Once again, the time approaches for the Bathurst 1000. V8 Supercars, Australia’s equivalent of NASCAR, both in popularity and noise, but different in that they make both left AND right turns, returns to Mount Panorama this weekend for a 1000km romp on one of the most insane tracks on the planet.

23 turns. Check.

6km per lap. Check.

Just over 174 meters in elevation change. Che… WHAT??

For those of you still stuck in the antiquated Imperial measurement system, that’s a 3.8 mile track with almost 600 feet in elevation change. They are literally driving up the side of a mountain, and then back down again. Add in several blind corners and tricky braking zones, and you’re in for one hell of a ride:

What’s even better this year is the return of Nissan and Erebus Motorsport to the ranks, which will make for more eye candy. For donkey’s years, the only two manufacturers in the series were Ford and Holden. Next year, it gets even better when Mercedes-Benz joins the fray, which should be interesting considering their already considerable expenditures and experience in DTM.