Following on from the "How many monitors do you use?" poll. I'm curious how people are able to see how close they are to other cars when racing.

I've been using TrackIR (www.trackir.com) for ages and find it very useful to quickly check the sides of the car when racing. Most useful it is in turn one when people tend to dive on my inside I can try and move to keep it clean.

So from a previous poll, 90%+ of people use one monitor, so I was wondering what the popular method of driving is?

Mostly mirrors. Only when they are alongside me would I resort, albeit rarely, to a sideways glance with look left/right. I find I know exactly where people are just from the mirrors.

When I do look around I the buttons on my wheel, but most of the time I don't bother with it.

Like Tristan I use mainly my mirrors and only in tight situations would I have to look left/right.

If you look at your mirrors enough you can tell how fast a car is approaching and know when they will catch you so looking left/right really is only needed rarely =)

mostly i use my ears, headphones gives almost excact location of car, ofcourse first i need to use mirror to see if enyone is close to me...but when side-to-side mostly i keep distance by listening car besides me...also i use names on top of the car when he's beside me he's name appear in my screen, then i know i'm too close...:P

I tend to use my left/right look 'wheel binds fairly often, mostly when checking how much space to leave for a close-running car as I plan my line into a corner, etc.

For most cars I use the left/right paddles on my DFP, seeing as they're by far the most convenient to reach without thinking about, and because I'm more often in an FZR or Bunp & Jump car using the gearstick rather than the paddles. Speakers, of course, help, and mirrors are more useful than turning a lot of the time too.

Sam

Mostly mirrors, with the occasional look left/right. The latter however does a great job at confusing me where the car is in relation to the track and at kicking me out of the zone, so I use it as sparingly as possible. There's really no reason or excuse for someone being besides you without you noticing. If I saw someone in my mirror when approaching the corner and don't see him anymore when starting to turn in, then I'm in most cases assuming he's besides me, hence me leaving a car width's space for him.

Another method (Please describe)

i have my view on 130 degree
so i can see whats in my death point/zones,

and of course look left look right

^ That's... awful

i smellz 'em.

i hearz 'em.

Only the sound and the left/right views, beacuse I can't see the mirrors from my view.

mirrors and the great power of logic... and relying heavily on the drivers around me not to drive like tits

I use the Left/Right binds on my wheel and I have had Freetrack. I managed to tweak free track pretty well to where it is very responsive and smooth, but I had a mis-hap when gluing some pieces together a few months back and haven't bothered to replace them yet. When I did use Free Track I would use to for slight turns of the head to track a apex or a car if it was very close so I could adjust according to its changes on the line and braking. i use this in conjunction with the wheel binds for quick glances out the side windows. I use the mirrors a lot as well, but I wish that they were more adjustable by being able to change their view angle.

Oh and headphones really help me a good bit too.

I close my eyes and feel the road.

lol i use buttons on my wheel

Look left and right by use of button on wheel. Well at least i did if the wheel didnt give up on me.

braille

If i feel something brushing against my antlers then i know not to move across.
(Only works in single seaters. I don't like to wind down the windows in the GT's as it gets a bit nippy, and the heaters broken.)

Quote from The Moose :

If i feel something brushing against my antlers then i know not to move across.
(Only works in single seaters. I don't like to wind down the windows in the GT's as it gets a bit nippy, and the heaters broken.)

Quote from The Moose :

If i feel something brushing against my antlers then i know not to move across.
(Only works in single seaters. I don't like to wind down the windows in the GT's as it gets a bit nippy, and the heaters broken.)

its pitch black... you feel something touchting your antlers... it might be hungry
(and i though role playing was silly in rpgs... never occured to me that people might do it elsewhere)

"May the force be with me..." :jedi:

I always win, so i don't have to concentrate on approaching cars

I'm really surprised at the responses to both this poll and the following thread.

http://www.lfsforum.net/showthread.php?t=43739

88% ish people use one monitor and 70%+ people use the keys to check left and right when racing.

Anyone else find this surprising? In the past few months i've had some amazing races on SS1 where the entire field of 20 cars can do the first lap with few crashes. Although in general there are still a lot of T1 crashes, i'm still very surprised at the quality of driving with people using just one monitor and quick looks left and right on the keys.

I wonder if there are people who drive from the external view behind the car, surely not. Or am I just over reacting and its not such a big deal to drive cleanly with just the one view and checking left and right and the mirrors.

Quote from yeager :

I wonder if there are people who drive from the external view behind the car, surely not. Or am I just over reacting and its not such a big deal to drive cleanly with just the one view and checking left and right and the mirrors.

Press F12 and hit tab a lot. It'll tell you the view. Suprisingly, about 2 people use chase view per race, averaged - in my findings.