It’s more famous for horsepower than pedal power.
But on Sunday, Tim Elverson will unleash his troops on the iconic Nürburgring in Germany.
The likes of Juan Manuel Fangio, Stirling Moss and Jackie Stewart all tasted Grand Prix glory on the famous Nordschleife (North Loop).
This weekend a new Ringmeister will be crowned in the UCI 1.1 Rudi Altig Race, a feature contest of the three-day Rad am Ring (Bicycle at the Ring) festival.
Elverson revealed the invite came out of the blue but admitted he is relishing the unique experience to sample a track steeped in motorsport history. The sport director said:
“We didn’t apply to many of the 1.1s at the start of the season because we didn’t think we would get into them.
“But all of a sudden, we are now getting invites to lots of races. It is real progress and shows how our profile has grown.
“This is a really exciting race. RideLondon is World Tour now, so we can’t do that on Sunday. But I think I’m more excited about this.
“Paul Voss won it last year. Rob (Partridge) and him were team-mates at Endura and he says it is a very grippy, everybody just went out the back!
“So we are expecting a very tough race. Paul said it was even tough on the flat because it is a really draggy road surface.
“You have also got to be careful offline because of all the rubber and stuff off the trees which doesn’t get cleared.
“There is something like 3,600m of climbing in it, too. I can’t get my head around that. I have watched racing on the Nürburgring a million times and I didn’t even think it was hilly!”
Elverson has taken the lumpy parcours into account when selecting his eight-man squad for the team’s maiden race in Germany, the homeland of title sponsors Canyon.
Road captain Rob Partridge is joined by Dexter Gardias, Max Stedman, Jack Pullar, James Lowsley-Williams, Matt Nowell and Joe Fry.
The team is completed by Rory Townsend, who will offer a sprint option should the race be controlled and the break ridden back for a bunch kick. Elverson added:
“Now it appears the circuit is very hilly, so I have predominantly got my Ryedale team going over there, along with Rory.
“I have stuck him in just in case by some weird freak it went relatively paced and someone rode it back on the Formula One circuit, which is flatter.
“He is in there just in case that happens. He gives us another option but everyone else is going for a lumpy race.”
The race is named after legendary German cyclist Rudi Altig, who won the Vuelta a España, Tour of Flanders, Milan – San Remo and Tour de France green jersey in a glittering career.
Altig, who died last June aged 79, also wore the coveted rainbow stripes after World Championship glory in 1966.
The peloton will tackle five laps of the Nordschleife, built in the 1920s, before finishing off with five laps of the new GP-Strecke (Grand Prix course).
The latter was built in 1984 after safety concerns halted Formula One racing on the Nordschleife, which had been nicknamed ‘The Green Hell’ by Stewart after his 1968 win.
The Rad am Ring festival started on Friday, with a 22km time trial battle following the event’s grand opening.
On Saturday, various races of different distances and disciplines, including MTB and eBike, take place before entertainment and barbecue.
Then the weekend climaxes with the Rudi Altig Race, which is scheduled to start at 11.30am and finish around 3pm.
Eurosport are advertising live updates on their website, simply click here. Alternatively, follow our Twitter and Facebook feeds for all the latest news.
