Drifting at the Nürburgring
As I zip up my overalls, I feel a little queasy. Next to me is "Killer–Hermine" – painted bright red/light green, low, wide, 600 PS, 800 Newton metres – with a bubbling engine, waiting for me to drift around the Müllenbachschleife of the Nürburgring in it. Of course, it won’t be me driving this hell of a car, but Denise Ritzmann, Europe’s reigning drift queen. Unlike me, Denise knows what she’s doing. I wonder whether my enthusiastic promise of a taxi ride was a little premature when I see the other cars drifting around the track, hear the tyres squeal and the smell of burnt rubber tickles my nose. Nevertheless, I bravely take a seat in the passenger seat. Helmet on, seatbelt tightened. Check: it fits, doesn’t wobble and doesn’t have a bit of air in it. That’s the way it’s supposed to bein – off we go! On the first straight, Denise presses down on the accelerator and Killer-Hermine’s thrust pushes me firmly into the seat. When the rear breaks away in the first left-hand bend of the Michael-Schuhmacher-S, we’re doing around 150 km/h (Denise estimates this, there’s no speedometer). Change gear, turn in, counter-steer, pull the handbrake, accelerate, turn into the next right-hand bend. Denise reacts quickly and precisely and has the vehicle totally under control. We have already passed the last bend of the Müllenbachschleife faster than I can think. The interior fills with coarse tyre wear dust and a grin spreads across my face. Once again!
After two more laps, the free practice session of the Nürburgring Drift Cup is over. Alexander, Laureen and I spend a few more hours in the paddock, taking photos and pestering Denise and her team with questions. We learn a lot about the drift queen, the sport of drifting and the passion that everyone here in the paddock shares. It’s fun to get an insight into a world that was previously unknown to us and to capture people’s stories. Our report on Denise Ritzmann will appear in the upcoming ADAC Baden-Württemberg magazine "Deins Meins Unsers".
Daniela Peuckert
