Holy cow, where to begin! Well first and foremost I must send my biggest thanks to Jordan(GTP) and Alex and Claudine(Sony). Without them this day would never have occurred and many great things would never have been sparked.
As I arrived there I was borderline a wondering stranger. Claudine and Alex were still in there way there from Ca, and so no one else knew anything about me being there. But they knew the name “gtplanet” haha So they welcomed me in as if I was family. There were more more nice, down to earth people at this event then I have ever encountered at one time. So I was welcomed into eating food and snacking and dove right in to meeting people and competitors. This was a very personal and casual setting and was by no means intimidating or anything. 8 40″ Sony Tv’s all equipped with Killzone 3 (3D and Move hooked up) MLB 11 The Show and of course Little Big Planet.
The first person I conversed with is a fellow GTPlanet Member z06fun or Chris Morton. Chris got my attention because he saw my name tag and asked what I was here for and I said GTPlanet and he was shocked and at awe because he was looking at the thread I was posting as I was talking to him. We talked about the competition and his GT lifestyle (rig, wheel, years playing, etc…). Not 20 minute later, he was due for his races in the competition zone. I eventually made my way in there and since he was a familiar face, decided to film his race (watch it here). It was also great because as you can see there was some aggressive driving going on and he loved being able to watch a complete replay. I’m glad I was there for you Chris!
Next I pretty much walked around and took pictures of things I could and mingled with people. Here are some pictures and videos to display what went on during the day. They are in chronological order here in the thread to making view easier.
After the competitors were finished, everyone who was in PR and Media were all invited to have a little competition of our own! Which being a huge GT enthusiast, was very exciting. There were 1-2 others who kept the competition very close and 1st place was kind of a tie because I won 1 and he won another. We then got to race with Lucas Ordonez! Which was a blast. Myself and the other media competitor took home prizes, He chose the GT5 Collectors Edition and I received a DFGT.
The final plans for the night was dinner on Sony! I got to share a meal with some great people and make a ton of new friends.
So I am finishing this right now, tired as could be and filled with much optimism from my experience today. Tomorrow (Wednesday) is an early day and we will be meeting at the Richard Petty Driving Experience to drive a 370z and, my all time favorite car, the GTR. Apparently there are multiple and some stock and some are Nismo’s. My excitement is overwhelming. We will then head in to be around for the final rounds and the announcement for the lucky 16 who will advance to THE GT Academy and will make their way to Silverstone in the UK to have a chance at becoming a professional race car driver.
Thank you all for your support with posting this and in the thread, this all happened in less than 24 hours haha So I hope I have relayed exciting information and content for you to enjoy. I will see you all tomorrow (or today for some of you)
-Corbin Bell
GTP: grafpt
P.s. I will be adding more photos and videos throughout the day
See more articles on GT Academy USA 2011 and GT Academy USA 2011 National Finals.
The only details I’m curious about that you haven’t reported on yet:
Are they using the new Thrustmaster GT wheel or DFGT? If using the Thrustmaster, do they have the gear shifter attatchment?
also…
Are the camera and audio people in your pictures from the SPEED Channel? Or some other media outlet reporting on the competition?
Thanks for all your reporting.
Nice reporting, great job on all the details, actually felt motivated to keep reading and reading. I’m always up in Orlando every month or so, it’s nice and cool up there now (60F-65F).
the (watch it) link isn’t working :/
There are some new updates in the thread!
It would be nice if they broadcasted the whole competition live in GT TV. That would probably get more GT5 gamers to actually use that feature of the game.
Cool write up. Too bad the GT Academy was a joke for the first season. Not taking anything away from the competitors, just PD and $ony :| They should have done live racing through out the competition instead of time trials to find the best drivers. They are live racing right now, why not find out who can be at their best without having a restart button? Maybe next year….
Jerome
I apologize for any grammar. I am a graphic artist not a writer :P I think Jordan meant to but he has been out of the loop having to try and get home. I don’t think it’s THAT bad, you guys could comment on the drivers and such ^_-
Check the Thread for updates coming soon.
http://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=194972
The video [site] is not mobile friendly. Aka, it won’t play.
Driving a real car is nothing like gt5 lolz
Hey Corbin. Great work out there! Has motivated me to try even harder on the European academy and try to get through! Have a blast and look forward to more updates :)
You know I live right there, but I don’t know if I would be allowed in lol. I’m busy with school anyways, but I wish I could somehow catch a glimpse of this event.
Cool stuff, but make sure you go over grammar next time.
Nice review, your enthusiasm is obvious. Maybe just get someone to proof read it for you before posting, next time.
I like the picture. :D
A very good report, also seems like you had a great day. Look forward to more news about today from you.
Keep up the excellent media work. The rest of the world is watching with great interest.
Wow, so green right now! Nice one… Oh and 1st!!!
“Oh and 1st!!!”
Who are the bigger idiots? The people who think they need to point it out, or the people who can’t figure out who was first, and need it pointed out to them? O_o