- Motorcycles will be banned from tourist rides on the Nordschleife from 2025
- Petition #SaveTheRingBikes calls for re-admission
- Legal review planned based on Rhineland-Palatinate’s Nürburgring law
The last-minute decision by the Nürburgring operators to ban motorcycles from tourist rides on the Nordschleife is causing considerable debate within the motorcycle community. After decades of cars and motorcycles sharing the track, this move will bring an end to an established practice. The initiators of a petition see this not only as a break with tradition, but also as a potentially problematic legal step.
Operators’ decision draws criticism
In February 2025, Nürburgring GmbH announced that motorcycles would no longer be allowed to participate in tourist drives on the Nürburgring Nordschleife starting this season. Safety concerns were cited as the reason, in particular the different driving dynamics and lines of cars and motorcycles.
Many motorcyclists find this argument incomprehensible. Among other things, they criticize the fact that there are also considerable differences in speed, experience, and line choice among car participants, without this having led to a general exclusion of individual vehicle groups.
Petition #SaveTheRingBikes forms resistance
One of the central figures in the protest is Ralf Bollinger. A long-time motorcyclist, he says he has regularly participated in tourist rides for over three decades. With the #SaveTheRingBikes petition, he wants to unite motorcyclists and motorsport fans to achieve readmission.
According to Bollinger, there have been several offers of dialogue with the operating company, which have either gone unanswered or been rejected. There has been no structured dialogue between the operators and the now excluded user group.
Safety arguments and technical developments
The initiators agree that motorcyclists are exposed to particular risks on the Nordschleife. One of the greatest dangers is considered to be operating fluids such as oil or coolant on the track. However, this is precisely where the track’s infrastructure has undergone significant development in recent years.
These include video surveillance, AI-supported systems, and signaling systems along the track that can be used to draw attention to danger spots or close individual sections at short notice. These measures are intended to reduce the risk for motorcyclists without requiring a complete ban.
No separation of cars and motorcycles planned
The initiators reject the idea of separating cars and motorcycles during tourist drives. On the one hand, this would be economically unfeasible for the operator, and on the other hand, there is a risk that motorcyclists could overestimate their abilities on a supposedly open track. Tourist drives are expressly not racing events, but rather public use of the track with mutual consideration.
Legal review based on the Nürburgring Act
A central point of the argument is the Rhineland-Palatinate state law on the use of the Nürburgring from 2013. This provides for non-discriminatory use of the track by the general public, including motorsport activities in popular sports. In the opinion of the petition participants, this does not imply a blanket ban on motorcycles.
To clarify this issue, a law firm has been engaged that is said to have been successful in previous proceedings against the Nürburgring. The initial plan is to obtain a brief expert opinion and issue a formal request to the operator. The estimated costs for this amount to €10,000, or approximately $10,800.
Financing through fundraising campaigns
Fundraising campaigns have been launched on platforms such as GoFundMe and Change.org to finance the legal action. According to the initiators, several thousand supporters have already signed the petition. The funds raised will be used exclusively for the legal dispute.
Outlook
It is currently unclear whether the motorcycles will be allowed to participate in tourist rides on the Nordschleife again in the future. However, it is clear that for many of those affected, the exclusion is not just an organizational decision, but raises fundamental questions about access, tradition, and equal treatment under the law.
What this means for me as a motorcyclist
For motorcyclists, the exclusion of motorcycles from tourist rides on the Nordschleife means above all the loss of a long-standing opportunity to ride motorcycles in a clearly regulated and familiar setting. Participation was always a conscious decision, coupled with an awareness of the particular risks of this track. The ban not only removes access to a unique infrastructure, but also a part of everyday motorsport culture that has been taken for granted by motorcyclists for decades. Instead of individual responsibility and personal risk assessment, there is now a blanket decision that makes no distinction between experienced and inexperienced riders and offers no alternatives within the existing system.
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