GPL lap time thresholds

I spent most of this weekend in the training mode of GPL trying to improve my setups (something I'd never really done intensively before as Alison Hines' and some I got by 'AT' were good enough for starters) and it helps a great deal but I'd like to know what the generally accepted thresholds are for good laps at each track. e.g. Monza sub 1.30 is considered to be a barrier that a lot of people struggle for ages to break. (I finally did it after 4 months of trying!). Under 9mins for Nurbergring, 1.07 at the Glen...... Sub 1.30 at Silverstone is my current bugbear :( Kev

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> I spent most of this weekend in the training mode of GPL trying to > improve my setups (something I'd never really done intensively before as > Alison Hines' and some I got by 'AT' were good enough for starters) and > it helps a great deal but I'd like to know what the generally accepted > thresholds are for good laps at each track. > e.g. Monza sub 1.30 is considered to be a barrier that a lot of people > struggle for ages to break. (I finally did it after 4 months of > trying!). Under 9mins for Nurbergring, 1.07 at the Glen...... > Sub 1.30 at Silverstone is my current bugbear :( > Kev

Kev, I advise you to not go down this way. First of all, don't tinker with the setups too much, they really do not make this much difference unless you are going for the very hottest times. Do it so that it suits your driving style, as this is mostly what I found them to be about, so that you do not have too much over/understeer. You will only loose valuable time better spent learning to drive faster if you strive for even tyre temperatures. Just use some plausible camber (I typically use something around 1.0 on fronts and 0.5 negative camber on rears on my Ferrari). If you run between 1:30 to 1:32 in Monza for laps without ever spinning out, this is more than enough to be competitive online, in fact you can win a couple of races that way if you are lucky. I know many people are saying that, but it is really true. My driving style is such that may hotlaps are only marginally better (say, 0.5 to 1 seconds) than race times, and I find the greatest satisfaction in online races. They are far more gratifying than spending a weekend trying to top that rather meaningless barrier, even if you finish midfield. They also require skills that are far more complex than just putting in fast laps. Greetings, Gregor

% I advise you to not go down this way. First of all, don't tinker with % the setups too much, they really do not make this much difference unless % you are going for the very hottest times. Do it so that it suits your % driving style, as this is mostly what I found them to be about, so that % you do not have too much over/understeer. You will only loose valuable % time better spent learning to drive faster if you strive for even tyre % temperatures. Just use some plausible camber (I typically use something % around 1.0 on fronts and 0.5 negative camber on rears on my Ferrari). I am not so sure this is good advice (as it stands). While it is more important to learn to drive than spend all day in the garage, once one gets the handle on a track, the only real way to start improving time is to set the car up properly. With that said, one can't set the car up properly until they can lap a course consistently. Learning to setup a car is very similar to learning how to drive GPL..... Trial and error and lots of time..... Anyway there is nothing as frustrating as not being able to improve one's driving, no matter how much time one puts in when the setup doesn't work right. A sweet setup can make all the difference in the performance on the track. For starters I would concentrate alot on even tire temps. Without them one will find in next to impossible to drive consistent laps. The feel of the car will continue to change as the tire temps get further and further out of alignment. Not only that, one is no longer getting maximum grip with the tires. First step is tire temps and tire pressure..... set camber and pressure to get even tire temps across the tire..... Run alot of laps.... get the feel of the car setup.... Now look for problem areas.... Tight entering turns? Try adjusting shocks (decrease front or stiffen rear)..... Go back out and run alot of laps..... check tire temps and make any mods that are necessary and go back out and run alot of laps.... Tight in the middle of turns? Try more ARB in front or less in the rear.... go back out and run alot of laps..... check tire temps, etc. Car suddenly making sharp turns or veering off course? Raise ride height or stiffen springs as the car is hitting the bump stops. Go back out and run alot of laps...... check tire temps...... etc. The important thing to remember (and it's really hard to do) is only change one thing at a time. Test it out, check the results on tire temps. Don't go changing shocks, tire temps, gearing, ARB, camber all in one garage session. Oh, yeh, and keeping notes won't hurt either. You first goal is to find a setup that is stable and controllable all the way around the track. Doesn't have to be fast yet, just stable and controllable (the latter is the most important). Now, go out and work on learning how to drive this setup fast (consistently and in control). As you get used to the setup you should find that your times are improving as you learn how to attack the course. However, as you begin to push the setup past its limits, it is more than likely time to go back to the garage and check tire temps and then start the process all over again. Because it is highly likely that you have now out-grown your setup. % If you run between 1:30 to 1:32 in Monza for laps without ever spinning % out, this is more than enough to be competitive online, in fact you can % win a couple of races that way if you are lucky. I know many people are % saying that, but it is really true. There are 2 different kinds of competitive..... Finishing well (though running slow) because everyone else wrecked or went off course. And then there is being competitive with a stable setup that allows one to run with other consistent drivers on the track. Keeping with them (and hopefully passing them) for lap after lap, or holding someone off as they attempt to pass you. The first kind of competitive will become rather hollow after awhile. The second will only push one to become a better driver. And to achieve the second one, one needs a good stable and controllable setup. A setup that is quick, but allows for consistent laps. % My driving style is such that may hotlaps are only marginally better % (say, 0.5 to 1 seconds) than race times, and I find the greatest % satisfaction in online races. They are far more gratifying than spending % a weekend trying to top that rather meaningless barrier, even if you % finish midfield. They also require skills that are far more complex than % just putting in fast laps. Agree! But in my book setups are a very important factor in achieving this. It's really hard to learn to drive consistently and in a controlled fashion if the setup doesn't suit this goal. -- **************************** Michael E. Carver ************************* Upside out, or inside down...False alarm the only game in town. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=<[ /./. [- < ]>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

<lots of good advice snipped to save space> Thanks for the helps guys. I'm not hotlapping by any means, just trying to get into the 'groove' of consistent fast times. I find that the setups I've downloaded are good starters but my driving style means that they understeer a bit more than I like. I started off by just softening the front roll bar a bit but now I've got used to the handling a bit more I've just been investigating what else helps to get the front gripping more. Michael, it's interesting what you say about tyre temps but as I only do the short novice races I'm not sure that applies at the moment but I'll certainly keep it in check from now on. You also say 'Car suddenly making sharp turns or veering off course? Raise ride height or stiffen springs as the car is hitting the bump stops.' That's quite interesting because I was doing fairly crappy at monza until I tried a hotlappers setup and the control in curva grande and the lesmos was miles better than what I had so I merged the two setups using the ride height, springs and bumpstops (set at 1) and the setting above or below it (can't remember what it is) from the hotlapper with the rest from my adapted AT-Monza setup and it's great. I started dropping the bumpstops on my other setups and it's really helped. In theory the car should be more twitchy, yes? Anyway, it seems to be working at the moment :) I think a month long stint at F2 seems to have helped a great deal too (fellow struggling newbies take note). Thanks Kev

On a positive note for the F3's.. Last night the GPVL ran Brand Hatch. Our newest driver ran in the F2 club for quite some time and mentioned that running the F3's with us was a whole lot more fun. I'm not sure if it's because of the group he was running with or if it was because of the F3 cars. Either way, try F3's once in a while :) BTW: I have yet to see the server replay but I understand that there were at least 6 of us nose to tail for 4 consecutive laps. one driver made the smallest mistake that ended that train. after everything was sorted many of us ran in groups of two with myself and another driver running side by side for at least a half lap. Again, I'm not sure if it's the group he was running with or if it was the cars. The group is among the very best and I'd lay odds that the cars made us that way :)

This doesn't neccessarily apply to you, but I wonder how many folks have problems mastering GPL just because they're using really crummy pedals. The first wheel I owned was a Thrustmaster Nascar Pro, which had great pedals. Then much later I got a Saitek FF Wheel, and had a hellacious time getting used to the pedals in GPL. I kept locking a wheel, or spinning off. It wasn't long before I got frustrated, and tried stuffing a raquet ball underneath the brake, and a bit of foam *** under the accelerator. Once I did that, and after some tinkering and practice, I began to like them more than the old Thrusty pedals. So if you think you're not able to modulate brake and throttle as precisely as you could, you might try a raquet or squash ball, or a bit of foam *** or something under the pedals to stiffen them up. -A

i beat it recently after 3 weeks of using the lotus with a 129:88. and i've been playing the game only 1 month altogether. anyone top that ? http://come.to/rs-shifter

Yes. When racing at WinVroc, you should beware of Geir Persen. I gave him the game a month ago. He has done 1.28.11. He obviously has a big talent for racing. In a couple of months, I will probably regret giving the game to him. Jon

"Mike Barlow" <[email hidden]> wrote:

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> > BTW: I have yet to see the server replay but I understand that > there were at least 6 of us nose to tail for 4 consecutive laps. > one driver made the smallest mistake that ended that train. after > everything was sorted many of us ran in groups of two with myself > and another driver running side by side for at least a half lap. > Again, I'm not sure if it's the group he was running with or if > it was the cars. The group is among the very best and > I'd lay odds that the cars made us that way :)

Not trying to knock the F3's in any way, but I think it's the group of drivers you have. I've run side-by-side for a whole lap at Monza, for the first third of the lap at Zandvoort, and various other times at other tracks with good, consistent drivers in F1 cars. I really think it's the drivers and not the cars. I even consider the F3 cars just as hard to drive on the limit as the F1 cars. I find myself spinning much more mid-corner in an F3 car than in an F1 car, and I'm not slow by any means in an F1 car. -Chris- a.k.a. "Dirt" Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Before you buy.

"Aubrey" <[email hidden]> wrote: > This doesn't neccessarily apply to you, but I wonder how many > folks have problems mastering GPL just because they're using > really crummy pedals. [snip] I agree wholeheartedly. I improved my times quite a bit after I got the TSW with the split axis. I improved my times quite a bit more after I got dxtweak.exe and reduced all my deadzones to zero percent. I think you've hit on the one overriding factor that most people seem to either ignore or not be able to correct (really precise controllers cost a bundle). I think a quality controler with 0% deadzones will go farther to improving any persons times than any other single factor. -Chris- a.k.a. "Dirt" Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Before you buy.

"Damir Jurisic" <[email hidden]> wrote: > > BTW, how do you guys adjust steering sensitivity? I went for > 100% linear at first, but I find 50:50 to be more suitable for > me, as I still can't get rid of keyboard-like on/off steering. > I use a steering wheel, but I use 100% linear with no DX deadzones. -Chris- Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Before you buy.

> Nope...took me almost 14 months to best 1:30 at Monza. They were theworst 14

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> months of my life :) > > Chris > > >> i beat it recently after 3 weeks of using the lotus with a 129:88. > >> > >> and i've been playing the game only 1 month altogether. > >> anyone top that ?

First started playing 4 days ago (a bit late, I know :) ) and did 1:38 in Lotus with keyboard and default setup. Quite undriveable combo. I bought joystick, dl-ed replays and setups from WW and F.Urso and after couple of hours settled for 1:29.26. I'm still fairly inconsistent though and able to spin almost every lap but I feel I can do a low/mid 1:28 with some more practice. Actually, I'm not used to drive with joystick so late braking and going into a corner with the gentle touch is giving me a hard time. BTW, how do you guys adjust steering sensitivity? I went for 100% linear at first, but I find 50:50 to be more suitable for me, as I still can't get rid of keyboard-like on/off steering.

Kev wrote:

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> > "\"Michael E. Carver\" mcarver"@teleport.com wrote: > > > > On Mon, 13 Mar 2000 15:46:09 +0100 Gregor Veble <[email hidden]> wrote: > > <lots of good advice snipped to save space> > > Thanks for the helps guys. > > I'm not hotlapping by any means, just trying to get into the 'groove' of > consistent fast times. > > I find that the setups I've downloaded are good starters but my driving > style means that they understeer a bit more than I like. I started off > by just softening the front roll bar a bit but now I've got used to the > handling a bit more I've just been investigating what else helps to get > the front gripping more.

I had the same problem as you when starting, namely the understeer. Let me suggest a thing, more than experimenting with the bar, try fiddling with the diff. This is one part that is given too little attention in the manual. If the diff angle on throttle off is low (30 in most default setups), it prevents rear tires to spin at different speeds, so an overall torque occurs on the car that rotates the car away from the turn. Experiment with raising this number, try 85/85 at first. I guarantee you will spin on the entry to your first turn :). For my Ferrari and my driving style I found that 60/60 with three clutches works best for most tracks. > > Michael, it's interesting what you say about tyre temps but as I only do > the short novice races I'm not sure that applies at the moment but I'll > certainly keep it in check from now on. Michael is right, and even in short races (say after about 3-4 laps) your tires may already be overheated.

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> > You also say > 'Car suddenly making sharp turns or veering off course? Raise ride > height or stiffen springs as the car is hitting the bump stops.' > That's quite interesting because I was doing fairly crappy at monza > until I tried a hotlappers setup and the control in curva grande and the > lesmos was miles better than what I had so I merged the two setups using > the ride height, springs and bumpstops (set at 1) and the setting above > or below it (can't remember what it is) from the hotlapper with the > rest from my adapted AT-Monza setup and it's great. I started dropping > the bumpstops on my other setups and it's really helped. In theory the > car should be more twitchy, yes? >

As long as the suspension doesn't hit bumpstops, it should actually be far more stable as the springs are acting linearly in this regime.

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> Anyway, it seems to be working at the moment :) I think a month long > stint at F2 seems to have helped a great deal too (fellow struggling > newbies take note). > > Thanks > > Kev

I did a 1:27.96 after 5 days and I never played the demo. Setups and replays from the world record holders helped speed up the learning curve tremendously. Unfortunately 2 months later I'm stuck at 1:27.8.

Nope...took me almost 14 months to best 1:30 at Monza. They were the worst 14 months of my life :) Chris

I agree it is the drivers... I run in the same F3 league, but also in an F1 league. The racing is the same, because of the drivers. However, it's significantly easier to acchieve consistent competitive times in F3, so the field tends to spread less, even at the more "technical" tracks. I also agree an F3 is equally hard to drive than an F1. F1 is less forgiving, but there's that sumptious power to correct/make up for slight errors. F3 is slightly easier but you need to be on or very near the limit all the time to be competive. Jan.=--- Chris Cavin wrote...

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> > "Mike Barlow" <[email hidden]> wrote: > > <snip> > Not trying to knock the F3's in any way, but I think it's the group of > drivers you have. I've run side-by-side for a whole lap at Monza, for > the first third of the lap at Zandvoort, and various other times at > other tracks with good, consistent drivers in F1 cars. I really think > it's the drivers and not the cars. I even consider the F3 cars just as > hard to drive on the limit as the F1 cars. I find myself spinning much > more mid-corner in an F3 car than in an F1 car, and I'm not slow by any > means in an F1 car. > > -Chris- > a.k.a. "Dirt"

In article <38cf01ee.10878198@news>, [email hidden] (Steve Garrotto) wrote:

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> I find that if I do not change tracks every so often, that I get into > a habit of driving the same line, and I try to make it faster, when my > line is wrong! So by switching to another track it allows me to > concentrate on something new to try and do wrong. :-) I, by no means, > am a hotshoe. Rather I would be a slowpoke. > > PB at Monza is 1:31 (Eagle), PB at Silverstone is 1:36 (Ferrari), Glen > 1:09 ((Coventry), Just did my PB at Spa it is a 3:31:80 (Coventry) I > was so impressed! I can see where my lines are off and where I am > slow, can I fix them now that I know, I hope so, but so far, I have > not. > > It also is nice having a brother-in-law as a crew chief to make setups > for me. :-> > > SLG

At last someone with PBs similar to mine ... I get very depressed reading all the "I've been playing GPL for 2 days and I can't seem to get below 1:25 at Monza" posts that keep coming :-) Certainly I find different tracks help - track at Monza is wide so you can get away with straying off line more. I found running at Zandvoort helped find lines round corners. GPLdump can be a great help. After ages trying to go faster at Monza I discovered that I losd most time due braking too much for the 1st Lesmo + also I lost time round Curva Grande as I'd been attempting to brake too late there and thus lost the line and ended up coming out much slower (actually SpyGirl really showed this as I got a car length ahead of the saved lap that comes with GPL as I entered CG but by the exit I was a couple of lengths down) One interesting test I have is Silverstone which I've used relatively few times. Initially I had real problems there spinning off at most corners then after concentratigng other tracks I came back and suddenly most of the corners "made sense". Abyway, my current observation is that although I haven't beaten my Monza PB recently (1:31.5) my average lap time must be going down as whereas a bit ago a 1:33 was a good lap I'm now regularily getting 1:32s and have had 2 or 3 in the upper 1:31s Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Before you buy.

I find that if I do not change tracks every so often, that I get into a habit of driving the same line, and I try to make it faster, when my line is wrong! So by switching to another track it allows me to concentrate on something new to try and do wrong. :-) I, by no means, am a hotshoe. Rather I would be a slowpoke. PB at Monza is 1:31 (Eagle), PB at Silverstone is 1:36 (Ferrari), Glen 1:09 ((Coventry), Just did my PB at Spa it is a 3:31:80 (Coventry) I was so impressed! I can see where my lines are off and where I am slow, can I fix them now that I know, I hope so, but so far, I have not. It also is nice having a brother-in-law as a crew chief to make setups for me. :-> SLG On Mon, 13 Mar 2000 14:14:19 +0100, Kev <[email hidden]> wrote:

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>I spent most of this weekend in the training mode of GPL trying to >improve my setups (something I'd never really done intensively before as >Alison Hines' and some I got by 'AT' were good enough for starters) and >it helps a great deal but I'd like to know what the generally accepted >thresholds are for good laps at each track. > >e.g. Monza sub 1.30 is considered to be a barrier that a lot of people >struggle for ages to break. (I finally did it after 4 months of >trying!). Under 9mins for Nurbergring, 1.07 at the Glen...... > >Sub 1.30 at Silverstone is my current bugbear :( > >Kev

I do agree it is the drivers, I've seen some bad f3 races as well. But racing F3's is a good starting point for learning the lines, car control and getting used to close company without panicking. I guess that's why they are called the trainers. ;) It's also good for the seasoned f1 or f2 veteran to go back to F3's and learn the basics again, it really does help. I think f3's are much harder then f1's or F2's at low speeds, they really slip and slide around and are harder to bring them back. They can also be harder at high speed turns if you don't have the right line because you don't have the power to induce oversteer, you have to bail out or go into the bushes. You really have to keep up your momentum with f3's. If more people were to learn F3's and F2's first there would be less wrecks in the F1 races. Jan Verschueren wrote:

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> > I agree it is the drivers... I run in the same F3 league, but also in an F1 > league. The racing is the same, because of the drivers. > > However, it's significantly easier to acchieve consistent competitive times > in F3, so the field tends to spread less, even at the more "technical" > tracks. > > I also agree an F3 is equally hard to drive than an F1. F1 is less > forgiving, but there's that sumptious power to correct/make up for slight > errors. F3 is slightly easier but you need to be on or very near the limit > all the time to be competive. > > Jan.=--- > > Chris Cavin wrote... > > > "Mike Barlow" <[email hidden]> wrote: > > > <snip> > > Not trying to knock the F3's in any way, but I think it's the group of > > drivers you have. I've run side-by-side for a whole lap at Monza, for > > the first third of the lap at Zandvoort, and various other times at > > other tracks with good, consistent drivers in F1 cars. I really think > > it's the drivers and not the cars. I even consider the F3 cars just as > > hard to drive on the limit as the F1 cars. I find myself spinning much > > more mid-corner in an F3 car than in an F1 car, and I'm not slow by any > > means in an F1 car. > > > > -Chris- > > a.k.a. "Dirt"

"Damir Jurisic" <[email hidden]> wrote: > > DX-deadzones? How do I adjust that and what's the benefit? > DXTweak.exe adjusts the dead bands that are built into the DirectX joystick controller. Use it to set those dead bands to 0% and use only the GPL linearity slider to adjust the linearity of your steering. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the results. I picked up about 1/2 sec after I reduced mine to zero. I've also heard it's expecially important if you use a FF steering wheel. Get it here: http://www.wingmanteam.com/files/Tools/DXTweak/ -Chris- (aka "Dirt") Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Before you buy.

> > BTW, how do you guys adjust steering sensitivity? I went for > > 100% linear at first, but I find 50:50 to be more suitable for > > me, as I still can't get rid of keyboard-like on/off steering. > > I use a steering wheel, but I use 100% linear with no DX deadzones. DX-deadzones? How do I adjust that and what's the benefit? Nevertheless, 100% linear is simply too sensitive for my liking as I get jumpy steering even on straight. Tried it once again yesterday but wasn't able to better 1:29.5 and gave up on it definitely. With 50% I did 1:28.8 inspite of losing some 0.4 sec going into CG. Somehow I managed to put my FR on the grass and managed to recover. Should be in 1:27 within 100 laps. Not bad for a starter, I guess :)

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> >I spent most of this weekend in the training mode of GPL trying to > >improve my setups (something I'd never really done intensively before as > >Alison Hines' and some I got by 'AT' were good enough for starters) and > >it helps a great deal but I'd like to know what the generally accepted > >thresholds are for good laps at each track. > >e.g. Monza sub 1.30 is considered to be a barrier that a lot of people > >struggle for ages to break. (I finally did it after 4 months of > >trying!). Under 9mins for Nurbergring, 1.07 at the Glen...... > i beat it recently after 3 weeks of using the lotus with a 129:88. > and i've been playing the game only 1 month altogether. > anyone top that ?

Yup ;) I week, 6 days after buying the game, a managed a 1:29.62 lap at Monza using the Eagle, with Alison Hine's Ferrari setup (with modified gearing, of course). Then again, I haven't managed to break the 1:30 barrier again since, but I'm consistently in the 1:30's now in practice, 1:31's in races... Andrew -- +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-+ + PhD Student | + | Research Concentration in Speech, | Just when you think something is | + Audio and Video Technology | idiot-proof, somebody builds a + | QUT, AUSTRALIA | better idiot. | +-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-+

> The faster cars took off into the distance, and the > slower cars(or less patient drivers) quit. I've been wondering about adding an "AF" suffix to my VROC name. AF for Always Finishes... at least, I won't deliberately quit a race before it's over. When people *do* stay there's usually some great racing at the back of the field. Andrew McP

In article <8aqg69$s8j$[email hidden]>, "Damir Jurisic" <[email hidden]> writes:

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>Nevertheless, 100% linear is simply too sensitive for my liking as I get >jumpy steering even on straight. Tried it once again yesterday but wasn't >able to better 1:29.5 and gave up on it definitely. With 50% I did 1:28.8 >inspite of losing some 0.4 sec going into CG. Somehow I managed to put my FR >on the grass and managed to recover. Should be in 1:27 within 100 laps. > >Not bad for a starter, I guess :) >

I hate you.... <just kidding> Eldred -- Tiger Stadium R.I.P. 1912-1999 Own Grand Prix Legends? Goto http://gpl.gamestats.com/vroc Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

In article <[email hidden]>, [email hidden] (Schlomo4) writes:

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>Nope...took me almost 14 months to best 1:30 at Monza. They were the worst >14 >months of my life :) > >Chris > >>> i beat it recently after 3 weeks of using the lotus with a 129:88. >>> >>> and i've been playing the game only 1 month altogether. >>> anyone top that ?

I've had it for longer - and my PB is only 1:30.50... Eldred -- Tiger Stadium R.I.P. 1912-1999 Own Grand Prix Legends? Goto http://gpl.gamestats.com/vroc Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

In article <Xu8z4.764$[email hidden]>, "Michael E. Carver" [email hidden] writes:

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>There are 2 different kinds of competitive..... Finishing well (though >running slow) because everyone else wrecked or went off course. And >then there is being competitive with a stable setup that allows one to >run with other consistent drivers on the track. Keeping with them (and >hopefully passing them) for lap after lap, or holding someone off as >they attempt to pass you. > >The first kind of competitive will become rather hollow after awhile. >The second will only push one to become a better driver. And to achieve >the second one, one needs a good stable and controllable setup. A setup >that is quick, but allows for consistent laps.

I can do the first, simply because I don't drop out of races that I'm doing poorly in. In about 90-95% of my online races, I'm last out of the cars running... I've also passed people because of a first lap incident, only to have them roar past me on the next straight or two. I had a humiliating experience at Mexico. A driver was about half a straightaway behind me. He caught me so fast that I let him by in turn one. By the time I got to the hairpin, he was out of sight.... Geez, how DO you guys get so fast??? Eldred -- Tiger Stadium R.I.P. 1912-1999 Own Grand Prix Legends? Goto http://gpl.gamestats.com/vroc Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

In article <Xu8z4.764$[email hidden]>, "Michael E. Carver" [email hidden] writes: >First step is tire temps and tire pressure..... set camber and pressure >to get even tire temps across the tire..... Run alot of laps.... get >the feel of the car setup.... > How many is 'alot of laps'<sic>? 5? 20? 100? I can run 20-30 laps with a second of each other - if I'm not trying to go fast. Eldred -- Tiger Stadium R.I.P. 1912-1999 Own Grand Prix Legends? Goto http://gpl.gamestats.com/vroc Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

In article <[email hidden]>, Gregor Veble <[email hidden]> writes:

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>If you run between 1:30 to 1:32 in Monza for laps without ever spinning >out, this is more than enough to be competitive online, in fact you can >win a couple of races that way if you are lucky. I know many people are >saying that, but it is really true. > >My driving style is such that may hotlaps are only marginally better >(say, 0.5 to 1 seconds) than race times, and I find the greatest >satisfaction in online races. They are far more gratifying than spending >a weekend trying to top that rather meaningless barrier, even if you >finish midfield. They also require skills that are far more complex than >just putting in fast laps.

In the last couple of VROC races I was in, the majority of the time, I drove around by myself. The faster cars took off into the distance, and the slower cars(or less patient drivers) quit. If I'm gonna drive around solo, I may as well save my phone bill...<g> Eldred -- Tiger Stadium R.I.P. 1912-1999 Own Grand Prix Legends? Goto http://gpl.gamestats.com/vroc Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

writes: I hate you.... <just kidding> Eldred -- Tiger Stadium R.I.P. 1912-1999 Own Grand Prix Legends? Goto http://gpl.gamestats.com/vroc Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.