Castrol-Haugg-Cup
Encyclopedia
The Rundstrecken Challenge Nürburgring (RCN) (circuit racing challenge Nürburgring
) or BMW Driving Experience Challenge, previously known as Castrol-HAUGG-Cup (CHC), is a motorsport
event series. Being run since the early 1960s mainly on the Nürburgring
, it is regarded as Germany's oldest touring car racing
series. Unlike in regular races for position, the event that is similar to rallying
on a closed race circuit, with time challenge laps and co-drivers on board.
For many years, the series was sponsored by Castrol
and HAUGG (a company owned by a race driver, providing car parts like radiators). For 2007, the sponsorship arrangements were changed, putting less emphasis on these two companies.
The event is officially styled by the FIA/DMSB as a Leistungsprüfung 200km (LP200, performance test over 200 km). This means that the RCN is not a race for positions among cars that are started at once from a grid (like VLN
endurance races), but a time trial, with cars being started one by one, about 5 seconds apart. This reduces the risks of collisions, as there is no benefit for a racer to defend his or her position.
Most RCN events are held on the Nürburgring
, mainly on the 20.832 km long Nordschleife version, on Saturday afternoon following a Gleichmäßigkeitsprüfung
(GLP
) run by the same organizing club. One or two additional events are held on the Grand Prix track, or on the combined tracks as used in VLN or at the 24h. Since 2003, some events were held on the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
. As season highlight in front of thousands of spectators, the RCN usually runs on the Thursday before a 24 Hours Nürburgring
race, which is a holiday
, either Ascension Day or Corpus Christi (feast)
. The track versions used during that event include various sections of the Grand Prix track. In 2005, the CHC was run on 4 different track versions, three of them at the Nürburgring
.
On the Nordschleife, 15 laps of 20.832 km have to be run, for 312 km overall (longer than an F1 race). Due to being an amateur event without practise, the first (warm up) lap, the last (cool down) and two laps in between for a pit stop are not timed, unless a generous maximum time is exceeded. Of the remaining 11 laps, 9 are run at full speed (like a special stage
in rallying), with each second counting as one penalty point. Two laps have to be done at a given time similar to a liaison stage in rallying. If the tolerance of +/- 2 seconds is exceeded, each second counts tenfold, so some discipline and precision is required. In wet conditions, these laps can decide the winners, as they can add a significant amount of penalty points to the tally.
The entry fee is about 400 Euro. As in rallying, a co-driver can be on board, a quite unique possibility to take a passenger within a circuit racing contest. Also, those two drivers can share a drive, which reduces costs for amateurs.
Championship points are awarded according to amateur rules, depending on the number of entrants in the same class. There are also a entry level "Light" classes with fewer laps, focusing on regularity, and a separate championship.
could be arranged due to construction work there. On the other hand, the Nordschleife is used 7 times, and the GP track only once. During the 24h race weekend, parts of the GP track are connected to the 20.8 km Nordschleife for a 25.3 km track.
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
) or BMW Driving Experience Challenge, previously known as Castrol-HAUGG-Cup (CHC), is a motorsport
Motorsport
Motorsport or motorsports is the group of sports which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles, whether for racing or non-racing competition...
event series. Being run since the early 1960s mainly on the Nürburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
, it is regarded as Germany's oldest touring car racing
Touring car racing
Touring car racing is a general term for a number of distinct auto racing competitions in heavily-modified street cars. It is notably popular in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Scandinavia and Britain.-Characteristics of a touring car:...
series. Unlike in regular races for position, the event that is similar to rallying
Rallying
Rallying, also known as rally racing, is a form of auto racing that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars...
on a closed race circuit, with time challenge laps and co-drivers on board.
For many years, the series was sponsored by Castrol
Castrol
Castrol is a brand of industrial and automotive lubricants which is applied to a large range of oils, greases and similar products for most lubrication applications...
and HAUGG (a company owned by a race driver, providing car parts like radiators). For 2007, the sponsorship arrangements were changed, putting less emphasis on these two companies.
The event is officially styled by the FIA/DMSB as a Leistungsprüfung 200km (LP200, performance test over 200 km). This means that the RCN is not a race for positions among cars that are started at once from a grid (like VLN
VLN
The VLN, properly the Veranstaltergemeinschaft Langstreckenpokal Nürburgring is an organisation of motorsport clubs of which each hosts one event of a ten-race series held on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, the "VLN Langstreckenmeisterschaft Nürburgring"...
endurance races), but a time trial, with cars being started one by one, about 5 seconds apart. This reduces the risks of collisions, as there is no benefit for a racer to defend his or her position.
Most RCN events are held on the Nürburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
, mainly on the 20.832 km long Nordschleife version, on Saturday afternoon following a Gleichmäßigkeitsprüfung
Gleichmäßigkeitsprüfung
A Gleichmäßigkeitsprüfung is a motorsport event where precise timing is winning, not outright speed.Mainly Classic cars events like the modern Mille Miglia are held as GLPs....
(GLP
GLP
GLP can refer to:* Gateway location protocol* German Longhaired Pointer* Gibraltar Labour Party* Gibraltar Liberal Party* Gleichmäßigkeitsprüfung, German for regularity test, a series for street-legal cars held at Nürburgring* Global Land Project...
) run by the same organizing club. One or two additional events are held on the Grand Prix track, or on the combined tracks as used in VLN or at the 24h. Since 2003, some events were held on the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is the venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix and the Spa 24 Hours endurance race. It is also home to the all Volkswagen club event, 25 Hours of Spa, run by the Uniroyal Fun Cup. It is one of the most challenging race tracks in the world, mainly due to its...
. As season highlight in front of thousands of spectators, the RCN usually runs on the Thursday before a 24 Hours Nürburgring
24 Hours Nürburgring
The 24 Hours Nürburgring is a touring car and GT endurance racing event on the Nürburgring Nordschleife . With a lap length of over , it allows the participation of more than 200 cars, and over 700 drivers.-Overview:...
race, which is a holiday
Holiday
A Holiday is a day designated as having special significance for which individuals, a government, or a religious group have deemed that observance is warranted. It is generally an official or unofficial observance of religious, national, or cultural significance, often accompanied by celebrations...
, either Ascension Day or Corpus Christi (feast)
Corpus Christi (feast)
Corpus Christi is a Latin Rite solemnity, now designated the solemnity of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ . It is also celebrated in some Anglican, Lutheran and Old Catholic Churches. Like Trinity Sunday and the Solemnity of Christ the King, it does not commemorate a particular event in...
. The track versions used during that event include various sections of the Grand Prix track. In 2005, the CHC was run on 4 different track versions, three of them at the Nürburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
.
On the Nordschleife, 15 laps of 20.832 km have to be run, for 312 km overall (longer than an F1 race). Due to being an amateur event without practise, the first (warm up) lap, the last (cool down) and two laps in between for a pit stop are not timed, unless a generous maximum time is exceeded. Of the remaining 11 laps, 9 are run at full speed (like a special stage
Special stage (rallying)
Special stages are the competitive sections of a stage rally event where the goal is to cover a stretch of closed road in the shortest time. On a special stage cars are set off individually at set intervals to reduce the chances of being impeded by other competitors. Each special stage is a...
in rallying), with each second counting as one penalty point. Two laps have to be done at a given time similar to a liaison stage in rallying. If the tolerance of +/- 2 seconds is exceeded, each second counts tenfold, so some discipline and precision is required. In wet conditions, these laps can decide the winners, as they can add a significant amount of penalty points to the tally.
The entry fee is about 400 Euro. As in rallying, a co-driver can be on board, a quite unique possibility to take a passenger within a circuit racing contest. Also, those two drivers can share a drive, which reduces costs for amateurs.
Championship points are awarded according to amateur rules, depending on the number of entrants in the same class. There are also a entry level "Light" classes with fewer laps, focusing on regularity, and a separate championship.
2006 Calendar
For this season, no event on the Circuit de Spa-FrancorchampsCircuit de Spa-Francorchamps
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is the venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix and the Spa 24 Hours endurance race. It is also home to the all Volkswagen club event, 25 Hours of Spa, run by the Uniroyal Fun Cup. It is one of the most challenging race tracks in the world, mainly due to its...
could be arranged due to construction work there. On the other hand, the Nordschleife is used 7 times, and the GP track only once. During the 24h race weekend, parts of the GP track are connected to the 20.8 km Nordschleife for a 25.3 km track.
| Date | Organizers | Track | in connection with GLP? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01.04.2006 | VG Castrol-Haugg-Cup | Nordschleife | no |
| 29.04.2006 | Scuderia Augustusburg Brühl | Nordschleife | yes |
| 15.06.2006 (24h weekend) | MC Roetgen Scuderia Augustusburg |
Nordschleife & GP 25.3 km version | no |
| 15.07.2006 | MIG 7 | Nordschleife | yes |
| 05.08.2006 | SFG Schönau | Nordschleife | yes |
| 02.09.2006 | MC Roetgen | Nordschleife | yes |
| 07.10.2006 | BMC Wuppertal | Nordschleife | yes |
| 22.10.2006 | Automobil-Club Altkreis Schwelm | Grand Prix track | (no, GLP on 21st) |
Champions
| Jahr | Team/Car | Team/Car |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | RCN: Hans-Rolf Salzer (Alpenrod) BMW M3 | MLT: Holger Träger/Karl-Heinz Zammert (Bochum/Düsseldorf) VW Golf GTi |
| 2007 | RCN: Ludger Henrich/Jürgen Schulten (Schmitten/Hamminkeln) Honda Civic Type-R | MLT: Gerhard Diel (Wermelskirchen) Opel Astra GSi |
| 2006 | RCN: Hans-Rolf Salzer (Alpenrod) BMW M3 | MLT: Holger Träger/Karl-Heinz Zammert (Bochum/Düsseldorf) VW Golf GTi |
| 2005 | RCN: Ludger Henrich/Jürgen Schulten (Schmitten/Hamminkeln) Opel Corsa Sport | MLT: Christof Degener/Dirk Kehrberg (Hattingen/Bochum) VW Golf GTi |
| 2004 | RCN: Jörg Weber (Kehrig) Ford Escort RS2000 | MLT: Holger Träger (Bochum) VW Golf GTi |
| 2003 | RCN: Ulrich Ehret (Buchen) BMW 318iS | MLT: Christof Degener (Hattingen) VW Golf GTi |
| 2002 | RCN: Thomas Imig/Petra Dams (Mönchengladbach/Düsseldorf) VW Golf GTi | Light: Jörg Kosmalla/Kerstin Kosmalla (Köln) Opel Corsa |
| 2001 | Maic Winter (Dingden) Opel Astra GSi | |
| 2000 | Jürgen Schulten (Hamminkeln) Opel Astra/Opel Calibra | |
| 1999 | Frank-Dieter Lohmann (Freudenberg) Ford Escort Cosworth | |
| 1998 | RCN: Mark-Oliver Burghardt/Jens Kolodzey (Duisburg) Opel Manta 16V | MLT: Jochen Kaiser/Oliver Koppitz (Hürth) Opel Calibra 16V |
| 1997 | RCN: Mark-Oliver Burghardt/Jens Kolodzey (Duisburg) Opel Manta 16V | MLT: Thorsten Birawsky/Marco Birawsky (Plochingen) Ford Capri |
| 1996 | RCN: Mark-Oliver Burghardt/Jens Kolodzey (Duisburg) Opel Manta 16V | Nat.: Carsten Burmeister/Oliver Heise (Krummesee) Opel Astra GSi |
| 1995 | Int.: Walter Schneider (Herschbroich) VW Golf GTi | Nat.: Günter Kalsdorf/Günter Deus (Wülfrath/Wuppertal) Toyota Celica |
| 1994 | Int.: Robert Güntzel (Herscheid) VW Golf GTi | Nat.: Wilfried Thal/Horst Wippersteg (Wülfrath) Porsche 911 Carrera |
| 1993 | Int.: Franz Claer (Eschweiler) Suzuki Swift | Nat.: Mathias Bungard (Eitorf) VW Golf GTi |
| 1992 | Int.: Walter Schneider (Herschbroich) VW Golf GTi | Nat.: Günter Kalsdorf/Silvia Bechem (Wülfrath) Toyota Celica |
| 1991 | Int.: Walter Schneider (Herschbroich) VW Golf GTi | Nat. Herbert Schilling/Erich Löhrer (Bornheim) Audi 80 |
| 1990 | Int.: Walter Schneider (Herschbroich) VW Golf GTi | Nat. Herbert Schilling/Erich Löhrer (Bornheim) Audi 80 |