I was on Race1 earlier today while it was running BL RallyX.

Part way through the race I spotted a car in the distance in my rear view mirror.

Slowly but surely he reigned me in, and was soon close behind. I'm used to this - that's why I'm still Copper.

I could tell that this guy was obviously quicker than me by the way he'd cought up, but I decided if I could just hang on for the remaining few laps and not make any silly mistakes, it would be difficult for him to pass.

So round and round we went and he just sat there filling my rear view mirror like I was giving him a tow. He didn't budge.

Finally as we approached a turn, he started to draw up along side and I braced myself for impact - after all, this was Race1 server.

And then ..... nothing! Absolutely nothing!

As I completed the turn he swayed gently back into view in my rear view mirror.

This happened several more times, and in spite of my sometimes erratic Copper driving, not once - NOT ONCE, did his car ever hit mine - not even a nudge.

I then made the fatal mistake of going into a corner too hot in a vain attempt to leave him behind. As my car slewed round in a wide arc and I relinquished the racing line, I knew it was all over. Once this guy got past me he'd leave me for dead and I'd loose a place at the finish.

I floored the throttle and hung on for dear life, scrabbling for traction and waiting for the inevitable pass. I wasn't going to try and slam the door shut on this guy, he'd been more than fair to me. Good luck to him - he was clearly a better driver than me and I had made a silly mistake. I quickly looked to the side to watch him pass and at least endeavour to get back on the racing line without wiping him out.

But he wasn't there.

I checked my rear view mirror and there he was again, bobbing along close behind as if nothing had happened.

I managed to retain my place until the finish and made a point of clicking on his name to thank him for such a clean race. His modest reply was a simple smiley.

When I checked the CTRA results screen to see if I'd got any of those elusive (for me at least) CTRA points, I was pleasantly surprised and more than a little impressed.

My dualling partner had been a Platinum driver who had joined mid race.

Now if this guy had blown me into the weeds, like I now know he could have, I wouldn't have bothered posting about it. That wouldn't have impressed me at all. I'd expect him to be able to do that.

What did impress me was his sporting attitude and the way he drove.

To stay nailed to my bumper the way he did without ever touching my car, and leaving me the room I needed to recover when I screwed up was very impressive.

I guess he just decided to make a race of it for me without pushing too hard.

So, what have I learned from this?

I think, to be more tolerant of other inexperienced drivers on the entry level servers. Why? Because today I learned that it takes skill as well as the the right attitude to race close and clean.

With all the best will in the world, I could not have done what my sparring partner did today on BL RallyX.

Something to aspire to, for sure.

Much applauding from over here... excellent post and I couldn't have worded it better. (I'm a true pedant)

It's great to see things like this happening, but even more so when they're properly appreciated. Close racing is an extremely difficult thing to do, somehow even more so when you're not pushing right to the limit, because the car feels different to what you're used to. Watching someone being able to stay right behind another driver without causing any problems whatsoever or even placing any pressure on that driver is watching a true racer.

And that, after all, is what it's all about

Sam

So good to hear the positive from a Driver instead of a rant/complaint/etc...

Very inspiring! Really makes me want to try even harder to race clean. This makes me want to race right now! Though I'm stuck at work in our silly Daylight Savings Time Zone right now. Apparently somebody in my government seems to think they control the time. My dad calls it "Poor Man's Jet Lag". By the time I get on most of you guys in that neck of the woods are all gone.

I'd say there are a fair number of quick drivers who enjoy doing that sort of thing, especially when they've joined midrace. It's interesting to see how the driver in front reacts when you get close to their rear bumper lap after lap , I'd like to think it's good practice for some, who enjoy racing cleanly. Another thing you find sometimes is "sparring", especially when it's an alien vs a fast driver: Offering mistakes and passing opportunities to each other, instead of the alien running off alone with the win in a 10+ lap race. Driving alone isn't always the most fun..

Personally, I don't overtake if I midrace join unless the driver in front drives off or so erratically it's dangerous to be near.

Be nice to see the replay of this

Quote from yeager :

Be nice to see the replay of this

OK then.

Instead of naming and shaming, let's name and praise for a change.

Way to go, Jack.

Having just watched the replay for the first time, I note that Jack also afforded DrOversteer exactly the same courtesy in the early stages of the race, before DrO finally ran too wide so that Jack could pass easily.

Watching the whole thing from within Jack's car, I also now realise that he in fact had many opportunities to overtake me and spent a lot of the time throttling back to leave me room.