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I found that those long races are way easier to my condition than those short sprints,
because you never need to go over the limits
after 20 laps in Spa it is like “flying“ around by itself - just listen to the groove.

If you have not tried a GP yet, you miss something great!

Just to clarify qualifying for GP settings.
 
On GP settings if you crash in practice your qualifying session is over, do not press 'Escape' & rejoin qualifying. Your last completed lap time will count. If you crash on the first qualifying lap you will be starting at the back of the grid.

Just checking that I have the correct circuit ?

This is being run on the original Papyrus version of Spa ( as shipped with the game ) ?? and not the revised Spa67 ?  ???

Yes Clive, as with driving a bicycle you will never forget how to drive papy Spa ;D

UKGPL_8 is running to help remember....

Why the old Spa?

Virus on the new?

Enjoy tonight's race guys..

Cant make this event as today is my wife's 60th birthday.

Hopefully see you all on Tuesday

Paul.

I just tested Honda with race fuel,

setup says max fuel is for 25 laps, but it will do 27 laps if you drive economic , else you have to refuel in pits.

Use the V1 pitstop patch! -> http://srmz.net/index.php?showtopic=10007&#entry100829
place it in folder gpl/mods/GEM+/gpl67 and it's allways activated and will never disturb or slow you

(https://i.ibb.co/Gn9bm5X/Bildschirmfoto-2020-06-21-16-22-00.png) (https://ibb.co/RYNV8D1)

Can't see me completing 27 laps without several dozen S/R 's

I intend to join in and tootle around at the rear to see how far I can get . Maybe  "give it a go " if everyone else drops off the server  ;D

Odd that our race is scheduled for 27 laps yet the 1967 real-life go was for 28.  Add one?  Just for fun?  :)

Yes v1 patch only. Please don't install the v2.0 patch, it includes tyre wear and it will put you at a significant disadvantage.

I've managed to fix the problems I've been having with GEM. I had to run the compatibility wizard and it is now configured in Windows Vista compatibility mode. Works fine now, it must have been the recent "update" patch from Microsoft!

As far as the track is concerned, I haven't driven this version for years. It is like driving on a motorway, the track is incredibly wide. Much wider than I remember, and much easier to drive too.  That's it, I've said it now I'll no doubt crash out on lap 1  ::)

Yes Doni I saw it too in original GPL the laps are 28,
but no problem to do 27 as my setup says the Honda can only be filled to 25 laps...

Server is set to 27

Setup was great, car was fine, I was being conservative in the first laps, then I make what perhaps was one my stupid mistakes ever. :P
Well, I lost the chance of experiencing a full grand prix race, something I was looking forward to. But anyway, nice to at least have gotten the pole and it was fun trying to follow Axel in the first 3 laps.

Hope you all guys are able to finish and have fun! I particularly like this kind of race!

Shunted off for good at the Masta Kink on Lap10 with a couple of violent offs in the Malmedy chicane prior to.  Enough already!

A good experience that taught me there's no way I'll sign on for the full GP67 races.  It's the Sprint Series for me.

I quite enjoyed that, I did better than I expected but I'm glad it was the old Spa; I'd never have survived the new one. I missed the start and had to start from the pit lane. So I did complete the full race distance, can someone amend the results please.

Grats to Tris on a fine win. Great to see Andy back on the podium and Billy in third spot. Well done Mr Nobrakes!

I will miss you Doni  ::)

My race was ended with 11 lap to go, by a broken exhaust, what must have been a random failure as I had pampered the engine to keep it alive.

A fuel stop was not successfull as it lasted 30 sec for 80l=20gal and I only had made 15 sec to Tris, so after the stop I was not able to close the gap...

Anyway a good experience on this old outdated track wich I had loved

Grats to Tris and all finishers  :thumbup2:

So long time that I run this track , I have to do 3-4 laps to remember it !....and to do a setup , who was not so good specialy the temp tires ( front left was full red sometimes and back wheels too cold ! )I put full tank and try no fuel stop as I know that the full race don't see so many racers in the end...so I decide to drive as cool as possible and don't go over 10.000 rpm to preserve fuel...When I see Axel stop to refuel I push for 2-3 laps to keep the gap ...then Axel desepeer on prib so I do 2 laps very slow ( lost maybe 45s !? ) because Andy was 4.5 km behind in seconde position...when he was  at around 1km behind I drive normaly to keep the gap....belive it , I finish whith 10 liters fuel !
Thx all and have a nice season ;)

I actually prefer the Papyrus Spa to the new Spa 67. It doesn't look as pretty but I make less mistakes.
Perhaps I should have gone with a full tank of gas instead of a 2 x stop strategy?
27 laps is a long race, but it seem to go very quickly. Before my first fuel stop I was able to keep fairly close to Andy (good to see an old competitor back on the track). During the second stint I had Phil's Lotus for company but after he pitted it was an empty road. Pleased to finish on the podium.
I am tempted to race the 90 GP series, but most of the drivers I can compete with will be in the Sprint Series.

We'll have another one of these GP length tests before Season 37 starts so drivers can practice the format. Next time there will be at least one compulsory fuel stop & a shorter track.

Sorry for my stupid error in the first lap, Billy.  :(

A long time since I raced Spa 67 and even longer since I raced the Lotus 49 . The prospect of 27 laps with no respite made this track perfect as we could at least take a breather going  down the long  Masta straight .
Got off to a reasonable start after a good qually run and got through the lap1 in 7th place after being drafted by Doni's V12 power down the straight . then the pack catch up after I make an error dive up the banking , recover but get shunted by B Whitewell going into La Source  ( why the need to be so agressive on Lap 2 of 27 laps with no re set ?) allowing half the field to get by .
 Lap 3 and chasing a Brabham ( turns out to be Phil doing a cloaking job ) and the Telephone rings , some mate from the flying club wants to talk , I'm carefully explaining to the wife why I cant get to the phone at this moment in time as I am rather busy trying to negotiate my way through a rather tricky part of the track , in a twitchy Lotus, full of Gas . The distraction gets me to run wide and make friends with the armco tearing a wheel off . So much for Plan A "taking things easy and pottering around at the back of the field "
Enjoyed the (almost) 3 laps , pity there were not more
Grats to the Podium and all who completed the distance  :)

Good old Spa with wide and empty spaces tempts me to try GPL again.
My fps stuck at 30 at the start and didn't clear to 60 until lap6. I have had that before, but it has cleared in a few seconds. With full fuel too, I was struggling not to make an error early on. Doni and then Billy were not far behind for a while and I kept Clive in sight ahead until he got interested in another part of Belgium around half way. I saw no one after that.
Suddenly the gap to Tris dropped quickly. I could see he wasn't at the pits for refuelling, but he was moving slowly. Smoky engine? He wants some company? Then he kept my pace and quickened again. It kept me interested. Grats to all finishers in keeping concentration.
I had 6 gallons (23 litres) left at the end. Perhaps I could have done 31 laps on the one tank. I think stopping for fuel was a much slower option here. A short track GP length race with compusory fuel stop would be more difficult.

 Grats to Tris and all finishers. Good to see my mate Andy up there with the champagne along with Billy and Phil. Plus a shout out to Dave who brought the mighty Honda home with all 12 cylinders still firing  ;).
 I think that there are lessons to learn for all of us in these long 90 minute races, but old habits die hard when we have been used to running 50 minute races for 20 years!! lol.

I was looking forward to the challenge of a longer race and was hoping that my recovery from surgery was good enough to allow me to complete the distance. I had done a little offline practice before and joined the server on Sunday afternoon just to check the connection was OK. Normally I would take the Honda, but I decided to try and find a car that was not so much of a physical challenge and tried the Brabham.
Gradually changed the setup to iron out any snap over/understeers especially through Malmedy...that corner always causes me problems  :-\ and arrived at the start with a car that was comfortable to drive on full tanks, even if it was not uber quick. Probably with a more aggressive setup I could have been lapping around 3:20, but with the softer and raised suspension I was 2-3 secs off that time.
Just like Bernie the plan was to feel my way in steadily and play the long game. My gearing was such that even with a tow down the Masta straight I was not approaching the red line. Unlike shorter races, I was taking corners in one gear higher than usual and relying on the Brabham's torque to pull me through. I had not done any proper fuel calculations and was being ultra cautious about consumption.
I think I jumped Bernie at the start into Eau Rouge? ( not part of any plan!!) and was following the pack up the hill. Things ahead looked just a little crowded as we approached the left hander, so I backed off early  and created a gap. It turned out to be a good move when I think it was Andreas and Billy tangled and I had time to pick a route through the wreckage.
Andy was in front of me and slowly I closed the gap until he allowed me to pass, part of his long term race plan I suspect?? But then he insisted on holding a position about 150 mtrs behind for many laps until, I just touched a back wheel onto the grass and tried to use the earth banking. That allowed Andy to re pass and I set off in pursuit.
Once again, not pushing particularly hard as there was still half the race to run. Slowly I was closing the gap, I was quicker in some places and Andy was faster in others but there was no rush to go wheel to wheel.
Then for no apparent reason the engine popped and it was race over  :-\. My oil temp had never got as high as 170F and the revs did not get within 500 of max anywhere.
I am guessing that in the GP length races the full random car failure part of GPL comes into effect? I remember reading somewhere ( probably in the booklet that accompanied the original game disk ) that mechanical failures were very common in 1967 and that GPL modelled that.

Disappointed that many of us did not finish the distance, but still looking forward to the new series and the tactical use of pitstops ( or not) at the various circuits.

PS. Interesting that Andy had the 30fps issue, because I have been experiencing exactly the same problem for around 3 months now. It looks like I have forgotten to apply the 60fps patch correctly and the frame rate is locked at a max of 30fps ( exactly 50% of the expected 60fps??) and sometimes dropping to 12-15fps, so I often go back to GEM and check and then join via IP, instead of IGOR, which sometimes appears to sort the problem....but it makes no sense and might just be coincidence.
Then after maybe 10 minutes the fps magically increases to 60?? It has nothing to do with how many cars are in view, or the details of the scenery, or which mod we are running. Does anyone have any info on this subject??

The 30fps is VSYNC working and GPU sleeping!

Max the nvidia settings to higest values with your overkill GPU!

We can have a TS session if you want to check the basics...
First get openhardwaremonitor and look at the plot how the clocks behave! must be maxed as long as you drive CPU + GPU

Re GP mode

yes me too  :-[ I was driving in save mode all the time and got the message exhaust broken...

In RL the Braby was the most reliable and the Eagle the most fragile!
But I learned that the Eagle can survive my shifting better than a Ferrari...

PS

I suspect that in GP the guys with shifter have less problems!?

The 30fps thing - in GTL I can ALT + TAB out of the game screen to set affinity and enable all CPU cores, which improves my fps. I can't ALT + TAB out of GPL. There are programs to enable all cores such as Process Lasso and Runaff, but I see people have other problems with them, so I am afraid to try them. Axel, is there a safe way? The 30fps thing is rare for me, so maybe I can live with it.

GTL is a "modern" game - you can set the AA in game.

GPL can't - so you have to make a profile in your NV or AMD settings and set AA manually to high values.

Wich CPU + GPU do you have? AMD or NVidia?

Make shure in GEM+ settings if intel CPU "disable intel speed step" is activated

Don't use 3rd party programs!!!

Make also the energy settings in W7 or W10 to high performance so the cpu won't fall asleep

No problem Andreas. I think quite a few drivers were driving carefully on the opening lap & I might have backed off a little earlier than you were expecting. 90 minutes is a long time to wonder if (a) I would lose the car somewhere or (b) the engine would hold together. Fortunately both did.

Thanks for the advice, Axel. I will stay away from 3rd parties.
My setup, profiles and hardware (Intel i5, Nvidia 560Ti) haven't changed for 10 years and I'm happy with how they are optimised.
I will look again if the 30 fps problem reappears.
A new pc may come soon anyway.

Andy do you use a NVidia profile for gplc67.exe?

Yes, but just with 8x AA. It has been fine for years.
I haven't used GPL for about a year except for a 68mod race a few weeks ago when I had the stuck 30 fps too. Now I've just tried other tracks with the 67's and I have 30 fps too at least at the start.
It seems that my pc needs a bit more waking up than it used to. Is it because of a Win10 update? My pc getting tired? It runs much slower than it used to recently.

I added 8x supersampling in the profile and now I get 60 fps at the start at the places I was stuck at 30 fps recently.
Thank you, Axel!

On my Windoze PCs I run openhardwaremonitor (https://openhardwaremonitor.org/) all the time, so I can see in the plot if anything is wrong ;)

Hmmmmm??! Now I am confused  :-\

I adjusted my CPU to run at maximum performance
I checked my Nvidia settings to ensure that it was set to deliver max performance.( I have an Nvidia 1080 Graphics card )
I checked the GEM settings to be sure that "intel speed step" was disabled.

Then, I opened IGOR and joined UKGPL4 for a lap at East London in the 68 cars.

I was the only car on track and I had a frame rate of 30 ( max) dropping as low as 12 in places?? I did several laps and multiple restarts but never exceeded 30fps??
Exit Igor and check that I have the 68 exe file listed in Nvidia programme settings and that GPU is set to max......all OK.
Tried Igor again...still 12-30 FPS?
Quit and fired up GPL off line at East London with 68's and 11 AI cars.....instant 60fps and no dropping off.
Igor again and got the IP address for UKGPL4.
Joined UKGPL4 via IP and instant 60fps??

It would appear that it is the interface through IGOR that is causing the fps drop? But I cannot understand how that could be the case??

Clive look if the path to the gpl.exe in iGOR options is the same as in GEM+

Let run OHM activate the plot and check clocks of GTX 1080 (omg) and CPU you should get a high line of both ;)

Clive, you need to create an nvidia configuration for the gplc68e.exe file. I think it is called that, I'm typing on my phone ATM. I can Teamspeak you later if you need some help.

Every GPL mod needs an nvidia config file for the executable (as Axel has advised in his previous posts about GPL being an old game)

I will try those procedures shortly Axel. About to have some food, so I will BBL.

In the meantime I have tried a few other experiments...……….

I have just tried joining UKGPL10 at Nassau and I get an immediate 60fps.
I tried the oAo server , although it is set for 36fps, I left my PC set at 60fps and I had 60 fps immediately.

Went back to UKGPL4 and East London in the 68's....….12-30 fps???

I cannot believe that UKGPL4 is the problem? We have been using it for too long. But I am wondering if there is a setting within my copy of  Igor that needs changing? ???

UKGPL_4 has been fine for me with some recent 1968 testing  (and my machine is ancient!)

The filename for the nvidia profile is gple68.exe

Cheers,
Dave.

OK thanks for the replies guys.

Gem and Igor reference the same GPL exe ( in my case D:\Sierra\  )

The Nvidia config  settings with the reference to the '68 exe file were already done ( as well as for all the other gpl exe's ) and when I try OFFLINE GPL '68 at East London it is instantly on 60fps.

If I join UKGPL4 via the IP address and "Multiplayer" through GPL I also get 60fps.

What I find odd is that this can have nothing to do with the 60fps patch initiating, as that would mean a limit of 36fps? The fps rate that I am getting is 30fps max and will dip to 11fps at times, but NEVER goes above 30fps until it suddenly hits 60 fps, maybe after 10 minutes? It is like the GPU is asleep and suddenly wakes up, but why only when I join through IGOR and never when I use the IP or I am OFFLINE?

Eventually a join through Igor will jump to 60fps, so the correct config must exist, but sometimes that can be a few laps into a race and I simply have to play safe until it gets going  :-\

Clive , may I suggest you try IPA instead of IP . That stuff does no good at all  :eek:

Clive I thought about it and have the idea that
igor does not support the indexing, so no relation of the called 68.exe with the NVida profile is set...

For me it helped to repeatedly turn on and off the indexing and it suddenly worked in W10.

(on monday I installed W10 to a new PC and got an access violation error with igor)