The Ring rookie tips

Iv'e scraped toghter all my courage and I'm going to learn the Ring. It's sooo frustrating not knowing what corner will be next. What car would be the best car & setup that will forgive most of my mistakes? A car with who I can concentrate more on learning the track instead of struggling to keep in on the road. Do the fastest guys know the ring by heart? I tried the brabham with A.Hines setup because it's a light nimble car but I can't keep it under control, it seems to go even better using the Lotus. Is it the setup or is it me?

I hate to say it Tim but it's you. You just have to commit to knowing/ learning the whole track and once you do you have climbed the highest sim-racing mountain out there. As far as the setups go, the default Lotus and Brabham are pretty good. I'm not the ring king, but can run in the low 8:20's with the defaults. Good luck. Chad Rogers chadliz

You are from .be? Then scrape together all your BEF and go to the Nuerburgring. Having seen (or driven) it in real will help you a lot at learing the 1967 Ring in GPL. And don't forget to go there via Spa. It's not only the corners. Don't forget the bumps, too. Any car will do that when driven in 5th gear only. Gives you enough time to memorize the track, and you don't have to Shift-R yourself out of the hedges and forests all the time. Certainly. -- Matthias Flatt

Hi Tim, The Ferrari at the Ring is the best ride for me. Try my setup.... (Even though this was a GPL 1.0 setup the ride height is 3.0"+ so the 2.5" minimum high won't cause lots of changes) http://members.home.net/gpl.mondsj/gpl/Ferrari.html For the recotd, this new setup got me from 3:40+ to 3:20's :-D Nothing will make you go faster than not crashing at every corner. Just take it slowly in 3rd gear and learn the 14 segments of the track. Each of them has their own flow. Jason.

Quoted text (9 lines)

> Iv'e scraped toghter all my courage and I'm going to learn the Ring. > It's sooo frustrating not knowing what corner will be next. > What car would be the best car & setup that will forgive most of my > mistakes? A car with who I can concentrate more on learning the track > instead of struggling to keep in on the road. > Do the fastest guys know the ring by heart? > I tried the brabham with A.Hines setup because it's a light nimble car but I > can't keep it under control, it seems to go even better using the Lotus. Is > it the setup or is it me?

-- Jason Monds http://members.home.net/gpl.mondsj/gpl - For my combined gas/brake setups http://members.home.net/stuff.mondsj/n3prc - Nascar3 Pro Racing Club (Please remove 'no extra spork' when replying)

Are you nuts? You're sending this guy to a 22km racetrack where he will be cruising around while he's being overtaken left, right and center by motorcycles doing 220kmh! And that at 10 dollars a lap! This must be the worst advice ever. I have been to the real Ring, and I must say, it was VERY helpful to know all corners by heart, I never got surprised. But learning the Ring costed me at least 20 laps. I'm very glad I learned it in a simulator, not on the real track. Both for financial and safety reasons.

Watching Wolfgang Woeger's lap in a Lotus inspired me down the same road, I've made progress but still need to shave off a minute and change.... 'it's not a game, it's an adventure!' I have pretty much gotten spoiled on the Eagle for every track - I like the balance and know what to expect from it. You just have to take it slow enough to not go off for an entire lap - then do it again, and again.... and again - forget fast times until you get to the point that wherever you are on the track, you know what the next turn is going to require. As for the setup, every one has their own preference, I like a somewhat soft suspension, to get some chassis roll, with the rear springs soft enough that I don't spin it coming out of the turns. I tend to drive by "weight shift" because I can understand the physics of it better than throttle steering.... I'm getting there, but it's still weird... <G> Yes. At first, that seems impossible, but after enough laps without huntin' rabbits in the bushes, you will notice distinctly different sections with their own "personality" and once you know which section is next and what to do with it, it gets easier.. It's you, but don't let that bother you.... just takes time. I know the Lotus is a hot little puppy, but I also know I can't drive the dang thing yet... that's why I like the Eagle - it's pretty fast but a lot more forgiving than the Brabham or Lotus. I REALLY liked the way the BRM handled and "felt" but it's just too damn slow - and with me driving it, it was even slower.... <G> ~I have discovered that making it down the Dottinger Hohe straight without wiping out at the bridge is a helluva rush trying to get slowed for Tiergarten....

Quoted text (7 lines)

>The Ferrari at the Ring is the best ride for me. Try my setup.... >(Even though this was a GPL 1.0 setup the ride height is 3.0"+ >so the 2.5" minimum high won't cause lots of changes) >http://members.home.net/gpl.mondsj/gpl/Ferrari.html >For the recotd, this new setup got me from 3:40+ to 3:20's :-D

Surely you're referring to Spa here, not the Ring.

Hehe, actually i was referring to the Ring, but the 3 should be an 8 :-) 8:40 down to 8:29. Jason.

Quoted text (9 lines)

> >The Ferrari at the Ring is the best ride for me. Try my setup.... > >(Even though this was a GPL 1.0 setup the ride height is 3.0"+ > >so the 2.5" minimum high won't cause lots of changes) > >http://members.home.net/gpl.mondsj/gpl/Ferrari.html > >For the recotd, this new setup got me from 3:40+ to 3:20's :-D > Surely you're referring to Spa here, not the Ring.

-- Jason Monds http://members.home.net/gpl.mondsj/gpl - For my combined gas/brake setups http://members.home.net/stuff.mondsj/n3prc - Nascar3 Pro Racing Club (Please remove 'no extra spork' when replying)

Hi Tim Not only the fastest guys know the Ring by heart. So do I, and I'm definitely not one of the fastest. My recommendation: drive a few laps around the Ring every day, and you will learn it in some days. Later, when you are driving other tracks, always return to the Ring from time to time for a "refresh". IMHO the Brabham is not the best choice for beginners, it's not much easier to control than the Lotus. I recommend the Cooper/Coventry or the Eagle. In the beginning, don't worry about setups and lap times. Learn the track and try to stay on the road, then you can start optimizing your setups. Werner Tim Vanhee schrieb:

On Fri, 28 Jan 2000 18:44:17 -0000, "Robin Lord" >There is a ring driving guide off my site: >http://www.oppositelock.co.uk >and a another more recent (and better) but incomplete one here: >http://lightsoutracing.simplenet.com/trackguides/gpl/ring/index.html This guide is great at Eric C?t Sim Racing Mag http://simracing.com/simracingmag/roland1_c.html

My 2: learn the track first, at whatever leisurely rate keeps you on the tarmac. Turn on realistic damage, and pretend you're driving mother to the grocery store. Go out of your way to give her a good scare, but don't hit the airbags. Talk to the cat as you wend your way through, anything to take your mind off the clock. I know the Ring better than I know my daily commute. Michael. definitely not one of

Another ring driving guide (in process but good for a few laughs anyway): http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~jimmibo/gpl/index.htm The Mars mission at the bottom of the page is good for a few laughs also.

Quoted text (12 lines)

> On Fri, 28 Jan 2000 18:44:17 -0000, "Robin Lord" > >There is a ring driving guide off my site: > >http://www.oppositelock.co.uk > >and a another more recent (and better) but incomplete one here: > >http://lightsoutracing.simplenet.com/trackguides/gpl/ring/index.html > This guide is great at Eric C?t Sim Racing Mag > http://simracing.com/simracingmag/roland1_c.html > >No substitute for practice though

Alisons Ring Brabham setup is a nightmare.... keep well away! Cooper is by far the best car to learn the ring with. Try schubis page for a nice cooper setup (maybe even try my one (found in the history 1.0 section - 8m03.8) One final tip: don't push ... drive slow enough that you complete at least 3 in 4 laps there . The learning curve will be so much steeper Good Luck Marc Mercer

Guaranteed, anyone who's doing under 8:30 at the Ring is doing so because they know what's coming next. They know what gear they should be in, when they should be braking and where they should be aiming to position the car. There's no reason you shouldn't be able to do the same. (Time permitting <g>) -- Peter Ives - (AKA Ivington) No person's opinions can be said to be more correct than another's, because each is the sole judge of his or her own experience.

Why not just do as I did. Before driving the track at all, I loaded the default replay and watched it many times. You do not have to worry about driving and learning the track at the same time. There is also the advantage of being able to FF / REW without having to mess about looking at one corner. Once you have a feel for the place then take to the track in a F3 car. Once you are below the 9:10 mark then you should be ready to go round in a F1 without too much trouble. MS > I hate to say it Tim but it's you. You just have to commit to knowing/ > learning the whole track and once you do you have climbed the highest > sim-racing mountain out there. As far as the setups go, the default Lotus > and Brabham are pretty good. I'm not the ring king, but can run in the low

Quoted text (15 lines)

> 8:20's with the defaults. Good luck. > Chad Rogers > chadliz > > Iv'e scraped toghter all my courage and I'm going to learn the Ring. > > It's sooo frustrating not knowing what corner will be next. > > What car would be the best car & setup that will forgive most of my > > mistakes? A car with who I can concentrate more on learning the track > > instead of struggling to keep in on the road. > > Do the fastest guys know the ring by heart? > > I tried the brabham with A.Hines setup because it's a light nimble car

but > I > > can't keep it under control, it seems to go even better using the Lotus. > Is > > it the setup or is it me?

For a starter I recommend the Coventry with Alisons setups. Jens On Fri, 28 Jan 2000 10:19:26 -0700, Jason Monds >Hi Tim, >The Ferrari at the Ring is the best ride for me. Try my setup.... >(Even though this was a GPL 1.0 setup the ride height is 3.0"+ >so the 2.5" minimum high won't cause lots of changes) <snip> --------------------------------------------- Remove "NOSPAM" before using my email-address Visit my webpage at http://members.xoom.com/JensSchu/ for some serious stuff concerning: Radio controlled airplanes Racing simulation, esp. GPL Classic cars, esp. Morris Minor