Season 44 - 1955GP (Works) - Round 3 – Hockenheim
The third race in the 1955 Grand Prix series finds us at Hockenheim in Germany. In 1965, when the new Autobahn A 6 separated the village from the main part of the track, an updated version of Hockenheim circuit was built, which incorporated a new "Motodrom" stadium section. Two fast chicanes were added after Jim Clark was killed on 7 April 1968 in a Formula 2 racing accident.  A small memorial was placed at the site of his accident near the first chicane. In order to improve safety even further, the track was lined with crash barriers in 1970. But the track was still dangerous and claimed the life of Patrick Depailler in 1980. So in 1982, the first chicane was made slower and a third chicane was added at the Ostkurve (east curve). In the early 2000s, Formula 1 officials demanded the 6.823 km (4.240 mi) track be shortened and threatened to discontinue racing there.  So the state government of Baden-Württemberg secured the financing for a redesign by Hermann Tilke ready for the 2002 German Grand Prix. The new "Tilke Track" was not universally popular and many drivers preferred the long circuit. Sadly the old circuit was torn up and replanted with trees thereby preventing any chance of reinstating the long circuit for Formula 1 or indeed using it for historic car races.

Track Limits.  For the purposes of moderating, the track boundary will be the edge of the grass verge. This means the drivers will be able to use all the tarmac in the stadium section. Please check the rules regarding corner cutting (see last bullet point under the General section on the Racing Etiquette page) and the Penalty Guidelines for a bad rejoin.

Race list	=	iGOR
Server	=	UKGPL05_60fps
IP address	=	146.199.1.65:32666
Password	=	see above
GPL Mod	=	67F1
Damage model	=	PRO
60fps Patch	=	60fpsV2newmod
Track download	=	Hockenheim 1967
Track directory	=	hockenhm
Qualifying starts	=	20:45 UK time - 45 minutes
Race starts	=	~ 21:30 UK time
Race length	=	20 laps
Replay	=	HERE

Please do NOT post chat messages during qualifying or racing until ALL drivers still qualifying or racing have crossed the line.

Driver lists and division specific rules can be found on the championship standings page.

Please note: There are two or three corners in the stadium section that have minimal kerbs and generous run-off areas so please respect the track limits. That means two wheels within the white lines at all times; both on the inside and outside of the corners.

Please check the rules regarding corner cutting (see last bullet point under the General section on the Racing Etiquette page) and the Penalty Guidelines for a bad rejoin.

See definition of track limits in the race announcement.

We've been having a debate on the moderators forum about this and I've been reviewing the replay from the last time we raced here in Season 42, Round 8. In effect the track boundary on the last 3 corners has traditionally been the grass verge not the white line. In Season 42 practically every driver on every lap was outside the dashed lines between the last 2 corners.

Consequently I'll amend the advice above to state the track boundary is the grass verge. That way the drivers are free to use all the tarmac outside the white lines in the stadium section.

It's just the penultimate corner really, in all the rest the line and grass coincide with one another, so it's always 2 wheels on the track. You'll see it's actually easier to take the penultimate corner that way and get a better entry for the last turn too. I tried both ways and the latter way felt more natural and easier in 2nd gear, otherwise I had to go down to 1st for a moment (or really low revs in 2nd).

Although I have to agree that the "rules" spell out that we have to keep 2 wheels on the track at all times, this rule has not been applied rigorously for a very long time. Blatant and continuous corner cutting has always been punished and quite rightly so, but at Hockenheim I think drivers have used the extra tarmac (with all cars) by taking the wide line for those last 2 corners for as long as I can remember.

My gut feeling is that to suddenly begin implementing the full extent of this rule mid season and without asking for a vote from the members would be wrong.
 Plus, we must consider exactly how this would be moderated. Are we to expect the moderators to watch all cars through all corners for every lap of every race? or do we rely on other drivers reporting every infringement. Also, how many cuts is too many? 1? 2? 3? 5? before a penalty is applied.

GPL does have a "checkpoint" facility that automatically records and penalises track cutting, but I think we need to test how that works in practice.
Maybe a few test races in the mid season break and a vote on what we should do, before possibly bringing in full implementation for next season?

If this rule is applied fully, there can be no real reason to complain as it will affect all drivers equally.

Not exactly, each track needs to be considered individually which is what it states in the rules which were updated after the extensive debate we had about Mexico a couple of seasons ago.

The track limits are published in the race announcement which should help the moderators remember what was agreed at each track because each time a race announcement is created, the system prompts the moderator with the last announcement at that track. If I recall correctly, we now have track limits exceptions at 3 tracks: Mexico, d'Ain-Diab and Hockenheim.

You're probably right but it is worth trying a couple of test races.
If the number of tracks that require track limit exceptions increases the mods are going to have to keep a list otherwise, I agree, we are likely to forget what was agreed and confusion will result.
Unfortunately yes I've had this problem on this track but not on any others. It is a real pain for the moderators when we are trying to review an incident. I think Cookie found a fix which helps. I can't remember which race but if you go to the circuits tab above and look through the list of Hockenheim races you should find it. It was one of the recent races.

Thanks Dave and Phil!