AC GT3 @ Brands Hatch - Sunday 14th June 2020

[Raresch]

Bad race ... at the first corner I was more focused on the car radar app then on the corner itself ... trying not to hit anyone, beeing squeezed in the middle by 2 cars, I braked too little to not crash into them .... then ... in the last corner of the frist lap ... someone hits me and i go straight into the wall ... really? ...
Then, I was on mediums ... I enter the pits, used the controls to put the repairs ON and when I stop into the pits, the crew starts to put pe another tyres of mediums ... thing I have changed from NO COMPOUND to M Compound ... And so that the race will be great, the game crashed while I was 10 min from the final, with this error:

Any idea?

 

[Chris Down]

Bad race ... at the first corner I was more focused on the car radar app then on the corner itself ... trying not to hit anyone, beeing squeezed in the middle by 2 cars, I braked too little to not crash into them .... then ... in the last corner of the frist lap ... someone hits me and i go straight into the wall ... really? ...
Then, I was on mediums ... I enter the pits, used the controls to put the repairs ON and when I stop into the pits, the crew starts to put pe another tyres of mediums ... thing I have changed from NO COMPOUND to M Compound ... And so that the race will be great, the game crashed while I was 10 min from the final, with this error:
View attachment 381805
Any idea?

Sorry to hear that man. This is a crash from a plugin. PyPlugin::update means it's a python plugin, so probably not one of the stock ones either. I guess you are using some kind of 3rd party app?

 

[stribbeck]

Gutted with how that went in the end thought I was on for my first Sunday top 10 finish, spun on the first bend with about 7 mins left and the tyres were toast, spun again and managed to spin infront of someone completely blocking their way so sorry about that tried to get out your way but f*#ked it up completely.
Thanks for organising the event @Chris Down

 

[nash112]

Gutted with how that went in the end thought I was on for my first Sunday top 10 finish, spun on the first bend with about 7 mins left and the tyres were toast, spun again and managed to spin infront of someone completely blocking their way so sorry about that tried to get out your way but f*#ked it up completely.
Thanks for organising the event @Chris Down

That's one thing that really irks me about AC, I don't think the tyres should be toast after a spin

 

[Raresch]

I was really happy for beeting my lap record and beeing 5th on the grid, especially with those broken pedals ... I really need to fix the G29 pedals ... I am using now like 15% on the first part and 25% in the last part to eliminate the spikes from the accelerator and the brake ... It's

Still ... I might have the posbility to buy a new pair, but not an expensive ones, so I am looking at 2 models:

Fanatec CLS Elite (3 pedals with load cell)
Thrustmaster T-LCM (3 pedals wit load cell)

Fanatec PROS:
-availability
-it's well renowed
-they look really nice
Cons:
-potentiometers for accel and clutch may have the same problems as the G29 ones
-load cell detection might be in a weird place and depends on where you put the foot, to on the pressure.

Thrusmaster PROS:
-Cheaper
-magnetic detection for accel and clutch, so more durable in the long term
CONS:
-ugly (almost like hell, not like hell, but ungly)
-I might not be able to ship them in Romania yet, at least not directly from their website.

What would you choose? (Don't say Fanatec V3 because that exceeds my budged quite a lot). I can't do a poll, so vote with WOW for Fanatec and SAD for Thrustmaster (other reactions I will not count, do you can still give it a like if you want too )) )

 

[butcher85]

Not my favourite track so I was happy to be as competitive (a relative term) as I was

Impossible to pass - I got turned around once and then accidentally bumped someone putting me into a spin again

Spent the rest of the day miles behind and trying not to f*** up it up for the leaders coming through

# frustrating

Thanks everyone, especially @Chris Down, hope to see you again soon

 

[stribbeck]

That's one thing that really irks me about AC, I don't think the tyres should be toast after a spin

Me too wasn't even a complete 180 just off to the grass and they were bright red no grip at all, acc is completely different after a spin.
Ah well was a good race up till then, still love brands lol

 

[Interslice]

Gutted with how that went in the end thought I was on for my first Sunday top 10 finish, spun on the first bend with about 7 mins left and the tyres were toast, spun again and managed to spin infront of someone completely blocking their way so sorry about that tried to get out your way but f*#ked it up completely.
Thanks for organising the event @Chris Down

That was me simon. No worries. These thing happen. Got a little race with @HF2000 out of it. Finished 13th in the end. Delighted with that having qualified 20th... Nursing the mother of hangovers and first time at brands I would have taken that before it started

See yous on the next one

 

[Raresch]

Sorry to hear that man. This is a crash from a plugin. PyPlugin::update means it's a python plugin, so probably not one of the stock ones either. I guess you are using some kind of 3rd party app?

AC RLfuel - 3rd party
AC Traker - stock
Car Radar - 3rd party
Chat App - stock
Map Display - stock, but moded to show the whole map ... or is it a 3rd party?
Multi Laps - 3rd party
Pro Tyres - 3rd party
Renderimg stats - stock
Sub Standings Global - 3rd party
Race Essentials - 3rd party

So I have ... 6(7) apps that might be the culprit? great ...

 

[Raresch]

acc is completely different after a spin.

when i spin in ACC, the rears becomes preatty hot too ... but you kinda feel the less grip of the tyre, until they cool down. it's true that it feels more progressive. If you just slide, it's kinda ok. If you slide, while pressing the accelerator they will burn also

 

[nash112]

Me too wasn't even a complete 180 just off to the grass and they were bright red no grip at all, acc is completely different after a spin.
Ah well was a good race up till then, still love brands lol

Yeah I saw you spin, it really sets you back even more because you have to drive around corners at a crawl and try to cool them down or risk spinning again and again

 

[stribbeck]

That was me simon. No worries. These thing happen. Got a little race with @HF2000 out of it. Finished 13th in the end. Delighted with that having qualified 20th... Nursing the mother of hangovers and first time at brands I would have taken that before it started

See yous on the next one

Car wouldn't even move as i was in 2nd so it just bogged down and stopped right in front of your car glad I didn't mess your race up too much.

 

[Locoblade]

So, my second ever race, first with pit stops, a lot learned (didn't bin it for a whole hour, that's a new record!) and I've got a few questions plus a possible idea to help us newbies....

Blue flags - I assume we're not always meant to jump out the way immediately you get a blue flag? Its just that they seem to be distance based rather than time based because I always seemed to get the blue flag at Druids when the car behind is physically closest yet they're still several seconds back? When you leaders caught me it wasn't too bad as you were on me within a lap or so from the first warning but some of the midfielders I'd get a blue flag but it would take them 3 laps to actually be close enough that I could let them past without literally slowing to a crawl for a couple of seconds to do so.

Pit Stops - is there a way to change strategy (tyre choice/fuel loads) on the fly as you enter the pits? Obviously having to pit after 7 minutes due to a qualifying fuel load wasn't in the master plan so I wanted to switch from softs to mediums when I had to come in, but the preset I had was set to softs and with less fuel than would have been ideal so that further compromised my race.

Yellow flags - are they localised to your track position or do you just see them all regardless of where on track the incident occured? (I'm guessing the latter?)

Finally the idea, as a newb its great that everyone is so welcoming and accepting of differing levels of skill and experience in a race, but has anyone ever thought about taking it a step further and offering a "buddy" system for new drivers? That would ideally be someone experienced entered in the same event that could offer advice beforehand on where to find time on track or car setup, and maybe pass on top tips they've learned over time like make sure you change to your race fuel loads before the start of the race!

 

[Raresch]

Blue flags - I assume we're not always meant to jump out the way immediately you get a blue flag? Its just that they seem to be distance based rather than time based because I always seemed to get the blue flag at Druids when the car behind is physically closest yet they're still several seconds back?

No, you are not supposed to jump out. Just be predictable. Something I didn't do myself either and ended up on grass, wanting more to let Madallena to Catch Chris Down, than to keep my close position ot the guys in front ... (don't be like me).
Going back to when you see the blue flag ... you see it when the car is 2s behind, but it's taking the actual delta, and not the average, so that's why in hairpins you might see the blue flag, but on the straights you are just outside of the limit. Use an app like ACTraker to see your deltas with the guys in front and back.
2s it's quite a long time, other games have less time for blue flags. ACC has 1s, for instance.

Pit Stops - is there a way to change strategy (tyre choice/fuel loads) on the fly as you enter the pits? Obviously having to pit after 7 minutes due to a qualifying fuel load wasn't in the master plan so I wanted to switch from softs to mediums when I had to come in, but the preset I had was set to softs and with less fuel than would have been ideal so that further compromised my race.

You should be able to change the pit strategy using the arrows on your wheel, if you have any. otherwise, you might be able to use the arrows from the keyboard, I think. I use the Dpad from the G29. but be carefull and premare your pit entry with some laps in advance, don't be like me ... I made a tyre change even if I didn;t wanted to.

Yellow flags - are they localised to your track position or do you just see them all regardless of where on track the incident occured? (I'm guessing the latter?)

yes, they are bosed on your sector. Again, AC has a very wide area where it shows yellow flags and also some time after the incident is gone. Also, it shows yellow flags only if a car exited on the grass, so when you reach the point that made the yellow flag to appear, the car might be already back on track, so you don't see the car poiting in other dirrections.

 

[Chris Down]

Good questions!

Blue flags - I assume we're not always meant to jump out the way immediately you get a blue flag? Its just that they seem to be distance based rather than time based because I always seemed to get the blue flag at Druids when the car behind is physically closest yet they're still several seconds back? When you leaders caught me it wasn't too bad as you were on me within a lap or so from the first warning but some of the midfielders I'd get a blue flag but it would take them 3 laps to actually be close enough that I could let them past without literally slowing to a crawl for a couple of seconds to do so.

I usually go over blue flag etiquette just before race start. The general rule is that if a leader reaches you during a corner, you should yield on the next straight. If they reach you on the straight, just lift off the gas a bit and keep your line. That's the most predictable way to avoid an accident.

As for when AC actually shows the flag itself, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Focus more on whether you are impeding them or not. If you're 2 seconds up the road, you're obviously not

Pit Stops - is there a way to change strategy (tyre choice/fuel loads) on the fly as you enter the pits? Obviously having to pit after 7 minutes due to a qualifying fuel load wasn't in the master plan so I wanted to switch from softs to mediums when I had to come in, but the preset I had was set to softs and with less fuel than would have been ideal so that further compromised my race.

You can bind keys for that, by default they're bound to the wheel dpad.

Yellow flags - are they localised to your track position or do you just see them all regardless of where on track the incident occured? (I'm guessing the latter?)

AC's yellow flag detection is pretty dodgy, I usually don't pay too much attention to it.

Finally the idea, as a newb its great that everyone is so welcoming and accepting of differing levels of skill and experience in a race, but has anyone ever thought about taking it a step further and offering a "buddy" system for new drivers? That would ideally be someone experienced entered in the same event that could offer advice beforehand on where to find time on track or car setup, and maybe pass on top tips they've learned over time like make sure you change to your race fuel loads before the start of the race!

We've done some learning sessions in the past, and we could do some more. Usually I just provide feedback when asked on the practice server, though

 

[Medilloni]

Hey @Chris Down , thanks for putting on tonight's race, really enjoyed that matey

Had a great time following @GEO147 George early on, knew a pass wasn't on so just hoped his softs would go off, for the first time ever I did a race on the same set of tyres (yes really! my driving's too scruffy ). Worked well until the last 10 laps and@Aksu Aki was catching, managed to hold on to the end and added bonus, he kindly gave me some breathing space on the last lap

Huge thanks to all, must have been the most incident-free race I've seen in a long time, and on such a hard track to pass too

 

[Chris Down]

And as usual, my VR onboard where you can enjoy the many code browns first hand

 

[erazerr7]

Holy moly, what a race. Spent the first 30 minutes defending from @Evgeniy Neytman, with him on the softs and me on the mediums, so I really just tried not to break and hold the line

The last 15 minutes with @erazerr7 right up my exhaust was absolutely terrifying. Certainly some scary backmarker incidents while coming through, but to be expected at Brands

Great racing @erazerr7! Really either one of us could have won that. That was a crazy race, I'm full of adrenaline

Keep an eye out for next week's race tomorrow, folks! Really would love to see you back

Great racing as usual @Chris Down ! Things got pretty close towards the end, and you did a superb job of holding the line even after the incident with those backmarkers, a well deserved win for sure! I have no idea how you got those mediums to work so well with that much fuel Seems like we had a couple blue flag run-ins this time, but granted it is a very hard track to let someone past especially in the S3 double left-hander area.

Of course, congratulations to @Evgeniy Neytman for completing the podium! I saw you creeping in on the livetime towards the end. Things may have gotten even spicier had we squabbled a bit more at the front in those final laps...

Little did you know, finishing second in this race was only a part of the greater Ferrari Master Plan(tm)

 

[GEO147]

Great race really enjoyed it. Made some silly mistakes but no big ones. I was really struggling with the left front being red pretty much the entire race. Knew when the softs started to go I couldn't hold off John and Aki.
Then Hape got me aswell and I tried as best I could to get the spot back but he was just too quick and consistent. Great racing Hape I waited for a mistake but you never made any

 

[Norkin]

First time on this track and again with very little practice. That considering it went okay, P11. On the last few laps I noticed that I had over 10sec lead to @marek2209 so I was just cruising - and as always then I spun. I thought I could get out of the way before you reach me, but as you saw I didn't . Sorry about that Marek, but luckily you didn't hit me. @erazerr7 the other ferrari was chasing me the whole race and I didn't notice it was you lapping me before you were almost in my bumper . Sorry if I slowed you down.