Congrats JP... and thanks for posting. I *needed* a post like this.
Jan.
=---
J. P. Hovercraft wrote...
> The saga begins shortly after GPLRank <snip>
The saga begins shortly after GPLRank first went up. I did a couple of
cursory laps at a few of the tracks that I hadn't driven just to get a
rank. To my chagrin, I was the slowest GPLRank driver, with a 620
handicap. A couple of days vainly trying to improve and I reached the
decision...throw away the automatic transmission I'd been using for
about a year. Lap times start falling, including Monza, probably my
favorite because the automatic trans didn't slow me down so much there.
I'm into the 500s! Then the whole 'Ring thing started. I was advised to
drop all other tracks and drive the 'Ring until my times get better.
"That'll improve your rank," they said.
"They" were right. Into the 400s, the 300s...lap after lap, tree after
tree, whoops (crunch) at the 'Ring. I can almost see it as I type...8^).
Learning to use the transmission and accelerator as directional
controls. A downshift here, a blip on the throttle there. "Hey, I'm
still on the track! I didn't know I could brake that fast." Get -off-
the brakes in some places, downshift, keep the wheels -turning-, you'll
stay on the track. Torque control...the same speed in a different gear
(higher/lower) and the car handles curves I couldn't even think about
before.
I started at the 'Ring at 12:20, as soon as I lost the auto tran, into
the 11s. Some more laps, the low 11s... -below-11, into the 200s at
GPLRank now, more laps...and I finally made it below 10 last week! A
break to come in 2nd at IMS and get my 1st newspaper! Oh and there was
a system upgrade in there about a month ago. P166 to Celery 533. Now
-that- helped, too! To celebrate, I tried some of the tracks I'd been
ignoring for a while, Glen, Zan, and...-AMAZING- I've not just been
learning to go fast at the 'Ring, I've been learning to -drive-. 5 sec
off at Zan, 2 at Monza, 5 at the Glen, 20 at Spa (!) etc. Wow! I -love-
this sim!
So today I took a few more seconds off at the 'Ring and...my handicap is
-below- 200! 199.94! Hooray! I'm a GPL menace!...as long as everybody
else stays still. 8^)
Of course I can see that one reaches a point where the gains will be in
1/2 seconds, 1/10th seconds (except at the 'Ring, still lotsa room
there...) etc., but if each of those is as satisfying as what's gone
before, I'll still be driving GPL when they release GP6!
Thanks for bearing with this rant,
J. P. Hovercraft
Keep it up JP and we might just move up another notch in the Nations Cup!
Congrats and keep us posted.
--
Ken MacKay
Halifax, Canada
GPL Handicap +88.79
PS And only one passing mention of this GP thinger-ma-bobber. :)
...and not even a 3 after it...8^).
J. P. Hovercraft
Ken MacKay wrote:
