rec.autos.simulators

How about not on Sundays?
Sundays are for real NASCAR, maybe a Saturday RAS race?

I've never had the chance to do either Tom...  nor have I claimed  so..  But
all that's beside the point. What I'm talking about is I see/feel in N4....

Like I (think I) mentioned in one of my earlier posts - the track may be
great in real life or with a proper racecar - it's just that in N4 an/or
with these stockcars - it's utterly crap...

Having said that, just because it's a nice place to attend races - dosn't
automaticlly mean it's a good track...  just look at the Bristol for example
:-)

As for a GP at Sears Point....  I seriously doubt that will ever happen....
(although I'd love to be proven wrong on this.)

--
ed_

The race was *supposed* to be at 1pm eastern on Sunday, but there are
dissenting opinions.  I'm currently just waiting for a consensus...<g>

Eldred
--
Dale Earnhardt, Sr. R.I.P. 1951-2001
Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett
GPLRank - under construction...

Never argue with an idiot.  He brings you down to his level, then beats you
with experience...
Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

You have the power to control all things. Use it. :-)

Can you set a Daytona race to follow the Sears Point race?

David G Fisher

Ed...

I would tend to agree with you on the N4 track......Sears wasn't too good
(not modeled very well either.....even if it wasn't the new config).  But,
N2K2 is better ....and I think you'll like the new WC Chute.  While its not
better than the old carousel sports car course....its far better than the
original WC Chute was.  You might be pleasantly surprised at the N2K2 Sears?

Another thing, the WC cars are not very nimble....and Sears is a track where
"nimbleness" is at a premium.  I really am anxious to get hold of a good
sports car sim....with a properly modeled Sears Point......I think it might
become a sim community "favorite"....at least for the road racers among us.

I do know that not having been to a race track in real-life....steals some
of the ability from my mind to imagine and enjoy racing on the sim track.
This was made very clear to me last year....when I visited Silverstone for
two days of F1 team testing....now the Silverstone track in F1-2001 is
"alive" in my mind when I drive it......but the other tracks are still kind
of "flat"....doesn't tweak my imagination very much when racing on them.
Since I've driven Sears (obviously) and Watkins Glen quite a bit....that
probably gives me an advantage for running them in N2K2......but not much of
one.

Sears Point is truly becoming a spectacular race track.......not only from a
driver's standpoint (which it has pretty much always been), but from a fan's
standpoint now with the new terracing and grandstands.  How many road
courses in the world at 2 + miles in length can say the fan can follow a car
around the entire circuit......without losing site of the car (but for a
couple brief instances as it passes a grandstand)?  Not many.  Then, with
the fact that Sears is located up very high on a hillside (much like
Bathurst)....the view for the fans of the surrounding horizon is very
spectacular.  Combine all of this....and the FIA guys were impressed.  From
a physical and marketing standpoint....there's nothing about the new Sears
Point that would prevent an F1 race there now.  However, politics in racing
probably have a lot more to do with that ever happening.....than the track
itself.  So, I'd agree with you.....we'll probably never see an F1 race
Sears.

Hope to see you on the virtual Sears....tomorrow.  It will be a blast to
race with you guys.....even if I have to look at your butts all race long!

Regards,

Tom

Well Tom, most of us here on r.a.s. really don't care about what fans think.
We want a racetrack for the drivers, not the fans.  I'm sorry, but the
"Bristolised" Sears Point is a very boring track compared to the old, longer
layout.

Won't ever happen.  Yeah I can SO much see F1's doing sub-1minute laps at SP
with absolutely no realistic safety zones for high velocity cars like
Formula Ones.  And don't tell me it's safe for F1 with whatever 100-line
proof.  It's BS, the track is not safe for F1.

--
-- Fran?ois Mnard <ymenard>
-- http://www.ymenard.8m.com/
-- This announcement is brought to you by the Shimato Dominguez
Corporation - helping America into the New World...

I've yet to get hold of N2002 so I'm afraid I wont be able to join the fun
:(

As for the new Sears layout and physics in N2002;

Here's to hoping !!

--
ed_

Sears?

I actually prefer the old version Tom.  It was fun to push the braking zone
at the limit of the previous long right corner.  I don't care if you could
pass there or not, but the long right corner *was* a good corner before
braking into the Chute.  Now it's just two boring corners.

There is much better tracks elsewhere in the USA, either from a safety POV
or just the fact that they are longer and much better suited for F1.  The
layout of SP doesn't suit Formula Ones.  It's not made for it, like you
would not see NASCAR going around the Gilles Villeneuve circuit.

--
-- Fran?ois Mnard <ymenard>
-- http://www.ymenard.8m.com/
-- This announcement is brought to you by the Shimato Dominguez
Corporation - helping America into the New World...

FIA did have success with their USGP Wests at Long Beach, so I
wouldn't think it's too far fetched.  It would definitely be an
interesting track to drive an F1 car on.

Also, why do you hate Bristol so much?  I realize it sucks for pickup
races but it's not too bad against the AI or in a league setting.

Jason

I just spent my first hour and a half with this track and while I think it's
an excellent track overall, and would probably be great to visit due to the
setting and other reasons Tom described, I don't like it AT ALL with a
NASCAR car. "Tedious" is the best word to describe the experience. WG isn't
much better. It really is like steering a boat.

Another type of car at SP would probably be a blast, but not a NASCAR car.

Is a 1:24 a ***time?

David G Fisher

That was then - this is now...  :-)   Does Imola 1994 ring a bell? :-)

Did I ever say I hated Bristol?

--
ed_

Down to a 1:22, but the track lesson said a 1:20 was a good lap.

David G Fisher

I agree with you, Francois.....but unfortunately, the WC drivers we had test
three different versions of the track in our sims, disagreed with both of
us.  The config that was built (and mostly represented in N2K2....T7 is
quite wrong in the sim, however) was the one they selected by vote (more
than 30 drivers).

The "results" from last year's race tends to support their decision as being
a good one.  But, from pure racing enjoyment....mod version #1 was my
favorite....it turned the entire WC Chute....from T3a to the entry of the
esses (T8) into a 9 degree banked, sweeping, downhill, right-hand turn much
like T9 at the old Riverside Raceway track.  Top speed in the turn was over
140mph in the sim.....it was a blast and it was 60 feet wide so you could
pass at will in the turn.  But, the team crew chief's voted it down....they
were fearful of the high speeds the drivers were carrying into the top of
the esses....and they were right.

Tom

Dang...!

Which turns do you think would pose a problem for F1?  The only one I
could think of as a problem was T7 (assuming that was the flat-out
righthand sweeper that was changed) but that's been tightened and
there's a long paved runoff area (which is good since FIA has
determined that paved runoff areas are safer than grass or sand).
Since FIA bases dangerous corners on G-forces I don't think SP would
be a problem.  I think it would generate a big traffic jam with all of
the slow corners but the elevation changes are definitely more
interesting than anything currently on the F1 calendar.

Jason