Rad am Ring: A Celebration of Cycling

Three days and one night of pure cycling. That was Rad am Ring 2024. When the cycling spectacle at the Nürburgring concludes on Sunday with the Rad-Bundesliga, many kilometers and emotions will have passed between the start of the time trial on Friday and the finish of the 24-hour races on Sunday noon.

“The best event so far”

If you had to describe Rad am Ring 2024 in one word, it would be: Awesome, awesome, awesome! Okay, that’s more than one word, but after all there were also many different disciplines that took place on Nürburgring since Friday evening. A total of 10,448 participants, over 750 more than in 2023, turned the Green Hell into a vibrant cycling paradise. By day with the time trial, the touring rides, the Kids Race, and the amateur races. Around the clock with the legendary 24-hour races on both asphalt and off-road.

6,195 participants took part in the center piece of Rad am Ring, which had been fully booked for weeks. Goosebumps as the starting field formed on the finish straight in front of the Formula 1 grandstands on Saturday afternoon and was sent on their way by head of organization Hanns-Martin Fraas. Goosebumps as hundreds of white and red lights dotted the hilly racetrack in the darkness. Goosebumps as supporters and teams motivated each other, regardless of sun or clouds.

Only the light rain in the morning caused some crashes. “Thanks to the rescue teams, these were well managed though,” says Hanns-Martin Fraas. By Sunday noon, when the first solo riders and teams finished at 12:15 PM, the atmosphere was back to fantastic, with even a few tears of joy glistening in the eyes of some finishers. “For me, this was the best and most awesome event so far. When the 24h race finished, we had sun with light clouds. It was a real celebration,” the head of organization enthuses.

Results of the 24-hour races | as of: July 21, 2024, 2 PM

Road bike
In the individual road bike category, Rick Steffen (GER) from the ROSE Racing Team completed 27 laps, more than anyone else in this category. Behind him were Michael Bitter (GER) from bike-components VIII, Florian Klein (GER) from Abiomed Cyclist, and Michael Oberrauch (ITA) from Plasmatreat RTS-Electronic by Philipps Bike Team with 26 laps each. Danny Hannover (GER) from Tri Team Berlin and Michael Kneipp (GER) rode 25 laps each, while Patrick Marner (GER) from Leeze Factory Racing and Niklas Wellmann (GER) from MOFA Münster completed 24 laps each.

In the women’s category, Yvonne Margraf (GER) from Philipps Bike Team Mallorca Power by Philipps Bike Team completed 23 laps, followed by Petra Demmer (GER) from pwrd by Canyon with 21 laps, and Katharina Pier (GER) from Team Rheinhessen and Verena Walter (GER) from Marathon-Club-Menden with 18 laps each.

In the men’s category team of 2, tete de la marsch (GER), Reboots Bike Team 2 (GER), and Pester pac automation (GER) each completed 29 laps. Teams Rolladen Huber (GER) and WTC Ooiketrappers 1 (GER) followed with 27 laps, behind them were the PNR Cycling Club (GER), Tri Team Wartenberg (GER), the Lamentierenden Lamas (GER), and the team flott. 2er with 26 laps.

In the women’s team of 2 category, Piscina Ciclistas (GER) won with 24 laps. 2 Crazy Girls (GER) circled the Green Hell 22 times. The third place went to Altfrid Fighter 1 (GER) with 21 laps.

In the category team of 4, three teams each completed 33 laps: Team Strassacker (GER), Ledschends 1 (GER), and Planforum Cycling Team by Philipps Bike Team (SUI). The Älplecrew (SUI) completed 32 laps, and with 31 laps each, Team Strassacker 1 (GER), AVIA Allstars, Plasmatreat RTS-Electronic #1 by Philipps Bike Team, No Mercy, and Team Mainz Münster finished the race.

In the women’s race, the Pinkies (GER) finished on top with 28 laps. The Taunustörtchen (GER) completed 27 laps, and the Drückerbande – Team Fesch (GER) rode 26.

In the category team of 8 (men), Team Ledschends – RH77/BMC/Oakley/Factory Team (AUT) and Ahrbike -Willerscheid (GER) won with 33 laps each. AVIA I (GER) followed with 32 laps, while the Edelhelfer Racing Team completed 31 laps.

In the women’s category, the AVIA Frauen (GER) and Team Rhein-Neckar (GER) fought their way to the top with 25 laps each. Team flott.e Ladies completed 22 laps, followed by AWR / Dynamic Drives Cycling Team 3 with 21 laps.

Mountain bike
In the men’s solo mountain bike category, Rudi Döhner (GER) won with 45 laps. Christopher Schneider (GER) from Die MANNschaft e.V., Jannik Hindenburg (GER) from Team Wadenkrampf, and Stefan Blank (GER) finished in second place with 42 laps each. Marc Lichtherz (GER) from Acker Landschaft u. Tiefbau completed the podium with 38 laps.

In the women’s solo category, Robin Bolten (NED) won with 34 laps, followed by Nele Kaufmann (GER) from Dextro Energy Sport Team with 22 laps, and Sina Wicke-Hass (GER) from Hermann Hartje KG 1.2 with 10 laps.

In the men’s team of 2 category, Team IMNAUER-Sport (GER) completed 53 laps, one more than the second-placed DIMB Racingteam in the DIMB e.V./Team2Beat (GER). After 50 laps, wittraining ORBEA Team 5 (GER) finished third.

In the men’s team of 4 category, Waldwegheizer feat. Heipex (GER) led with 57 laps. RV Schwalbe Trier (GER) fought their way to 56 laps, followed by Thömus | WindowMaster by Wyss Training Crosser (SUI) and Team IMNAUER-Apollo (GER) with 55 laps each.

In the men’s team of 8 category, Achterjet (GER) collected the most laps with 55. In second place were RV Zobel (GER) with 52 laps, and SIG Koblenz – MTB Racing (GER) with 50 laps.

Rad-Bundesliga rounds off Rad am Ring

After the hobby and amateur riders set the stage with a grand cycling festival in the Green Hell, the licensed riders followed suit. Once again, the Rad-Bundesliga visited the Nürburgring, providing an exciting finale with plenty of speed over nearly 110 kilometers and 2,600 meters of elevation gain. The results, as well as those from the past two and a half days, can be found here.

About Rad am Ring

Rad am Ring has been held at the Nürburgring since 2003. The course runs through the state-of-the-art Formula 1 arena and the legendary Nordschleife. The center piece are the 24-hour races on the traffic-free, partially illuminated racecourse, with team quarters in the pit lane and along the track. The event has grown over the years: In addition to the ultra and long-distance events, Rad am Ring offers various amateur races, a time trial, and non-timed touring rides. The amateur races are part of the German Cycling Cup, Germany’s largest amateur race series. Since 2018, Rad am Ring has also offered cycling experiences such as tours, training sessions, tests, and tracks without competitive character under the motto “Fun for everyone.” Starting next year, there will also be a gravel event.