302 replies to this topic

[jonpollak]

I got a cheap flight over to Bergstrom this morning and have arrived a little early it seems....

I'm sure people will be showing up real soon...???



Cuz last year at this time Straight Edge and I were here lapping up the fun and games here at COTA
We had a ball.

Here was the thread for the 2019 race .

It comes complete with the standard Autosport forum punters saying how slow Indycar was compared to F1 and LOOK there's no one attending.
All that uninformed, meaningless bullschitt.
However, It was NOT an iRace.

Some new talent joins us here this time, LandShark Norris and Chaz Mustard maybe another one or two as well.
But NO Jr. so the rating will be terrible and the series might as well pack up their sim rigs and go back under a rock where they belong.

NO !.. they should carry on with this fun and games until we go REAL racing right?
Right..it's our methadone and we deserve it.

Track Map

 

 

SPOTTERS GUIDE 




Practice starts tonight at 20:30 UK time that's 15:30 EDT


And tomorrow.

 

AND Saturday.

The race is on Saturday at the same time it has been each week.

--The race will be 32 laps; the fuel window is approximately 16 laps. --

There will be a competition caution on Lap 12 (which should ensure it's a one-stop race.)

Yes Virginia, it WILL be on HughTube official and SkySpurtsF1 and your paid TV subscription channel and ConorDaly's Twitch.

Oh and...
DON'T FORGET TO MakeYourPicks™ and then intend to change them all after qualy only to find out Picks are CLOSED !

https://fantasy.indycar.com/#/home


I've got a Paddock Pass so I'll be able to bring you all the silly stories from the track..just like always.



See ya soon...
Jp

Edited by jonpollak, 25 April 2020 - 14:26.

[maximilian]

Well done, Jp!  Another one to look forward to 

[maximilian]

Nice, I see Spencer Pigot also joins us this week! 

[juicy sushi]

Tempted to suggest that IndyCar suggest to Askew and O'Ward that poor driving standards here could lead to suspensions when the physical season resumes, given it's a solid opportunity for the series to promote itself and they've shown an alarming propensity for dumb moves ruining races at every round thus far...

[red stick]

Also, not an oval, so certain forum denizens will, presumably, be bored out of their skins.  

[red stick]

Nice, I see Spencer Pigot also joins us this week! 

Another person to not put on my resurgent fantasy team!!!

[Muppetmad]

Tempted to suggest that IndyCar suggest to Askew and O'Ward that poor driving standards here could lead to suspensions when the physical season resumes, given it's a solid opportunity for the series to promote itself and they've shown an alarming propensity for dumb moves ruining races at every round thus far...

I'd just quietly ask them to go away and let SPM field two guest drivers each race. Norris will probably always be up for it, and a NASCAR driver could easily be enlisted each time. It's fair enough if iRacing isn't Askew and O'Ward's cup of tea, but they shouldn't spoil it for everyone else.

[DS27]

Picks are open.

 

I hope things don't go askew for me this weekend as well.  

[DS27]

 

Oh and...
DON'T FORGET TO MakeYourPicks™ and then intend to change them all after qualy only to find out Picks are CLOSED !
 

 

 

Yes, top tip is when they tell you that there are 15 minutes left to change your team, there isn't!

 

 

Practice race kicking off right now.

Edited by DS27, 23 April 2020 - 19:33.

[PayasYouRace]

Tempted to suggest that IndyCar suggest to Askew and O'Ward that poor driving standards here could lead to suspensions when the physical season resumes, given it's a solid opportunity for the series to promote itself and they've shown an alarming propensity for dumb moves ruining races at every round thus far...

 

There have been enough real world consequences for drivers in virtual racing already and that would be unfair in the extreme.

[Dmitriy_Guller]

Lando demolished everyone in the practice race.  Josef did as well, in his own way.

Edited by Dmitriy_Guller, 23 April 2020 - 20:22.

[DS27]

Scott got had a few incidents early on so was a couple of laps down, but when he came up behind Max, him and his spotter were laughing, saying it was like following a two-year old. 

 

Max truly was all over the place, adding further to the feeling that these SIMS really are very accurate.

[jonpollak]

https://www.twitch.t...782?t=00h54m33s

 

Jp

[GlenWatkins]

Also, not an oval, so certain forum denizens will, presumably, be bored out of their skins.  

 

They do not know what they are missing!

[GlenWatkins]

Daley just got Sato Bombed in practice!

Edited by GlenWatkins, 23 April 2020 - 22:24.

[AustinF1]

Here was the thread for the 2019 race .

It comes complete with the standard Autosport forum punters saying how slow Indycar was compared to F1 and LOOK there's no one attending.
All that uninformed, meaningless bullschitt.

Who said that?

[paulb]

As test of iracing realism, lets have a wet race to see where the track fails.

[ARTGP]

Lando demolished everyone in the practice race.  Josef did as well, in his own way.

 

That is rather awkward and interesting development   ....Considering those guys have way more seat time in the Indycar. 

 

Karam and Power have to save indycar from embarassment this weekend   . Or will new kid on the block spank everyone and stoke the flames of the fan war.

Edited by ARTGP, 24 April 2020 - 02:06.

[maximilian]

While I think Lando can indeed be a factor, Kyle Busch also finished 2nd in a practice race, and then wasn't really a threat for the top positions in the actual race... we shall see... 

[AustinF1]

So when is the race?

 

BTW, check out the video if you wanna see what the grandstand layout was like at COTA in 2013. iRacing presented it very accurately.

Edited by AustinF1, 24 April 2020 - 03:20.

[AustinF1]

Interesting article re: Lando's detailed debriefs, even in iRacing. Not sure I get all the dislike for him on here lately...but to each his own.

 

Norris debriefs show how seriously he's taking IndyCar - The Race https://the-race.com...PQoE0eM.twitter

[jonpollak]

Who said that?

Well How 'Bout That...

 

It was YOU...

Regardless of Epstein and IndyCar putting a happy face on it, it wasn't a good crowd (to put it mildly). The Main Grandstand, T1 GS, & T15 GS were pathetically empty, and the General Admission crowd was just bad at best.

 

 

So when is the race?

 

So you can read the parts of the OP that you want to attack but then ask a question without acknowledging the first image presented in the thread?

Seems rather passive aggressive ...or have you an agenda to proffer here?

 

re: Lando, Not sure I get all the dislike for him on here lately...but to each his own.

 

Who on here said that?

 

Jp

[ARTGP]

Interesting article re: Lando's detailed debriefs, even in iRacing. Not sure I get all the dislike for him on here lately...but to each his own.

 

Norris debriefs show how seriously he's taking IndyCar - The Race https://the-race.com...PQoE0eM.twitter

 

Yes, Lando has a more serious side, but he also has a goofy 22 year old side that some people don't like. Not a big deal. Everyone doesn't have to like everyone.

[jonpollak]

As long as he races well and isn't crashing into everyone...What's not to like?

Yeah, he can be obnoxious on Twitch like many others or whatever but some find it endearing.

Anyway...It's the iDriving that matters.

 

 

Le Simon et Ben show continues this race as well

 

 

Jp

[AustinF1]

Well How 'Bout That...

It was YOU...

So you can read the parts of the OP that you want to attack but then ask a question without acknowledging the first image presented in the thread?
Seems rather passive aggressive ...or have you an agenda to proffer here?

Who on here said that?

Jp

Whoa, whoa ... chill out Jon. What's got your panties all in a wad?

1. It wasn't me who said 'nobody was attending'. Indeed I remember responding to your complaints re: people 'bitching' about the crowd, with you responding that it wasn't me that you were referring to ... so I was wondering who said it. I wasn't the only one talking about it here, and especially not elsewhere. Why are you coming after me about it now, after saying you weren't doing so then? And now you actually call me passive-aggressive. LOL. Wow.

 

What you don't seem to understand is that I was never complaining about the size of the actual crowd or faulting IndyCar in any way. It's the constant exaggerations of crowd size that come from COTA that I was pointing out.

 

So, exactly which part of my assessment of the crowd was uninformed, meaningless bullshit? Break it down for me, since you seem to have such a problem with it. You won't, because you know I'm right and that, unlike you, I can back it up.

2. Re: me asking what the time of the race is, wtf? Seems like you're losing it, my friend. I skimmed the rather lengthy op and missed that bit. I tend to go straight to text rather than looking at corporate graphics. My bad. Didn't know it would get anyone in a twist to ask. Wow. And 'attack'? What attack? And what agenda would I be pushing by asking who said that?

3. Re: Lando, there was a post here in this thread when I posted that was critical of his demeanor & questioned whether or not he would even show up for the IndyCar race, etc. It seems to have been deleted, but I was not referring to just that post. I was talking about the whole forum when I said "on here lately". It was very clear ... unless, of course, you were just looking for something else you could use to have a go at me, which was obviously the case.

Not sure what I've done to piss you off. I guess it was when I and my family couldn't meet up with you in Indianapolis. But who tf knows. Oh well.

Edited by AustinF1, 25 April 2020 - 17:14.

[AustinF1]

Yes, Lando has a more serious side, but he also has a goofy 22 year old side that some people don't like. Not a big deal. Everyone doesn't have to like everyone.

Yeah that was how I took his playfulness. He's little more than a kid, and he'll act like it, esp when playing video games with his buddies.

[Risil]

Or will new kid on the block spank everyone and stoke the flames of the fan war.

 

Just you trying to get the fire going, I think!

[ARTGP]

Just you trying to get the fire going, I think!

What I was getting at was the squabbling mid season last year between F1 and Indycar. I seem to remember a few IndyCar drivers had some interesting and less than flattering tweets about F1. F1 guys (was it Hamilton?) had less than flattering things to say about IndyCar and it didn’t exactly go down well either.

This is sim racing, not IndyCar. You can only hope Twitter will behave

[Risil]

I have no hopes for Twitter.

[GlenWatkins]

Yeah that was how I took his playfulness. He's little more than a kid, and he'll act like it, esp when playing video games with his buddies.

 

We all remember when  we were that age...I would be more concerned if he acted otherwise

[johnwilliamdavies]

 F1 guys (was it Hamilton?) had less than flattering things to say about IndyCar 

I thought Hamilton was all for Indy, saying that he likes the tracks and stuff? 

[AustinF1]

We all remember when  we were that age...I would be more concerned if he acted otherwise

Indeed! Oh, to be 22 again. Or 32. Or even 42!

 

But I enjoy my 13 & 16 YO boys being young & stupid, so I got that goin' for me. Which is nice ...

[ARTGP]

I thought Hamilton was all for Indy, saying that he likes the tracks and stuff? 

 

 

I looked into it, and my memory is spectacularly bad.  It was not 1, but 3 years ago   . Hamilton thought it was "interesting" how competitive Fernando was in the Indycar against guys who do it all year round. Suggesting maybe the level in Indycar wasn't all that high. and it did not go down well  .   

 

Norris taking the piss on the whole Indycar grid at COTA sim race yesterday, is a completely tangential matter 

Edited by ARTGP, 24 April 2020 - 16:44.

[GlenWatkins]

Anywho, I looking forward to the race tomorrow! 

 

I see there are people who have attended COTA.  I have a question as TV often does not portray the real thing - I am intrigued by the run up to and the 1st turn.  I remember the inaugural race and pre-race show on Speedvison,  Varsha called it 'Phil Hill' as they had to bring in tremendous amount of dirt to make it.  For my perspective, is the hill as steep as the one before the finish line at at Road America?  And what about the camber? On TV  the inside looks like a 'normal' with just a degree or so of banking, but the outside falls away as you come up the hill and over the top?

[AustinF1]

Anywho, I looking forward to the race tomorrow! 

 

I see there are people who have attended COTA.  I have a question as TV often does not portray the real thing - I am intrigued by the run up to and the 1st turn.  I remember the inaugural race and pre-race show on Speedvison,  Varsha called it 'Phil Hill' as they had to bring in tremendous amount of dirt to make it.  For my perspective, is the hill as steep as the one before the finish line at at Road America?  And what about the camber? On TV  the inside looks like a 'normal' with just a degree or so of banking, but the outside falls away as you come up the hill and over the top?

Wow. I didn't know he said that. Not sure what he was thinking. There was no dirt brought in or needed to create that hill. Mother nature made the hill & it was there long before the circuit was. The top of the hill is a plateau, with a ranch sitting right there past turn 1, within a couple hundred feet. They actually dug down to create the track and did move a massive amount of dirt. They also brought in special fill aggregates, etc, in an effort to prevent the bumpiness problems they're having now ... but none of that created any of the elevation change around the circuit. It was all already there.

 

Re: the steepness and the nature of the turn ... it's very steep, but I can't make a comparison to RA. There's no banking per se, but imho the outside is more 'off camber' than the inside. The trickiest things about that turn imho are the blind entry and the way it flattens out mid-braking zone, making the car lighter and making for lots of lockups, esp in FP1 & 2. Hellmund made it wide on the entry & narrow on the exit to encourage people to make optimistic moves up the inside that would be difficult to make stick on the exit. That has worked beautifully. We've seen it play out over and over.

 

ETA: I took this photo before construction really got going. That's the Turn 1 hill in the distance.

 

...and here you can see what I mean about there being a bit of a plateau there at the top of the hill:

Edited by AustinF1, 25 April 2020 - 16:59.

[jonpollak]

Practice 2 is live NAO...

 

Jp

[sblick]

Anywho, I looking forward to the race tomorrow! 

 

I see there are people who have attended COTA.  I have a question as TV often does not portray the real thing - I am intrigued by the run up to and the 1st turn.  I remember the inaugural race and pre-race show on Speedvison,  Varsha called it 'Phil Hill' as they had to bring in tremendous amount of dirt to make it.  For my perspective, is the hill as steep as the one before the finish line at at Road America?  And what about the camber? On TV  the inside looks like a 'normal' with just a degree or so of banking, but the outside falls away as you come up the hill and over the top?

The COTA hill is steeper than the hill to the Start/Finish of RA.  The hill after Turn 5? would be similar although I think a little shorter in length

[jonpollak]

Not sure what I've done to piss you off. I guess it was when I and my family couldn't meet up with you in Indianapolis. But who tf knows. Oh well.

Yeah that's it...

 

Jp

[AustinF1]

Yeah that's it...

 

Jp

Welp. OK.

 

You aren't saying & I have no idea ... so like I said, who tf knows.

 

And really, who tf cares? I've done nothing to warrant you acting like this.

Edited by AustinF1, 24 April 2020 - 17:53.

[Afterburner]

I looked into it, and my memory is spectacularly bad.  It was not 1, but 3 years ago   . Hamilton thought it was "interesting" how competitive Fernando was in the Indycar against guys who do it all year round. Suggesting maybe the level in Indycar wasn't all that high. and it did not go down well  .

Yeah, all I remember of last year is him posting videos of himself watching the races and making comments like, "Look how cool that is, not one tarmac runoff in sight!"

[prommer]

Practice race one of two today is starting now.

[DS27]

Lando was flying through the field from the back but I think he got in an incident and then 'rage-quit'. 

 

Possibly makes him a more risky pick, because if he gets involved in an incident he may just disconnect.

[PayasYouRace]

Anyone who's been following the F1 stuff will know that Lando has serious connection issues.

[Yhamm]

yet another practice race starting right now

Norris starting P1, Power P2 and McLaughlin P3

[GlenWatkins]

Wow. I didn't know he said that. Not sure what he was thinking. There was no dirt brought in or needed to create that hill. Mother nature made the hill & it was there long before the circuit was. The top of the hill is a plateau, with a ranch sitting right there past turn 1, within a couple hundred feet. They actually dug down to create the track and did move a massive amount of dirt. They also brought in special fill aggregates, etc, in an effort to prevent the bumpiness problems they're having now ... but none of that created any of the elvation change around the circuit. It was all already there.

 

Re: the steepness and the nature of the turn ... it's very steep, but I can't make a comparison to RA. There's no banking per se, but imho the outside is more 'off camber' than the inside. The trickiest things about that turn imho are the blind entry and the way it flattens out mid-braking zone, making the car lighter and making for lots of lockups, esp in FP1 & 2. Hellmund made it wide on the entry & narrow on the exit to encourage people to make moves up the inside that would be difficult to make stick on the exit. That has worked beautifully. We've seen it play out over and over.

 

ETA: I took this photo before construction really got going. That's the Turn 1 hill in the distance.

 

...and here you can see what I mean about there being a bit of a plateau there at the top of the hill:

 

Thanks for the detailed response!   I hope to one day to make there to watch a race, be it f1 or IndyCar.  

[GlenWatkins]

I have to admit, I am enjoying the 90 minute sim races. Not that they compare to the real thing, but a large part of that is because of the limited commercials and the 90 minute time limit.  That might sound sacriligious, and I admit that it is.  However, the summer is rather short here in the Granite State and although I usually record the races because I would rather enjoy the great outdoors I find that when I watch I fast forward through bits of the longer races.  

[jonpollak]

Pato looked good today...

As I am with Simon's feed I saw how his pace was dictated by who was around him and the gaps between.

 

 

Lando was flying through the field from the back but I think he got in an incident and then 'rage-quit'. 

 

Possibly makes him a more risky pick, because if he gets involved in an incident he may just disconnect.

 

Let's hope not...We need more feel good 'stories' come 'race' day

Jp

[ARTGP]

Anyone who's been following the F1 stuff will know that Lando has serious connection issues.

 

 

One of the internet companies needs to sign with Mclaren asap.  *cough* VODAFONE *cough*

[jonpollak]

Agreed Artie.

It's bad PR for a top-line driver in this day and age to not have an ISP backing them.

Jp

[jonpollak]

Good Morning RaceFans

 

Your Official Austonian Race Day feed

 

 

Jp