- 1,051
- London
- JohnsonCapote
Right, good afternoon everybody. I'm very anxious about posting this all up right now as I go, as this is basically my first ever 24hour race in A-spec. B-Spec Barry has tackled these races easily before, but now it's my turn. I will try my best to avoid any accidental turning-offs, powercuts and so on, but I can't promise anything...touch wood and cross fingers! 
So, talk about throwing oneself in at the deep end; I've pitched up here on a sunny afternoon in Germany to compete in...
Nurburgring 24 Hours
Race Distance: 24 Hours 00 Minutes
Cheers to AMG for the track map as always
What a challenge this will be. I'm close to just breaking out in a cold sweat just looking at the challenge that lays ahead. Not only am I taking on this great race for the first time - I'm doing it in a car that supposedly has no chance in hell of winning. Here it is:
Subaru Cusco Advan Impreza (JGTC) '01
332hp, R1 Tyres, 20/30 Downforce
For 200 A-Spec Points
Lining up against the following grid of battle-hardened Nurb veterans:
1. Vauxhall Calibra Super Touring Car '94
2. Abt Audi TT-R Touring Car '02
3. Nissan Falken GT-R Race Car '04
4. Audi A4 Touring Car '04
5. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01
It's a direct rematch, pretty much, of the real-world Nurb 24hrs of 2010 - Audi vs BMW vs one other manufacturer, which in the real world was Porsche, but here could either be...Vauxhall, Nissan or...Subaru? I take a deep breath as we round the final corner of the pace lap. Must stay calm. Focus. I'm gonna be here for a long time, so let's make sure I enjoy it... Green flag is up in the air, and the field charges towards turn 1, and we are away!
Hour 1
The first lap is some of the very best, most white-knuckle racing I've ever enjoyed in my Gran Turismo life! Incredible stuff. The BMW gives me a 'hello stranger, welcome to the Nurburgring' on the run down Quiddelbacher Hohe, as I go to slipstream by, he gently squeezes me towards the Armco! It's white-knuckle stuff, but I slip back in behind him, then grit my teeth and pull the same move on him down Kottenborn, before just slipping two wheels on the grass before braking for Aremberg - now that's a 'new underpants' moment if ever there was one!!
I then swarm the heavily splittered rear bumper of the A4, and another side-by-side attempt ends with a bit of indimidation from the Audi driver - these locals certainly aren't appreciating this new Japanese machine on their turf, are they? I squeeze by at Fuchsrorhe, and manage to maneuvere onto the taillights of the Falken Skyline. We battle hard, and tussle strongly - I nearly pip him going into Wehrseifen, but he unceremoniously dumps me on the turf going in!
I then finally squeeze by, with some trademark rubbing of fenders and such, at Breidshied.
Time to tear off after the two leaders, who between them have worked up a 4-second lead. However, I hold my breath and don't brake as much as they do down the next fast section, and by Klostertal I've turned the 2-way battle for the lead becomes a 3-way one when I join the party!
A fantastic duel ensues between the 3 cars, with the Calibra defending desperatly his lead from myself and the Audi, and the Audi desperatly trying to nip into the lead without letting me gain one up on him! Through Wipperman I try an outrageous move up the inside of both of them, with two wheels on the rumble strips, but I have to concede the positions - it was a bit too outrageous! I then wait patiently and slip by the TT-R at Eiskurve, and straight away I'm pitched into battle with the Calibra, with the TT-R also hunting me down. The battle builds to a climax down Dottinger Hohe, as I slipstream past the Calibra, but just as I go to pull in front of him, I hit my top speed! Which leaves me stranded as the Calibra begins to pull back by, and I wisely slip back behind him just as we hit Antoniusbuche.
I then take a little look at my rear-view mirror, then do a double-take as I see the TT-R charging towards me! Bang!
I get an unexpected and rather violent bump-draft from him, and now I have more than enough to pull by the Calibra this time! Thanks TT-R driver! 
However, I now get to the most frightening part of the track (For me anyway) with the two cars behind me both swarming furiously on my back bumper! Grit your teeth, here we go!! We all fly through Tiergarten and Hohenrain in line astern, and we charge across the start-finish line nose-to-tail, as I hold formation - just!
It's about now I'm reminded of a quote by the great John Hindhaugh, Radio Le Mans commentator, where at the 2010 Sebring 12 Hours, the racing was so fierce and intense early on that he remarked that he'd turned up at the wrong race - he didn't know it was a 20-minute sprint race instead of a 12-hour enduro! I'm suffering a similar scenario right now - is anyone aware that we still have 23 hours and 53 minutes still to go?! Below is the video where John's quote is taken from:
The field I'm part of right now appear to be emulating those guys in this video! The Calibra and TT-R tear after me, and like the classic Tom and Jerry episode, I'm desperatly trying to charge into a lead. The lead goes from 0.8 seconds to 1.6 seconds back to 0.9 seconds back to 1.8 seconds and up to 2.2 seconds before we head onto Dottinger Hohe, and I brace myself for their surge as they use their top speed advantage to gain on me...but in fact, they choose to duel with each other rather than pursue me! I happily watch the duel between the TT-R and Calibra in my rearview mirror as we fly down Dottinger, which the Calibra eventually wins, and he trails me by about 1.2 seconds at the line.
The race is beginning to calm down a little bit now, thank goodness - if every lap were like the first one, I'd have to bail out after a few hours with exhaustion and heart problems! But it's beginning to calm down now, as I set into a pattern, and learn the track well. I finish lap 3 about 2.7 seconds ahead of the Calibra in 2nd, and lap 4 finishes with a decent 5-second cushion from 1st to 2nd. What is beginning to bug me a little is why the M3 isn't yet showing it's hand - I went into this race assuming that he and the A4 Touring Car would be my two biggest rivals, but so far they've yet to show their respective hands - maybe they've been having problems with the Falken GTR? Well, in news that will probably annoy Driftking (see comments below this report), the Falken GTR is already trailing from the main pack, and pits in before everybody else at the end of lap 4.
Speaking of pitstops, I didn't actually do any pitstop testing before this race, but having looked closely at Smallhorses' excellant victory in this race (which inspired my run and can be found here), I deduced that he did his winning run with an every-5-laps pit strategy, complete with fuelling up to just enough for 5-6 full laps (around 50 units), so I decide to match his strategy, as though our cars do differ, they are still similar specification, both being JGTC GT300 machinery. My plan here is to pit every 5 laps, or perhaps every 6 laps depending on tyre wear. When my crew guys on the pit wall radio to say the Falken GTR is pitting end of lap 4, I do admit to raising an eyebrow - I wasn't expecting him in till the end of this lap, like me. My in-lap is a pretty good one, but the most interesting factor about lap 5 is that the TT-R finally takes control of 2nd place after duelling with the Calibra for several laps. I figure his tyres might be fading, like mine, as he looses nearly 5 seconds to me in the first half of the lap before conceding 2nd to the TT-R. The Audi man then starts nibbling into my lead as I nurse my Scooby to the pits - my tyres aren't completly worn, but they are a dark yellow colour by the time I hit pit entry at the end of lap 5. The TT-R follows me in from about 8 seconds behind, as does everybody else bar the GTR! The M3, A4 and Calibra all join me and the TT-R in the pits, but I get the jump on everyone by only fuelling up to as much as the fuelman can put in the car by the time the tyre guys have finished changing tyres, which is up to around 65 units - more than enough to get me round more than 6 laps, let alone the 5 I am more likely to do. This means I get a head start on everyone else, and that combined with the slight advantage I have on the opposition on cold tyres means that I finish my outlap (lap 6) with a good 20-second advantage, which grows to around 25 seconds through the next few laps.
It then shrinks a little bit on lap 8, but this is mainly because I decide to take the plunge and swap the Dualshock 2 I've been using for my Logitech Driving Force Ex that I got back at Christmas time to replace my aging old steering wheel. It's time to do this whole force-feedback wheel thing...at last! I know it's sacriledge not to have already done it...sorry in advance all
My introduction to life with the DFE come in the form of a couple of minor excursions, but I have a half-decent cushion back to 2nd to give me time to adjust to using the wheel.
The first hour passes 52.808 seconds into lap 9, with me carrying around a 27-second advantage over the TT-R.
Hour 2
The GTR pits again at the end of lap 9, as Driftking's hopes of him grabbing 2nd place appear to be fading early...we've still got a long way to go though, he could still launch a mad come-from-behind charge...but right now, I have more pressing issues on my mind.
My 27-second lead begins eroding like sand out of an egg timer - I'm struggling to get to grips with the wheel, and my aggressive, curb-riding style used with the DS2 just isn't working with the wheel, as the Audi cuts my lead to just under 10 seconds by the time I hit the pits at the end of lap 10. Four tyres and top up to about 55 units of fuel, and come out BEHIND the TT-R - he didn't pit this time round! Surprise...hmmm...potential strategy elements are coming into play. For now, I'm looking to erode his new 16-second lead, and with him on worn tyres, and me on new rubber and slowly starting to get to grips with my driving controls, that lead is chomped down to about 11 seconds by the time he pits end of lap 11. I also put two wheels on the grass down at the Mutkurve and spin 90 degrees down the straight, my first full spin of the race Fortunatly, thanks to a quick recovery, it only costs me about 4 seconds.
I storm past the TT-R as he sits in the pits, and try to use my fresh rubber to my advantage. Lap 12 is marginally better, as I get within 10 seconds of my fastest laptime with the DS2 - 7'14.870 - on lap 12 and put in a solid lap 13, the first sub 7'20 lap I've run with the wheel. The TT-R came out of the pits around 20 seconds behind, and this cushion slowly increases bit by bit through these laps, although a few more silly errors on lap 14 mean it's back to 19 seconds again... I'm slowly figuring out some do's and don'ts with this wheel, though - let off a little on the run through Flugplatz to avoid the front end lifting and steering becoming difficult, and avoid at all circumstances headbutting the kerbs. Also, the GT-R pits AGAIN at the end of lap 13...someone's ripping through fresh rubber pretty sharpish, or has a leaky petrol tank? 👎
I pit in at the end of lap 15 from around a 17-second lead, and the TT-R sneaks back by as I sit up on jacks in the pits. All other competitors bar the GT-R pit on this lap too, with the M3, A4 and Calibra appearing in the pits in that order. I had a bit of a scare coming round to start lap 15, as I noticed I was down to two bars of fuel left! Having initially being rather scared of having to do 12.89 more miles with two bars of fuel left, I soon discovered that actually, this was more than enough to make it round another lap - in fact, maybe another one after that! 💡 That might come into play later, as the TT-R is now firmly on a 6-lap pit strategy. I start to chase him down on new tyres through lap 16.
2 hours is up as I steam through Hatzenbach, in 2nd place around 14 seconds behind the leading TT-R.
Hour 3
I love the feel of my car on new rubber, and I enjoy my outlap, eating into the TT-R's lead. From 14 seconds, it's down to as low as 6.9 seconds at the T4 checkpoint and settles at around 9 seconds by the end of the lap. In fact, it slowly whittles away down to nothing on lap 17, as the effects of stretching his tyres begin to tell, and I actually swim into view in his rear view mirrors as we head through Lauda Linkskinck! In all fairness, he doesn't put up much resistance, and I slip by cleanly exiting the Karussel to re-take the lead.
This next stint, or the remainder of it, is now of crucial importance - a strong stint here could mean that I really cement my lead in the race for now. He pits out of 2nd at the end of the lap, and rejoins about 32 seconds behind me on the road. The GT-R also pits yet again at the end of lap 17. I now put everything into the next few laps, and try as hard as I can to fly round the track. I extend the lead gradually over the next 3 laps to 40 seconds before pitting in at the end of lap 20 from roughly a 38-second lead.
After decamping to bed for the evening and leaving the game paused in the pits, I resume in the morning (Wednesday 2nd June) with a decent 12-second lead after my pitstop, but this is reduced to as low as 4 seconds around my outlap as I re-aquaint myself with the steering and such, and as such return my Impreza to it's rallying roots a few times
The Audi can sense a chance and is sniffing, but I get my act together and the second half of the lap is a massive improvement, but it still leaves me with a lead of just 3.7 seconds at the stripe.
I knuckle down nicely though, and my next few laps are some of the strongest I've run with the wheel so far in this race. A silly error at Pflanzgarten I negates the 10-second advantage I've built up over lap 22, which annoys the hell out of me, but I put in an equally strong lap 23 to extend the advantage nicely over my rival on his worn tyres. He pits in at the end of lap 23 from a 17-second defecit, and returns to the action nearly a minute behind. I'm starting to work a nice cushion back now - I just need to keep focused, and keep the error count low; easier said than done sometimes out here at the 'Ring...
If I remember rightly, the A4 pits around the same time as the TT-R, either lap 22 or 23, from 4th place I think, and the Falken GT-R pits at the end of lap 24 from around 4th/5th place. Interestingly, as lap 25 starts, a dot on the map is starting to edge closer to the TT-R in 2nd...is the M3 GTR beginning to show his hand at last?
3 hours is up around 1'45 into lap 25 with me leading by just over a minute from the TT-R.
Hour 4
An annoyingly rubbish in-lap means that I can't build on my lead any more than I already have, and I pit in at the end of lap 25 from a minute lead. I top up to 50 units of fuel this time, as opposed to 55, as the last few times I've had over 10-15 units left by the time I get back to the pits, so if I can shave some precious units of fuel (and therefore weight) off, then more power to me 👍
I charge back onto the track with around a 35-second advantage over the TT-R, and the M3 GTR's brief surge is ended for now as he pits in on the same lap, as does the Calibra.
I'm starting to achieve a decent consistency with the wheel now, which is keeping me well ahead of the TT-R for now. I start to turn the screw, as the gap begins to increase as the TT-R's tyres fade for this stint - 40 seconds by lap 28 (at the end of which the A4 pits from 4th), and over a minute by the end of lap 29, which is where he pits. As he comes out, he is suddenly swarmed by the resurgent M3 GTR, and for the first time in the race, the M3 takes 2nd! I'm informed of this around the time they hit the Adenaur Forst checkpoint (T3), by which time I'm nearly 1'30 seconds clear of the battle. The M3 does get away from the TT-R through lap 30, and eats a little into my lead, but we both stop at the end of lap 30 anyway, which hands 2nd place back to the TT-R. Four tyres and 50 units of fuel for me, as per normal now, and I'm down and away with a minute advantage still over the Audi, as I start to get a semblence of control on this race...however, contrary to what Dan may think, I don't yet think this is an easy win. There's still work to do...
Meanwhile, back in the pack, mini tussles are breaking out. The Calibra and Falken GT-R are duelling nicely for wooden spoon honours, and the A4 is holding station in 4th, with the M3 starting to move towards a possible battle for 2nd with the TT-R...and then there's me, out in front and running like mad, like the proverbial hare!
Four hours passes 1'48 into lap 33, as I navigate the Adenaur Forst section of bends, +1'02 clear of the chasing TT-R.
Hour 5
Lap 34 is my best lap with the wheel so far, a 7'17.053. This new-found consistency and speed is meaning that my cushion back to the TT-R is increasing by the lap, and sizeably too - up to 1'27 by the end of lap 35, where I pit again, for 50 units of fuel and four tyres once again, plus a cheese and onion roll
An interesting twist occurs here, as the TT-R also pits at the end of lap 35 - a lap before I expected him to pit. Is there such a thing as the AI adapting pit strategies midway through a race? The M3 GTR also pits too, as he has throughout the race, and the Falken GT-R also pits on lap 33, and the A4 at the end of lap 34, I think. My main concern is what the TT-R is doing, so sometimes the other rivals' pitstop strategies fly over my head
It's now that I begin to realise how strung out the field has finally become. It's taken them nearly 5 full hours, but they are all nicely strung out. The M3's charge for 2nd is faltering for now, but having built him up to be my main rival in this race, I'm not discounting him yet. The A4, GT-R and Calibra are all too far back to be in contention right now, so that leaves just the TT-R for now as my main opponent - and as of the end of lap 40, where I pit in once again, he is over 1'40s down the road. Still work to do, but at least I can breathe a little more easily knowing I have a healthy cushion back - I'm certainly much calmer than I was when the gap was 30s. This calmness means that I pull out another few fastlaps, including another low 7'17, before I continue my tradition of having rubbish inlaps - I've yet to have an inlap in this race without at least one or two gravel or grass excursions I head to bed whilst paused in the pits, and resume again at 9AM the next morning (Thursday 3rd June).
The 5 hour mark passes 2'32 into lap 41, with me holding station 1'21s ahead of the 2nd place TT-R.
Hour 6
This is the lap where I really REALLY begin to nail this circuit, as I start setting some of my fastest laps yet in the race, culminating in a 7'13.908 on lap 44. The TT-R pits again at the end of lap 41, by which point I've really began to turn the screw on him. My outlap is a complete polar opposite to my inlap, in that it's actually quite good, and I extend the lead to 1'40s before he even pits, meaning that when he exits the pits, he is now just over 2 minutes behind. The cushion is growing...for now.
The M3 GTR is once again putting pressure on him for 2nd, and his charge is once again halted by his next pitstop, as he pits in at the same time as me - at the end of my 45th lap. But he's definatly up to something, and gradually, as the race wears on, he is making up ground on the TT-R...and at the same time ensuring that he is less of a threat to me, which of course I've got no complaints about 👍
It's around now that I'm thinking...why the hell have I never really used a force feedback steering wheel?! I'm loving using this wheel, and racing with it is just so satisfying. Maybe I'm helped by the fact that the car I'm driving is a brilliant machine, and so inspired am I by it's JGTC roots, I put on some original, Japanese commentary JGTC races on YT, and have the added mental game of trying to translate as much of their commentary as possible (I studied Japanese for GCSE up until two years ago) as I race round the track. It's surprisingly fun
The TT-R pits in at the end of his 47th lap, by which stage I've further built on my lead, and by the time he exits the pits, I'm nearly 2 and a half minutes ahead, as I start to relax - I never doubted Dan's prophecy that this may well be an easy win, but it's only around now that I can start to relax a little.
Hour 6 is up 3'18s into my 48th lap with me leading by 2'32s over the TT-R.
Standings after 1/4 Distance (6 Hours Completed)
1. Subaru Cusco Advan Impreza (JGTC GT300) '01 47 laps
2. Abt Audi TT-R Touring Car '02 +2'32s
3. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 +2'40s
4. Vauxhall Calibra Super Touring Car '94 +4'13s
5. Nissan Falken GT-R Race Car '04 +5'30s
6. Audi A4 Touring Car '04 +6'25
(All times are based on my vague guess based on their position on the mini-map)
Hour 7
My attention is turning from what it has been focused on throughout this race so far - me versus the TT-R - to two other aspects of this race; the quickly-developing duel for 2nd between the TT-R and the M3 GTR, and the fact that I may well be navigating lapped traffic very soon. The A4 Touring Car pits in on the end of his 51st lap, and that brings him within range for me to potentially lap him before my next pitstop. This is my new goal now, and it's what keeps me pushing on. I hunt him down through the next few laps, and just manage to slipstream past him down Dottinger Hohe! Unfortunatly, this lapping takes place at the end of my 55th lap, and his lapping lasts for all of 30 seconds before I screech into the pits for another pitstop. Same routine once again, 50 units of fuel and 4 tyres, plus a little snack - this time, it's a cheese and onion roll, as well as a can of Pepsi
Meanwhile, the TT-R pits in at the end of his 53rd lap, and resumes about 3'10s behind. A few laps later, a development occurs in 2nd while I charge after the A4 - the M3 passes the TT-R and secures 2nd place for himself! For now at least...news of the pass is radioed to me a quarter of the way through my 55th lap. A look on my mini-map tells me that the M3 will likely loose 2nd place again if and when he pits at the end of his 55th lap, but he is certainly closing the overall gap. The gap back to the M3 GTR had grown to nearly 3'30s by the time I pit, and the TT-R passes the M3 down Dottinger Hohe just before he pits, so the TT-R retakes 2nd as expected, but I'm certainly keeping my eye on this battle...this isn't over yet...
Hour 7 finishes 4'10s into my 57th lap, with me leading the TT-R by around 3'02s.
Hour 8
I pick up the A4 again midway through my 58th lap, and spend the final quarter of that lap trying to find a way by in an entertaining mini-duel. He protects his line well, and actually forces an error out of me through Galgenkopf. Rather annoyed with myself for screwing up the corner so badly, I vow to pursue him down through lap 59 - except that the A4 pits at the end of this lap! With that brief duel over, this means I can now lap the A4 permenantly.
Meanwhile, the battle for 2nd continues unabated. After the TT-R pits at the end of his 59th lap, the M3 swarms all over him through his 60th lap, and the M3 re-takes 2nd midway round the lap. But he's about to give it back up when he pits at the end of the lap, right? Wrong! The M3 goes an extra lap and pits at the end of lap 61, presumably in the hope of trying to eke out an advantage on the TT-R before pitting. It doesn't really work, as his worn tyres mean he's actually struggling to hold off the TT-R throughout the lap. So he forlornly pits in at the end of his 61st lap, and the TT-R retakes 2nd once again for now, as the pendulum swings back in Audi's favour in this all-German duel for 2nd. But all of this is happening nearly 3 and a half minutes behind the humble GT300 car from Japan, as I concentrate on pushing on and catching the Falken GT-R and put him a lap down.
8 hours passes 5'01s into lap 65, with me catching the 5th-place Falken GT-R and leading by 3'27s from the TT-R.
Hour 9
I catch the Falken GT-R through Pflanzgarten III on my 65th lap, and follow tight in his slipstream down Dottinger Hohe before nailing a nice pass on him right through Hohenrain that I'm actually quite proud of! It'll all be in vain though, as I'm pitting now anyway. However, I resume with four fresh tyres and 50 new units of fuel...and no GT-R in front of me? Hmm, he must've pitted too and I missed the heads-up on screen.
I head to bed once again at my pitstop at the end of lap 70, and I resume the next morning (Friday 4th June).
Time to push on once again, with the next in line to slide a lap down being the fast but sadly hampered Calibra. I catch him midway through lap 71, and we have an entertaining duel, which seems over when I pass him going through Schwalbenschwanz, but a bit of rallying at Galgenkopf brings the distinctive white and yellow machine back by. I hang in his slipstream down Dottinger, and we indulge in a bit of shadow boxing through my 72nd lap, as I hunt for a way past, as well as an entertaining off at the top of the hill at Flugplatz, where I am completly caught out by the extra speed I'm carrying through slipstreaming and fly straight off the course! I somehow save it and continue the chase, which is finished as I pull off a nice clean move on him exiting Adenaur Forst
All of this is happening well in front of the Audi TT-R, whom after pitting on his 72nd lap, is over 4 and a half minutes behind. I'm further getting to grips with this track more and more, and inspired by raVer's excellant lap on S1 tyres in the exact same car as me, I push myself harder and harder, culminating in a new fastest laptime for the race - a 7'12.606 on lap 74
9 hours are complete around 3'17s into my 74th lap, where I lead by 4'30s over the 2nd place TT-R.
Hour 10
It's around now that I make my first huge mistake of the race - I ponder whether to save some time driving and put B-Spec Barry behind the wheel. I think to myself, ah well, I'll get the A-Spec points some other time, it's alright, he'll pass some time, maybe loose a little time, but it's alright...
...you can see where this is going, can't you?
I hand over to Barry on my pitstop at the end of lap 75, and I head up to the grandstands to have a chat with FishForRent and the female friends he has found up there. Having had a nice chat with him and his friends, I wander back to the pit garage, look at the monitors - and my mouth drops open, straight onto the concrete of the garage floor.
He's barely finished his outlap, and the TT-R is now well under 4 minutes behind him ALREADY.
It continues in a similar vein. By his first pitstop at the end of his 80th lap, the TT-R, smelling blood (or more accuratly, a completly useless driver) has closed the gap to under 3 minutes, and by the time Barry's stint is called to a halt a stint or two early at the end of lap 85, he is no more than 37 SECONDS down the road. ALL the cars I lapped have unlapped themselves easily, and a lead that I worked the best part of 9 hours to accumilate is gone in the best part of an hour and 20 minutes.
Hour 10 ends roughly around lap 82, with me sitting on the pitwall with my head in my hands and B-Spec Barry blithering around about 1'50s ahead of the TT-R
Hour 11
I am absolutely furious, not just with Barry, but with myself - why the hell did I let him into the car?!?! Seriously!! It's bad enough I've thrown away the chance at collecting 200 A-Spec points, but Barry has pretty much taken me back to where I was in this race 5 hours ago!!! If the TT-R hadn't have had to have pitted twice in that stint, he would be leading this race, no question.
Somehow resisting the urge to cuff Barry round the head or start swearing angrily, I jump back in the car, and blast back out onto the track. I'm absolutely fuming, I don't mind telling you, and I take out my anger on the track. This is no mindset to be racing though, as I find out with a couple of offs on my outlap. Focus. Relax. What's done is done.
With several slices of toast next to me in the cockpit (it's still around breakfast time here), I concentrate on racing the racetrack and shaking the TT-R off my tail once again. I catch up to the A4 Touring Car once again on lap 88, and little do I know it, but he is about to do me a massive favour. I lock on to his rear spoiler down Kesselchen, and pass him under braking for Hohe Acht. He then proceeds to pit at the end of the lap, and emerge from the pits right in front of...the TT-R!
As the TT-R desperatly struggles to battle past his hapless team-mate in the A4 through lap 89, I take the chance to make my escape! What a reprieve this is! The A4 driver is certainly owed a beer after the race - in fact, he can have all the beers Barry was due to have, seeing as he has served more use to me in this race than Barry did!
11 hours pass around 3'17s into lap 89, with me leading the frustrated TT-R by around 1'10s.
Hour 12
Halfway point is approaching...a big milestone in this race. And I'm pushing on rather nicely after my complete brain fart with allowing Barry to take the wheel. The TT-R finally manages to negotiate around his team-mate at around Schwalbenschwanz, if my mini-map is correct, but so worn are his tyres from battling the lapped car, he actually pits a lap earlier than expected at the end of his 89th lap! Further bonus for me! That A4 is certainly getting a pint or two when this is all done!
Meanwhile, I continue unabated, trying to show Barry how the Nurburgring SHOULD be driven. In fact, so fast am I going, that I begin to find a new level of pace I thought was impossible earlier on! Lap 93 is my best of the race so far, a clean and fast lap of 7'12.143, and I then go 1/10th better the very next lap - 7'12.041! Clearly that break I took at midday to go out and spend the afternoon revising in the sunshine did the trick, as I feel calm and focused. I'm really enjoying racing right now, and the gap back to 2nd shows this - from 1'10s at the start of the hour, it just about doubles as the hour goes on, much to the TT-R's chagrin
All these fast laps mean that I zoom up behind the Falken GT-R at the start of my 95th lap, which I have no qualms about, as it gives me another opponent to race against rather than just the clock! I have a great duel with him through the lap, looking for a gap here and there - I dive up the inside at Hohe Acht, but he defends well and blocks me off! Maybe I should radio the stewards and call a block on him? Nah, I think not...I'll just hunt for another way round! I almost try a rather ambitious move round the outside at the Karussel which is doomed to fail from the start, so I spend the next few corners chasing back to his rear bumper again before finally performing a very nice, clean pass on him under braking at Schwalbenschwanz which I'm quite proud of, seeing as for too long I've been a bit of a 'barge-up-the-inside-two-wheels-on-the-grass-bashing-door-mirrors' type driver
This scenario doesn't last long as we soon hit Dottinger Hohe, and I calmly let the clearly faster (top speed-wise) GT-R breeze back by as we fly down the straight. I tuck myself into his slipstream through Tiergarten and Hohenrain before I dive into the pits for another pitstop, having thoroughly enjoyed our little duel
The M3 GTR and lapped A4 both pit at the end of my 94th lap, but to the annoyance of the TT-R, he pits at the end of his 95th lap and winds up behind the A4 again! All good as far as I'm concerned Also, the Calibra pits at the end of lap 96, meaning that the Falken GT-R is right on his heels as I chase down both of them to lap them...this should be fun...
The halfway mark is reached 3'41s through lap 97 as I chase down the GT-R and Calibra and lead the TT-R by 2'20.797
Standings at 1/2 Distance (12 Hours Completed)
1. Subaru Cusco Advan Impreza (JGTC GT300) '01 96 Laps
2. Abt Audi TT-R Touring Car '02 +2'20s
3. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 +3'50s
4. Vauxhall Calibra Super Touring Car '94 +6'55s
5. Nissan Falken GT-R Race Car '04 +7'00s
6. Audi A4 Touring Car '04 +1 Lap
Hour 13
I blast through the next few laps, enjoying each one more and more - I tell you what, I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm really getting a serious driving lesson in this race. I don't know how I played this game before without the wheel, and drove how I did - headbutting the kerbs, banging fenders, scrapping through every corner - for so long. I've learnt more about race driving in the 12 and a bit hours I've run so far than I have in roughly the 10 years I've been playing Gran Turismo.
The Falken GT-R sadly pits at the end of my 98th lap, which leaves me to push on in my pursuit of the Calibra, but as I fly round lap 99, I realise I'm on a fast lap here, so instead of hanging around to duel and have some fun, I literally just squeeze past the Calibra at the T7 checkpoint to avoid him holding me up too much, and my pace is rewarded with a new personal best fastest lap - 7'11.321!
What is fascinating is comparing my average laptimes with the wheel as the race has worn on - early on I was averaging 7'20s, then 7'18s after a few hours, then about 6 hours in it was around 7'15-7'16s, then around now its average 7'13/7'14s, with my new fast lap being over 3 seconds quicker than my initial fastest lap early on.
With my blazing lap done, I slow down at the start of lap 100, which is an inlap anyway for me, and allow the Calibra back by in order to have some fun We have a great shadow boxing battle through the lap, with a few half-passes and crossovers here and there, until I finally complete the pass cleanly at Schwalbenschwanz, a corner I have quite a good record of passing people at, it appears
I pit at the end of my 100th lap, and pause to head to bed for the evening, before resuming at midday the next day (Saturday 5th June), with a rapidly growing lead, which extends to well over 3 minutes after the TT-R's pitstop on his 101st lap, as I chase down the Calibra once more. I catch him near the end of my 102nd lap, and slipstream him happily down Dottinger Hohe, before he pits at the end of the lap! Oh well...I'm in for a lonely few hours, the next car in front of me is the M3 GTR, and he's a good 3 minutes up the track yet! Oh well, back to racing the clock...
13 hours passes roughly 5 minutes into lap 105, with my lead now growing to 3'30s over the TT-R in 2nd.
Hour 14
It appears that having hit halfway, the rest of this race doesn't appear to seem that far away now...before, it felt like an eternity before the end, now it appears that little bit more reachable...still, let's not tempt fate just yet, shall we?
I pit in at the end of my 105th lap as normal, but this time take 48 units of fuel instead of 50 - I'm going to try and test the minimum amount of fuel that can be put in the car on a 5-lap stint, as I regularly have 6 units of fuel left by filling up to 50. Let's see then...away I go again, and wind up haring straight into a spectacular 90-degree slide down Klosertal as I put a wheel on the grass at 130mph! Fortunatly, this doesn't cost me too much time, and my lead in fact continues to grow - by the time I pit in again on lap 110, it's back up to around the four minute mark for the first time since Barry's 10 nightmare laps earlier on. Having had 5 units left this time round, I fill up to 45 this time...will it be enough? Time to find out...
Actually, I'm intregued to know as to how much weight each unit of fuel adds to the car...anyone got any info on that? Answers on a postcard, or a reply to this thread...meanwhile, I'm back to ploughing on alone...with my new target, seeing as I'm on my own for now, to try and beat my current fastest laptime, and try and dip below 7'10s...is it possible? Let's see, especially as I seem to be starting to feel the effects of 1350 miles on my car's engine...it doesn't feel like it's pulling quite as hard as it did earlier in the race? Maybe it's just me imagining it, but the 'Ring is taking it's toll on my little Scooby...c'mon girl, just 10 more hours to go, you can do it!
14 hours go by 6'20 into lap 113, with me leading by around 4'15s from the TT-R.
Hour 15
Hour 15 gets off to an absolute flyer, as I somehow out of nowhere manage to wipe another whole second and a half of my previous best laptime and hit that magic sub 7'10s laptime, with a stonking (for me anyway) 7'09.615!! on lap 114!
I didn't even know if that was possible for me to do! Apologies if I'm kinda bragging about nothing, and you're sitting there smirking and going 'what's this guy on about, I could do that after five pints of beer and some whiskey and Sambucca!', but for me that's not bad at all
Then, disaster.
The neighbours are leaving to go on holiday for the week, and for the week they are away, I am placed on dog-sitting duty, which essentially means I sleep at their house for the whole week, which I've always had mixed feelings about - it feels odd living and sleeping in someone else's house, completly on your own bar a pet dog (who is nice by the way).
So I leave it paused and head down to sleep there for the first night, then come back up the next morning - and realise that my dad, thinking that I've been an idiot and left my PS2 on by accident, has powered EVERYTHING off in my bedroom.
Seems nobody actually told him, or he didn't work out for himself, that I was actually leaving it on for a reason.
🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
To borrow a quote from Smallhorses, I'm so :censored:ing :censored:ed off right now it's not even
I'm so sorry guys. I'm absolutely fuming here. 15 hours gone down the drain, and for what? No A-Spec Points (which was my fault as I'd already blown that anyway), no credits, no prizecar, nothing. This stinks.
I dunno what's worse - this, or doing the entire race and loosing by inches at the end. In fact, this is worse - at least I still get something out of that race, with money and the adventure. This is just...anti-climax.
This is actually quite depressing, if I'm honest.
So the PS2 at least gets a rest now, and the Scooby is reset to 0 miles on the clock. And the one positive I can take from it all, is that at least my driving technique has now improved tenfold. I now consider myself to be a much better driver, with the wheel especially.
But for now, I need a beer. Multiple ones, in fact.
Thanks everyone for reading through, it was fun while it lasted, eh?
So, talk about throwing oneself in at the deep end; I've pitched up here on a sunny afternoon in Germany to compete in...
Nurburgring 24 Hours
Race Distance: 24 Hours 00 Minutes
Cheers to AMG for the track map as always
What a challenge this will be. I'm close to just breaking out in a cold sweat just looking at the challenge that lays ahead. Not only am I taking on this great race for the first time - I'm doing it in a car that supposedly has no chance in hell of winning. Here it is:
Subaru Cusco Advan Impreza (JGTC) '01
332hp, R1 Tyres, 20/30 Downforce
For 200 A-Spec Points
Lining up against the following grid of battle-hardened Nurb veterans:
1. Vauxhall Calibra Super Touring Car '94
2. Abt Audi TT-R Touring Car '02
3. Nissan Falken GT-R Race Car '04
4. Audi A4 Touring Car '04
5. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01
It's a direct rematch, pretty much, of the real-world Nurb 24hrs of 2010 - Audi vs BMW vs one other manufacturer, which in the real world was Porsche, but here could either be...Vauxhall, Nissan or...Subaru? I take a deep breath as we round the final corner of the pace lap. Must stay calm. Focus. I'm gonna be here for a long time, so let's make sure I enjoy it...
Green flag is up in the air, and the field charges towards turn 1, and we are away! Hour 1
The first lap is some of the very best, most white-knuckle racing I've ever enjoyed in my Gran Turismo life! Incredible stuff. The BMW gives me a 'hello stranger, welcome to the Nurburgring' on the run down Quiddelbacher Hohe, as I go to slipstream by, he gently squeezes me towards the Armco! It's white-knuckle stuff, but I slip back in behind him, then grit my teeth and pull the same move on him down Kottenborn, before just slipping two wheels on the grass before braking for Aremberg - now that's a 'new underpants' moment if ever there was one!!
I then swarm the heavily splittered rear bumper of the A4, and another side-by-side attempt ends with a bit of indimidation from the Audi driver - these locals certainly aren't appreciating this new Japanese machine on their turf, are they? I squeeze by at Fuchsrorhe, and manage to maneuvere onto the taillights of the Falken Skyline. We battle hard, and tussle strongly - I nearly pip him going into Wehrseifen, but he unceremoniously dumps me on the turf going in!
I then finally squeeze by, with some trademark rubbing of fenders and such, at Breidshied. Time to tear off after the two leaders, who between them have worked up a 4-second lead. However, I hold my breath and don't brake as much as they do down the next fast section, and by Klostertal I've turned the 2-way battle for the lead becomes a 3-way one when I join the party!
A fantastic duel ensues between the 3 cars, with the Calibra defending desperatly his lead from myself and the Audi, and the Audi desperatly trying to nip into the lead without letting me gain one up on him! Through Wipperman I try an outrageous move up the inside of both of them, with two wheels on the rumble strips, but I have to concede the positions - it was a bit too outrageous! I then wait patiently and slip by the TT-R at Eiskurve, and straight away I'm pitched into battle with the Calibra, with the TT-R also hunting me down. The battle builds to a climax down Dottinger Hohe, as I slipstream past the Calibra, but just as I go to pull in front of him, I hit my top speed! Which leaves me stranded as the Calibra begins to pull back by, and I wisely slip back behind him just as we hit Antoniusbuche.
I then take a little look at my rear-view mirror, then do a double-take as I see the TT-R charging towards me! Bang!
I get an unexpected and rather violent bump-draft from him, and now I have more than enough to pull by the Calibra this time! Thanks TT-R driver! However, I now get to the most frightening part of the track (For me anyway) with the two cars behind me both swarming furiously on my back bumper! Grit your teeth, here we go!! We all fly through Tiergarten and Hohenrain in line astern, and we charge across the start-finish line nose-to-tail, as I hold formation - just!
It's about now I'm reminded of a quote by the great John Hindhaugh, Radio Le Mans commentator, where at the 2010 Sebring 12 Hours, the racing was so fierce and intense early on that he remarked that he'd turned up at the wrong race - he didn't know it was a 20-minute sprint race instead of a 12-hour enduro! I'm suffering a similar scenario right now - is anyone aware that we still have 23 hours and 53 minutes still to go?! Below is the video where John's quote is taken from:
The field I'm part of right now appear to be emulating those guys in this video! The Calibra and TT-R tear after me, and like the classic Tom and Jerry episode, I'm desperatly trying to charge into a lead. The lead goes from 0.8 seconds to 1.6 seconds back to 0.9 seconds back to 1.8 seconds and up to 2.2 seconds before we head onto Dottinger Hohe, and I brace myself for their surge as they use their top speed advantage to gain on me...but in fact, they choose to duel with each other rather than pursue me! I happily watch the duel between the TT-R and Calibra in my rearview mirror as we fly down Dottinger, which the Calibra eventually wins, and he trails me by about 1.2 seconds at the line.
The race is beginning to calm down a little bit now, thank goodness - if every lap were like the first one, I'd have to bail out after a few hours with exhaustion and heart problems! But it's beginning to calm down now, as I set into a pattern, and learn the track well. I finish lap 3 about 2.7 seconds ahead of the Calibra in 2nd, and lap 4 finishes with a decent 5-second cushion from 1st to 2nd. What is beginning to bug me a little is why the M3 isn't yet showing it's hand - I went into this race assuming that he and the A4 Touring Car would be my two biggest rivals, but so far they've yet to show their respective hands - maybe they've been having problems with the Falken GTR? Well, in news that will probably annoy Driftking (see comments below this report), the Falken GTR is already trailing from the main pack, and pits in before everybody else at the end of lap 4.
Speaking of pitstops, I didn't actually do any pitstop testing before this race, but having looked closely at Smallhorses' excellant victory in this race (which inspired my run and can be found here), I deduced that he did his winning run with an every-5-laps pit strategy, complete with fuelling up to just enough for 5-6 full laps (around 50 units), so I decide to match his strategy, as though our cars do differ, they are still similar specification, both being JGTC GT300 machinery. My plan here is to pit every 5 laps, or perhaps every 6 laps depending on tyre wear. When my crew guys on the pit wall radio to say the Falken GTR is pitting end of lap 4, I do admit to raising an eyebrow - I wasn't expecting him in till the end of this lap, like me. My in-lap is a pretty good one, but the most interesting factor about lap 5 is that the TT-R finally takes control of 2nd place after duelling with the Calibra for several laps. I figure his tyres might be fading, like mine, as he looses nearly 5 seconds to me in the first half of the lap before conceding 2nd to the TT-R. The Audi man then starts nibbling into my lead as I nurse my Scooby to the pits - my tyres aren't completly worn, but they are a dark yellow colour by the time I hit pit entry at the end of lap 5. The TT-R follows me in from about 8 seconds behind, as does everybody else bar the GTR! The M3, A4 and Calibra all join me and the TT-R in the pits, but I get the jump on everyone by only fuelling up to as much as the fuelman can put in the car by the time the tyre guys have finished changing tyres, which is up to around 65 units - more than enough to get me round more than 6 laps, let alone the 5 I am more likely to do. This means I get a head start on everyone else, and that combined with the slight advantage I have on the opposition on cold tyres means that I finish my outlap (lap 6) with a good 20-second advantage, which grows to around 25 seconds through the next few laps.
It then shrinks a little bit on lap 8, but this is mainly because I decide to take the plunge and swap the Dualshock 2 I've been using for my Logitech Driving Force Ex that I got back at Christmas time to replace my aging old steering wheel. It's time to do this whole force-feedback wheel thing...at last! I know it's sacriledge not to have already done it...sorry in advance all
My introduction to life with the DFE come in the form of a couple of minor excursions, but I have a half-decent cushion back to 2nd to give me time to adjust to using the wheel.
The first hour passes 52.808 seconds into lap 9, with me carrying around a 27-second advantage over the TT-R.
Hour 2
The GTR pits again at the end of lap 9, as Driftking's hopes of him grabbing 2nd place appear to be fading early...we've still got a long way to go though, he could still launch a mad come-from-behind charge...but right now, I have more pressing issues on my mind.
My 27-second lead begins eroding like sand out of an egg timer - I'm struggling to get to grips with the wheel, and my aggressive, curb-riding style used with the DS2 just isn't working with the wheel, as the Audi cuts my lead to just under 10 seconds by the time I hit the pits at the end of lap 10. Four tyres and top up to about 55 units of fuel, and come out BEHIND the TT-R - he didn't pit this time round! Surprise...hmmm...potential strategy elements are coming into play. For now, I'm looking to erode his new 16-second lead, and with him on worn tyres, and me on new rubber and slowly starting to get to grips with my driving controls, that lead is chomped down to about 11 seconds by the time he pits end of lap 11. I also put two wheels on the grass down at the Mutkurve and spin 90 degrees down the straight, my first full spin of the race
Fortunatly, thanks to a quick recovery, it only costs me about 4 seconds. I storm past the TT-R as he sits in the pits, and try to use my fresh rubber to my advantage. Lap 12 is marginally better, as I get within 10 seconds of my fastest laptime with the DS2 - 7'14.870 - on lap 12 and put in a solid lap 13, the first sub 7'20 lap I've run with the wheel. The TT-R came out of the pits around 20 seconds behind, and this cushion slowly increases bit by bit through these laps, although a few more silly errors on lap 14 mean it's back to 19 seconds again...
I'm slowly figuring out some do's and don'ts with this wheel, though - let off a little on the run through Flugplatz to avoid the front end lifting and steering becoming difficult, and avoid at all circumstances headbutting the kerbs. Also, the GT-R pits AGAIN at the end of lap 13...someone's ripping through fresh rubber pretty sharpish, or has a leaky petrol tank? 👎I pit in at the end of lap 15 from around a 17-second lead, and the TT-R sneaks back by as I sit up on jacks in the pits. All other competitors bar the GT-R pit on this lap too, with the M3, A4 and Calibra appearing in the pits in that order. I had a bit of a scare coming round to start lap 15, as I noticed I was down to two bars of fuel left! Having initially being rather scared of having to do 12.89 more miles with two bars of fuel left, I soon discovered that actually, this was more than enough to make it round another lap - in fact, maybe another one after that! 💡 That might come into play later, as the TT-R is now firmly on a 6-lap pit strategy. I start to chase him down on new tyres through lap 16.
2 hours is up as I steam through Hatzenbach, in 2nd place around 14 seconds behind the leading TT-R.
Hour 3
I love the feel of my car on new rubber, and I enjoy my outlap, eating into the TT-R's lead. From 14 seconds, it's down to as low as 6.9 seconds at the T4 checkpoint and settles at around 9 seconds by the end of the lap. In fact, it slowly whittles away down to nothing on lap 17, as the effects of stretching his tyres begin to tell, and I actually swim into view in his rear view mirrors as we head through Lauda Linkskinck!
In all fairness, he doesn't put up much resistance, and I slip by cleanly exiting the Karussel to re-take the lead. This next stint, or the remainder of it, is now of crucial importance - a strong stint here could mean that I really cement my lead in the race for now. He pits out of 2nd at the end of the lap, and rejoins about 32 seconds behind me on the road. The GT-R also pits yet again at the end of lap 17. I now put everything into the next few laps, and try as hard as I can to fly round the track. I extend the lead gradually over the next 3 laps to 40 seconds before pitting in at the end of lap 20 from roughly a 38-second lead.
After decamping to bed for the evening and leaving the game paused in the pits, I resume in the morning (Wednesday 2nd June) with a decent 12-second lead after my pitstop, but this is reduced to as low as 4 seconds around my outlap as I re-aquaint myself with the steering and such, and as such return my Impreza to it's rallying roots a few times
The Audi can sense a chance and is sniffing, but I get my act together and the second half of the lap is a massive improvement, but it still leaves me with a lead of just 3.7 seconds at the stripe. I knuckle down nicely though, and my next few laps are some of the strongest I've run with the wheel so far in this race. A silly error at Pflanzgarten I negates the 10-second advantage I've built up over lap 22, which annoys the hell out of me, but I put in an equally strong lap 23 to extend the advantage nicely over my rival on his worn tyres. He pits in at the end of lap 23 from a 17-second defecit, and returns to the action nearly a minute behind. I'm starting to work a nice cushion back now - I just need to keep focused, and keep the error count low; easier said than done sometimes out here at the 'Ring...
If I remember rightly, the A4 pits around the same time as the TT-R, either lap 22 or 23, from 4th place I think, and the Falken GT-R pits at the end of lap 24 from around 4th/5th place. Interestingly, as lap 25 starts, a dot on the map is starting to edge closer to the TT-R in 2nd...is the M3 GTR beginning to show his hand at last?
3 hours is up around 1'45 into lap 25 with me leading by just over a minute from the TT-R.
Hour 4
An annoyingly rubbish in-lap means that I can't build on my lead any more than I already have, and I pit in at the end of lap 25 from a minute lead. I top up to 50 units of fuel this time, as opposed to 55, as the last few times I've had over 10-15 units left by the time I get back to the pits, so if I can shave some precious units of fuel (and therefore weight) off, then more power to me 👍
I charge back onto the track with around a 35-second advantage over the TT-R, and the M3 GTR's brief surge is ended for now as he pits in on the same lap, as does the Calibra.
I'm starting to achieve a decent consistency with the wheel now, which is keeping me well ahead of the TT-R for now. I start to turn the screw, as the gap begins to increase as the TT-R's tyres fade for this stint - 40 seconds by lap 28 (at the end of which the A4 pits from 4th), and over a minute by the end of lap 29, which is where he pits. As he comes out, he is suddenly swarmed by the resurgent M3 GTR, and for the first time in the race, the M3 takes 2nd! I'm informed of this around the time they hit the Adenaur Forst checkpoint (T3), by which time I'm nearly 1'30 seconds clear of the battle. The M3 does get away from the TT-R through lap 30, and eats a little into my lead, but we both stop at the end of lap 30 anyway, which hands 2nd place back to the TT-R. Four tyres and 50 units of fuel for me, as per normal now, and I'm down and away with a minute advantage still over the Audi, as I start to get a semblence of control on this race...however, contrary to what Dan may think, I don't yet think this is an easy win. There's still work to do...
Meanwhile, back in the pack, mini tussles are breaking out. The Calibra and Falken GT-R are duelling nicely for wooden spoon honours, and the A4 is holding station in 4th, with the M3 starting to move towards a possible battle for 2nd with the TT-R...and then there's me, out in front and running like mad, like the proverbial hare!
Four hours passes 1'48 into lap 33, as I navigate the Adenaur Forst section of bends, +1'02 clear of the chasing TT-R.
Hour 5
Lap 34 is my best lap with the wheel so far, a 7'17.053. This new-found consistency and speed is meaning that my cushion back to the TT-R is increasing by the lap, and sizeably too - up to 1'27 by the end of lap 35, where I pit again, for 50 units of fuel and four tyres once again, plus a cheese and onion roll
An interesting twist occurs here, as the TT-R also pits at the end of lap 35 - a lap before I expected him to pit. Is there such a thing as the AI adapting pit strategies midway through a race? The M3 GTR also pits too, as he has throughout the race, and the Falken GT-R also pits on lap 33, and the A4 at the end of lap 34, I think. My main concern is what the TT-R is doing, so sometimes the other rivals' pitstop strategies fly over my head
It's now that I begin to realise how strung out the field has finally become. It's taken them nearly 5 full hours, but they are all nicely strung out. The M3's charge for 2nd is faltering for now, but having built him up to be my main rival in this race, I'm not discounting him yet. The A4, GT-R and Calibra are all too far back to be in contention right now, so that leaves just the TT-R for now as my main opponent - and as of the end of lap 40, where I pit in once again, he is over 1'40s down the road. Still work to do, but at least I can breathe a little more easily knowing I have a healthy cushion back - I'm certainly much calmer than I was when the gap was 30s. This calmness means that I pull out another few fastlaps, including another low 7'17, before I continue my tradition of having rubbish inlaps - I've yet to have an inlap in this race without at least one or two gravel or grass excursions
I head to bed whilst paused in the pits, and resume again at 9AM the next morning (Thursday 3rd June). The 5 hour mark passes 2'32 into lap 41, with me holding station 1'21s ahead of the 2nd place TT-R.
Hour 6
This is the lap where I really REALLY begin to nail this circuit, as I start setting some of my fastest laps yet in the race, culminating in a 7'13.908 on lap 44. The TT-R pits again at the end of lap 41, by which point I've really began to turn the screw on him. My outlap is a complete polar opposite to my inlap, in that it's actually quite good, and I extend the lead to 1'40s before he even pits, meaning that when he exits the pits, he is now just over 2 minutes behind. The cushion is growing...for now.
The M3 GTR is once again putting pressure on him for 2nd, and his charge is once again halted by his next pitstop, as he pits in at the same time as me - at the end of my 45th lap. But he's definatly up to something, and gradually, as the race wears on, he is making up ground on the TT-R...and at the same time ensuring that he is less of a threat to me, which of course I've got no complaints about 👍
It's around now that I'm thinking...why the hell have I never really used a force feedback steering wheel?! I'm loving using this wheel, and racing with it is just so satisfying. Maybe I'm helped by the fact that the car I'm driving is a brilliant machine, and so inspired am I by it's JGTC roots, I put on some original, Japanese commentary JGTC races on YT, and have the added mental game of trying to translate as much of their commentary as possible (I studied Japanese for GCSE up until two years ago) as I race round the track. It's surprisingly fun
The TT-R pits in at the end of his 47th lap, by which stage I've further built on my lead, and by the time he exits the pits, I'm nearly 2 and a half minutes ahead, as I start to relax - I never doubted Dan's prophecy that this may well be an easy win, but it's only around now that I can start to relax a little.
Hour 6 is up 3'18s into my 48th lap with me leading by 2'32s over the TT-R.
Standings after 1/4 Distance (6 Hours Completed)
1. Subaru Cusco Advan Impreza (JGTC GT300) '01 47 laps
2. Abt Audi TT-R Touring Car '02 +2'32s
3. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 +2'40s
4. Vauxhall Calibra Super Touring Car '94 +4'13s
5. Nissan Falken GT-R Race Car '04 +5'30s
6. Audi A4 Touring Car '04 +6'25
(All times are based on my vague guess based on their position on the mini-map)
Hour 7
My attention is turning from what it has been focused on throughout this race so far - me versus the TT-R - to two other aspects of this race; the quickly-developing duel for 2nd between the TT-R and the M3 GTR, and the fact that I may well be navigating lapped traffic very soon. The A4 Touring Car pits in on the end of his 51st lap, and that brings him within range for me to potentially lap him before my next pitstop. This is my new goal now, and it's what keeps me pushing on. I hunt him down through the next few laps, and just manage to slipstream past him down Dottinger Hohe! Unfortunatly, this lapping takes place at the end of my 55th lap, and his lapping lasts for all of 30 seconds before I screech into the pits for another pitstop. Same routine once again, 50 units of fuel and 4 tyres, plus a little snack - this time, it's a cheese and onion roll, as well as a can of Pepsi
Meanwhile, the TT-R pits in at the end of his 53rd lap, and resumes about 3'10s behind. A few laps later, a development occurs in 2nd while I charge after the A4 - the M3 passes the TT-R and secures 2nd place for himself! For now at least...news of the pass is radioed to me a quarter of the way through my 55th lap. A look on my mini-map tells me that the M3 will likely loose 2nd place again if and when he pits at the end of his 55th lap, but he is certainly closing the overall gap. The gap back to the M3 GTR had grown to nearly 3'30s by the time I pit, and the TT-R passes the M3 down Dottinger Hohe just before he pits, so the TT-R retakes 2nd as expected, but I'm certainly keeping my eye on this battle...this isn't over yet...
Hour 7 finishes 4'10s into my 57th lap, with me leading the TT-R by around 3'02s.
Hour 8
I pick up the A4 again midway through my 58th lap, and spend the final quarter of that lap trying to find a way by in an entertaining mini-duel. He protects his line well, and actually forces an error out of me through Galgenkopf. Rather annoyed with myself for screwing up the corner so badly, I vow to pursue him down through lap 59 - except that the A4 pits at the end of this lap! With that brief duel over, this means I can now lap the A4 permenantly.
Meanwhile, the battle for 2nd continues unabated. After the TT-R pits at the end of his 59th lap, the M3 swarms all over him through his 60th lap, and the M3 re-takes 2nd midway round the lap. But he's about to give it back up when he pits at the end of the lap, right? Wrong! The M3 goes an extra lap and pits at the end of lap 61, presumably in the hope of trying to eke out an advantage on the TT-R before pitting. It doesn't really work, as his worn tyres mean he's actually struggling to hold off the TT-R throughout the lap. So he forlornly pits in at the end of his 61st lap, and the TT-R retakes 2nd once again for now, as the pendulum swings back in Audi's favour in this all-German duel for 2nd. But all of this is happening nearly 3 and a half minutes behind the humble GT300 car from Japan, as I concentrate on pushing on and catching the Falken GT-R and put him a lap down.
8 hours passes 5'01s into lap 65, with me catching the 5th-place Falken GT-R and leading by 3'27s from the TT-R.
Hour 9
I catch the Falken GT-R through Pflanzgarten III on my 65th lap, and follow tight in his slipstream down Dottinger Hohe before nailing a nice pass on him right through Hohenrain that I'm actually quite proud of! It'll all be in vain though, as I'm pitting now anyway. However, I resume with four fresh tyres and 50 new units of fuel...and no GT-R in front of me? Hmm, he must've pitted too and I missed the heads-up on screen.
I head to bed once again at my pitstop at the end of lap 70, and I resume the next morning (Friday 4th June).
Time to push on once again, with the next in line to slide a lap down being the fast but sadly hampered Calibra. I catch him midway through lap 71, and we have an entertaining duel, which seems over when I pass him going through Schwalbenschwanz, but a bit of rallying at Galgenkopf brings the distinctive white and yellow machine back by. I hang in his slipstream down Dottinger, and we indulge in a bit of shadow boxing through my 72nd lap, as I hunt for a way past, as well as an entertaining off at the top of the hill at Flugplatz, where I am completly caught out by the extra speed I'm carrying through slipstreaming and fly straight off the course! I somehow save it and continue the chase, which is finished as I pull off a nice clean move on him exiting Adenaur Forst
All of this is happening well in front of the Audi TT-R, whom after pitting on his 72nd lap, is over 4 and a half minutes behind. I'm further getting to grips with this track more and more, and inspired by raVer's excellant lap on S1 tyres in the exact same car as me, I push myself harder and harder, culminating in a new fastest laptime for the race - a 7'12.606 on lap 74
9 hours are complete around 3'17s into my 74th lap, where I lead by 4'30s over the 2nd place TT-R.
Hour 10
It's around now that I make my first huge mistake of the race - I ponder whether to save some time driving and put B-Spec Barry behind the wheel. I think to myself, ah well, I'll get the A-Spec points some other time, it's alright, he'll pass some time, maybe loose a little time, but it's alright...
...you can see where this is going, can't you?
I hand over to Barry on my pitstop at the end of lap 75, and I head up to the grandstands to have a chat with FishForRent and the female friends he has found up there. Having had a nice chat with him and his friends, I wander back to the pit garage, look at the monitors - and my mouth drops open, straight onto the concrete of the garage floor.
He's barely finished his outlap, and the TT-R is now well under 4 minutes behind him ALREADY.
It continues in a similar vein. By his first pitstop at the end of his 80th lap, the TT-R, smelling blood (or more accuratly, a completly useless driver) has closed the gap to under 3 minutes, and by the time Barry's stint is called to a halt a stint or two early at the end of lap 85, he is no more than 37 SECONDS down the road. ALL the cars I lapped have unlapped themselves easily, and a lead that I worked the best part of 9 hours to accumilate is gone in the best part of an hour and 20 minutes.
Hour 10 ends roughly around lap 82, with me sitting on the pitwall with my head in my hands and B-Spec Barry blithering around about 1'50s ahead of the TT-R
Hour 11
I am absolutely furious, not just with Barry, but with myself - why the hell did I let him into the car?!?! Seriously!! It's bad enough I've thrown away the chance at collecting 200 A-Spec points, but Barry has pretty much taken me back to where I was in this race 5 hours ago!!! If the TT-R hadn't have had to have pitted twice in that stint, he would be leading this race, no question.
Somehow resisting the urge to cuff Barry round the head or start swearing angrily, I jump back in the car, and blast back out onto the track. I'm absolutely fuming, I don't mind telling you, and I take out my anger on the track. This is no mindset to be racing though, as I find out with a couple of offs on my outlap. Focus. Relax. What's done is done.
With several slices of toast next to me in the cockpit (it's still around breakfast time here), I concentrate on racing the racetrack and shaking the TT-R off my tail once again. I catch up to the A4 Touring Car once again on lap 88, and little do I know it, but he is about to do me a massive favour. I lock on to his rear spoiler down Kesselchen, and pass him under braking for Hohe Acht. He then proceeds to pit at the end of the lap, and emerge from the pits right in front of...the TT-R!
As the TT-R desperatly struggles to battle past his hapless team-mate in the A4 through lap 89, I take the chance to make my escape! What a reprieve this is! The A4 driver is certainly owed a beer after the race - in fact, he can have all the beers Barry was due to have, seeing as he has served more use to me in this race than Barry did!
11 hours pass around 3'17s into lap 89, with me leading the frustrated TT-R by around 1'10s.
Hour 12
Halfway point is approaching...a big milestone in this race. And I'm pushing on rather nicely after my complete brain fart with allowing Barry to take the wheel. The TT-R finally manages to negotiate around his team-mate at around Schwalbenschwanz, if my mini-map is correct, but so worn are his tyres from battling the lapped car, he actually pits a lap earlier than expected at the end of his 89th lap! Further bonus for me! That A4 is certainly getting a pint or two when this is all done!
Meanwhile, I continue unabated, trying to show Barry how the Nurburgring SHOULD be driven. In fact, so fast am I going, that I begin to find a new level of pace I thought was impossible earlier on! Lap 93 is my best of the race so far, a clean and fast lap of 7'12.143, and I then go 1/10th better the very next lap - 7'12.041! Clearly that break I took at midday to go out and spend the afternoon revising in the sunshine did the trick, as I feel calm and focused. I'm really enjoying racing right now, and the gap back to 2nd shows this - from 1'10s at the start of the hour, it just about doubles as the hour goes on, much to the TT-R's chagrin
All these fast laps mean that I zoom up behind the Falken GT-R at the start of my 95th lap, which I have no qualms about, as it gives me another opponent to race against rather than just the clock! I have a great duel with him through the lap, looking for a gap here and there - I dive up the inside at Hohe Acht, but he defends well and blocks me off! Maybe I should radio the stewards and call a block on him? Nah, I think not...I'll just hunt for another way round! I almost try a rather ambitious move round the outside at the Karussel which is doomed to fail from the start, so I spend the next few corners chasing back to his rear bumper again before finally performing a very nice, clean pass on him under braking at Schwalbenschwanz which I'm quite proud of, seeing as for too long I've been a bit of a 'barge-up-the-inside-two-wheels-on-the-grass-bashing-door-mirrors' type driver
This scenario doesn't last long as we soon hit Dottinger Hohe, and I calmly let the clearly faster (top speed-wise) GT-R breeze back by as we fly down the straight. I tuck myself into his slipstream through Tiergarten and Hohenrain before I dive into the pits for another pitstop, having thoroughly enjoyed our little duel
The M3 GTR and lapped A4 both pit at the end of my 94th lap, but to the annoyance of the TT-R, he pits at the end of his 95th lap and winds up behind the A4 again! All good as far as I'm concerned
Also, the Calibra pits at the end of lap 96, meaning that the Falken GT-R is right on his heels as I chase down both of them to lap them...this should be fun...The halfway mark is reached 3'41s through lap 97 as I chase down the GT-R and Calibra and lead the TT-R by 2'20.797
Standings at 1/2 Distance (12 Hours Completed)
1. Subaru Cusco Advan Impreza (JGTC GT300) '01 96 Laps
2. Abt Audi TT-R Touring Car '02 +2'20s
3. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 +3'50s
4. Vauxhall Calibra Super Touring Car '94 +6'55s
5. Nissan Falken GT-R Race Car '04 +7'00s
6. Audi A4 Touring Car '04 +1 Lap
Hour 13
I blast through the next few laps, enjoying each one more and more - I tell you what, I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm really getting a serious driving lesson in this race. I don't know how I played this game before without the wheel, and drove how I did - headbutting the kerbs, banging fenders, scrapping through every corner - for so long. I've learnt more about race driving in the 12 and a bit hours I've run so far than I have in roughly the 10 years I've been playing Gran Turismo.
The Falken GT-R sadly pits at the end of my 98th lap, which leaves me to push on in my pursuit of the Calibra, but as I fly round lap 99, I realise I'm on a fast lap here, so instead of hanging around to duel and have some fun, I literally just squeeze past the Calibra at the T7 checkpoint to avoid him holding me up too much, and my pace is rewarded with a new personal best fastest lap - 7'11.321!
What is fascinating is comparing my average laptimes with the wheel as the race has worn on - early on I was averaging 7'20s, then 7'18s after a few hours, then about 6 hours in it was around 7'15-7'16s, then around now its average 7'13/7'14s, with my new fast lap being over 3 seconds quicker than my initial fastest lap early on.
With my blazing lap done, I slow down at the start of lap 100, which is an inlap anyway for me, and allow the Calibra back by in order to have some fun
We have a great shadow boxing battle through the lap, with a few half-passes and crossovers here and there, until I finally complete the pass cleanly at Schwalbenschwanz, a corner I have quite a good record of passing people at, it appears I pit at the end of my 100th lap, and pause to head to bed for the evening, before resuming at midday the next day (Saturday 5th June), with a rapidly growing lead, which extends to well over 3 minutes after the TT-R's pitstop on his 101st lap, as I chase down the Calibra once more. I catch him near the end of my 102nd lap, and slipstream him happily down Dottinger Hohe, before he pits at the end of the lap! Oh well...I'm in for a lonely few hours, the next car in front of me is the M3 GTR, and he's a good 3 minutes up the track yet! Oh well, back to racing the clock...
13 hours passes roughly 5 minutes into lap 105, with my lead now growing to 3'30s over the TT-R in 2nd.
Hour 14
It appears that having hit halfway, the rest of this race doesn't appear to seem that far away now...before, it felt like an eternity before the end, now it appears that little bit more reachable...still, let's not tempt fate just yet, shall we?
I pit in at the end of my 105th lap as normal, but this time take 48 units of fuel instead of 50 - I'm going to try and test the minimum amount of fuel that can be put in the car on a 5-lap stint, as I regularly have 6 units of fuel left by filling up to 50. Let's see then...away I go again, and wind up haring straight into a spectacular 90-degree slide down Klosertal as I put a wheel on the grass at 130mph!
Fortunatly, this doesn't cost me too much time, and my lead in fact continues to grow - by the time I pit in again on lap 110, it's back up to around the four minute mark for the first time since Barry's 10 nightmare laps earlier on. Having had 5 units left this time round, I fill up to 45 this time...will it be enough? Time to find out...Actually, I'm intregued to know as to how much weight each unit of fuel adds to the car...anyone got any info on that? Answers on a postcard, or a reply to this thread...meanwhile, I'm back to ploughing on alone...with my new target, seeing as I'm on my own for now, to try and beat my current fastest laptime, and try and dip below 7'10s...is it possible? Let's see, especially as I seem to be starting to feel the effects of 1350 miles on my car's engine...it doesn't feel like it's pulling quite as hard as it did earlier in the race? Maybe it's just me imagining it, but the 'Ring is taking it's toll on my little Scooby...c'mon girl, just 10 more hours to go, you can do it!
14 hours go by 6'20 into lap 113, with me leading by around 4'15s from the TT-R.
Hour 15
Hour 15 gets off to an absolute flyer, as I somehow out of nowhere manage to wipe another whole second and a half of my previous best laptime and hit that magic sub 7'10s laptime, with a stonking (for me anyway) 7'09.615!! on lap 114!
I didn't even know if that was possible for me to do! Apologies if I'm kinda bragging about nothing, and you're sitting there smirking and going 'what's this guy on about, I could do that after five pints of beer and some whiskey and Sambucca!', but for me that's not bad at all Then, disaster.
The neighbours are leaving to go on holiday for the week, and for the week they are away, I am placed on dog-sitting duty, which essentially means I sleep at their house for the whole week, which I've always had mixed feelings about - it feels odd living and sleeping in someone else's house, completly on your own bar a pet dog (who is nice by the way).
So I leave it paused and head down to sleep there for the first night, then come back up the next morning - and realise that my dad, thinking that I've been an idiot and left my PS2 on by accident, has powered EVERYTHING off in my bedroom.
Seems nobody actually told him, or he didn't work out for himself, that I was actually leaving it on for a reason.
🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
To borrow a quote from Smallhorses, I'm so :censored:ing :censored:ed off right now it's not even
I'm so sorry guys. I'm absolutely fuming here. 15 hours gone down the drain, and for what? No A-Spec Points (which was my fault as I'd already blown that anyway), no credits, no prizecar, nothing. This stinks.
I dunno what's worse - this, or doing the entire race and loosing by inches at the end. In fact, this is worse - at least I still get something out of that race, with money and the adventure. This is just...anti-climax.
This is actually quite depressing, if I'm honest.
So the PS2 at least gets a rest now, and the Scooby is reset to 0 miles on the clock. And the one positive I can take from it all, is that at least my driving technique has now improved tenfold. I now consider myself to be a much better driver, with the wheel especially.
But for now, I need a beer. Multiple ones, in fact.
Thanks everyone for reading through, it was fun while it lasted, eh?
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