Just outa Rookie :)

Danny O'Neill · Apr 13, 2020

Hi all, I've had iracing for going on 5 years on and of, but at Christmas the good wife got me a years sub, so I thought that I'd better do it some justice, before yesterday I had only ever had a couple of races and I didn't fare too well in either lol. I was always a bit daunted by it for some reason.
I always loved the way it looked in vr and simplicity of it, it was always just a case of putting on the headset and away you go, no fiddling around with the settings, nothing just drive, unlike almost all of the other sims that I have and I have almost all of them, they almost all need some bit of tinkering.
Anyway back to the point, I watched a couple of videos on youtube about how to get out of rookie and it all sounded pretty straight forward. So I followed their advice and after three races starting from the back in all but one of them and keeping out of trouble, I came third, second and fifth and guess what I'd done it. I'm now the proud owner of a D class licence.

I must say contrary to what I'd read on most forums the other drivers were very courteous and responsible drivers, when they did have a spill or crash they done their best to avoid the others around them.
One thing I'd like to know though, the attitude to the getting rookie licence was to not jump in, don't push for that place, just hang back and let the others around you make the mistakes. Is this the same attitude I should have in the D class or should I be a bit more aggressive ?
Oh one other thing I really like it

Eckhart von Glan · Apr 14, 2020

Try to read the waters. Some blokes just ooze aggression, some are up for a good fight. One really cannot say who is who unless you gently put them to the test. Remember names! I have one chap in Global Challenge whom I will always give a lot of space to, because he will forever try to force the issue with dreadful consequences for all of us around him. There's usually someone who does not know him and that solves the problem sooner or later.
My personal strategy is to not do many races (just one in each of my two series each week) so that every lap counts. It makes me far more circumspect. And I always try to get into a mindset where a crash would really endanger my health (play pretend!), again to stop me doing reckless moves. As for the other players, I've had great sportsmanship in class D and complete foolishness in class A, I wouldn't even say it gets better as you progress. Since I have never been a fast guy either way, I cannot say what the climate is like in higher SOF races, but rumour has it there are rotten apples anywhere.
All in all: Go with the flow and make it count.

mozzie · Apr 14, 2020

Hey Danny,

Congrats on getting out of rookies and your new found enthusiasm for iRacing. My advice is you will always have a better time on iRacing if you drive with an element of caution.
I have raced in the NEO league and even at that high level you get people that do dumb moves or drive overly aggressive for an endurance event- people are even more aggressive in sprint races.
Eckhart has a good point about remembering driver names, some drivers are just an accident waiting to happen.

If a contact happens that takes you out of a race don’t just rage quit, watch the replay and see if there is something you could do differently the next time a similar situation arises.
Good luck.

Eckhart von Glan · Apr 14, 2020

mozzie said:
If a contact happens that takes you out of a race don’t just rage quit,

go back on track if the virtual car is still safe to control because every turn counts for SR and one can sometimes limit the damage done to that by doing a solo hotlap race a lap down, always giving way the moment that blue flag comes out.
Oh yes, and the quickest way to appear on my list of "names": racing the guys on lead lap while you are a lap down in a road race. It's the thing to do in ovals, and I can totally see why, but in the last two seasons the incidents that hurt the most were with chaps a lap down who spun out trying to race me or other guys on lead lap, taking us out along the way. That is the worst misstep there is, especially on tight tracks like Belle Isle or Montreal.

BrunoBæ · Apr 14, 2020

But Eckhart if the man knows really deep inside that he is better and faster than you but has just been unlucky on the first lap - shouldnt he be allowed to show how faster he really is?
Hehe eventhough his "unluckyness" was probably the same in his former 10 races.

CatsAreTheWorstDogs: Eventhough my comment sounds like a joke - then some people actually does reason that way.

And thats the reason they can be a handfull to overtake even when they are 1-2 laps down

Danny O'Neill · Apr 14, 2020

Thanks for the answers guys most helpful,

mozzie said:
If a contact happens that takes you out of a race don’t just rage quit, watch the replay and see if there is something you could do differently the next time a similar situation arises.
Good luck.

One thing thought how do you watch the reply can you leave the game and then watch it?

Kurupt CDN · Apr 14, 2020

Danny O'Neill said:
Thanks for the answers guys most helpful,

One thing thought how do you watch the reply can you leave the game and then watch it?

No you don't need to leave the game, just go to the menu screen where your options, garage and settings all are. At the bottom in middle you'll see all the replay functions.
Where it says laps select the lap it happened on and the replay will start. You can slow it down, speed it up, pause etc. Etc.

You can also save the replay and watch it any time you want.

I'd also suggest subscribing to the iracing YouTube channel it has tons of how to video, info, news and sports available.

How-To

iRacing offers many features to the casual and dedicated sim racer alike. Watch videos on this playlist to learn how to create hosted racing sessions, apply ...

www.youtube.com

Basic Training - YouTube

In this series of informational videos, you will learn some tips to help you acclimate to the world of online competition at iRacing.com. There is a lot to l...

www.youtube.com