AC DRM Revival @ Feldbergring - Wed 14 Aug 2019

[Victor M Fernandez]

I was going to join you tonight. I was all set to go for a practice run this afternoon when my wheel decided to die on me I am now without a wheel for a week, and really annoyed that I missed tonight's race - sorry

Well, you just missed an amazing track, so beautiful and treacherous, I guess someday you'll have the opportunity to try it and suffer it Again, thanks for your effort and time to give us this track.

 

[Ray Charlebois]

Fun race today @ Feldbergring. It was my 2nd race here on RD. I have to admit, especially since i"m new here, I get really nervous with other racers (not AI) coming up on me and I find a way to mess up. But i"m working on that. I'm grateful for a great experience racing with you guys today. Also loved the track and cars. Want more of that for sure
Thanks to the RD Staff for hosting and Congrats to the winners and speedsters. Looking forward to more racing soon.

 

[Denis Betty]

If I needed proof that lots of practice can improve my times and consistency, well this race confirmed it. I must have done a couple of hours at least on 3 or 4 separate evenings, so apologies to those of you that don't have time much for practice.
That said, I got the distinct feeling somehow, that @Ronnie Böhme was toying with me. If you've seen the footage of seals being tossed around by great white sharks and allowed to swim off, before being caught and eaten... you get the idea.
Seriously though, well done Ronnie. Your pace was incredible. I'm only sorry that nobody was able to challenge you seriously this evening. There were a couple of quick guys that didn't make it tonight and it looked like @Allan Ramsbottom wasn't on top form for some reason. I know he had connection problems just before the race. Unlucky Allan, you'll be back at the front next time, I'm sure.
Thanks to Craig for organising and thanks to everybody who raced. See you all again on track very soon I hope.

 

[JeroenH]

What a car and what a track. Only looking at the post-race reactions makes this race very very good. I didn't battle much this race, but I think I had my hands full at this combination alone.

@Denis Betty you are absolutely right. Practise makes perfect and you did show this tonight. With basically the same setup you were somehow almost 4 seconds quicker in race pace. Well done!

@Ronnie Böhme someone said you sold your soul. Well, it looks like that did pay off on this race. That qualifying time was not possible for any of us tonight. Apart from a few mistakes at lap 2 I think Denis is right, and you are just toying around in first place

@ChikiWaki Thanks for the compliment! Getting in to a quick but steady rythm is what I love about simracing. Losing yourself with your car at the most perfect tracks in the world. Your heartbeat raising when you're side by side managing the car through the corners. The feeling of being in control and proving you are good at what you are doing makes this hobby all worth it.

@Craig Dunkley Mini's?!! I'm in for sure. Growing up with always one of those in the driveway makes this a race I can't resist

See you next week guys!

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

I was going to join you tonight. I was all set to go for a practice run this afternoon when my wheel decided to die on me I am now without a wheel for a week, and really annoyed that I missed tonight's race - sorry

Oh no, that sucks
Maybe I can convince @Craig Dunkley to run the division 1 Cars here as well so you can join us on this awesome track then. If necessary I'll stick with my div2 Lancia to make it even

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

BTW @Ronnie Böhme, if you don't mind, could you share your race setup? I would like to see how can I improve my set up knowledge. So far I cannot compare with anyone, please . Just if you want to.

I already did mate
https://www.racedepartment.com/thre...ng-wed-14-aug-2019.171146/page-3#post-3025043
Maybe you should watch my pole lap to get an idea how to position the car and so on. With thos drifty beasts all comes down to track position, race line, and (in my case) rythm. I always have to find "the flow" to be fast (and I lost it in the race ). Also it helps a lot to get a feel for the few milimeters you have to feather the throttle, once the turbo kicks in, to keep the rear end under control.
Ask anything if you want to, I'll try to help.

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

@Ronnie Böhme someone said you sold your soul. Well, it looks like that did pay off on this race. That qualifying time was not possible for any of us tonight. Apart from a few mistakes at lap 2 I think Denis is right, and you are just toying around in first place

Thanks, I guess I just love those cars (that were raced around the time I was born) so much that it almost comes natural . I'm still negotiating with the about my soul. The deal was for sex, money and fame. Now I'm stuck with speed instead . But as for the race, I really wasn't toying around, I actually wanted to show off a bit and go for 40min of quali laps. Though I have a lot on my mind right now and lost focus quite often. The battle with @Denis Betty helped a lot to concentrate again and was really fun. It sounds as if you've had some fun too, @JeroenH. I'm really glad about that. Hopefully next time we'll have a closer battle again .

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

That said, I got the distinct feeling somehow, that @Ronnie Böhme was toying with me. If you've seen the footage of seals being tossed around by great white sharks and allowed to swim off, before being caught and eaten... you get the idea.

What a comparison
But seriously, please read my post above
Thanks for the great battle though

 

[Denis Betty]

What a comparison
But seriously, please read my post above
Thanks for the great battle though

Sorry Ronnie, I was just kidding of course.

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

Sorry Ronnie, I was just kidding of course.

I know you were mate, no worries and I was laughing, too. It's just ... well ... the race didn't show my potential at all and I'm a bit ebarrassed about the mistakes I've made. I guess I just want everyone to know that I have nothing but for respect all of you guys no matter the speed you have or the mistakes you make. Believe me, I know it's way harder to keep going when you are off pace. So kudos to all of you, that don't give up and stick around, finishing races, learning, getting faster and more consistent with every lap
Damn, am I getting sentimental here? What is the dark lord doing to my soul?

 

[Victor M Fernandez]

I already did mate
https://www.racedepartment.com/thre...ng-wed-14-aug-2019.171146/page-3#post-3025043
Maybe you should watch my pole lap to get an idea how to position the car and so on. With thos drifty beasts all comes down to track position, race line, and (in my case) rythm. I always have to find "the flow" to be fast (and I lost it in the race ). Also it helps a lot to get a feel for the few milimeters you have to feather the throttle, once the turbo kicks in, to keep the rear end under control.
Ask anything if you want to, I'll try to help.

Sorry Ronnie, I just completely missed that one You posted it right after I ask for one to help me out. Thank you.
And yes, I'll watch your pole, again, again, and again.

 

[Victor M Fernandez]

@Ronnie Böhme and @Craig Dunkley , taking advantage of your kindness.
I've compared both setups, Ronnie and mine (attached).
I undertand Ronnie levels the car height and the front Aero to compensate for the floating front. I use a diferent approach, lower the rear to help overpower and avoid grounding with more Wheel rate, one notch. Still the light front, though more controlable power, and I reduce the Diff. Power only one notch, to have better traction, but controlable thanks to the lower rear.
Obviously my back Aero is too light for the 2nd section, but it gives me more weight to the front. The car turns in fine, more front Aero makes it oversteery, so I set 1 Front Aero. I agree I don't compensate the raw speed with the lost time in the 2nd sector. But that can be my lack of dexterity.
The tyre pressures are weird in my case because I set left side higher than right side. True that my LR was half of the lap one bar higher.
My Dampers are higher set, so to help braking and help fast changes of direction, I may have light front but responsive, it may be wrong.
It is clear why you set the higher gears, to compensate the Aero.
The Aligment is another unfathomed mystery for me. I always use less Camber that everybody. In this case I have enough turn in, and I don't want to worsen braking, also more Camber makes me slide at the corner entry. Obviously I am wrong.
So, would you mind trying my setup and see what can you achieve?
The same setup with Slicks, 100% Turbo and 17 Litres allow me a 51.656
and Would you be kind, both of you, to let me know my wrongly assumtions and logic behind my setup?
Right now I am in the process of understanding the effects of those changes, more or less I know what they do, but why is it better to alter first one parameter and not the other?
Thanks again to both of you.
Of course you have matters to attend, I completely understand if you don't have time to dwell on this.

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

@Ronnie Böhme and @Craig Dunkley , taking advantage of your kindness.
I've compared both setups, Ronnie and mine (attached).
I undertand Ronnie levels the car height and the front Aero to compensate for the floating front. I use a diferent approach, lower the rear to help overpower and avoid grounding with more Wheel rate, one notch. Still the light front, though more controlable power, and I reduce the Diff. Power only one notch, to have better traction, but controlable thanks to the lower rear.
Obviously my back Aero is too light for the 2nd section, but it gives me more weight to the front. The car turns in fine, more front Aero makes it oversteery, so I set 1 Front Aero. I agree I don't compensate the raw speed with the lost time in the 2nd sector. But that can be my lack of dexterity.
The tyre pressures are weird in my case because I set left side higher than right side. True that my LR was half of the lap one bar higher.
My Dampers are higher set, so to help braking and help fast changes of direction, I may have light front but responsive, it may be wrong.
It is clear why you set the higher gears, to compensate the Aero.
The Aligment is another unfathomed mystery for me. I always use less Camber that everybody. In this case I have enough turn in, and I don't want to worsen braking, also more Camber makes me slide at the corner entry. Obviously I am wrong.
So, would you mind trying my setup and see what can you achieve?
The same setup with Slicks, 100% Turbo and 17 Litres allow me a 51.656
and Would you be kind, both of you, to let me know my wrongly assumtions and logic behind my setup?
Right now I am in the process of understanding the effects of those changes, more or less I know what they do, but why is it better to alter first one parameter and not the other?
Thanks again to both of you.
Of course you have matters to attend, I completely understand if you don't have time to dwell on this.

Will do, will do. I'll have a bit of spare time friday night to test your setup. This is actually quite interesting. You have put some serious thought into this, I can see that.

 

[Victor M Fernandez]

Will do, will do. I'll have a bit of spare time friday night to test your setup. This is actually quite interesting. You have put some serious thought into this, I can see that.

Thank you Ronnie, for your help, your understanding, and your time (the only resource that we really own).
Yes, Since I was 14th my only dream was racing, yet I spent my life pursuing other's people dreams instead of mine. Since Grand Prix by MacroProse (1992), Indicar Racing by Papyrus (1993), Grand Prix 2 (1994) (awesome one), and SIMBIN SIMs later on, I've been a weekend warrior, never online, never with enough time. So, at 50 I've decided to pursue my dream, I know my limitations and set my goals accordingly, but my holidays and spare time now are for racing and learning how to tame the beasts I grew up enthralled with: Group C, DTM, DRM, etc. I like the new GT3, though they are somehow "decaf", they, IMO, don't transmit the same feelings as the "vintage" era, more power than the chasis can hold.
For me it is not a question of being the fastest, I would like to, instead it is to enjoy, as you, @JeroenH, @Craig Dunkley , and @Bobby Pennington have stated: "Enjoy the flow, be thrilled, and tame the beast".
My approach is as Yoda said: " Do it, or don't, but don't try it".
Thanks again mate, and all of you racers who share the same passion.

 

[Ronnie Böhme]

Thank you Ronnie, for your help, your understanding, and your time (the only resource that we really own).
Yes, Since I was 14th my only dream was racing, yet I spent my life pursuing other's people dreams instead of mine. Since Grand Prix by MacroProse (1992), Indicar Racing by Papyrus (1993), Grand Prix 2 (1994) (awesome one), and SIMBIN SIMs later on, I've been a weekend warrior, never online, never with enough time. So, at 50 I've decided to pursue my dream, I know my limitations and set my goals accordingly, but my holidays and spare time now are for racing and learning how to tame the beasts I grew up enthralled with: Group C, DTM, DRM, etc. I like the new GT3, though they are somehow "decaf", they, IMO, don't transmit the same feelings as the "vintage" era, more power than the chasis can hold.
For me it is not a question of being the fastest, I would like to, instead it is to enjoy, as you, @JeroenH, @Craig Dunkley , and @Bobby Pennington have stated: "Enjoy the flow, be thrilled, and tame the beast".
My approach is as Yoda said: " Do it, or don't, but don't try it".
Thanks again mate, and all of you racers who share the same passion.

That's the spirit mate It's never too late to turn your life around. I'm at the same spot right now, turning my life upside down at the age of 40 and I'm really happy to see that there are people like you who are already successfully doing the same thing, pursuing their own dreams, enjoying life. That gives me more confidence that I will succeede as well (some day).

I love those old turbo monsters (natural aspirated too) as well, they are just somethig special. Modern cars have their appeal, too. They are fast and nimble, have downforce to spare but they don't have the same character and soul anymore. I just like racing, no matter what car, I just seem to be quicker with some and slower with others

 

[Victor M Fernandez]

Will do, will do. I'll have a bit of spare time friday night to test your setup. This is actually quite interesting. You have put some serious thought into this, I can see that.

I tried both and came up with this hybrid setup. Theo 48.443, real for me 50.159 that's a second and a half faster from my previous fastest and 3s and a half theoretically. It handels close to yours, but better aceleration and top speed. Give it a try and see how much can you squeez out of it, and if it suits your driving style.
BTW everyone can try it and comment of course.
Qualy trim, pressures are ok, temp of RR 2ºC high at the end of sector 2, FR and RR green temp, FL and RL I warm them

 

[Victor M Fernandez]

That's the spirit mate It's never too late to turn your life around. I'm at the same spot right now, turning my life upside down at the age of 40 and I'm really happy to see that there are people like you who are already successfully doing the same thing, pursuing their own dreams, enjoying life. That gives me more confidence that I will succeede as well (some day).

I love those old turbo monsters (natural aspirated too) as well, they are just somethig special. Modern cars have their appeal, too. They are fast and nimble, have downforce to spare but they don't have the same character and soul anymore. I just like racing, no matter what car, I just seem to be quicker with some and slower with others

Good for you. I decided to quit everything and turn upside down my life when I was your age. Sadly start from zero and at a very bad moment (global crisis) was not easy at all, but I was willing to sacrify to gain control of my time and life.. Yet, now I have my life, my time.
It's not easy, though if it is really what you want, you should be ready to pay the price for your dreams.
Best omens mate.

 

[Bobby Pennington]

I tried both and came up with this hybrid setup.

Thanks for sharing this Victor. I'm going to go out and see how I do in this car. If I can't get under 4 minutes, I'm going to drive it off a virtual cliff. You'll be able to tell with my next post. It'll be my typical village idiot humor so............

 

[Ray Charlebois]

The same setup with Slicks, 100% Turbo and 17 Litres allow me a 51.656

i think I'm missing something... I'm wondering at which track did you post this lap time? It couldn't be Feldbergring, unless you're an..... alien!? haha.

 

[Ray Charlebois]

I hope you guys don't mind if I download and try your setups as well. I've had a basic knowledge but growing all the time. Even more so now with you guys here at RD
I'm sad that I won't be able to race at Donnington Wed. I have an appointment in that time frame. I do intend to race this amazing configuration on my own. I hope everyone has a fantastic, fun race. Good chance I'll enter the GT3 race at VIR on Mon, will see some of you there