My PB at Spa is 3:23.35 in the Lotus. I've been in the 3:23's at Spa for
the last couple of months now. Meanwhile, down in France I managed to
turn a 3:21.67 in the Eagle Saturday night, which is pretty good for me
considering I first installed the track Friday night :-)

Gary

Spa isn't as a good base for your setup then the Nurburgring.  Le Mans
unlike Spa, isn't full of high speed 120+mph corners.  It's very close to
the Nurburgring in style, and has a similar long straight where you can
easily find a good gear.

--
-- Fran?ois Mnard <ymenard>
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I agree that Sarthe doesn't resemble Spa all that much, but I don't
think it has any more to do with the 'Ring either. Most Ring setups
I've seen are built for good handling, low-gear cornering and chance
of survival, not for optimal speed. As soon as I get home I'm going
to try my Rouen setup with a little tweaking. Slightly less toe-in,
more tire pressure and gearing optimized for acceleration along the
main straight. I'll probably be happy with that.

+Cinquo

Well a 3:32:31 in the Red Pasta Eater. I can now do a few laps without
loosing my brain and wrecking. It was fun while it lasted :-)

SLG

(All spelling errors are intentional and are there to show new
and improved ways of spelling old words. Grammatical errors are
due to too many English classes/teachers)

Thanx Fran?ois!! I'll try my ring setups too <G>

| Spa isn't as a good base for your setup then the Nurburgring.  Le Mans
| unlike Spa, isn't full of high speed 120+mph corners.  It's very close to
| the Nurburgring in style, and has a similar long straight where you can
| easily find a good gear.

Ok, so I *didn't* guess right.  Figures...<g>

Eldred
--
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Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett
F1 hcp. +24.63...F2 +151.26...

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writes:

Mine's just the opposite.  I'm at 3:22.80 at Spa, but only 3:30 at LeMans.  The
problem at LeMans is I can't see the upcoming turns clearly enough.  I end up
coasting up to it because I don't know where it is, or sliding past because
I've missed it... :(

Eldred
--
Dale Earnhardt, Sr. R.I.P. 1951-2001
Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett
F1 hcp. +24.63...F2 +151.26...

Never argue with an idiot.  He brings you down to his level, then beats you
with experience...
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Do you think that maybe since you have logged more lap time on Spa that
you might know all the turns subconsciously at Spa verses Sarthe Eldred?
I have always found that after a certain time I'll pre'visualize the track
as I
race it... just a thought..

| Mine's just the opposite.  I'm at 3:22.80 at Spa, but only 3:30 at LeMans.
The
| problem at LeMans is I can't see the upcoming turns clearly enough.  I end
up
| coasting up to it because I don't know where it is, or sliding past
because
| I've missed it... :(
|
| Eldred

Hmm, there's something I hadn't thought of. I'd followed others and imported
my Spa setup, losened off the roll-bars by 10lbs and hiked the gears a bit,
but I still wondered why my Eagle was flailing about like a 911 on corners.
As I cursed and swore, it didn't actually occur to me that a soft setup
could be the answer. Doh! I'm running 3:23s to 3:21s at the moment, all I
want to do is get that elusive sub 3:20!

--
-Ace-
(GPLRank -24.33)

**remove BRAIN before replying**

I'm definetley with Eldred on this one, I DL'd the track on Saturday, and
I've driven it all weekend. I know which way it goes, but coming into the
Dunlop curve after the start-line especially, I literally can't find the
Apex until I'm right on top of it, and those "colourful" adverts lining the
corner, in addition to the darker track surface, make it even harder to pick
out the right line as you approach and turn in. Authentic it may be, but
it's not easy.

--
-Ace-
(GPLRank -24.33)

<snip>

Current PB is in the 3:22 range (Eagle, naturally). Using my Spa
setup completely unchanged. Could possibly do with a tiny bit more at
the top end (202mph max, and the engine is screaming), but one thing
at a time... my Spa PB is 3:17.summat, so I reckon I can improve a
bit yet.

--
David. (GPLRank handicap -5.92; Monsters of GPLRank h/cap +272.44)
The GPL Scrapyard: http://scrapyard.9ug.com
"After all, a mere thousand yards - such a harmless little knoll,
really" - Raymond Mays on Shelsley Walsh.

Yeah, those first gear 90 degree corners are a real pain.  If you think
about it's not surprising.  To start braking just 2 tenths later at just
over 100mph would mean choosing a braking point that is 10 yards further
down the track.  To me that could mean the difference between the
correct turn in point or one that is either too early or a complete
overshoot.
--
Peter Ives
Remove ALL_STRESS before replying
If you know what's good for you, don't listen to me
GPLRank Joystick -50.63 Wheel -5.88

"O" Ace I agree! Plus your GPLRanking is much better then mine! :o(..lol
I just find once I have a mental image of the track [after I reach this
point]
that I really know what is coming 'way' ahead of the turn. twist, hill, bump
etc. I find Sarthe a nice track to read and the Dunlop turn I've picked one
definative spot to slow, feather gas/brake while sliding into the first
twisty
turn. There's a patch aka fix to lighten the track but I dont use it. Do
you?
Thom_j.

| I'm definetley with Eldred on this one, I DL'd the track on Saturday, and
| I've driven it all weekend. I know which way it goes, but coming into the
| Dunlop curve after the start-line especially, I literally can't find the
| Apex until I'm right on top of it, and those "colourful" adverts lining
the
| corner, in addition to the darker track surface, make it even harder to
pick
| out the right line as you approach and turn in. Authentic it may be, but
| it's not easy.
| --
| -Ace-
| (GPLRank -24.33)

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Thats the same problem I had with the slow turns like Mulsanne and
D'Arnage. (I was calling it Carnage because I always crashed.) Once I
settled on one car to drive (Eagle), I was more consistant with my
speeds so I could rely on the brake markers for those corners. I'm still
having problems with Mulsanne. (I suppose thats to be expected when
you're coming into such a slow corner at 200mph.) Otherwise, I can
usually count on screwing-up that righthander before Indianapolis every
couple of laps, as well as that fast left-right series that leads to the
short straight before Maison Blanche. (I'm always late with my turn in
point and end up sliding off the outside of the corner.)

One other thing that really helps is a 19 inch flat screen trinitron
monitor. (I've taken about 10 seconds off my GPL handicap since I bought
mine!) That road is a whole lot wider now :-)

Gary

And you're not the only one.

I also find the approach to Indy the scariest bit on the whole track.
The left-right you're talking about is the one after Arnage? Can it be
taken without lifting?

+Cinquo