The Nordschleife is one of the most thrilling race tracks that are open to the public. The "touristfahrten" days are most likely one of the best times to prove your skills around the German circuit, and this informal type of open racing is extremely popular among speed addicts.
Cars and bikes, both in street-legal and race trim flow onto the German circuit and try to take their best shot at "civil glory". The Nurburgring administration is even making statistics for the fastest official laps around this track, though the unofficial data is a times much richer.
One such unofficial record in the motorcycle world is the 7 minute and 10 seconds lap time set by Andy Carlile aboard a Yamaha YZF-R1 back in 2005. Based on Carlile's Bridge to Gantry (BTG) time, match calculations would yield a 7'28" or even 7'24" (according to some) lap time. That is, of course, spectacular.
Here's Nino Pallavicini and his stock BMW S1000RR, lapping the Nordschleife in 7'23". In the absence of more details, it's impossible to tell whether Pallavicini's lap was clocked for the entire circuit or the same BTG distance.
Either way, his performance has already secured a nice place among the fastest two-wheeled people at the Nurburgring, as anything that gets close to the 7-minute bar can easily receive the "exceptional" tag.
Mirrors removed and an aftermarket silencer are the sole changes for this S1000RR.
The fact that the BMW S1000RR is one of the most savage superbikes around is old news, but this video is a most welcome extra piece of evidence. Even more, the coolest fact about Nico Pallavicini is that he rode an S1000RR in almost stock trim.
Nico removed the mirrors, as they create unnecessary drag and are not needed in such a scenario, where being passed by another bike or car is one of the least likely things that can happen, anyway. The other modification was replacing the stock silencer with an aftermarket slip-on can that is supposed to shave off some weight and
improve a bit the power and torque figures.
And this means that the S1000RR is much closer to the "absolute stock" trim than Carlile's R1. The Yamaha got suspension upgrades from Nitron, BST carbon fiber wheels and was regeared.
Still a street-legal machine, the R1 looks like the bike to beat around the Nordschleife. Pallavicini says he will take a new, 2015 Yamaha R1 to the Schleife and put it through its paces and of course, try to give Carlile a run for his money, too.
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