UKGPL Season 18 (2009) Novices Trophy (65) - Adelaide (GP) - Dec 15

[G Jonsson]

First of all, a very well done and grats to Al, what a race you did in that BT7.

If you look at Gpl-rank the BT7 is about 1 sec slower than the BT11 so, well you must be 1 sec quicker than me then.

The race begun well, I manage to get pool and took the start and for the first part all went well but then I braked a little too late and Al passed me.

The rest of the race I tried to get back on top but Al was so quick in the first part of the track so I could not pass and I have noticed also that passing is not my best skill in GPL. My last attempt of passing ended  with a spin so thats why I was about 7 sec after Al over the finish line. Well it was, as Al said, a clean fight and in the end I just was not fast enough, but at least I got poole and fastest lap so 2/3 is not too bad I guess.

Sorry to hear about your engine Nicky, and I must ask about that you said about warming it up before the start, was that a joke or does it really matter, I have never thought about it.

Grats to D-rock for p3 and just one more thing;

Flatspot said,

I need to concentrate 100% on not crashing,

have you noticed that what you think about tend to happen the same way that were you look you go, so, think of what you shall do and were you shall go and skip the not thing.

PS. If the quote and underlining is funny it's because I don't know how to do it, if it is allright I was just lucky

[Flatspot]

I've replied to the incident reports he submitted & hope neither of us get penalised as there was no red mist or anything deliberate on either part I felt.

Yes, I don't feel you were reckless or anything like that, it's just lack of experience (me especially).  I didn't submit the reports hoping to get you punished, just to get more experienced eyes to have a look and tell me if I could have done something better.

Bad luck about having to start from the pit lane, but I'm impressed it's possible to do so in GPL.  Obviously less impressive when it's not letting you get on the grid.

I discovered a program called GPLshift+, designed primarily for using an H-shifter (which I don't have) with GPL but also it lets me use the POV hat on my steering wheel to look around, reducing the risk of not being able to find someone in a blind spot.  It's taking a bit of getting used to, but it's better than just the built in look left/right commands.

[Ross Neilson]

Well done to Tussman and Al, who were in a class of their own in that race, not only quick but racing cleanly and with minimal mistakes. I think Nicky and Rog might have been close to them but for their problems early on.

Although I was 4th, and really should have been 3rd if I'd not spun twice at that poxy chicane, I think I was pretty lucky to be honest. Others were quicker than me, and several guys were missing, so midfield would have been my likely finishing place.

The early laps were pretty hairy, I had a choking fit on the grid (next time I won't eat gingerbread before the start!) and lost a place, but Rog disappeared and I found Vos in front of me - how the hell that happened given his grid place I don't know! I passed him at the hairpin and had a pretty lonely race thereafter, trying to keep D-Rock at bay until the two spins.

Still, it's a decent start to my UKGPL career, shame we have to wait until New Year for the next one but hopefully there will be a few festive events to help me escape from the family :-)

Cheers,

Ross

[Flatspot]

Flatspot said,

I need to concentrate 100% on not crashing,

have you noticed that what you think about tend to happen the same way that were you look you go, so, think of what you shall do and were you shall go and skip the not thing.

That's a good point.  I think I just need to log hundreds of laps and make sure that what's going through my head is nothing but "braking point, turn in, apex, power on, straighten up" and try to get 5 clean laps in a row, then 10, and so on.  Too much of my practicing has just been hotlapping, but there's no point knowing I can do a decent 1:35 if everything goes right and then averaging nearly 10 seconds a lap slower due to spins.

[Al Heller]

I discovered a program called GPLshift+, designed primarily for using an H-shifter (which I don't have) with GPL but also it lets me use the POV hat on my steering wheel to look around, reducing the risk of not being able to find someone in a blind spot.  It's taking a bit of getting used to, but it's better than just the built in look left/right commands.

Hi Flatspot,

Nicky showed me how to map the F10 button onto my wheel button - I find it useful for a quick look at the "chase" view - especially for rejoins. Details are found in this thread if you're interested https://www.simracing.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=6617.msg115038#msg115038

If you look at Gpl-rank the BT7 is about 1 sec slower than the BT11 so, well you must be 1 sec quicker than me then.

Horses for courses I think Tussman - I guess Adelaide suits my particular way of driving but at Zandvoort you were 1.5 seconds faster than me!

[NickyIckx]

 
Hi Flatspot ,

F10 view in fact is a good alternative to those gplshift look around , and for sure more easy to get used to.

floating mirrors are too  extreme helpful . I would highly recommend them.

and no question to me ; Pribluda is a must be as well , imo .


 

[Flatspot]

Nicky showed me how to map the F10 button onto my wheel button - I find it useful for a quick look at the "chase" view - especially for rejoins. Details are found in this thread if you're interested https://www.simracing.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=6617.msg115038#msg115038

Congratulations on the win!

I've found I can use the Logitech drivers to map F10 to a button on my wheel so I don't need the extra program.  So I have the FOV look-around, the outside view, and Pribluda.  How can I make an excuse when I punt someone off to say I didn't know they were there?

[miner2049er]

Say your pedals broke.

[NHance]

Spins & crashes - a thought. Over a period of time my braking & downshifting has got worse to the point where I was just slamming the brakes on hard & going straight to the gear for the corner, sometimes 6th to 2nd. Got this wrong regularly resulting in lock ups &/or the torque pulling the car off line & spinning. So I never went through a race without a spin or crash. I can't heel/toe.
My team mate Clutch, without whose help I wouldn't be in on line racing,went on board with me at silverstone challenge race qually & basically said I was doing it all wrong (well a bit blunter actually). So he came round to my place & gave me a teach in.
Drive with socks on the feet, no slippers, for sensativity, brake earlier, & squeeze the brakes lightly, easing off as you dip the clutch & downshift ( H shifter). Repeat for each gear. Dont downshift too soon either. It aint easy & I'm not fully there by a long way. You can still take 2 gears at once on some occasions but for the big stops go right through the box. As he said when he left you won't go any faster but you won't crash as much.
Adelaide was the first race ever I think, well certainly for a long time when I went right through the race with no spins apart from partly off at the 1st chicane & the 2 bumps with Flatspot neither to do with braking.
If you all knew this then sorry for boring you. Yeah I know I was 1 from last but to me it was an improvement in driving that mattered.
Norm H

  

[Phil Thornton]

......easing off as you dip the clutch & downshift ( H shifter). Repeat for each gear. Dont downshift too soon either. It aint easy & I'm not fully there by a long way. You can still take 2 gears at once on some occasions but for the big stops go right through the box.......

Using a H shifter in a league race = respect!!   

I have a G25 (and I have GPL Shift installed so the H shifter works) but I only use the H shifter for a bit of fun and realism.  I'd never dream of using it in a league race, it is just too difficult.  I just use paddles and left foot braking.  Only use the clutch off the line, after that I don't touch it unless I'm making another standing start for some reason.

[D-Rock]

First off congrats to Al and Tussman, you guys were absolutely flying, makes me wonder if perhaps you were using the shortened circuit  Good job to gilles as well, you would have beat me to the podium if not for a couple of spins at the chicane, and 4th place is a great debut, especially on a track like this.

Speaking of that chicane, my race almost was ruined there on lap 3. I ran slightly wide at the first bend, launched over the curb, spun to the right, missed the end of the wall there by a few inches, spun around a few times, and still managed not to hit anything 
After I got the car righted I took a short drive through the trees until the wall ended and I could rejoin the actual circuit.

Other than that there were no major mistakes, a huge contrast from my best Alex Yoong impression at Zandvoort. Could be 3 for 3 on podiums if not for that race, but either way it's been a good start to my UKGPL career 

 

[EvilClive]

......easing off as you dip the clutch & downshift ( H shifter). Repeat for each gear. Dont downshift too soon either. It aint easy & I'm not fully there by a long way. You can still take 2 gears at once on some occasions but for the big stops go right through the box.......

Using a H shifter in a league race = respect!!   

I have a G25 (and I have GPL Shift installed so the H shifter works) but I only use the H shifter for a bit of fun and realism.  I'd never dream of using it in a league race, it is just too difficult.  I just use paddles and left foot braking.  Only use the clutch off the line, after that I don't touch it unless I'm making another standing start for some reason.

If you watch the alien drivers ( whatever you do DO NOT watch me!!) it's all about smoooothness. Braking and down shifting so as not to break the tyre adhesion ( yes, GPL is that smart...it knows when you are abusing the grip!!) and likewise on acceleration no wheelspin or wild power slides. I will bet that your fastest laps and PB's are generally done when you were not really trying, but did a very clean and tidy lap?
AS you have discovered, going off costs time.. about 20 secs per excursion is a good average, braking 1 sec earlier seems like a good trade off? and if you are fully under control going into the corner you will get on the gas earlier and get a clean fast exit..PLUS you carry that extra speed all the way down the next straight

[Podkrecony_Ziutek]

Using a H shifter in a league race = respect!!  

I have a G25 (and I have GPL Shift installed so the H shifter works) but I only use the H shifter for a bit of fun and realism.  I'd never dream of using it in a league race, it is just too difficult.  I just use paddles and left foot braking.  Only use the clutch off the line, after that I don't touch it unless I'm making another standing start for some reason.

Phil try use H shift, with Left Foot Braking. I do this all the time and it works quite well(I would use H&T but for me it's uncomfortable with G25).

[miner2049er]

whatever you do DO NOT watch me!!

Amen brother!

I will bet that your fastest laps and PB's are generally done when you were not really trying, but did a very clean and tidy lap?

Especially true at Adelaide I found, when the first sector seems very slow it is usually smooth and quick.

[Nigel Smith]

Hi, i've been reading all your comments and would like to add a few- none offensive I hope. I've been participating in UKGPL events for about a month now and am enjoying it very much. Signing up for as many leagues as possible probably doesn't help consistency, but my biggest problem is finding computer time, and my 'practice' seems to be the qualifying sessions.So, apologies to anyone I may get in the way of and there should be a horn button for the aliens to tell me to get out of the  way when lapping me, lol, as my attention seems to be limited to one thing at atime as I get older. Adelaide- I tried the 67's there the night before but went through about ten engines in qually and couldn't manage a lap in the race without at least one spin, but the 65's were much better, picked my way throught the early mayhem to find myself, I think in 4th- big shock- and immediately went into 'overdrive' mode resulting in loss of places ;( Congrats to Al +Tussman- and everyone else- as we all know its not easy. Look forward to seeing everyone again soon. Thanks for listening.