The online racing simulator
#51 - JTbo
Quote from deggis :You forgot Force Dynamics which would patch the lack of G forces.

Oh yes, that could be very nice too, I have not ever tested one of those so I have no idea how it actually feels. It is however so expensive that I can get a car and go to real track to real racing instead with that kind of money
it's all very well to pick and choose snippets that sound funny... I'm not here to win a courtroom case, I'm here for a discussion. Am happy to be shown to be wrong, as I was very clearly regarding the endurance some forms of racing need, didn't put enough thought in initially. If it makes you feel good to try and rub my face in that acknowledgment then go for your life!

As far as natural talent goes, like I said much earlier in the piece, it depends what level of 'good' you want to talk about. I don't think there'd be many people that would dispute Michael Schumacher has a touch of natural talent up his sleeve, but what about the mid pack runners in a local saloon car race? I dispute the idea that these guys are anything particularly special. Sorry to cause you such ongoing confusion.
right, the only thing that seperates 'them' from 'us' is the fact they're out there doing it! Not that they're mythical heroes with balls of steel and loads of natural talent
Quote from mrodgers :Is this like one of those inkblot tests? I see in that pic that Junior was about to go a lap down and figured he'd draw out a caution like he's so good at doing, LOL.

I didn't know that Junior could spawn tornadoes! hehehe

Blowtus - True, you can race a car with no natural talent in a little local saloon race, but that won't get you anywhere, unless you really impress someone. I think the bulk of this discussion is targeted at the upper-spectrum of racing series, not the local ones. In all honesty though, I can't imagine many/any drivers who only race in a local series can afford to pay their bills simply from racing in that series, they just don't pay the big bucks to allow someone to live off of the income they generate (or lack there of). Up until around 40 years ago maybe, most drivers couldn't make a living off of racing unless they were superstars in F1 or NASCAR, or a similarily large series. Things have changed, but I doubt most people in regional series can sustain themselves by racing in those series, let alone the equipment costs to partake in said series.

My $0.02

MAGGOT
screw car racing(j/k) get into a 15-20 lap race round cadwell here in england. now thats demanding, and there is a section, the mountain, when if you take it properly on a decently powered bike,race 600 or so, then you leave the floor completly. almost right after the crest is a right hander, that you have to start turning for before the top of the hill, so your in the air, at an angle, going fairly quick.

competative real life racers do have fear, they also have an understanding of the consiquences. they accept them, and know their own limits. extensive testing and practice, experiance and a trust in the mechanics that the meachine is in the best possible condition for the circumstances they are in.

thats what i think defines the 2 groups.
#58 - J.B.
Quote from KiDCoDEa :money

Damn, exactly what I was going to post while I was reading through this thread.

Of course the more natural talent you have the better, but I don't think you need anything special in terms of bravery or talent just to be able to race, especially in this day and age. If you enjoy racing enough to play racing sims, chances are you would do alright in real life as well.

The idea that you need incredible skill just to keep a racing car on the track and dealing with some small slides is IMO too prevalent in simracing. Being really fast is the hard part not stopping the car from spinning everytime you touch the brake or throttle.

Also, real racers don't have all that much track-time to develop their über-skills. The driver with the most kilometres at LFS World has 820 Grand Prix distances under his belt...

Not that the level of skill and talent in F1 is not very high indeed, but you also have to be aware that if for instance football was as hard to get into as racing then people like Pele, Zidane and Ronaldo would never have kicked a ball in their lives.

And the Top Gear stunt was pretty pointless. The reason he couldn't brake later was not because of fear but because of the inaccurate physics of GT4. And they didn't even tell us what time a real racing driver could have done.
It takes more than practise and money as people have mentioned in previous posts.

If it only takes practise then your saying that anyone could also be a Pele or Ronaldo, all they have to do is practise...

If it only takes money then why is there ALOT of cr@p rich racing drivers?

It does take balls, that and alot of other things. Car control is only a small part of it all.

You know your one a quick lap in real life when you sh1t yourself on nearly every corner

To be a quick racing driver i think you have to have a screw loose
Quote from nikimere :
You know your one a quick lap in real life when you sh1t yourself on nearly every corner

On the contrary, it's the slow laps that scare me. If I set a PB it's because everything is happening exactly the way I want it to.
i figure its the obvious too... they're really doing it.. we just sit infront of a screen and try to control the cars with a mouse or keyboard or if we are lucky.. a wheel, but i promise you its nothing like racing in life
funny... I don't find it that different, if I use the gtt as an example. The mind and body are doing all the same things, it just feels and looks a little different.
for some things.. but the 'real' things are happening.. in the back of my head when i play LFS i know that i can run into a wall at 180 mph and put only a few dents into a car.. IRL, you can hit anything at 20 mph and possibly even get a cuncossion
Quote from Blowtus :funny... I don't find it that different, if I use the gtt as an example. The mind and body are doing all the same things, it just feels and looks a little different.

If that is a response to the post above your's, then you are so wrong. It is completely different. As good as driving simulation is and can be, you simply don't feel the same thing. You don't feel the g-forces under accelleration, braking, or cornering. You don't get that feeling in your stomach when you crest over a sharp hill. You don't feel the wind buffetting against your car or tossing you around like in RL. You don't feel the impact into the tire barrier or the corner of the car you just hit. Even with something like the Force Dynamics simulator you still wouldn't come close to real life to say that it's not different. 1 g of force is equal to the gravitational force on your body. So to achieve 1 g of force cornering in a racing simulator, it would have to turn you completely sideways, am I correct? It could jolt you around, and really enhance the sim racing experience, but it will never give you a true feeling of cornering at 1 g.
I agree with Mike. As a physical experience the two just can't be compared.

However, what you do get from sim-racing that is the same as real life is the tension before a big race, the intense levels of concentration, the incredible frustration when it goes wrong, the unmatched joy when it goes right, and the satisfaction when you've achieved something above and beyond what you are normally capable of.

That's what sim-racing does for me
Quote from mrodgers :So to achieve 1 g of force cornering in a racing simulator, it would have to turn you completely sideways, am I correct? It could jolt you around, and really enhance the sim racing experience, but it will never give you a true feeling of cornering at 1 g.

It would have to turn completely sideways, that's true. But when you corner at 1G there's still 1G Gravity, so the result won't be the same.
1G gravity (y) + 1G Cornering (x) = 1.41G acting at 45 degrees. Simple Pythagoras (although spelling his name is less simple).

But a motion rig cannot create more than 1G on Earth, so it's not about actually putting the real life forces on you, but tricking your brain into thinking there's the right amount of force. Thats why cyberseat, forcedynamics etc are fun - the make you believe a bit more.
i read a book not so long ago (!)

anyway, it said that the scientific reason why some people have less 'fear' than others is because they trust in their own ability. For example Fernando Alonso did an interview for ITV once on a little rowing boat, and he was scared to climb in to start, and kept asking the presenter whether it was safe! Yet he can drive around monaco at 180mph and not complain of being scared.
Good point there, ayrton. It's kind of like my motorcycle. When I first got it, I couldn't ride above 45 mph. I felt so conspicuous out there without any sheetmetal around me and the feeling of being on a bike. Now, I have no problem taking it to 11,000 rpm and thinking, come on, go already. I still have trouble not trusting my ability, but the tire's ability as I've taken corners at what I thought was horrendous speeds by accident, but to take even the same corner like that on purpose, I can't because I can't quite trust the tires even though I've done it before no problem.
#70 - AJS
I know this saying : If you have a lot of respect then that´s ok but if you have fear then don´t ride !

Something around these lines anyway.

If you feel nervous before a competition or have fear of an accident that´s also ok but if you race ride or whatever it should switch off automatically because otherwise just forget it !

If you really feel just a tiny bit fear then you will not be able to concentrate 100 % on what you should be doing : racing. Fear does mean lose of control you will not act normal.

I think what ayrton senna 87 said is quite right !

Don´t you know this : You drive on the wrong side i mean on the passenger side and you push your imaginary brakes pedals when someone else is driving ? Sometimes really hard You would not do this when you would be driving !
Quote from AJS :You would not do this when you would be driving !

That's true. When I'm driving, my passengers usually push their imaginary brakes
#72 - Jakg
Quote from MAGGOT :I didn't know that Junior could spawn tornadoes! hehehe

Blowtus - True, you can race a car with no natural talent in a little local saloon race, but that won't get you anywhere, unless you really impress someone. I think the bulk of this discussion is targeted at the upper-spectrum of racing series, not the local ones. In all honesty though, I can't imagine many/any drivers who only race in a local series can afford to pay their bills simply from racing in that series, they just don't pay the big bucks to allow someone to live off of the income they generate (or lack there of). Up until around 40 years ago maybe, most drivers couldn't make a living off of racing unless they were superstars in F1 or NASCAR, or a similarily large series. Things have changed, but I doubt most people in regional series can sustain themselves by racing in those series, let alone the equipment costs to partake in said series.

My $0.02

MAGGOT

some of the bttc drivers have day jobs
Quote from GP4Flo :That's true. When I'm driving, my passengers usually push their imaginary brakes

Mine too... I wonder why...
#74 - Jakg
Quote from mrodgers :Victor hit the answer way up there ^^. It just has to do with doing the same thing over and over again. When I was in college, a bud and I raced on the roads way out in the sticks where we live and it was very common to be driving around at 120 mph everywhere. 100 mph was nothing to drive, it was just a cruise down the road for us. Now that I'm older, smarter, and more mature (jury still out on the last two, hehe) I drive relatively slow compared to my college years. Rarely am I above 65-70 mph anymore and if I had to do 100 for some reason, it's a white knuckle drive now.

v4forlife will go with me on this one. I got my first bike 4 years ago, the first time I was ever on a bike. Not big, just a little ole 550 inline 4 cyl. but if you rev her up past 7000 rpm, she really kicks in and takes off like a rocket. But, oh so easy to ride in low rpm for a beginner. I would head out, felt so vulnerable and conspicuous out there without any sheetmetal around me. 55 mph felt like I was flying, then later I came to realize that most bike speedometers are built with 5-10% error in them. The first time I hit 7000 rpm and felt the surge of accelleration, I was shocked at it. Now after 4 years on it, I know the bike is still pretty quick, but I twist the throttle to it's stop, shifting at 10-11,000 rpm, thinking, "come on, get going already!" My bike isn't the fastest out there, no sport bike by any means, but it does spec at 0-60mph in 4.8 seconds and specs the 1/4 mile in 12.6 seconds at 102 mph. Not bad for a 22 year old little 550 cc. (v4, I'd like to know you're specs stock if you'd pm me just out of curiosity). So it all has to do with how much you do it and how you get use to doing it. If you ran a capable car around the track for as many laps and hours as real life racer's do, then you'd eventually get use to it too and the car would just be like an extention of your arms and legs, just like my bike now feels to me and my old car felt back then at 100+ mph.

thgats probably why f1 drivers drive such mundane cars, no other car on the road can hold a candle to their other daily car, even a F430 will be sluggish on comparison
#75 - AJS
Quote from GP4Flo :That's true. When I'm driving, my passengers usually push their imaginary brakes

Quote from bbman :Mine too... I wonder why...

Because

a) They aren´t used to speed

b) They are used to speed but fear the lack of control

c) They think your driving sucks !

FGED GREDG RDFGDR GSFDG