GTP WRS-Online : Special Event III - Spa Mixed Class Enduro - Mar 25

[millross]

After going to bed at 1220am and taking quite a while to 'cool off' from the buzz, I can report that I am absolutely trashed today! :-D

 

[Racingworld68]

Guys I have an issue with the GT podium class results that I will post in a second. Jon touched on it.

making me curious here Enjoyed the race in room B, intensivly !! Race ended well afther midnight, needed a few hours cooling down, slept for only 4 hours, and here i am now, sitting at work, thinking about my best online experience ever in GT5. I am defenitly 'in' for a rerun of this kind, thanks to the people who organised this 👍

Will put my racereport later...

 

[mcfizzle]

I lost everything I typed, it logged out somehow and when I tried to send it it lost what I wrote so I had to start over. I had a table just like Jon's but different results for GT Class 2nd and 3rd Place. Jon touched on it in his post and I think it needs the Stewards attention. Hasslemoff crossed the finish line at 2:24:03 to start lap 59 before the leader took the checkered flag but proceeded to the pits for fuel and tires. At the time he was running behind EDK but ahead of MilleRSVR, who was behind Gooners the leader. MilleRSVR crossed the line at 2:24:17, 1 second after Gooners, ending his race since the leader took the checkered flag but MilleRSVR continued on and completed another lap at race speed. Hasslemoff pit stalls was one of the first stalls past the start finish line. MilleRSVR actually finishes one more lap at speed, meaning he passed Gooners while he was in the parade lap, somewhere after La Source and the final lap time was 2:26:35. Hasslemoff exits the pit lane and joins the parade of cars, takes podium photos and never actually finished lap 59, instead pausing and exiting to the lobby at 2:32:57 while sitting at the inside of the bus stop. But in my opinion Hasslemoff finished second because he finished lap 58 14 seconds ahead of MilleRSVR and completes about 9/10 of lap 59 while MilleRSVR should not have been able to complete any of lap 59. I feel like a jerk for pointing it out, and it definitely needs stewards attention to finalize the results. I also understand both drivers would be on the podium either way, just their positions switched. I have pictues that I can post to show what I mean.


Edit: There is also another aspect of this to think about. Checkered Flag/Race Finished was typed when the leader crossed the finish line for the first time after 2:24. The rules on the first page state this is supposed to be the white flag waving, and then we complete the full lap after that to take the checkered flag. That is essentially what MilleRSVR did, but the rest of the field went into post race formation. Lobby A did the same thing. The winning time in A was 2:24:09 where really according to the rules the race should't end before 2:26:00 at just over 2 minutes a lap.

Edit: Pics added showing after Gooners had finished his final lap. Hasslemoff is the red triangle, Gooners is just to his left and behind, already past the finish line and MilleRSVR is approaching the finish line.

The second photo MilleRSVR is the red triangle at the finish line, Gooners is ahead, and Hasslemoff is still in pits. I didn't do a good job of getting the overall time but you can see in the second photo Gooners has started his 64th lap, 63 was the official lap count since checkered was declared, Hasslemoff already on 59, and MilleRSVR is completing his 58th.

 

[jtv90069]

My Race

Gooners(Mohit) got off to a flyer taking Wardez down kemmel straight after the start and then Wardez went long into Les Combes letting me through into 2nd. Mcfizzle(Scott) went into 3rd but dropped back somewhere during the next lap, only to get back into 3rd a few laps later.
Mohit was running a slightly faster pace and pitting every 7 laps, I was on 8 laps stints and Scott was doing 9 laps on his tyres, which all made for some very interesting racing as I was going from 2nd to 1st when Mohit pitted and then down to 3rd on my own pit and back to 2nd when Scott pitted again.
Towards the halfway point Mohit was on my tail as I entered the pit lane and I was just getting on Scotts as he went for the pits.
I did my driver change first of the top three and stayed 3rd then retook 2nd as Scott was just finishing his(rejoined 10sec back in 3rd) and Mohit was only 7 sec ahead and I tried to push harder but couldn't find the extra speed or consistency and fell back as Mohit re-established a healthy lead and I think he changed his strategy at this point.
So Mohit took a comfortable win by 35sec and Scott finished 3rd 20sec further back.
Great race Mohit and Scott.
I am really pleased with my race having only a couple of minor scares clipping the grass and all the GT Class drivers did a fantastic job 👍

 

[mcfizzle]

It was a great race Jon. I really had nothing for you and Mohit, just wasn't as fast or consistent as the first Support Race. I was about 8 or 9 seconds behind you mid way through the second to last lap but lost 12 seconds over the remaining lap and a half. I thought you were at least 20 seconds ahead that point andI extended my tires too far so just slowed to prevent any spins. I really wasn't sure were Wardez was because I hadn't seen him for a while and I didn't want to spin, completely lose my tires and finish the race with nothing, spinning all over the place. That's actually what happened on the cool down as I did one burnout and there was nothing left. I rear ended you pretty hard somewhere in sector 2 on the parade lap, it was my way of saying nice race, not malicious. I think the only chance I had of beating you was on the second to last stop I believe. I came out of the pits as you were exiting turn 1 and you had me by just enough to get by going into Eau Rouge. If I came out ahead I may have been able to hold you up enough for a few laps where the gap would have been closer at the end. You were faster though, and I couldn't keep up with you let alone pass you so it was a mute point. Oh and I spun on lap 2 exiting Blanchimont so that's why I fell back right away.

edit: why am I still awake, it's 4 am here

Edit2: I also need to apologize to AspecBob. I mentioned it in my original race recap but said Allibubba. On my lap 31, I think his 28, I passed him on the inside entering Stavelot. I didn't get a good exit to the second right-hander there where you have to lift and we actually went through it kind of side by side. I drifted up and my left rear quarter panel hit his right front, sending him into the green stuff which spun him down to the inside wall causing him Drivetrain and axle damage. I'm sorry for it and hope it didn't cause you to lose any positions or have a big impact on your race. I'm sure you weren't happy with me at the time. Sorry for it. Time for bed for real this time.

 

[jtv90069]

Average Speeds (Kph) including formation lap

LMP

1. GTP_Aderrrm: 186.58
2. GTP_PASM: 186.17
3. GTP_Hydro: 183.86
4. GTP_gooners_17: 183.51
5. GTP_DrWatson: 182.78
6. GTP_jtv90069: 182.77
7. GTP_WRP001: 182.58
8. GTP_Gravitron: 182.37
9. GTP_mcfizzle: 182.34
10. GTP_Wardez: 179.73
11. GTP_Hun: 179.03
12. GTP_ty00123: 177.51

GT

1. GTP_Chorda: 171.49
2. GTP_Biffy: 171.14
3. GTP_PaulMac: 170.95
4. GTP_Ren-Tec: 170.77
5. GTP_Speedy6543: 169.98
6. GTP_MadMax86: 169.48
7. GTP_EDK: 169.35
8. GTP_Hasslemoff: 169.20 *
9. GTP_MilleRSVR: 168.93 *
10. GTP_Insatiable: 167.89
11. GTP_Racingworld: 165.83
12. GTP_Allibubba99: 165.77
13. GTP_otxjto: 165.15
14. GTP_AspecBob: 164.12

*Paul and Blair's speeds calculated from end of lap 58

 

[MilleRSVR]

I was unclear on the outcome of the finish between myself and Hasselmoff also.

When Gonners crossed the finish line just in front of me to end the race, I had no way of knowing he was the winner at that moment. I could not see the top drivers on the board. It wasn't until I was at Eau Rouge that I saw the text for checked flag. I was already past him at that point and decided to continue at race pace to be on the safe side. I wasn't clear of Hasselmoff's position at that point and didn't want him to come past so I continued at race pace.

As it turns out he was in the pits at the finish. I haven't reviewed the replay myself yet so I can't comment on his actual position in relation to the finish line.

I'll let the stewards make the call.

It was great race either way they call it. I had the lead with less than ten minutes to go but was really concerned about running out of fuel. The tires would probably have made it to the end but would have been really worn out. To be safe I jumped into the pits with just a few laps to go for fresh tires and a splash of fuel. EDK and Hasselmoff passed me while in the pits and that sealed my fate for the win.

I had a great time and a good clean race, no spins or incidents with any drivers.

Thanks again to all the people who helped make this event happen.👍

Ps, congrats to Gonners and EDK on the class wins!!

 

[Hun200kmh]

I have to say this first. It was the first thing that came to my mind after crossing the line: I'm so glad I took part in this!

Now let me elaborate. These last few weeks have been a litle too busy, both at work and at home. The result was that the last time I played GT5 before yesterday at 730 GMT was ... when I did my quali session. And even that one was done with litle to no prior testing (as the result showed, I only did one incident-free lap in quali).

So, I had already decided that I would be a danger for the racing of others and that it would be better for me to come up with a "unexpected duties" excuse and just avoid an embarrassing moment.

So I came to this thread about 1 hour before the event and started writing about my own withdrawal. But then ... I couldn't post. I'm an endurance racing fan, I love long events, I'm not afraid of getting tired by them because I don't.

So I decided "I have 30 minutes left, just need to settle for a safe car to avoid incidents and I'll do my own race, trying not to wreck anyone else's".

And so I did. Surprinsingly I only had about 3 offs in 2h24 minutes, and at least 2 of them was because I tried to be extra careful around GT class cars. I got to say that my race was very lonely, didn't overtake anyone, got lapped by 1st and 2nd placed LMPs but the constant traffic with GT-class cars gave me a totally new experience. And it was very realistic, showing us all how different classes sharing the same track and race can be a challenge on its own.

I am very sorry to all GT drivers if I ever was a nuisance for you guys, I honestly can say I tried not to be.

To the organizers of this event, a great THANK YOU! To all participants and especially winners, CONGRATULATIONS.

 

[millross]

Some nice writeups 👍

I have a feeling that I took 5:20 in the driver change. I wrote down 1:14:15 on entry but in truth it was before that. Then I wrote 1:20 as a leaving point which at 1:19 and a bit i realised was wrong and left the pits.... I should have paid more attention. Will review it later and see how daft I was.

Also remembering taking blanchimont sideways but remaining clean and on track! Will try and hunt this part out too.

Thanks for all the review work! 👍

 

[hasslemoff]

I was unclear on the outcome of the finish between myself and Hasselmoff also.

I have no problem with the race results I think I should of continued and done lap 59 as I was already on lap 59 (in the pits) before Gooners said race end. Its just when I came out of the pits it was full of slow traffic.

Great work by the Admins on getting this so well organised and to all the drivers who took part in this race. You all made it my best Online experiance in GT5

Well after 3hrs sleep and a days work ill post my race report before I get a couple of hours sleep again I have not checked replay yet so laps might be out.

I started of well got a bit of a lead in the GT class with Kevin in second keeping the pressure on for the first 20 laps.
But after my second Pit stop I came out just behind Kevin in 2nd place and trying to stay close to him with cold tyres was a mistake as I clipped the curb in Stavelot and spun, by the time I recoverd Blair had passed me so I was 3rd.

So I started to chase Blair down and was slowly catching him which put a lot wear on my tyres and I had to pit a lap early on lap 30 which was the same time as Blair for our 5min driver change.
When I came out of the pits Blair and Kevin were a long way ahead of me so I must of put more fuel in on that stop. I spent the next 26 laps by myself trying to save tyres, keep a steady pace and pitting every 10 to 11 laps, thats why I enjoyed this race so much was because when you spend thoose amount of laps by yourself you still had to be very alert with LMPs constatly passing you through out the race.

Then at lap 56 I found my self back in first place so I tried a good pace (for me) but a slow lap on 57 helped Kevin right back behind me, and this was were I made the biggest mistake for me in the race, as on lap 58 with kevin just behind me (I had enough tyres for 2 more laps and prob just enough fuel for them) I looked at the timer and for some reason thought there was another 10 min racing and I didnt have enough fuel to do that so I pitted and as Im sat in the pits I see the sign by Gooners RACE FINISHED and I thought b@#*~*~s that could of been a good last lap for 1st place.

Well done everyone and cogratulations to everyone.
I had no incidents with LMPs or GTs and I had 1 spin the whole race.

 

[EDK]

I let the drivers give me finishing order in the lobby at the end of the race, and we had no disputes.

When I crossed SFL, Blair was shown in 2nd, I just was unsure of Hasslemoff's position with the pit.

Since both drivers have said they are OK with the result, I'm inclined to let it stand. But can have more background conversations with the other stewards before making a final ruling.

BTW - These are the race end procedures from the first post. Blair crossed behind Gooners' checkered lap, so he did not need to do another flying lap.

Race End

• At 2.4 hours (2:24:00.000 on the race clock) the "white" flag will be waved (a steward will announce "white flag" over voice chat). - This does not apply since we did not use voice.
• The first time the leader passes the finish line after the white flag is waved the checkered flag is waved and the leader's race is over. I.e. the first lap completed after 2.4 hours completes the leaders race. After passing the start/finish line the leader should immediately slow to 50 MPH and announce the checkered flag (by voice or press start and type "Checkered Flag" if he doesn't have voice). No car should pass him at any time going forward. Any close finishes at the line will be reviewed with replay for the official results.
• After the checkered flag is waved all drivers complete their current lap and their race is finished when they next pass the finish line. They should line up behind the train of cars that have already finished moving at 50 MPH. When the last car passes the start/finish line we will announce race end, record the results and then allow everyone to exit track and save the replay.

 

[TheBook]

Hun, your experience was not unlike mine. I came into this event with the intention of running GT, but one day I decided to qualify for LMP on a whim. You'll notice I was well off the minimum pace before that was dropped. My race was pretty lonesome as well; the only real competition I ever had was between Wardez on fresh tires and me on worn ones. Getting around the GT cars was a completely new experience for me, and definitely a challenge I enjoyed.

 

[sjstuart]

First, huge thanks and congratulations to the stewards for a very thoroughly organized and well run race. It was a lot of fun.

I don't have much of a race report, as I was disconnected about 20 minutes after my driver change, and don't have a replay to pore over to relive the fun. I was having a solid race, all things considered: staying fairly consistent (for me) and turning most of my laps below my qualifying time. I was losing far less time to stupidity than I did in the support race, with only a few minor offs and one set of locked up tires (that was my rubber on the road in the middle of the straight leading up to bus stop chicanes). I had managed to hit close to my best lap time despite racing quite conservatively, and I think I managed not to perturb the LMP drivers too much. My main goal was to avoid being lapped by everyone in the race, and from the results it looks like that might have been a very close thing if I had managed to stay in.

I now have a completely different perspective on what to think when you see a total unknown back marker drop out of a race halfway through with a blown engine. Sure, you've never heard of him, he's racing over his ability, and he was lucky to get a ride. And of course a team that can't hire a good driver probably can't pay for as much testing, so reliability problems are to be expected. Plus it's undeniably preferable that the random bad luck strikes him, rather than someone who was battling for position. All of those things are true, but they still don't change the fact that the poor guy had spent weeks prepping for and looking forward to the race just like everyone else.

Even if the results were a foregone conclusion, it's surprising how disappointed I am not to have gotten the chance to finish the race and earn my last place.

So even though my race was a bit anticlimactic, I really enjoyed it while it lasted, and am looking forward to the next one. Thanks again to EDK, Gravitron, Hydro, Speedy, and WRP001 for all the hard work and congratulations on an incredibly successful race. I'm glad that I was the only glitch.

 

[Racingworld68]

Race Report Room B

Afther 2 weeks of practising the moment was there....an exciting start in GT-class, with a close field. I was happy to be in 4th p, and was not far behind the top 3(EDK, Millesrv and Hasselhoff) when disaster struck, used a bit to much of the grass and ended up in the wall !! I had to get back on track in last position and already at that point there was no chance of a podium anymore. At that moment an awsome battle between me, stuart, aspecbob, joe and allib started, some nice passings where made on track, and the different pitstop strategy's made sure of a lot of exciting laps where ran. Due to less tyre consumption (at least that is what i think) i was able to get back up in 5th place in GT. And with 4 minutes on the counter i had allib in my vieuw. In what proved to be the last round, disaster for allib struck aswell, as i saw him colliding with one of the LMP's. I was lucky to get back in 4th position. But all these things made this event so intresting and exciting. Congratulations for all people who took part, you are all winners !!

The game was close to reality, and being passed by roaring LMP's was an extra 'buzz' to the race. The hole 'experience' was splendid, people who organised this should be on the 'payroll' of PD 👍

I am a great fan of endurance racing, and honestly, this has been one of the best experience's ive had in GT5. If i would have the time i would like one of these, every week.

 

[Dr_Watson]

There is also another aspect of this to think about. Checkered Flag/Race Finished was typed when the leader crossed the finish line for the first time after 2:24. The rules on the first page state this is supposed to be the white flag waving, and then we complete the full lap after that to take the checkered flag. That is essentially what MilleRSVR did, but the rest of the field went into post race formation. Lobby A did the same thing. The winning time in A was 2:24:09 where really according to the rules the race should't end before 2:26:00 at just over 2 minutes a lap.

The A-Race worked out perfectly with the finish the way a 'timed race' is supposed to work. Adam crossed the line AFTER 2h 24m. That means the race is over as soon as everyone else hits the line. If he'd hit at 2:23:59 he'd have to do another lap ending at ~2:26.

 

[WRP001]

Edit: Pics added showing after Gooners had finished his final lap. Hasslemoff is the red triangle, Gooners is just to his left and behind, already past the finish line and MilleRSVR is approaching the finish line.

The second photo MilleRSVR is the red triangle at the finish line, Gooners is ahead, and Hasslemoff is still in pits. I didn't do a good job of getting the overall time but you can see in the second photo Gooners has started his 64th lap, 63 was the official lap count since checkered was declared, Hasslemoff already on 59, and MilleRSVR is completing his 58th.

Based on this photo alone my preliminary ruling is to swap the results of 2nd and 3rd.

MilleRSVR did nothing wrong in completing his lap because as he said he had no way of knowing who the leader was and there was a delay between gooners passing line and typing which is understandable. However, I said the replay would determine the official result and according to the intention of the timed finish the last lap by MilleRSVR is irrelevant. His race finished at the time of this photo basically and Hasslemoff was in front. Hasslemoff should have finished that last lap, but I understand the confusion given he was in the pits and by the time he came out the parade was formed. I had not envisioned someone pitting on the last lap of an enduro. Go figure.

Luckily they are still both podium finishers and luckily this wasn't over the class win.

Scott, can you or someone else grab that same picture but with the total race clock showing. When I see that I'll make the ruling official.

The A-Race worked out perfectly with the finish the way a 'timed race' is supposed to work. Adam crossed the line AFTER 2h 24m. That means the race is over as soon as everyone else hits the line. If he'd hit at 2:23:59 he'd have to do another lap ending at ~2:26.

Yes, this is what I intended when I wrote this on race morning:

Race Finish & Ceremonies:

The checkered flag waves when the leader first passes the start/finish line after the race timer reads 2:24:00. All drivers will race to the start/finish line to take the checkered at which point their race is over regardless of their lap or class.

At this point the winner should slow, hit start and type "checkered flag". Then take control back of the car and proceed around turn 1 and go very slowly (30 MPH). Once other drivers see this message they should stop racing after they pass the start/finish. Slow down and form up behind the other cars from your class. The winner from the LMP class should take the right side of the road. The winner from GT should driver just next to him on the left. Cars line up behind so there is a two file formation.

Sorry for any confusion or discrepancy with the OP quoted by EDK.

 

[EDK]

Here's a bit more of a race writeup from me.

Start of the race, I got a jump on MilleRVSR and passed him before Eau Rogue. That left Hasslemoff in front. I wanted to ease into the race, so did not push, try to keep pace, or attempt any overtakes. By lap 2, he had pulled out a small gap. Lap 3, I had a bobble in the braking zone after Pouhon, I put a left wheel on grass and nearly lost it. That allowed MilleRVSR to catch me, and left probably a 5-7 second gap to first. Our running order remained that way up until my pit, which was the end of lap 10, end of the 9th Flying lap.

I knew from doing my 1 stop strategy in the support race yesterday that the tires dropped off quickly after 9 laps, so I had decided going into the race that I was not going to over analyze and try to figure out an optimum pit strategy. But instead went with stint length that would minimize time drop off while using up a reasonable amount of tires. As it was, my end of stint laps were normally in the low 2:17's. But I found a 10th lap would be about 2:20, and 11th lap about 2:23.

As Hasslemoff mentioned already, I managed to remain ahead of him after the 3rd cycle of pits, and he made a mistake trying to hang with me and spun off track. As a result, we were running with me in 1st, MilleRVSR in 2nd, and Hasslemoff in 3rd for a large portion of the balance of the race.

LMP traffic started to catch me after my 1st pit cycle. I need to express my appreciation for the LMP drivers and their patience while we ran in the more technical sections. I did my best to stay to one side and keep myself predictable once on a straight, to just let them by. But If they did not establish overlap before corners, I just drove my normal racing line and pace. I can only imagine how frustrating it would be to run LMP and have to wait it out until a clear space appeared. So my sincere appreciation for none of the drivers trying to push too hard with a dive bomb. 👍 The only LMP incident I recall happening around me was when Hun came up behind and spun his car going into Les Fanges. I hope that was only a mistake on your part, and that my actions did not contribute. I was doing exactly as I stated above.

The other thing about LMP - I found it tough to predict braking points and lift points for high speed corners when running in their draft. i.e. I ran wide a few times at Blanchemont and Eau Rogue when getting a tow from them, even after accounting for it with more left then normal. And also ran a little deep a couple times going into Les Combes and the Bus Stop when getting the tow. I adjusted more and more as the race went on, but with tire wear being an additional factor, it was in interesting thing to have to come to grips with.

I also found calculating fuel needs on the fly to be a big challenge. I did my driver change at the end of my 3rd stint. At the point, the running order was the same as shown above, but I was the first driver in GT to perform my driver change. As a result, I dropped well down the order.

I found the car to be a little more balanced on light fuel, and the 5 minute break left me refreshed. I remember cutting 3 straight laps in the 14's, followed by some 15's in that stint. As it turned out, my on the fly fuel calculations were a little tight. I actually ran out of fuel going into the bus stop, coming up on the back of a GT car, while an LMP tried to make it by both of us. Sorry if I appeared to be unpredictable at that point, I was out of gas! As luck would have it, that only cost me a few seconds, so all was good. But I took things on the safe side with fuel, for the most part, for the balance of the race.

It became apparent as I got close to the end of the race that I would either need to do 3 short stints over 22 or 23 laps, or 2 long stints. I stuck with my strategy of maximizing lap speed, and decided on the 3 shorter stints. I came in for my last stop with less than 20 minutes to go before the 2:24 mark, and I decided to use my knowledge from the prior fuel run out. I came out of the pits in 3rd. I knew MilleRVSR had stopped with about 30 minutes left, so I thought I would be able to catch him on tires or he would need to pit. I was not sure about Hasslemoff, but I just pushed all out through the stint.

MilleRVSR pitted with a couple laps to go, putting me in 2nd. From there, I could see the gap to Hasslemoff and worked to close it. I caught him with about 3 laps to go, and was right on his back bumper coming into the bus stop on the next to last lap. To my surprise and delight, he went into the pits, so I did not have to figure out a way to make an overtake on the Kemmel straight!

It was great to have the different strategies at work, and such a relatively close battle after nearly 2.5 hours of racing. I'm glad to have won the race, but would have been happy with a well fought 3rd place as well.

Races like this help me with my focus in Real Life racing, and I think Real Life racing has helped me to settle into a groove and focus in races like this one. I can only recall 2 mistakes that cost me any sort of time, one mentioned already and the other when I touched the grass on left going into the bus stop, and entered it sliding sideways.

I'm happy to be able to run a 2.5 hour race and limit mistakes to that extent. And glad the connection issues, lag issues, and invisible driver issues with all but gone for this race. Sorry to sjstuart for being the only disconnect of the race.

Thanks for Tim for the fantastic organization efforts, and looking forward to whatever you come up with next.


Kevin

 

[Hydro]

The A-Race worked out perfectly with the finish the way a 'timed race' is supposed to work. Adam crossed the line AFTER 2h 24m. That means the race is over as soon as everyone else hits the line. If he'd hit at 2:23:59 he'd have to do another lap ending at ~2:26.

And thankfully Adam finished his lap at just over 2:24:00!
With low fuel, and not knowing where DrWatson was on track, I was very concerned that I wouldn't make it to the end if we had 2 more race laps.
I had figured an 8 lap then pit strategy would work best proir to the race starting (assuming ~64 lap race).
I could get 9 laps in under race conditions, but it was risky, and probably meant I would need TCS for the 9th lap to be safe. I hate TCS

After a good start, and getting past WRP for 3rd position in turn 1 on lap 2, I had a great view of Pasm and Aderrrm tearing off into the distance. They were pulling away by almost a second a lap on me, and after 4 laps I'm pretty sure I had lost the draft in Kemmel. If not for pit stops, I would have never seen Pasm again. Aderrrm on the other hand came back into play a bit later

A side effect of entering the room first: I took over the lead and held it for 7 seconds - during my first pit stop

I basically held 3rd for the remainder of the race, but the pit strategies certainly made it interesting (and confusing). At one point I exited the pit and found myself right behind DrWatson, and in front of WRP. That turned out to be a bit of bad luck, as the Dr. was on worn tires, and I was on new rubber. After 2 failed passing attempts - 1 in Les Combes where I had the inside line, but we were neck and neck entering the first turn. I took the lead for the first turn, but the Dr. held a perfect outside line, and passed me back during the second turn. Very, very impressive Dr.! My next attempt came as the Dr. got a bit loose in turn 1, so I pounced again, but this time we were neck and neck heading into Eau Rouge . If ever there was a time to back off, this was it. Dr. had the inside, so I had to. I was pretty mad at myself for not waiting and taking him in Kemmel, but he was obviously on his last laps before a pit, so I played it safe and waited for him to pit at the end of the lap. The added benefit was the slightly slower laps gave me 9 laps before my next pit, which setup my final pit stops perfectly.

At some point Aderrrm did lap me, but he never got out of sight. The latter putting a big smile on my face Much like the Dr., with different pit strategies, I was able to stay with Aderrrm and eventually get back on the lead lap.

With the race winding down, some quick math work told me that if I pit at 1:55:00 ish I could get two runs of 7 laps to finish the race - exactly what I had hoped for (Thank you Dr. ), but a minor math error with fuel (short ~8 litres) meant it would be a very close finish, and I was concerned about running out of fuel if my last stint took 8 laps, and I was positive I'd run out on 9.
That did present an opportunity I hadn't considered. I didn't know where anyone was on track, with the exception of Aderrrm, who was right behind me (~4 seconds I think).
On what turned out to be the final lap, it had ocurred to me that I could just slow down and let him pass me. It was clear he would cross the line at just over 2:24:xx, so if he was in front I wouldn't have to run my final lap after all.
So.... risk running out of fuel, or get lapped...
I'll be damned if I'm getting lapped - Plus it occurred to me just then that no one can pass Aderrm anymore, so it didn't matter.

I had a 'relaxing' final lap with MadMax - running side by side in most of T3, then I punted him really hard across the finish line

What a great race, and unbelievable racing experience. 👍
This was my first enduro and I was thrilled it worked out so well, both in how I finished, and how the event worked out for everyone involved - with consideration for sjstuart's Dc - that always sucks, ...always 👎

Mixed class racing is so much fun . I had no idea....
Racing with the GT class made for some very interesting pacing at times, and I'm thrilled to say that every single pass was clean and orderly.
I once cut back a bit hard prior to Pouhon, and Speedy tapped me in the rear after being passed but it didn't seem to effect either of us (my fault BTW ).
Other than that, I don't recall any contact at all with other drivers - Including Biffy!!! (some history there folks - but fun history, it's like we are magnets at times - but it's always his fault ).

Congrats to all Podium finishers, and especially to Adam (Aderrrm) for the overall LMP win and Dennis (chorda) for the GT win

Thanks to everyone for a great time. Between testing / Quali's / and the actual race this was fun start to finish.
Big 👍 to Tim, as well as the other admins who contributed. I think we are taking a month off to recoup - well Tim anyway - Great job

Marc

 

[mcfizzle]

I was unclear on the outcome of the finish between myself and Hasselmoff also.

When Gonners crossed the finish line just in front of me to end the race, I had no way of knowing he was the winner at that moment. I could not see the top drivers on the board. It wasn't until I was at Eau Rouge that I saw the text for checked flag. I was already past him at that point and decided to continue at race pace to be on the safe side. I wasn't clear of Hasselmoff's position at that point and didn't want him to come past so I continued at race pace.

As it turns out he was in the pits at the finish. I haven't reviewed the replay myself yet so I can't comment on his actual position in relation to the finish line.

I'll let the stewards make the call.

This is exactly what I assumed happened. Gooners beat you to the line by 1 second and within another 1 or 2 you passed Hasslemoff. It all happened way to quick to really know what was happening. I mean it took me close to an hour over replays to really figure out what happened. Skipping back 5 laps certainly did not help the matter. I was just trying to get Gooners finish time from the live timing monitor and I said man a lot just happened on the board at one time. Then I had two finish times for you and I was thrown for a loop.

I have no problem with the race results I think I should of continued and done lap 59 as I was already on lap 59 (in the pits) before Gooners said race end. Its just when I came out of the pits it was full of slow traffic.

And that is what I figured was going through your mind. It all happened really fast and then when you exited the pits there was traffic everywhere and cars even kind of blocking the exit lane.

The A-Race worked out perfectly with the finish the way a 'timed race' is supposed to work. Adam crossed the line AFTER 2h 24m. That means the race is over as soon as everyone else hits the line. If he'd hit at 2:23:59 he'd have to do another lap ending at ~2:26.

Yes you are right, and I knew that. When I was writing this it was 4 in the morning and I had been verifying pits stops, fast laps, and finish time for close to 5 hours. I was trying to make sure I had the rules right and in the process I confused myself in my exhaustion. I'm sorry for the confusion that part of the post caused. All it took was one quick glance at the OP after I had some sleep to see I had that wrong last night.

Edit: Photos
Gooners highlighted

Hasslemoff highlighted

MilleRSVR highlighted

 

[Dr_Watson]

And thankfully Adam finished his lap at just over 2:24:00!
With low fuel, and not knowing where DrWatson was on track, I was very concerned that I wouldn't make it to the end if we had 2 more race laps.

Nice, I would have laughed so hard if I went around you on vapors.
GJ staying on the lead lap; pretty sure you had around a 20s gap to me at the end. I was making my way through a whole train of GT cars trying to keep my precious 2 corner gap to WRP. IIRC Adam finished the race while I was going into Stavelot; so that will tell you how far back I was.

I basically held 3rd for the remainder of the race, but the pit strategies certainly made it interesting (and confusing). At one point I exited the pit and found myself right behind DrWatson, and in front of WRP. That turned out to be a bit of bad luck, as the Dr. was on worn tires, and I was on new rubber. After 2 failed passing attempts - 1 in Les Combes where I had the inside line, but we were neck and neck entering the first turn. I took the lead for the first turn, but the Dr. held a perfect outside line, and passed me back during the second turn. Very, very impressive Dr.! My next attempt came as the Dr. got a bit loose in turn 1, so I pounced again, but this time we were neck and neck heading into Eau Rouge . If ever there was a time to back off, this was it. Dr. had the inside, so I had to. I was pretty mad at myself for not waiting and taking him in Kemmel, but he was obviously on his last laps before a pit, so I played it safe and waited for him to pit at the end of the lap. The added benefit was the slightly slower laps gave me 9 laps before my next pit, which setup my final pit stops perfectly.

Glad you had fun with that. Defending from Les Combes to Rivage is my favorite part of Spa. And thanks for backing off in Eau Rouge; I was fully prepared to die with you there as I really wanted to make sure you did a 2'07 on good tires.
I was actually kind of surprised you didn't just lift a bit and eat me on the Kemmel but you backed way off. Figured you must have been worried about the dirty air. The draft was a bit much in the LMP. I made a mess of Eau Rouge and Blanchemont so many times due to the dirty air.

GR, your better pace beat my strategy 👍

 

[WRP001]

Scott, we really appreciate the assistance. My preliminary ruling for GT/B finishing order of EDK, Hasslemoff, MilleRSVR seems to hold up as more evidence comes in so glad we got this straight. It's amazing how everything came together in that few seconds and just a few feet from the start/finish after 2.4 hours.

I have yet to write my own race report. That will come later. Basically, it was a mistake ridden race with a few stints in the middle of good driving. My strategy coming in was just to take it easy and take what the car gave me. But an accident on Lap 3 ruined all that. At that point I pushed the car for every lap and every turn for 2.4 hours. Hydro pretty much got out of touch with my 3rd accident so it was basically a race for 4th place with Dr Watson and Gravitron. To my suprise however on Lap 56 (or close) I saw Hydro only a chicane in front of me and thoughts of a podium danced in my head. Turns out at the time I was basically at the end of my stint running 2'07+ and Hydro was just finishing his out lap from his last pit so it was fools gold.

Anyway, my full report to come later, but here are a couple shots from the penultimate lap. Going into the final chicane to start lap 62 here's what separated DrWatson and I:

But the key part of the picture is not what separates us, but what precedes us. Those two GT cars came into play in a big way. After basicallly burning the tires off the car to gain about 6 seconds in 4 laps on Dr Watson, Lap 62 was going to be the lap I was on his bumper trying to force a mistake or make a pass. Bad luck as we got separated by two side by side GT cars at the end of Kemmel Straight. Dr got past before the end of the straight and I got stuck behind. I lost 5 seconds in sector 2 alone that lap and that was the end of the chase.

 

[paulmac2k9]

I must be just a few seconds ahead as thats Ren Tec chasing me down . Btw the 2nd chevy is being lapped by Ren Tec as I lapped him 1 or 2 laps before .

 

[Ren-Tec]

Sorry WRP it was just bad timing as like Paulmac said I was passing millross and chasing Paulmac with everything I had resulting with a half spin out of the bustop chicane lap 57-58

 

[Hydro]

Nice, I would have laughed so hard if I went around you on vapors.
GJ staying on the lead lap; pretty sure you had around a 20s gap to me at the end. I was making my way through a whole train of GT cars trying to keep my precious 2 corner gap to WRP. IIRC Adam finished the race while I was going into Stavelot; so that will tell you how far back I was.



Glad you had fun with that. Defending from Les Combes to Rivage is my favorite part of Spa. And thanks for backing off in Eau Rouge; I was fully prepared to die with you there as I really wanted to make sure you did a 2'07 on good tires.
I was actually kind of surprised you didn't just lift a bit and eat me on the Kemmel but you backed way off. Figured you must have been worried about the dirty air. The draft was a bit much in the LMP. I made a mess of Eau Rouge and Blanchemont so many times due to the dirty air.

GR, your better pace beat my strategy 👍

Thanks 👍
I did back way off due to dirty air concerns.
I had it in my head that careful is the way to go regardless of position / opponent.

Here's what almost changed everything for me:

Only very slight contact with the wall, with no damage .
In the end it only cost me ~11 seconds and a mild heart attack
That was my only off track all race fortunately.

 

[mcfizzle]

How do you do that photo collage Marc? It's something I want to do with my contact with AspecBob.

 

[Speedy6543]

Very nice .GIF again Marc. 👍

I got to try that too in Photoshop.
Having a similar crash in the brakezone towards the busstop. Taking grass with my left rear wheel.

 

[Ren-Tec]

You can do a slide show on photobucket but it's more a click link but works ok. Just go to tool creat slideshow.

example:

Click image or me

 

[mcfizzle]

Thanks Ren-Tec.👍

 

[Dr_Watson]

Here's what almost changed everything for me:

Only very slight contact with the wall, with no damage .
In the end it only cost me ~11 seconds and a mild heart attack
That was my only off track all race fortunately.

that's your car? I took the same line through there one time. I missed the walls but it scared the pants off me for sure. Was my biggest off for sure.

edit: upon farther inspection it looks like you're following my skid marks.

Had maybe 3 other 'bobbles'. I got too high on the right kerb after rivage and drifted sideways through the left leading down to pouhon (did that twice but only lost 1-2s since I kept it on the road). Early on I got the left rear up on the grass under braking after the S/F line and slid sideways nosing into the wall at La Source; was pretty embarrassing as I think Grav had a front row seat and passed me there after. That was the only damage I took the whole race.

 

[Adam41]

Incredible race everyone! A true test of endurance and mixed class racing. Even though we had 13 drivers (as opposed to the 16 a GT server should be able to handle) I saw plenty of the GT class throughout the race. At one point I think I saw 3 GTs and a LMP in front of me, and I'm talking to myself through Pouhon "bloody hell where have all of these cars come from!" .

My tune for the race was a random one I found in the Tuning forum, which definitely wasn't as fast as the close-to-stock tune I had used for qualifying, but provided better stability and tyre wear, and less understeer than the tune CSL posted (sorry ;p).

I had no real plan going into the race, apart from keep it consistent and pit every 9 laps, eeking a few 10 lappers out when I was on a good stint. Bart quickly overtook me as I was still settling in and taking it pretty easy. But as soon as I wanted to start putting my foot down I had quickly introduced myself to the horrid dirty air with these LMP cars. Bart swiftly pulled away breaking my toe, and kept the gap to something like 2 seconds. I then started to reel him in towards the end of the stint due to his slightly worse tyre wear than me. I was right behind him going into the pits. I came out 2 or 3 seconds ahead, despite being a tad held up by him pulling into his box, by putting in much less fuel. I put in 15 litres which is about the amount it takes to put on the tyres.

And that was basically the story of the race throughout! I always had a lap up on him, but sometimes I would forget that he would pull around 3 seconds back once I had pitted due to his 'undercut'. I took my driver change a stint after him. The gap was 12 seconds before the driver change (15 at the line, but he went into the pits). After the driver change, it was 14 seconds at the T1 line. To me, that's just crazy. To say we were split by 2 seconds over 1 9 lap stint, which is roughly 2 tenths per lap, a few hundredths per corner (!), shows the testament of the quality and consistent of drivers in the WRS this race, and in this case PASM (Bart). It was a pleasure racing with you all the way to the line! 👍

I only had 1 off, which I lost 3 seconds to, and that was exiting Stavelot on that green astroturf on the outside. Stuck a wheel on there, and hit the inside wall. Only gave me light front damage but still got my heart rate going lol!

As for overtaking the GTs, it was really fun and traffic management was key. It was great sometimes where I would lose perhaps 3 seconds to Bart getting round some GT cars (the gap between me and Bart was only ever around 18 seconds at the maximum), but knowing I would pull 3 seconds back when he has to over take them. Damned when sometimes I only pulled 1 second back!

Apologies to Speedy who I rear ended during the middle of the race just after Raidillon. He took the inside of the right kink, and I moved over to the left, but I guess you didn't see me or didn't expect me to come up on you so fast, as you wanted to take the outside line after the kink. No harm done though, and no damage either which I was quite shocked about lol. Also sorry to Tim for outbraking myself into the bus stop when his intentions were to take a wide line and let me by. I knew I had broke too late, so went to the outside, expecting you to aim for the apex, but I should have gone for the inside instead!

And yeah I passed the line just after 2:24. I would have got it under 2:24 if I had been pushing a bit harder though, and wanted a few of you to suffer a bit more on your tyres.

Many thanks to the guys organising this. You've done an awesome job. Congratulations to Dennis for winning GT, gooners for winning LMP and Kevin for the GT win in Room B, to all podium finishers, and everyone who raced who made all of it possible. 👍


Here's some pics from Room A (in finishing order, tried to take them from realistic camera angles). There's quite a few (admittedly, I got carried away in the after-excitement of the race :lol) so let me know if you want me to remove them or just direct people to my Flickr instead. Click for big!

GTP_Aderrrm tipping it into La Source


GTP_PASM taking a lot of kerb through Eau Rouge!


GTP_Hydro braking nicely into Les Combes


GTP_DrWatson tackling Fagnes


GTP_WRP001 charging out of Stavelot


GTP_Gravitron hitting the apex sweetly


GTP_chorda and the Spa-Francorchamps' forests



GTP_Biffy exiting Malmedy


GTP_PaulMac and his yellow wheels


GTP_Ren-Tec flooring it down the hill to Eau Rouge


GTP_Speedy6543 with his great looking body work


GTP_MadMax86 braking heavily into Les Combes


GTP_Insatiable about to take a ride through Blachimont



And some randoms:

LMP leaders exiting Rivage


GT leaders exiting Rivage


MadMax, Insatiable and Biffy rounding up GT, exiting Rivage







Celebrations!








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