AC GT3 @ Silverstone - Sunday 18th July 2021

[Fiberoptix]

@Goblin616

Frank, some people are handed gifts , all free, some are just not, why it is, is just a big of a mystery to me as anyone else.
You pick a sport you like, sim racing is a sport, just like any sport.
Assuming you like me, you were out somewhere else when the gifts were handed out.
That just leaves two out comes , give up and just enjoy it for what it is, buckle down and enjoy the real pleasure in trying to be good at your chosen sport
.
Rasmus started along with many others in what is probably a vain attempt to get my overall pace up for online sim racing, it has taken me 4 years of the most enjoyable effort. ( plus I race against the nicest bunch of guys here on RaceDepartment )
I have got so much pleasure from working my way up the field, I know I am never going to be an alien, perhaps you too, but in the big scheme of things, does it really matter, it is the journey that is important,
Glory comes and goes, the pleasure of trying always remains.
You need to see that the quick fix never never works.
My advice with out explanations of how to go fast, Rasmus and others here are much better at that, is to start the real pleasure of sim racing, trying to get more competitive .
Of all the sports I have unsuccessfully been involved with in my long life ( relative ) sim racing has been the most interesting to compete in.
I don’t have to face our miserable weather training, being nearly run over every few weeks, battling away in the pouring rain, unsuccessfully mending punctures in the freezing cold by the side of the road, and on and on. Here in sim racing I can enjoy a sunny day in Italy when ever I want too.
Get advice, follow it, even one of our resident aliens ( Chris) was not a super hero from the word go, I know from reading and listening to him he has done a lot of work to get where he is,
Sermon over.

As a beginner I have learnt a lot watching others onboard, I often stalk you Ernie and watch your lines, shifting, brake points, where you get on the power etc.. I don't try and copy it outright but it helps, like a sighting lap with an instructor albeit no dialogue.

For GT3 I always go and find the inevitable Chris WR lap on YouTube then assume I might get within 3 or 4 seconds of it with a week of practice. Its the smoothness of the faster drivers that I try to replicate now I have learnt that the car sliding about all the time feels fast but isn't!

From my experience the Mazda racing has helped me learn to improve a lot of things, like keeping momentum because you have to in that car and everything happens more slowly, more time to think and plan, wheel to wheel racing is easier and no real distraction with setup.

GT3 I have some good races and some shockers, a lot depends how much time I get to spend in practice. I have found the Z4 to be much easier to drive than naively starting out with the 911 so I would recommend that car as others here also do. Overall I focus on consistency and no incidents, that alone has got me some good finishes midfield even when I have bottled the qualification and deliberately started at the back. I still hate the starts, 1st few laps gives me sweaty palms!

 

[Fiberoptix]

As a beginner I have learnt a lot watching others onboard, I often stalk you Ernie and watch your lines, shifting, brake points, where you get on the power etc.. I don't try and copy it outright but it helps, like a sighting lap with an instructor albeit no dialogue.

For GT3 I always go and find the inevitable Chris WR lap on YouTube then assume I might get within 3 or 4 seconds of it with a week of practice. Its the smoothness of the faster drivers that I try to replicate now I have learnt that the car sliding about all the time feels fast but isn't!

From my experience the Mazda racing has helped me learn to improve a lot of things, like keeping momentum because you have to in that car and everything happens more slowly, more time to think and plan, wheel to wheel racing is easier and no real distraction with setup.

GT3 I have some good races and some shockers, a lot depends how much time I get to spend in practice. I have found the Z4 to be much easier to drive than naively starting out with the 911 so I would recommend that car as others here also do. Overall I focus on consistency and no incidents, that alone has got me some good finishes midfield even when I have bottled the qualification and deliberately started at the back. I still hate the starts, 1st few laps gives me sweaty palms!

After all that I meant to say I am in with the Z4. Its going to be a warm one in VR!

 

[random2k4]

I am always a strong advocate for the Z4 as a very beginner friendly car. It has its downsides for sure, but very stable from the get go. You can also be very competitive with it in the midfield as I am hopefully sometimes showing. But after all just try out all cars and see what fits you best out of the box. Its important to see what fits your driving style best, not necessarily what is the fastest car at the moment. You gain nothing being maybe 2 seconds quicker in 5 laps but then spin out and lose 20 secs. Ultimately you want to fight the track, not the car. Issues of the car can be tackled later and speed comes with practice.

Also a good idea, if there is time, let others drive with your setup. Today, I just did some laps with Frank. I picked the AMG and did only some minor changes. gave it a couple of laps and then used Franks setup. I was slower immediately (gears were a little off), but the car felt a little more stable. Just played around with the setup for some minutes and tried a mixture of both. Got a stable AMG which was also quicker then my initial setup. Got it back to Frank, and now its his turn to see if it still fits his driving style.

Practicing alone can be a little dull and boring at times, so if both drivers, or even more have spare time on their hands its a great way of getting on track and tackle setup issues or racing lines as a team.

 

[Goblin616]

Thanks to all for advice, and help. I am being too hard on myself (as I always have been.) I remember when I first started flying online with IL2. I thought I was a good fighter pilot - until everyone shot me down. I did get better eventually, through practice. My setup did limit my potential, as may be the case with online racing too. I have thought this week, that I'm going to stop trying to get my times up, and just resign myself to enjoying the game, and being able to race with everyone. Perhaps my times will improve eventually.

Thanks @Kek700 @RasmusP @random2k4 and everyone else who's helped.
Chris, I think I was jealous and frustrated at your ability, and meant to harm when I whined about your setup.

 

[HF2000]

I'm out. I'm very tired and after this afternoon I can't have anymore of Silverstone!

Have a good race all!

 

[Taj Johal]

Running late, I Hope I make it, if not my apologies.
Taj

 

[Goblin616]

that went well...

 

[Interslice]

I'm not seeing hte practice server guys

It was running last night, sorry if it's been down today. Race server should be up 15 minutes now.

 

[Kek700]

Easy race for me, Stefan had very slightly more pace, Patrick had too much bleeding pace, he was long gone so I did not have to worry about Patrick.
No point in even thinking about overtaking Stefan, even if I could and I could not, that would have been grief for me, that I did not want.
So I monitored Stefan pace wrt tyre wear for the first 30 minutes of racing before pit stops.
Stefan pitted, I had a go at another lap and soon discovered that was their limit.
I now knew where I was, basically I had 15 minutes of Stefan maintaining good the gap, the extra lap gave me one extra lap of performance in my softs, then for the last 10 minutes pushing as Stefan tyres were going off fast, which then gave me 5 minutes for a pass with Stefan tyres gone.
He was not in a position to defend by then, Silverstone has a lot of overtaking straights.
Bit of a waffle, sorry for that.
Thankyou to everyone that gave Stefan and I freedom to race, it is very much appreciated by me and Stefan I am sure too.
Well done Patrick, you were in class of your own, shame Demitry and Chris’s were away, I imagine it was a lonely race for you.
Thankyou Brian @Interslice for organisation

 

[HF2000]

Guys, sorry I signed out at the last moment. I hope you had a great event.

If you're interested in another fun event and without any time investment in advance, please have a look here:

SGP - Mystery Fun Event, Tuesday 27th July 2021

Welcome to the RD Racing Club. Based on the feedback I've received from all of you who have participated in my recent races (thank you so much for that! :thumbsup:), I'm hosting another experimental event. The characteristics are: FUN IS KEY! Car is unknown until start of the event Car has...

www.racedepartment.com

 

[Interslice]

Congrats to @pattikins for the win and the podium finishers.

Lonely race for me. A bit of action in the first few corners was about it. Didn't have the pace to stay with the front 3 and make the podiums steps interesting. They slowly crept away, like drifting out to sea!

I messed about with setup and racing lines last night to allow me to run the softs but it still meant managing tyres for heat rather than going full pace. Happy to finish another ferrari race without a spin. Particularly as it was on softs and on a tyre shredding track like silverstone.

Thanks to all who took part. Not easy in the heat! See you's next week.

 

[random2k4]

Cause I started DMing a DnD group, I didnt got much time left to practice, so I was glad that at Silverstone I know at least the layout.

Was able to beat Ernie in the quali by a little bit so it was P2. I knew right from the beginning that I would not have the straight line speed of the GTR so I tried from the beginning to get a little gap between us.

Start went OK and I could keep in touch with Patrick for about 2 laps before he went away.
Was hoping for a battle behind me for P3 but unfortunately that didnt happen. So it was Ernie following me basically with the same lap times until the pit stops. Somehow I coulndt match my pace from the first stint. I missed the apex of Copse and Becketts almost every lap. After 7-8 laps into the second stint my tires started to falling apart and Ernie could close the gap lap by lap.
Just 2 laps before the end he could make his move into Brooklands. With my worn tires there was no need to defend. On the last lap I had a short code brown when I hit the curbs to hard at Maggotts. The worn tires were not capable anymore to keep the car on track so I made a short visit into the grass. Luckily without a spin and I could return to the track without loosing too much time. But at that point P4 was way behind, so I carefully took it home the last few corners.

I am not sure, but sorry to Colin, if I returned to the race track in front of you, was just happy to hold it and not spin.

Also huge thanks to all the blue flags that seemed to really jump of track as soon as Ernie and I came by for an easy pass

All in all a good race, might need to work a little more on my consistency and really use the first 5-8 laps on fresh tires each stint.

See you all next week.

 

[JamKart22]

Cause I started DMing a DnD group, I didnt got much time left to practice, so I was glad that at Silverstone I know at least the layout.

Was able to beat Ernie in the quali by a little bit so it was P2. I knew right from the beginning that I would not have the straight line speed of the GTR so I tried from the beginning to get a little gap between us.

Start went OK and I could keep in touch with Patrick for about 2 laps before he went away.
Was hoping for a battle behind me for P3 but unfortunately that didnt happen. So it was Ernie following me basically with the same lap times until the pit stops. Somehow I coulndt match my pace from the first stint. I missed the apex of Copse and Becketts almost every lap. After 7-8 laps into the second stint my tires started to falling apart and Ernie could close the gap lap by lap.
Just 2 laps before the end he could make his move into Brooklands. With my worn tires there was no need to defend. On the last lap I had a short code brown when I hit the curbs to hard at Maggotts. The worn tires were not capable anymore to keep the car on track so I made a short visit into the grass. Luckily without a spin and I could return to the track without loosing too much time. But at that point P4 was way behind, so I carefully took it home the last few corners.

I am not sure, but sorry to Colin, if I returned to the race track in front of you, was just happy to hold it and not spin.

Also huge thanks to all the blue flags that seemed to really jump of track as soon as Ernie and I came by for an easy pass

All in all a good race, might need to work a little more on my consistency and really use the first 5-8 laps on fresh tires each stint.

See you all next week.

It was @beginer (Chris) not me you saw in the last lap.

Fairly quite race for me. Just a bit off the pace to have a good race so it was pretty lonely for an hour.

 

[Shed 17]

First time out in the GTR on the right tyres and nothing special in qualifying but wasn’t really pushing too hard.
So P9 for the start and unusually for me a good launch into the first corner and a steady first lap.
A couple of the Mclarens spun out early on had me up to P7 and putting in steady laps.
The pit stop went to plan with no dramas and when Marko went of I inherited P6 where I managed to finish.
So happy with that and the Nissan seemed to suit my driving style (lazy) here. I could put in consistent laps and no mistakes so I might try it again but not sure if it will suit the twists of Hungary next time, but consistently is sometimes more important than outright speed for a result.

 

[Interslice]

First time out in the GTR on the right tyres and nothing special in qualifying but wasn’t really pushing too hard.
So P9 for the start and unusually for me a good launch into the first corner and a steady first lap.
A couple of the Mclarens spun out early on had me up to P7 and putting in steady laps.
The pit stop went to plan with no dramas and when Marko went of I inherited P6 where I managed to finish.
So happy with that and the Nissan seemed to suit my driving style (lazy) here. I could put in consistent laps and no mistakes so I might try it again but not sure if it will suit the twists of Hungary next time, but consistently is sometimes more important than outright speed for a result.

Nice one Paul. Can take a while to find your niche in gt3. The good thing about it is that there's a car to suit everyone.

There is no Hungaroring on RD unfortunately

 

[Shed 17]

Nice one Paul. Can take a while to find your niche in gt3. The good thing about it is that there's a car to suit everyone.

There is no Hungaroring on RD unfortunately

No Hungary is good for me, never have got on around there! .

I have been using the Z4 and that does most things reasonably well. Hopefully more miles/kms in the GT's on Sunday will give me more experience. The GTR feels a bit of a boat in the slower stuff but if I can keep it on the track then that's a result for me.

Thanks for organizing Brian, looking forward to the next outing.

 

[beginer]

It was @beginer (Chris) not me you saw in the last lap.

Fairly quite race for me. Just a bit off the pace to have a good race so it was pretty lonely for an hour.

Youre right, that was me that @random2k4 came out in front of in the last lap. I had a blue flag and saw two cars battling in my rear view mirror. I was going to wait until the next long strait to let them by, but they were coming up pretty fast. I slowed and pulled off to the right to let them by. The first car zipped past me on the left. As i waited for the second car to pass, i looked to the right (off the track) and there he was! It looked like he was driving on a little path and just for a second i thought i was going the wrong way! I quickly realized what had happened and windered if i had caused it with poor blue flag. .

 

[beginer]

Youre right, that was me that @random2k4 came out in front of in the last lap. I had a blue flag and saw two cars battling in my rear view mirror. I was going to wait until the next long strait to let them by, but they were coming up pretty fast. I slowed and pulled off to the right to let them by. The first car zipped past me on the left. As i waited for the second car to pass, i looked to the right (off the track) and there he was! It looked like he was driving on a little path and just for a second i thought i was going the wrong way! I quickly realized what had happened and windered if i had caused it with poor blue flag. .

.. poor blue flag behavior. Im glad it was a curb and not a nissan that threw you off the track.

at the beginning of the race i thought i had a chance to keep up with @JamKart22. I was on his tail for a slight bit, but he is faster and more consistent.

Colin, if youre ever having a boring race again just slow down a bit and ill race ya!

Thanks for a fun time everyone. Its good to be back. See yall next week

...and Colin, im coming for you buddy!
(Not like that!)

 

[Chris Down]

Hope you folks had a great race! Here are some of my photos from Silverstone, in case you're interested.

 

[Interslice]

Great pics chris. Had to double take on the first one. Thought it was AC!

Thanks again to all who entered last night. Next week we're running a special memorial event for Shaun Clarke, the creator of the ginetta gt4 mods amongst others. Hope you can all make it.

SGP - Ginetta GT4 @ Barbagallo - Sunday 25th July 2021

Welcome to the RD Assetto Corsa Racing Club. On Sunday 25th of July we're off to Barbagallo, for some GT4 racing action and you are invited to join!! As some of you may have known, Shaun Clarke the creator of the Ginetta mod passed away recently. These cars were his pride and joy and have...

www.racedepartment.com