PFLANZGARTEN

There follows another of those special ‘Ring stretches, Pflanzgarten very fast, but only for those who know where they’re going. Top gear, flat out in a 908 that meant about 180mph, more in a 917, and like the Fuchsrohre the next apex is always just over a crest so you must position the car before you see it.

Pfianzgarten also brings back memories. In 7970, although Porsche had never seriously thought of the 977 as a WOrburgring’ car, Siffert and I did backto-back tests with a 977 and 908/3. Jo was in the 908, me the 977. We did a couple of slow noisy laps to frighten away the wildlife and then on my first fast lap, coming over a fiat-out crest at Pfianzgarten at about 780mph, sitting in the middle of the road was an eagle. He flapped his wings a couple times and was about two feet off the ground when I hit him, destroying the front of the car and the windshield. Back in the pits Helmut Bott and the other engineers and mechanics wanted to know where I’d gone off and only offer driving them round and finding the poor bird did they believe it could do so much damage.