Brendan Keirle, Nürburgring Legend, gone | FerrariChat

Brendan Keirle, Nürburgring Legend, gone

Discussion in 'Tracking & Driver Education' started by Nurburgringer, May 15, 2017.

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  1. Nurburgringer

    Nurburgringer F1 World Champ

    Jan 3, 2009
    11,031
    Texass
    #1 Nurburgringer, May 15, 2017
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Yesterday, in a truly cruel twist of fate, one of the largest and most loved Nürburgring personalities left this earth.

    Bren was known around the world as one of the most talented motorcycle riders ever to take on the Nordschleife, racking up well over 10,000 laps. Probably closer to 20k.

    For many years he held the unofficial lap record, earning the nickname "the Red Baron" while testing the latest, meanest machines for Performance Bikes Magazine.

    Bren was the Stig on 2 wheels, except his office was a REAL track without the benefit of any runoff, or cage.

    For over 10 years Bren ran Slider's Guesthouse during the Touristenfahren season, and also worked as a track Marshall helping hundreds if not thousands of riders and drivers to safely navigate this most treacherous of tracks.

    Somewhere on the web there's video of Jeremy Clarkson interviewing him during Top Gear's sub-10 minute Jag challenge.

    In recent years he transitioned from bikes to cars around the 'Ring, recognizing that his aging body had suffered enough damage and he couldn't cheat the grim reaper forever.

    His talent behind a steering wheel was almost as impressive as it was behind a set of bars. I always regretted missing the chance for a pax lap in his yellow, Alfa-engined Westie.

    For a while Bren had been spending winters in Spain, and this year decided to sell Slider's and "retire" to this warmer climate and run a motorcycle touring company.

    Today he was to leave Germany for his new life.

    Instead, during one of his likely last laps ever, the car he was in supposedly started smoking and, he suspected, dropping oil on it's way up the fast and especially dangerous Klostertall section.

    After the car pulled over at Mutkurve (aka "fear curve", ~4:40 in the video below) Bren ran back along the track to warn approaching riders/drivers of the danger.

    Why Bren of all people was not running behind the relative safety of the Armco barrier, nobody knows.

    A car hit the oil, lost control, and took Bren out.



    I first met Bren on the original "Ringers" internet group around 2001 before I moved to Germany, then in person about a year later. Although I didn't ride a motorcycle Bren never held that against me, becoming one of my most cherished Nurburgring friends. Stayed at his guesthouse on 2 occasions, rode passenger with him driving a fast Mercedes to Cochem for a memorable night of revelry, wrestled with his awesome great Dane in the backyard, chatted and laughed on numerous occasions in the NS parking lots, and watched in awe as flashed past me on his bike many, many times on the track.

    Getting a "like" from Bren on a Facebook post about my son or cars would always make me smile.

    The outpouring of grief and memories from around the world on Facebook is incredible. Bren touched so many lives.

    RIP, Chopper.


    Today we lost a good guy at the ?Ring, and we need to fix that. | BridgeToGantry.com

    Video from the primitive days of 2006, here's a classic Bren lap:

    [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C79A2Vn0QKg[/ame]
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  2. joe1973

    joe1973 Formula Junior

    Nov 12, 2016
    285
    NJ
    Sorry for this loss. I'm also relieved the video link does not work in my MacBook as it should not be posted. Nothing to learn and I wish to show respect interested in what he did and not how he ended his life. Very sad story and thanks for letting me know as I'm not a biker and unaware of his skills. As an avid Porsche guy, we mostly hear names like Walter Rorl and others on 4 wheels. This guy was special.
     
  3. Nurburgringer

    Nurburgringer F1 World Champ

    Jan 3, 2009
    11,031
    Texass
    Thanks for your thoughts Joe.

    The linked video is an onboard lap he did over 10 years ago.
    There is no video of the fatal incident that I know of, and if there I'd not be interested in watching or sharing it.

    Bren was indeed very special.
     
  4. Lotaz

    Lotaz Formula 3

    Nov 18, 2016
    1,537
    Las Vegas
    Full Name:
    Scott
    In that video he was definitely "all out" man that was fast. RIP
     
  5. NürScud

    NürScud F1 Veteran

    Nov 3, 2012
    7,273
    Really bad news. I've read it yesterday while i was looking BridgeToGrantry.

    R.I.P
     
  6. crinoid

    crinoid F1 Veteran
    Silver Subscribed

    Apr 2, 2005
    9,414
    Full Name:
    LaCrinoid
    Oh no. Terrible news.
     
  7. Nurburgringer

    Nurburgringer F1 World Champ

    Jan 3, 2009
    11,031
    Texass
    A friend posted this today on FB after visiting the scene, adding that Bren was driving and alone in the car.

    "We went to the crash site yesterday and I thought this might help some people understand what happened a bit better.

    This is my take on it having looked at all of the tyre marks and the lines drawn on the track by the police. Feel free to copy it and re-post it if you like to try and quash many of the rumours that have been floating around about this.

    It has helped me process things and gives an idea of how it happened.

    Bren had obviously had some sort of problem with the car and pulled over to prevent any fluid spilling on the track (track post 134) - the Police report and eye witnesses also state that there was no fluid spill on the track.

    He then ran down the grass on the inside line of Mutkurve to warn others. Having looked yesterday, it is possible to climb over the armco there but it is also very overgrown and would have been very hard to run down fast enough to warn others. I can personally understand why he chose to run down the grass if he thought there was fluid on the track and he knew that there were bikers following soon.

    Purely from the police markings, it looks to me as though the driver of the car entered Mutkurve and then must have seen him more or less when the car was at the apex of the corner. That is a very fast and delicate corner, any lift off, sudden braking, or anything like that is going to be a problem. But what do you do, how do you react in that split second???

    Again, from the police markings, the car went into a spin and mounted the grass on the inside and then hit Bren with the left rearside of the car. It then ran across the track and hit the armco on the outside.

    I do not think anyone can be apportioned any blame for this, it was one of those freak accidents, unfortunately they still can, and do, happen.

    Again my thoughts are with Bren's family, friends, and loved ones. But also to the driver of the car involved in the accident. I can see exactly how this could have happened.

    Lastly, this is all in my own view having looked at things with a clear head. Please do not start arguing for or against one point or another, I am not posting this so that people can start arguing about it, I am posting it to hopefully help people understand how it probably happened.

    Thanks for your understanding.

    I have to edit this, I have just seen a video and there is most definitely fluid on the track, but whether that was before or after Bren's accident is unclear."
     
  8. Jack-the-lad

    Jack-the-lad Six Time F1 World Champ
    Silver Subscribed

    Jun 22, 2004
    69,058
    Moot Pointe
    Tragic. Very sorry to learn about this.
     

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