. Unexpected challenges disrupt the best-laid plans – the last year has been proof of that. But at Drive, we adapt. We evolve with new methods, technologies, clients, and projects.
https://bit.ly/3zZTaAK Nurburgring Track
