RSR Nurburg Interview

Ron Simons is founder of the RSR Nurburg racing school and provides thousands of petrolheads a year with cars and instruction on race tracks around Europe. In recent years a lot has changed around the once so peaceful Nurburgring. In December 2010 RSR Nurburg was banned from the famous Nordschleife but recently the High Court ruled that Nurburgring GmbH broke important German Anti Trust laws by banning RSR Nurburg while offering similar services on the track that they own. Enough reason for us to head down to the town of Nurburg and have an interview with Ron Simons about RSR Nurburg, the Nordschleife and the current situation.

About Ron Simons

Ron Simons founded RSRacing in 1995 in The Netherlands as a company specialized in suspension systems for track- and sports cars. New systems were tested and optimized by Ron Simons during the many races in which he participated with his GTV6 racer and Ferrari 308 GTB GULF. During the ’90s Ron also started instruction for Porsche and Ferrari among others. After running the 75Experience at the Nürburgring Nordschleife Ron started the racing school RSRNurburg in 2002. The company is based just a stones throw away from the entrance to the famous Nürburgring Nordschleife and supplies track car rentals and driver instruction.
Since 2002 RSR Nurburg seen steady growth and some of the highlights include hosting the Nissan GT-R launch event in 2008 and the organization of various events for Dunlop and Lotus. In 2009 RSR Spa was founded to be less dependent on the Nurburgring for the long term future of the company. RSR Nurburg has a fleet of over sixty cars from Renault Clio Cups up to LMP2 cars and everything in between.
In April 2011 RSRNurburg was the first company to win a court case against Nurburgring Automotive GmbH in a battle for justice that continues since business experiments around the Nurburgring started in the last decade. The experiments under supervision of former CEO Walter Kafitz have brought not just the new business ventures but the whole Nurburgring in jeopardy. In 2009 two German businessmen, Joerg Lidner and Kai Richter became the new operators of the track, but instead of making things better, many locals and car manufacturers claim they only made things worse for the Nurburgring.
What is your opinion about the current management of the track?
Ron: Nurburgring Automotive GmbH has made things more expensive and lower quality. They use their monopoly to push competitors out of the market. Nurburgring Automotive GmbH not only manages the track but also runs hotels, restaurants and companies that provide services like track instruction and car rental in the area. They use package deals and restrictions to force their clients to use their other services. One good example is track instruction, clients who rent the track are only allowed to hire their instructors, not just leaving us empty handed but they can determine their own price and there’s no incentive to maintain or improve quality. On top of that prices for track rental have raised significantly the last few years, to such an extend that important clients leave the region or come less often.
The Minister of Commerce claims the whole region benefits from the developments and the management under supervision of Joerg Lidner and Kai Richter, what is your opinion about that?
That would only be true if the forecasted visitor numbers would become reality but as we all know those numbers are far, very far off (2,000,000 annual visitors forecasted with less than 400,000 actual annual visitors). Currently the state funded development provides a lot of over capacity in the region and with illegal package deals and misuse of their monopoly Nurburgring Automotive GmbH takes away business from local businesses that worked hard to provide a service for the visitors to the areas over decades. On top of that recent price raises already forced long-term ring users like Pirelli to leave Nurburg in favour of other testing facilities.

What is your goal regarding Nurburgring Automotive GmbH on the short term?

We want to achieve equal opportunities for everybody that is involved with the Nurburgring Nordschleife and Nurburgring Automotive GmbH should give clients of the track free choice when it comes to choice in secondary services like hotels, hospitality, car rentals and instruction.

RSR Nurburg


A first step has already been achieved when you won a court case against Nurburgring Automotive GmbH?
Yes, the German High Court ruled that our ban enforced since December 2010 was an abuse of German Anti Trust laws. I’m glad that justice still exists and even the Nurburgring is not above the law. Many companies are affected by the questionable dealings of the new regime. I truly hope that this is inspiration for all of them to raise their voices and take on the fight. We have another court case in July 2011 regarding compensation for our business losses incured between December 2010 and April 2011.
Will your victory in court mark a turning point for the Nurburgring?
I do hope so! We notice the attitude at Nurburgring Automotive GmbH has changed a bit and hopefully they finally realize they are on the wrong path but a lot needs to be done to secure the future of the Nurburgring. For us its great to be back on the Ring. After we won the court case our first two clients were Nicola Larini & Fabrizio Giovanardi who will participate in the Nurburgring 24 hours with the Glickenhaus Ferrari P4/5 together with Mika Salo.
Is there a solution for the current problems and a way to secure the future of the Nurburgring and businesses that depend on it?
That’s a very tough question. There’s not an easy solution here but there’s a few things we can do to make things better. First of all the companies involved should work together, thanks to SaveTheRing.org we have a public face for our battles for justice but many of the locals and companies around the ring are still very fragmented. Secondly the Nurburgring race tracks should be seperated from the Ring park and continue under new management not affiliated with the former stake holders. Lidner and Richter have always received support from important politicians, but our support is growing, especially Die Grünen and European Commissioner Joaquín Almunia have a good heart for our case, support them to help our case.

Info supplied from GTSpirit.com

Testing has started at the Ring

Last weekend was the start of the VLN series and testing was given the green light a few weeks ago.

Ron Simons from RSR Nurburg has been giving his knowledge of the Ring to Nicola Larini & Fabrizio Giovanardi

'First job at RSRNurburg is serving these two champions in getting warmed up for the 24 hour race later this year' said Ron Simons.


Both drove one of the Lotus Exiges under guidance of Ron Simons.

From left to right: Nicola Larini -Ron Simons - Fabrizio Giovanardi

The team is completed by Mika Salo and will compete in the Nurburgring 24Hour race driving the Glickenhaus Ferrari P4/5.

RSR back on the Ring

RSR Nurburg have been given the right to do what they do best at the ring last week after months of being banned by owners Nurburgring GmbH.

Quote from RSR Nurburg

RSRNurburg wins legal battle against Nurburgring Automotive  

Over the winter RSRNurburg was tight up in a legal battle with the new  Nurburgring regime

Last week  the High Court senate of judges made it very clear to the Nurburgring Automotive GmbH that their case is an abuse against the German Anti Trust laws. RSRNurburg was banned from the track for a second time effective december 2010. RSRNurburg was accused from driver training during tourist traffic on the Nordschleife. Since this is ‘unsafe’ according to Nurburgring Automotive GmbH, this is not allowed. Important detail is that Nurburgring Automotive offers the same product to customers since this year (and there are rumours they had a major accident with severe injury last week in one of their courses). 

Nurburgring Automotive has a monopoly and by banning RSRNurburg from the track they are abusing this monopoly. Besides this protection from Anti Trust competition rights, RSRNurburg also holds a contract dated january 2010 which can never be terminated (since termination would be against the Anti Trust law). Due to the fact that the High Court is the last station, there is no option for an appeal for the Nurburgring.   

‘justice still exists and even the Nurburgring is not above the law. Many companies are affected by the questionable dealings of the new regime. I truly hope that this is inspiration for all of them to raise their voices and take on the fight’ said Ron Simons after the court case.

This just shows Nurburgring GmbH that the people of the region won't sit back, they will fight.


Well done Ron and the Team

Nurburgring Web Cams

rhein-zeitung.de detailed report on the findings in English

rhein-zeitung.de detailed report on the findings  of the ring°card introduction at the Ring and Nürburgring operator Kai Richter

 

RING DRAMA 7: Case CST - judge made the right ring Checkout

Rheinland-Pfalz. The recent scandal of the Nürburgring fill whole volumes long. It is bursting million checks and soaring costs of the question. It reports had to go as a finance minister and was chased a general manager in disgrace.

But about a company with a complicated name Cash Settlement & Ticketing GmbH (CST) was rather unknown. This company could be described as a kind of blind spot in the public eye.

That will change in a confidential draft of Auditors report. The CST will appear in it as a synonym for waste of public money - cash each check. And in the explosive expertise takes some contours, which might be called the "system Kai judges' call. Based on those Düsseldorf entrepreneur who is at the Eifel track his sure instinct for business man with a sense of contract structures, in which he conceded, while the public sector to hedge the risks and bear the brunt of the financing.Unfortunately for the taxpayer.

What led to this aberration? The original business idea seemed as simple as clever.The Nürburgring cash should be used freely. Received and receives for each paying guest today a so-called "ring card, a stored value card, which is also on the ring road currency and entry ticket. Benefit to the Nürburgring operators: not cashing labor-intensive, no trouble with the change, a sleek, automated system that also documents nor the number of visitors. Investment in ticket machines and needed software would soon pay for themselves, the ring-leaders thought 2007th Especially since they were anticipating huge visitor flows. The advantages for the visitors ring: as good as any. For operators of such non-cash payment systems often have ugly ulterior motive. They calculate it, that visitors using up their credit cards not complete and that the rest just falls. The ring-makers built even more boldly on this effect, as the secret, we present a draft Audit Report documented. But more on that later.

To earn the cash-free money can really ring was on 7 February 2008 that operating company, which raised Cash Settlement & Ticketing GmbH (CST), was launched.Shareholders: to 50 percent, almost state-owned Nürburgring GmbH, to 50 percent of the Düsseldorf MI-Websolutions and later MI-Beteiligungs-und Verwaltungs-GmbH (MI).Now comes into play Kai Richter said. Düsseldorf those entrepreneurs who already as a "private investor" was active on the ring. He belonged to the MI to 80 percent, and he served as managing director. Otherwise, only a man named Klaus king was involved, about which almost nothing is known.

And what now criticizes the Court? His analysis of the CST has about 50 pages, but only one message: The Rhineland-Palatinate, it seems worthwhile to do with the affairs of state. The nearly state-owned Nürburgring GmbH was for years an incredible way of the entrepreneur Kai Richter overreach. All such commercial general rules went overboard.The canny investor used a network of companies around the CST in order to milk the cow Nürburgring financially.

In the preliminary report investigates the Speyer concern the entire complex to the CST reorganization in December 2010 took its preliminary conclusion. The design of the expertise is already almost four months with the State Government in the internal circulation. Allegedly, is even before the final report. Contents: unknown. But the design alone is explosive enough. Because the Court's work, as established companies and unnecessary services were bought overpriced. It was mostly Kai Richter and his business partner who went to benefit from the inflated structure. Especially in the era of Walter Kafitz Ingolf Deubel and strict cost control became a rarity. Deubel (SPD), hailed as a financial genius served until his resignation in July 2009 as Finance Minister and also as chairman of the board of the Nürburgring GmbH Walter Kafitz until his termination without notice in December 2009 on as chief executive of the maker ring.

The CST's expertise can be concluded that the two main protagonists of the Nürburgringaffäre - for whatever reason - were all backups aside. Management plans were missing, a solid controlling anyway and the waiver of tenders, estimates of visitor numbers were unfounded. An economical flying blind without equal. The Supervisory Board of Nürburgring GmbH seemed Ingolf Deubel, with the exception of a walk-on to take - more or less well informed. Consistent control? No way! But what the Court objected to in practice? Here are a few striking examples:

No feasibility and viability studies: The establishment of the CST (2008) we expected that would be incurred for the cash-free payment system cost of up to 5 million €.Nevertheless, neither the technical feasibility or the economic benefits were considered. So far this pre-paid systems were mainly used in football stadiums - such as in Kaiserslautern. But that is not comparable to the Nurburgring. A costly birth defects: The Court recommends to abolish the card system again. Even in the best course it will generate up to 2014 total losses of Euro 9.29 million.

Business partner is not checked: The Supervisory Board of Nürburgring GmbH learned in the foundation of CST only in passing that the judge held Medi Invest (known relevant) now completely unknown company appeared MI-Websolutions as a founding partner. In the financial statements of the MI 2005 and 2007 the cash were each less than 2000 €.Although the Court had pushed hard in previous reports on co-partner to choose carefully, there was no verification of financial capacity and skills of MI. It shows how judges apparently could juggle at will with companies and participations, without someone that he felt the tooth.

Cheaper alternatives are considered: The Court sets out clearly that the CST (with Richter as general manager) was really unnecessary. Because the company payment solution (ps), an expert in non-cash systems took over, later in fact, the management at the CST. The Munich based company also offers complete solutions. Demands on the supervisory board of Nürburgring GmbH is not known.

Lack of information: The Supervisory Board of the Nürburgring GmbH was not ring-CEO Kafitz informed that the Nürburgring GmbH had acquired since April 2009, the full funding of nearly insolvent CST. A violation of the establishment decision that came from a 50:50 ratio. Until September 2010 the Supervisory Board was barely into the picture. An auditor general to the work of the board: "He was basically satisfied with oral statements and is not itself take action."

Questionable transactions with remaining funds: In October 2009, so a half years after the founding of the CST, the Supervisory Board of Nürburgring was the first time a business plan, ie, a record of profitability. He went not only - highly unrealistic - assumes that will be issued each fiscal year 1.5 million cards. It was calculated with the fact that 40 percent of customers would forfeit a remaining balance of an average 2.75 euros per ticket. Here, visitors can claim back the amounts over the period of four years.

Chaotic reservations: Although the judge was firm Mediinvest agency responsible for the current and solely for fiscal year 2009 for EUR 54 000 were cashed, for 2009, an additional accountant and Düsseldorf - hired a public accountant - directly from Kai Richter. Unauthorized charges to September 2010: good 71 000 euros. In addition, the accounting was so chaotic that was posted in part twice. About 190 000 euro was a "stray bullet" lists just under 150 000 "false account" listed below.

More waste: CST Managing judges agreed with Judge Medi Invest totally overpriced hourly rates for the commercial administration (50 €). A similar case: Judge Mediinvest concluded by Jung Produktion GmbH (JP, owned 50 percent judge Mediinvest) is much too lucrative, long-term non-cancelable and especially advertising contract (volume 150 000 euro). JP earned in the "project management" for two office-container plants with capacities that were already included with the container company. Also gave judges the "judge and Jung GbR" too high rental income warehouses.

Irresponsible spending: judge engaged the UBK GmbH, an information technology company, without competition, and task description. A blank check worth 290 000 €.Also questionable: Two employees phoned in three months for a full 13 000 euros. And more violent: the CST could save 720 000 Euros, if they - would have cost 2008, ordered 1.5 million cards for the payment system, 500 000 - on the recommendation of the payment solution. Only a fraction of the 1.5 million was actually used. Finally, there were two directors of CST - Judges and representatives of the Nürburgring GmbH Only one received 2,500 euros per month. Who was that? Kai Richter.

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Public Question Time At The Ring!

Kai Richter and Jörg Lindner held a public question and answers evening at the Nurburgring last Thursday.

Late notice was given, and mid week made it a difficult night for people to attend, maybe this was the plan they intended so as to make them shine and show the world they dont mind being questioned???

The whole evening was filmed and online (video is not available yet!!) and some bullet points were made by Dale which can be found here.

We will post up the video as soon as its available