Well...I drove around that track like my hair was on fire and the best I could get was a 1:19:68...changed a few settings and no real difference to my time.

Reset my car to my original "special' settings and headed out for a few SMOOTH laps...I'll be damned...I was able to drive the same times but it appeared i was going slower...??

Try it again but this time smooth out the flow of the track and WOW...1:17:437 !!!

Jeeez...this is starting to feel like fun instead of a pain in the neck !!

I still need traction control so those without it will be faster but I'm getting there.

...Hmmm...almost time for the F1 race...time to get comfy!!

Sorry for quitting early but I've had a terribly long day of fighting with my fiancé and I guess no one heard me ask for a short delay when I had to answer my phone. Anyways. Too many frustrations from something that is supposed to be a leisure activity. See y'all on Thursday.

Sorry Rob I didn't hear you.

It's too bad a lot of people dropped out and didn't see the race through to the end.
The battle for 2nd and 3rd came down to the last lap, and the battle for 3rd was actually down to the last few seconds!

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

Championship Standings

Rank	Name	PSN ID	Points*	Fuji	Indy	Monza	Monaco
1	Jason S	MerlinRPM	20	10	10	10	10
2	Alek M	AMomcilo	16	8	0	8	5
3	Trevor G	nd4speed1	12	6	6	5	2
3	Alex R	Albongo87n00b	12	2	5	6	6
5	Steve P	stevedp	11	1	8	0	3
6	Kevin D	svtunderpressure	10	0	0	2	8
7	Jason B	Rascusfinkus	9	5	4	0	0
8	Scott H	S_AND_S	8	4	0	4	4
9	Robert S	sailor923	6	3	3	3	1
10	Varga A	vincentq4	0	0	0	0	0

*Worst two events dropped

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

I messed up my car setup right before the start of the race and then struggled every lap. I figured my time would be better spent not running into things for another hour lol.

After the rest of the back runners dropped out, it was just me 3 laps down and only 25 laps in, I called it a night. I was struggling with 2 turns with the car spinning out, unless I crawled through them. Wasn't that fun. I really need to get some practice in before the next race.

My mic seems to not be working. I can hear everyone through the ear piece, but I don't think anyone can hear me talking.

_________________
2013 BMW 128I - 2 DS

Scott...I could hear you sometimes but for the most part you were silent...thought it was my headset having issues?

I was in the pits so often that it was starting to feel like a Tim Horton's drive thru...I just kept say "the usual please" !!!

...and my car actually worked better with 2 damaged front wheels...no matter what anyone says!

yah sorry for dropping out guys. Didnt have enough practice to make a decent time. Or get out of anyone's way.

Will miss the next 3 runs. Going south for a week

_________________
2001 Bullitt......Not Mine, I Just drive it
2012 ARMS Regional Autoslalom 1st Place Overall
2012 1st SM ARMS
2012 ASCC Autoslalom 1st Place Overall
2012 1st SM ASCC
2009 ARMS AutoSlalom Top Novice
2009 1st ESP

Ya it was a shame to see people drop out, and i'm sorry i didn't hear you either Rob :S

Despite being 2/3 laps down at race end it was very very close withing the "pack"...i'll see if i can get the pic from the last 10 second battle for 3rd! Very difficult track to race on though, very hard. Even at the end with only a few of us we were all over the place. Hopefully we can get a similar turnout for Suzuka on Thursday.
(Another race with the potential for rain......yay ......)
See you all soon.

I'm hoping to be back for Thursday

Wish I had been in a better mood. I bet it would have been an exciting if difficult, race.

What do you guys think about adding a 10th race but dropping 3 instead of 2?
IE still scored on your best 7.

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

I'd rather do something that doesn't blow up or get damaged so easily in close racing, but I'm not really on all that much lately. It's no surprise that the numbers are lower and people are leaving mid race more often, these cars are just not as much fun as GT's or sports cars.

My biggest complaint about these cars is the slightest tap from behind and you blow your engine, and the guy that hits you has no damage. I've been on both sides of this, and it seems strange at how tough the front spoiler is on these cars, and the engine is so delicate. I've run straight into a wall at a reasonable speed and not taken any damage.

For the most part I enjoy the racing, but I think you need some good practice time in the car.

_________________
2013 BMW 128I - 2 DS

You can't really take wing damage in this game and given that the engine is behind you, it makes sense that a rear hit would/could cause engine damage. I too have been on both ends of this stick.

Fuel load really does make a difference, starting the race I was easily doing 1:17s. Once my fuel was below 1/2 tank 1:15s were pretty easy. My best lap was a 1:14.0 with about a 1/4 tank.

I don't play GT5 other than our Thursday/Sunday races. I try to login at 7:30 and get some practice in, but that's about it.
For Monaco I made 1 tiny change to my suspension, but I spent 15mins tweaking my transmission. That's really where I made my most gains.

If anyone is interested I'm willing to share my transmission settings that I used for Monaco, just let me know and I'll post them here.

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

I think the main point is that the cars are getting to the point where the fun has almost gone out of it. For me anyway. I look forward to the races after the main race because they are fun, and a good way to blow off steam. I'd like to get back to doing a series like that, not something that if you mess up once, or miss the setup by a bit, then you finish laps down, on a long race driving around for nothing. As I've made the decision to go back to the 4WD crowd (sold the Mustang, bought a locked & lifted Jeep Cherokee), this is my only form of racing anymore, and I don't want to loose the fun. I didn't mind finishing last when I could still get glimpses of the others racing. Just my 2 cents.

That being said, I'm glad to be getting back behind the sim wheel this week, it's been crazy here the last little while...

I ,for one, would like to try out that tranny set up you used Jason S...just to test my capabilities and wheel set up.

I also agree with Mr Blanchard...we are at the stage were it would appear that the fun factor is very low and the frustration factor if very high hence why all the drop outs are occuring.

I practise alot because it takes alot of practise for me to get the hang of it ( and I have the time at the moment ) but it's the same with academics I study alot because it takes alot of studying for me to absorb information.

Most of us participate for the fun of it and to take our minds off the day to day hassles...

Just my two cents...."blah, blah,blah"

I still have fun doing it. These cars are the fastest cars we have had. I quit the last race because i had zero practice on that track. That's it. Every Race on gt5 is fun to me because it's not your car your destroying in the end.

_________________
2001 Bullitt......Not Mine, I Just drive it
2012 ARMS Regional Autoslalom 1st Place Overall
2012 1st SM ARMS
2012 ASCC Autoslalom 1st Place Overall
2012 1st SM ASCC
2009 ARMS AutoSlalom Top Novice
2009 1st ESP

I'm trying to put something together that's a fun simulation, maybe the two aren't compatible.

I think the bigger picture is that people are dropping out for 3 main reasons:
1) They are getting bored with GT5
2) Warm weather and real racing is coming
3) They aren't competitive

1-Honestly I am bored with GT5 as a game, with the exception of Sunday & Thursday nights it's the only time I play it. I love racing online in a "sim" environment with people who aren't anonymous asshats.
2-I know I won't have my race car out this year, so I'm still enjoying the GT5 & iRacing I'm doing since it'll be the only racing I get to do this year.
3-I'm normally in the top 1/2 of GT5 racing, but I'm always in the bottom 1/2 of iRacing. I would like to be in the top 1/2 for both, but I just don't have the time to put into iRacing. Honestly I just want someone around me to race with, I just want clean racing and I find I get cleaner racing with the ARMS guys.

Getting back to GT5.... I found with the shorter races (sub 25 laps) if you screwed up once (your fault or not) that was it, you were out. With the longer races, a mishap at the beginning of these races do allow you (if you have the pace) to climb back up.

It's not about absolute fastest speed, it's about clean consistency.



Mess up once and finish laps down? No. Mess up several times and finish laps down, yes.

We've proven that the FGT even with bent suspension is still very drivable (sometimes even fastest depending who you talk to... Kevin). It's the engine damage that absolutely forces a pitstop.

I think in the Fuiji race my engine was destroyed in the first 6 or 7 laps and I needed to pit, way ahead of schedule. I ran clean for the rest of the race and managed to catch the leaders by the closing laps. It took me nearly 60 laps to catch up, but I did it. Now if I had a damaged engine in a 25 lap race, forget about. Unless it was only minor damage that was on.

Is that something that would help put the "fun" back in this? Switching back to "minor" damage instead of "heavy". I was doing heavy for the sim part, I thought it would promote a little cleaner driving (which I think it does).

If we are tossing the sim part out (which I don't think we should) we could:
-Enable "Low" Boost
-Only cars 1 lap down (or more) can use SOFTS. Cars on the lead lap must use MED or HARD tires (this won't help in the rain)
-PP/HP Limit the faster drivers

As for a bad setup (not enough gears), too stiff suspension, leaving your car in automatic, etc will always be a big issue, just a longer issue for these long races. Double and even triple check your setup before the race starts. The best way to do this is do 2 or 3 flying laps. One thing to remember is to leave some RPMs free at the end of the longest straight for drafting (if you want). If you don't want to spend the time customizing your gears, just ask someone else what top speed they are running, it'll save you the time of putting a few flying laps in, it may not be perfect, but it'll be close!

If you aren't ready to race, don't be on track. I wait for everyone to be BLUE before I start the race. If you need to step away, exit to the Lounge screen (where you can make adjustments to you car etc). This will show me that you are not ready. We will wait for you if you aren't on track. If you are on track when the call is made that we are starting the race, unless I hear otherwise, we are going to start the race.

Monaco is a tough track. We had 8 cars start the race but only 4 finished it. Of the 4 that finished, 3 of them finished on the same lap. Monaco is the shortest track we've run so far, so the chances of being lapped were much higher, and to have 75% of the finishing field on the same lap at the end is better than our other races.

FWIW I'm going to continue and finish this FGT series. After that I don't know......

As for right now, I'm looking forward to Suzuka....

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

Kevin I'll try and post them up tonight after I get home.

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

So these cars are a real pain to drive, very difficult. I'm still fairly new to both the game and racing with you guys so the new factor is still there for me. I plan on finishing the series, and i know that while some races are going to be god awful and i'll finish last down 4/5 laps, i'm still going to keep going. I know its not much fun being at the back, i'm there most of the time

This is how close the battle for third looked. Jason had finished and the clock was counting down, 180 seconds to hold third place...


Down to seconds now and it was as close as it gets...


And then the time ran out...


I was certain that my slipstream was going to doom me and give just enough to Alek for him to blow past on that nice long straight but it was so very very close...

I'm lookin forward to Suzuka.

i would be looking forward to the next 3 races as i like those tracks. They are longer and have more margin for error. But i will be laying on a beach Drinking......So that will have to do.

_________________
2001 Bullitt......Not Mine, I Just drive it
2012 ARMS Regional Autoslalom 1st Place Overall
2012 1st SM ARMS
2012 ASCC Autoslalom 1st Place Overall
2012 1st SM ASCC
2009 ARMS AutoSlalom Top Novice
2009 1st ESP

If it seemed like I wasn't having fun anymore, or complaining a bit to much, my apologies. I am enjoying myself, and personally I do enjoy running with the heavy damage. I'm just not quite able to get the setup right with this car, and can't keep the pace well. Therefore, when I do get damage, or have an off, even without damage, I do fall far behind. Once I lose the leaders, I DO go laps down. I'm only ever able to get within 3-5 seconds of the fast laps that the top drivers are getting consistently. I'm just better at setup with the lower pp cars, mainly because I'm not as clean of a driver as I could be.

I do fully plan on getting this whole series in, and I like the fact that it is longer, as I'll have more time to dial in the car. I find I'm usually getting the hang of the car just as the series is ending. I really don't even find this car that hard to drive, but I just can't seem to get the average pace that you guys can. Slow and steady can win a race, but only if no-one is fast and steady!!

On a new note, I plan to put in some practice laps tonight to get back into racing, it's been almost 2 weeks since I last had my wheel plugged in! If anyone else sees me online, feel free to jump in.

I should be online this evening...trying to find the magic touch for setting these crazy machines up...I'll see if your on Jason B.

..."it's all just fun and games until someone wins"....


BTW...Jason S....I was in the pits so often I forgot about reducing my fuel load to lighten the car...bugger!!

Maybe it would be more fun to people if we have the laps reduced so that some people won't fall behind as much. And have two races per night instead of one. I personally enjoy driving this car and like the fact that Jason set it up as a F1 season/race.

_________________
2003 Buell Firebolt XB9R 1:19.6 around AMP Shubenacadie.
2009 Yamaha R1 1:21.7 around AMP Shubenacadie.

I'll be on around 8 or so

Anyone else get any lap times for Suzuka? I'm only hitting 1:39's right now, but I know that much faster laps should be possible. I'm guessing in the 1:20's. I seem to not be able to get this car to do both stable and fast...I seem to be fighting oversteer way to much. I got that pretty much dialed out, but I think I'm running to much rear diff. Gonna do some wet laps, and call it a night I think. I'll be on for another half hour or so.

Great photos Alex! Wow that was close!!!

Kevin here were my transmission settings for Monaco:
1st 6.731
2nd 4.440
3rd 3.159
4th 2.603
5th 2.225
6th 1.802
7th 1.519
Final Gear 4.212


I just put in 1/2 a dozen dry laps at Suzuka (using the default 380 top speed gearing). I was running 1:34s pretty consistently (once I stopped crashing) and had a best lap of 1:32.5 when I didn't care about my tires. I agree with JB, high 1:20s could be possible with a little suspension/transmission tweaking and should really be possible with low fuel and drafting during the race (should it not rain).

_________________
"The future is already here — it's just not very evenly distributed."-William Gibson
1989 Van Diemen - Formula 2000 Continental

I did a little more tweeking, and got down to 1:34's consistent after 8-10 laps. After my last changes, I was running the same times on hards that I needed softs to do previous. Not quite the 1:32's, but at least I'm getting closer...