rFactor 2 Round 4 Sandown Raceway - 2024-02-25

I watched the first 20 minutes of the broadcast, it turns out that Toni was knocked out by the guy he was overtaking for a lap. I don’t understand, were there really no blue flags in the race today? why is there so much fighting with those lagging behind in a lap?

 

Ah...it's no problem. I only thought it was me because just after dipping the wheels I heard crew chief say your name and something about on the left of me. It was bit chaotic and I haven't seen replay so I wasn't sure and just wanted to 'fess up' and clarify why I was over there kicking up dust anyways. lol.

 

I also got lapped cars in front of me and they were all alone but didn’t make the pass easy. Then rf2 is telling you got blue flag a little to late I think but everyone got mirrors.

 

I watched all the broadcast and I am going to play devil's advocate a little.

Note:
It is the lapping cars responsibility to make a clean pass.
It is the lapped cars responsibility to not make it difficult, staying on the racing line, not being unpredictable when a lapping car arrives.

But both do have to work together.

If you are a lapping car and are coming up to a lapped car, do not stay under their bootlid all the way up the straight into the braking zone. The lapping car can't lift to let you by (for fear of being rear ended) if you are right behind them. Pull out, make your intentions clear.

On these tight circuits it is already hard to pass for position and finding a safe place to let cars passed is also difficult. I found myself being lapped today and there is no way you can let a car passed if they are a second behind, they need to be within that second. Lapped cars aren't going to stop on track for you to get passed like you are royalty, they are still racing for positions.

I checked the blue flag rules for SRO and they do seem to differ from F1 (which is an extreme example of blue flags), so bear that in mind.

All that said... I did see lapped cars holding lapping cars up, for more than 1 lap. It is worth getting the Tinypedal HUD working which has a working relative to know who is coming up behind.

 

I think there was a problem with blue flag notifications tonight.
Trust me, I'm an expert regarding blue flags - never complete a race without getting one
About half-way through tonight's race I was running in 9th when someone caught and tried to pass me. I have 2 huds running, neither showed a blue flag, so I raced him. I don't know who it was, but when he did get by, I was still showing in 9th place! Apologies to whoever it was, because I honestly do believe now that I was being lapped and I held you up. I would never do that intentionally and feel bad if that is what happened. But (if I'm correct) the blame must go the software (track?) and not the driver.
If it happened with me, it probably happened with others, which would explain the number of complaints tonight regarding blue flags.
SRO drivers are a good bunch of people and would never intentionally stuff someone's race up.

(Now I have to go and apologise to someone for something I can't blame on the software )

 

@Jacob Smyth Apologies Jacob for spinning you at the start of the race. Deeply sorry.

 

Just finished watching the broadcast and luckily the incident I referred to was shown. Turns out I was wrong (well, there's a first time for everything ) I was being caught and passed by a faster driver (Neil Wood) who was actually un-lapping himself. So my apologies instead must go to the software for blaming it

 

Can we get a replay please?

 

@Neil Wood yes its the passing cars responsibilty until at certain point right to line changes. Also when people pass, you dont punt their rear bumber and send them to spin.
Also blue flag means you must give room and let pass.
Also to the "royality" comment. Well you have to give room and specially if someone is fighting for win. I do understand lapped cars are racing for positions and what ever but if im fighting for p10 for example, i do let leaders by, no questions asked.
Sometimes i feel people dont really understand that we treat lapped cars like royality here. Give room, being patient and often even stop racing each other to make that traffic safe and its all with the cost of losing that possibility for a taking better position and even win. Basically we do have few drivers here that do that and it happens alot. Every time leaders do that, they are compromising their chances for win. Margins are so small sometimes, its one slip and chances gone or one backmarker that decides that its my right to do what i do and im not giving room. For a top runner, thats race ruined. If im totally honest, winning is everything and rest is losing and little to big disappointement depending on to who you lose and what is the final position. So its really much asked to every race look after others.
There is another way too, just go and pass and dont give a rats ass about lapped car and it could be done inside ruleset. So can play rude aswell and think i got the right to line and im fighting for position.

 

Admitedly... that grid was TIGHT!!! I was so scared of getting a better start than the car in front.

 

I'm just saying a lapped car should stick to their line. This way the lapping car knows where they will be and can pass safely. If people start moving over then it gets unpredictable. Because one driver might move off line, another might not. I have seen in many races when a lapping car comes up to overtake and there is a misunderstanding, lapped car moves over just as the lapping car goes to overtake.... inadvertedly causing a block or in extreme circumstances an accident.

I saw your accident on stream and I haven't checked the replay yet so can't comment on the intentions of the lapped car, but they certainly didn't make it when getting passed.

I saw again.... y'all need to get a better relative HUD like Tinypedal

 

Weeeeee

 

Stream VOD

After seeing a few races here and the fact that these cars are constantly trying to kill me... I wasn't looking forward to this race!

Qualified in the top 10 and noticed some new faster drivers on the grid that could possibly take chunks our of @Roman Granatovich's championship lead. We lined up on a very tight grid and I hoped I didn't start well to avoid rear ending the car in front. We were held on the grid a while and the green light was on and off we went... I did get a flyer but had to squeeze between two cars ahead. It felt like a tight squeeze in VR but looking at the replay I didn't have anything to worry about. I got over the top of the car inside and inside the car on the outside... up two places into turn 1!

I knew there were a few corners I had to really control my entry speed as I was burning my tyres in practice so the first few laps were just settling in. The top 4 were racing away and I didn't really have anything for them at this stage. @Freddy Hell was pushing behind but I managed to keep things together. That was until I got the downhill section all wrong braking way too late and running onto the kerb on the left-hander. This let Freddy up the inside, but on the outside for the final chicane. I had momentum so the plan was to stay on the inside of the chicane and keep my place. But clearly I ran out of talent braked for the turn, but taking too much kerb. Up on two wheels I went! I tried to countersteer to put it back down but Freddy was already there and I was sent into a barrel roll (FIVE TIMES!!). I thankfully landed back on my wheels but with bent steering, kinda lucky I was opposite pit lane. I picked a gap in the traffic and scooted over to the pits for a 147 second repair and tyre change.

Now begun the fight back to regain some points which would be hard because I was 2 laps down on the leaders but I had to try!! I was also fueled up to the end, so I just had to keep these tyres alive for the rest of the race.... the furthest I had ever taken a single set of tyres so far.

Lap after lap I checked the relative on cars I was approaching, I was in that awkward position of being faster but unlapping myself so I wondered how kind people would be as I arrived. The minutes clicked down and my position was changing even though I hadn't passed anyone. This track had high attrition which was working in my favour.

Later in the race I got lapped by Freddy and it reminded me what could have been if I didn't run out of talent at the chicane earlier in the race. The leader was coming up on me, but it was the last few laps and I could see the gap shrinking to @Gilles da'Silva who I had unlapped myself from earlier. I ran out of time to get close enough but I kept the tyres alive!! I crossed the line and crew chief didn't say it was the end of the race, I didn't even see the flag man wave a flag, AWKWARD!

Right... better try and survive Bathurst now, patience will be the key there I feel!!

 

I feel really dumb. I was the dummy that got into the leader. By the time I saw the blue, we were on the straight and I thought holding my line was the most the most predictable action. In hindsight, that was super stupid. I should have got out of line a lifted. I got tunnel vision coming down the straight and had my eyes on lead car's bumper. My thought was I should stay on lead car's bumper and hit my brake marker early to make sure I stay out of the back of him and take the far outside line. When I got on my brakes early, 2nd place, that I hadn't even registered was there, was into me and I accordioned into the lead car. It was so dumb of me and it was the #1 thing I wanted to avoid doing. So sorry. My inexperience and lack of ability to walk and chew gum at the same time (apparently) really wrecked some people's day.

 

@James Rissi, thank you James. We race and learn.