GRID Autosport GRID Autosport

[Bram Hengeveld]

Things are moving at Codemasters

 

[Rob]

Damn I've been running the wrong track

The other track was just too twisty for these cars. It was beyond reality, even for a real series. Plus, this one is easier (and prettier) to learn and at least you have a chance of keeping it semi-clean.

Also Dubai has been changed to neither of the tracks we wanted. I figured if there was a split of opinion, then shorten it and pick one nobody suggested. I think you will like it. It's fairly simple, but has a dirt section that is quite interesting. And with the Hot Hatch class, the track needed to be shortened.

 

[Michael Watts]

didn't get to drive it last night, I'll probably put a few laps on it today and see what kind of times I'm running. I used the same set-up at Hockenhiem in the challenge as that seems to be the most drive-able configuration. The smoother I was there the faster I would go. Oddly though for a Mid-engine car with a big wing on the back the car seems better suited for drifting than racing. Reminds me of some old Grand Prix karts I used to run with fiberglass bodies. The bodies of course were merely aesthetic and it was slick tires on a slick track.

 

[Peter Hooper]

It's a really fun track which makes it all the more galling that I am looking unlikely to make it. Major issues with the game kicking me out with unreadable disc errors both on game startup, race loading screens and now also during races mean that it's pretty much impossible for me to know whether I can get into or through a race. I had thought that once into a race the game would no longer access the disc but I got the dreaded message pop up twice in races at lunchtime so that theory is blown

I aws down into the 1:33's during the time I did manage to complete laps this afternoon...

 

[Matthew Booth]

I shall put myself down as a maybe as i have football tournament at 7pm on Sunday not sure if be done on time and why have you put such a dreadful car for such a lovely track Robert

 

[Peter Hooper]

I shall put myself down as a maybe as i have football tournament at 7pm on Sunday not sure if be done on time and why have you put such a dreadful car for such a lovely track Robert

I agree it's a very nice circuit but I actually enjoy these cars, they provide a nice challenge rather than the easy ride some cars would give. Easy to make a mistake in them so any lead can be quickly wiped out

 

[Matthew Booth]

I agree it's a very nice circuit but I actually enjoy these cars, they provide a nice challenge rather than the easy ride some cars would give. Easy to make a mistake in them so any lead can be quickly wiped out

Crank the downforce to +100 and it's a pinpoint go kart did a 1:29.9 and regularly in the 30's and i haven't hit a barrier yet im fairly balls to the wall with drifting

 

[Peter Hooper]

Crank the downforce to +100 and it's a pinpoint go kart did a 1:29.9 and regularly in the 30's and i haven't hit a barrier yet im fairly balls to the wall with drifting

Not only the barriers you've got to worry about.. Those AI can be tough but also fun. Only takes one whack of a car or wall and your steering is damaged... Balls to the wall might be a fairly apt description here lol

 

[Michael Watts]

I tried balls to the wall and walked away with both of them bruised. My best lap so far is only a 1:31.9 and I couldn't tell you how I got that. I'm usually in the 32-33 range. If for some reason you start behind me Boothy, just have some patience and I'll let you by on the inside as soon as I have a wide corner.

 

[Rob]

I shall put myself down as a maybe as i have football tournament at 7pm on Sunday not sure if be done on time and why have you put such a dreadful car for such a lovely track Robert

1/2 of me can see your point, but then the other half wonders why F1 goes to Monaco and IndyCar goes to Baltimore. Same principal. Looking for well-rounded challenges. Some prefer street courses,some ovals, some expansive road courses and others prefer Tilke designs. Heck, even some like point to point. I sure hope WRC gets released on XBO.

 

[Rob]

Crank the downforce to +100 and it's a pinpoint go kart did a 1:29.9 and regularly in the 30's and i haven't hit a barrier yet im fairly balls to the wall with drifting

The best I have seen from the "very hard" A.I. is a 1:29.8, so equaling them on a street course is pretty damn impressive. I've not broken 1:34.

 

[Peter Hooper]

I tried balls to the wall and walked away with both of them bruised. My best lap so far is only a 1:31.9 and I couldn't tell you how I got that. I'm usually in the 32-33 range. If for some reason you start behind me Boothy, just have some patience and I'll let you by on the inside as soon as I have a wide corner.

Let him by I thought we were racing here

 

[Peter Hooper]

I had a race before work this morning, just Hard AI though. Qualified first with a 1:31.4. Led from start to finish with just a challenge into turn 1 from the AI. They got strung out over the first few laps and only a couple hung on in there running a couple of seconds or so behind before I got into a real rythm and pulled away with laps in the 31's over the last half of the race (8 laps). Ended with a fastest of 1:30.6 and an average of a touch over 1:32.

It's a real rythm track and if you get into a good one the lap times just tumble lap after lap.

Tuning wise I have settled on something that doesn't require too much levelling, either middle, full right or 50's so easily achieveable in the Racenet Challenge. I dropped another few tenths in that last night to gain another few levels. Platinum is easily achieveable at the short Hoeckenheim track in these cars but best to do it in small jumps. I just keep an eye on my ghost and make sure to cross the line just ahead on one of the laps each time I run it

 

[Karl Fuss]

I've only got gold in the challenge and 1:34s on the street. But, i've only done the challenge 4 times and i've only done about 30 laps of the street so far. I need much more practice than that to be competitive.

 

[Peter Hooper]

I've probably had about 40ish laps of the circuit and am feeling pretty confident around it. But things have a habit of going very differently on the night . Anyone that keeps their car intact for the duration will have done well.

I really like the short Hockenheim circuit and it was very timely to have the Caterhams running it this week.

 

[Rob]

I've probably had about 40ish laps of the circuit and am feeling pretty confident around it. But things have a habit of going very differently on the night . Anyone that keeps their car intact for the duration will have done well.

I really like the short Hockenheim circuit and it was very timely to have the Caterhams running it this week.

God I hated that circuit. What a complete and utter bastardization of Hockenheim. lol. But I will agree that it was VERY timely. If you are patient (stop at the finish line and all) and go through the medals one by one, you will have the tuning you need for Chicago, IMO). After than, Chicago is just a rythym track like Peter said. He mentioned a good point in a PM...compromising exits. Key here. But hard to do.

 

[Rob]

@Bram -- a driver's driver that rarely gets any coverage these days.

U.S Citizens, sign petition to get A.J. Foyt the Presidential Medal of Freedom
_________________________________________________
80-year-old A.J. Foyt is tougher than all of us
Racing legend has overcome everything from crashes to killer bees.

By Marshall Pruett
1/16/2015

Listing A.J. Foyt's racing accomplishments requires an encyclopedic mind and plenty of time.

The abridged version goes something like this: Foyt was the first to win four Indy 500s; is the only man to have won the Indy 500, Daytona 500, the Daytona 24 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans; has over a dozen championships in a variety of cars; and, more than 20 years after he retired, Super Tex still stands as the all-time leader in Indy car victories with 67.

After a successful triple bypass operation back in November in Houston, the growing list of injuries and hospital procedures recorded by the legendary Texan is gaining ground on a lifetime of achievements behind the wheel.

Foyt's "sheet time"—the lengthy periods spent in hospital beds—has also become the stuff of legend, earning a page of its own in the A.J. Foyt Racing Press Kit.

The Honor Roll reads:

• Suffered a broken back and a fractured heel at Riverside stock car race in 1967.
• Burned his face, neck and hands in a practice crash at Milwaukee in 1966.
• In 1972, he got burned and broke his leg and ankle at a dirt car race at DuQuoin, Ill.
• Fractured his arm in the 1981 Michigan 500.
• Broke two vertebrae during practice for the 1983 Firecracker 400.
• His worst crash was at Road America in 1990, where he suffered a broken knee, dislocated his left tibia, his left heel was crushed, and his right heel was dislocated.
• Broke his left shoulder while qualifying for the Daytona 500 in 1992.

And those are just the highlights. The incident at DuQuoin goes deeper: "He got burned and run over by his own car there," my friend Robin Miller told me. "He jumped out while it was still on fire and it promptly ran him over and broke his ankle pretty good."

The sickening crash at Road America nearly crippled him. His brakes failed and his Indy car struck an embankment at close to 200 mph. The resulting injuries required A.J. to undergo multiple surgeries to repair them all.

He received an artificial left knee in 2006, was in for heart surgery in 2010, was admitted to the hospital while fighting a staph infection in 2012, had his right knee replaced, left hip replaced, and had back surgery performed in 2013.

Today's triple bypass lasted more than eight hours, and between his hospital visits, Foyt's ranch has been the epicenter of more life-threatening moments. Forget Jackass or Nitro Circus—the real danger is going down around A.J.

"Well, there was the killer-bee attack," said Miller. And there's more. "He tipped his bulldozer into the lake on his farm and was chased out of there by two water moccasins. He ripped his rotator cuff falling off a bulldozer. A.J's always getting into some kind of mess."

Broken bones, fires, getting run over by his own car, multiple heart surgeries, killer bees and snakes…few men alive today are tougher than this 79-year-old. For good measure, he just happens to be one of the greatest racers to ever live. Keep fighting, A.J.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/news/a3185/80-year-old-aj-foyt-is-tougher-than-all-of-us/

 

[Rob]

Finally broke int the 1:33's, with a 1:32 or 1:31 entirely possible. The big deal for me is that those times are largely without tailspin. Well, as comfortable as can be here. Railer and I ran some races and smoked the A.I. on "very hard" but I know everyone else will be as good or better. Just happy I can provide some semblance of competition. And it's not a hair raising lap either. With the long gears, it's quite comfortable.

 

[Matthew Booth]

Finally broke int the 1:33's, with a 1:32 or 1:31 entirely possible. The big deal for me is that those times are largely without tailspin. Well, as comfortable as can be here. Railer and I ran some races and smoked the A.I. on "very hard" but I know everyone else will be as good or better. Just happy I can provide some semblance of competition. And it's not a hair raising lap either. With the long gears, it's quite comfortable.

That's why i asked for a different car. It's fairly wide too so makes it a doddle unless you drive like a cock

 

[Rob]

That's why i asked for a different car. It's fairly wide too so makes it a doddle unless you drive like a cock

Hey now, I didn't hear you asking for a different car at Monaco!

 

[Matthew Booth]

Hey now, I didn't hear you asking for a different car at Monaco!

That's because i wasn't there