The Circuits

The number of circuits available for GPL has grown dramatically and is now near 50. See my Add-On Tracks section for more details on new tracks and tracks which can be converted from other Papyrus sims.

Here are some brief thoughts about the various original GPL circuits, followed by detailed discussions where available. Thanks to Achim Trenz for his detailed analyses.

Kyalami

This is a great track for racing, because it's fairly simple and you have a shot at passing going into the first turn. It's a challenge to set up for, because it has a mix of banked and off-camber turns. There are also a number of subtle driving tactics which can gain considerable time if you master them - which I haven't!

Mexico

I love this circuit and hate it. Love the twisty backside and the long, banked, screaming final turn, hate that first and second turn complex, with decreasing radius braking zone. Ugh! Also I hate those concrete-filled tires around the turns. Probably not a great place for racing, because mistakes are too probable.

Monaco

Monaco is difficult, along with the Nurburgring perhaps the most difficult of all the circuits in GPL. It can be very enjoyable once you get into a rhythm and stop trying to force the car into quick lap times. Monaco is not very good for racing since passing is impossible except after the almost inevitable mistake.

Monza

The famed Italian track too interesting as a circuit but great for racing, much like American ovals. It's a place of inches and tenths. Monza is a good place for less experienced drivers because they can concentrate on the racing, rather than using up all the brain power on remembering which way to turn.

Mosport

Mosport is quite challenging; probably a good place for experts to race, though there are not too many opportunities for passing. An undulating circuit characterized by dramatic elevation changes, Mosport has a variety of descending corners with blind apexes. These make it tough for those with less than scintillating skill, but immensely rewarding when you begin to master it.

Nurburgring

Great if your name is Doug Arnao; hell for everyone else. :-) Actually, this picturesque circuit is truly fabulous, one of the great challenges in Grand Prix Legends, as it was in real life. It's a lot of work to learn, but truly wonderful once you've learned it.

Rouen

Like Mosport, Rouen is a very challenging track that will tend to separate the skilled drivers from the less skilled. It's a track which requires precision, a delicate touch, and a certain measure of verve. Mistakes here can have horrendous consequences. Nate and I have had some good races here, though, and I consider it a fairly good place for racing.

Silverstone

The British circuit is possibly the best track for racing after Spa and Monza. Silverstone is relatively simple, but curbs and camber changes make it crucial to "thread the needle". If you go off line to the inside, you'll touch a curb and spin, but too far to the outside and you'll skate off as the camber goes away on the offside of the crown. It's very challenging to get right and get those last few tenths. Once you're in the rhythm, it's a really fun place.

Spa

The Belgian circuit is simply fabulous, and one which has turned out to be great for racing, contrary to expectations. The long straights allow drafting, which tends to close up car which are not too far apart, and driving here is just wonderful. It's relatively simple, once you learn it, but difficult to string a whole lap together without any mistakes. It's immensely satisfying to do well.

Watkins Glen

The rural New York circuit a fairly good place for racing, with a possible passing zone going into The Loop. Although its corners are complex, with elevation changes and severe crowning, there aren't very many of them so it doesn't take too long to learn the whole track. Also, it's a circuit everyone seems to know; those with the demo will have circulated it endlessly.

Zandvoort

This circuit is one of my favorites. Admittedly, passing areas are scarce other than the braking zone for Tarzan, but it's a roller coaster ride par excellence, and there's nary an evil corner anywhere. Learning it is a bit of a challenge, but perserverance is well rewarded with great satisfaction when you put in a good lap. I've had some good races here, too, and hope a lot of people will try it.


Detailed Notes

Kyalami - The New Age Track

By Achim Trensz

Kyalami is the new age racetrack in GPL. More than any other track in GPL, it resembles what we today consider a racetrack. The corners have been tailor-made to the needs of the drivers - for example all corners are sufficiently far apart to allow the driver to prepare himself perfectly for each of them - and with laptimes in the 1:22 range, the audience gets to see permanent action.

The track surface is smooth and new, although it doesn't provide excessively high grip. However, maintaining a proper racing line is not easy. Kyalami is a track where your car's rear end is as loose as nowhere else. On the other hand, if you hone your sliding skills to perfection, slides can actually help you improve your Kyalami laptimes.

First of all, on the front straight, don't lift through the right hander T8R preceding the s/f line. To make it a little easier, the curb in T8R is flat and allows you to cut across it without upsetting the car.

For T1R, brake a three or four car lengths after the tire marks begin. T1R consists of two sections. The first one is used to bleed off the excess speed you bring in from the front straight, and to set up the car for acceleration through the second section out into the next straight. Make sure you position the car in such a way as to be capable to hit the right hand apex of the second section ogf T1R. Then, accelerate all through this second section and allow the car to drift over to the left of the subsequent straight upon exit from T1R - or even drive straight towards that left hand side of the exit of T1R.

In T2R, your rear end will definitely slide. But you can use that to your advantage. Make sure to move over to the right hand curb early. That'll give you more room at the exit. But don't touch this curb! As you enter T2R, your rear end will slide. Try to keep the front end near the curb, and allow the rear end to bring the car into the right bearing for exiting onto the subsequent straight. Use your throttle and steering to keep the car in a nice little slide.

T3L will be taken at slightly less than the maximum speed you can achieve between T2R and T3L. Try to be on a throttle position in the vicinity of 0.25% of the total throttle travel. As you move over to the left, you may - if you like - cut across the curb intentionally. It makes this corner a little faster. Hang your tail out as you allow the front wheels to cur across the curb. This way, you don't need to brake at all.

For T4R, once again use the initial stages to bleed off speed. That allows you to stay on the throttle longer. Enter the turn by quickly cutting over to the left hand side, and again hanging your tail out, sliding sideways into the first section of this corner. Going sideways also bleeds off speed quite quickly, BTW. In a race, you'll take it a little easier. But in Qualifying, this is a good technique.

Again, be aware that this corner has two sections, and the second, narrower section is actually already your runway for accelerating into the brief straight following T4R.

T5L is tricky. Brake shortly after the tiremarks begin, down into second or first, and enter this corner by more or less cutting over to the left. Sliding isn't crucial here, but it may help in the middle of the corner. Upon exit, however, you shouldn't slide anymore, because you need rear end grip for good acceleration.

T6L is entered by cutting from the right to the left, in second gear. Try to be almost or fully off the throttle, then swing the car around for T7R. If you turned early into T7R, use the throttle to push the car a little to the left into the track. If you turned late, stay off the throttle.

Accelerate through T7R, quite hard, and use the initial section of the hairpin to bleed off the remaining speed. Once again, in the middle of the hairpin, you may slide the rear end to get the car into a good positio for accelerating onto the front straight. However, make sure you are on the left hand side in the middle of the hairpin, and then aim for that little stand at the inside of the corner. This is the apex you should hit for accelerating onto the s/f straight through the second section of the hairpin.

Here's a few positions for passing: T1R, T4L, and T5L give you room for the more daring drivers among us.

Here you go! Good luck!

Mexico - The Patatas Track

By Achim Trensz

Patatas are potatoes in Spanish, and that vegetable bears some resemblance to the Mexico track - it's ugly, shapeless, dark, and lacks elegance.

Especially with the 67 cars, this track is an extreme challenge to the driver. In most corners, the problem is to get the power to the ground. However, the two fast corners require high accuracy and courage from the driver, and in the hairpin, you can lose a lot of time by braking too early - or too late. It's a tricky circuit, altogether.

T1, the right hander following the s/f straight, consists of two sections. The first one must be used for slowing down for the second.

Approach T1R on the left, but try to drive a line that takes you to the right hand side pretty much at the beginning of that corner. You'll need the space for drifting over to the left while reducing speed. This is a delicate equilibrium between brake, wheel and grip.

Brake when you're already way into the tiremarks on the track, and start pulling over to the right immediately. I usually brake shortly after the last of the three tires on the left hand side before T1R. Ease off the brake while you're moving over, but continue to brake. Once you've reached the right hand side of the track, you'll have to maintain a twitchy equilibrium; the entire car wants to move to the left - but not with both ends at the same time. If you're too fast, you'll have understeer; if your speed is right, the rear end will try to move to the left, putting you in danger of either ending up in the grass at the right hand side of the track, or of also sliding over to the left, depending on what you do with the brake to keep the balance.

I'd use steering, brake and perhaps even throttle input to keep the car in line. Applying some throttle while braking helps if the car is oversteering; this only works if your brake and throttle pedals are on separate axes, but it will add some stability. Use moderate amounts of throttle, though, and be smooth - gently apply or reduce throttle as needed. This moderate throttle input can catch a sliding rear.

If your car understeers, i.e. you are too fast, shifting one or two gears a little earlier down may get you the additional braking power you need - although you risk losing the rear end. Sometimes a combination of the two above described techniques is required.

The second section of T1R is the very slow right hand section of the subsequent S. The ideal way to take this second section is a continuous deceleration until just before you leave T1R. You exit point is at the penultimate right hand tire. From that point, you immediately steer over to the left to drift along the tires on the left hand side as closely as possible, to give you the longest possible straight line between T2L and T3L.

Remember, in T1a, you have to prepared for entering T1b right. But in T1b, you have to prepare for exiting T2L right (this is not a typo ;)

Don't drive to much using throttle or brake here. Rather, try to coast through the transition from left to right, and when that transition has almost been made, help it a little with the throttle if necessary and then accelerate into the subsequent straight using the entire width of the track. For the next left hander, T3L you'll have to be far on the right hand side.

The goal is to build up speed as early as possible. Your exit speed from the second corner is essential.

T3L is used for braking into T4R, more or less. Try to enter T3L on a wide line which ends on the left hand side after the apex of T3L. But move over to the left soon, as T3L seems to magically pull the car around the corner if you use a tighter line. Use the same technique described for T1R. If you're too slow, apply some throttle, and the same applies if the rear feels too lose. But it is more important to turn early into T4R, so don't worry too much. If you're a little slow, start turning into T4R a little earlier, and use the throttle just after initiating the turn-in to widen the line somewhat if necessary. Getting the turning for T4R done early allows you to accelerate better, with the wheels in a straight-line position again.

As you accelerate out of T4R, use the full length of the track. Do not aim at driving a beautiful arc through T4R. Turn fairly tightly, and get the wheels into a straightline position while the car is still pointed somewhere towards the left hand side of the track at the exit of T4R. Accelerate early, but carefully. This is a track location where acceleration is difficult. Once you've built up some speed, align the car with the track, and continue towards the Hairpin, T5R. For the hairpin, I suggest you brake early - maybe even slightly before the tiremarks start. Late braking here only makes sense if you are still able to turn in as early as the Hairpin allows.

Every single meter you use for braking beyond the earliest point where the corner could be taken (i.e. but touching the inside apex of the Hairpin) is lost time, as you're already driving into the wrong direction. So, make sure you can turn in as early as possible and pass by that white tire at the inside apex of the hairpin as closely as possible.

It is _not_ essential how late you brake. The essential thing is to be able to turn as quickly as possible. Braking late and going deep into the outside lane of the hairpin costs you more time than braking a little earlier, and turning early, staying as close to the right hand apex as possible.

At the exit of the hairpin, having the wheels in a straightline position for the first meters of acceleration will help you build up speed early and there save you time. But it is only important to build up speed early, not to build up excessive speed, as T6L requires a precise line and smooth driving rather than breakneck speeds.

For T6L, do not try to be too fast. Accelerate on the right hand lane. It is not essential to achieve maximum speed in this location. Rather, it is essential to go cleanly through T6L, to not upset the car, because in T6L, you'll start accelerating for the subsequent straight.

Turn into T6L a little early, maybe even touch the grass. After you've passed the left hand apex, it's all acceleration BUT smoothly at the beginning. Over the hump you have to take it easy, and you also have to stay clear of the curb on the right hand side of the exit of T7R. Try to accelerate moderately, but concentrate on keeping the car smooth and fairly straight over the hump. Get on the throttle seriously only after having the car pointed in the right direction, which is somewhere on the left hand side in the middle of the subsequent straight.

As you accelerate, the car will dance a little - don't get nervous. Use only minute corrections.

For T8R, follow the line shown by the tiremarks, there's no big braking or acceleration required here. But make sure you exit T8R very close on the right near that final tire. No big acceleration necessary at this point, but don't forget to accelerate anyway <g>

For T9L, you should leave the tiremarks soon after T8R, and get off the throttle. Braking is required only in moderate amounts - I usually let the car bleed off speed by turning in hard and trying to stay on the left while entering T9L far on the left. This way, the car usually slides back over to the tiremarks and reaches them somewhere before the middle of T9L. At this point, enough speed has been bled off to turn the car fully around and aim it at the exit of T9L while accelerating again. T9L should be exited on the far left.

Again, there is only moderate acceleration required. For the next two corners, it is more important to be smooth. For T10R, cut across to the right and maybe even touch the grass at the inner apex. Take it easy on the throttle to keep the car balanced.

I usually take T11L all the way on the left, on the inner lane. Between T11L and T12R, there's something you could consider a straight, so exit speed becomes important again. Exit T11L on the left, keep the car straight, and concentrate on accelerating.

Enter T12R at high speed, but make sure you are at the far right at the transition from T12R to T13L, and have good control over the car.

For T13L, it is once again important to enter the corner early, and find the line that allows you to accelerate as early as possible for the exit of T13L - by starting the acceleration on the left, and drifting over to the right under acceleration. The point you aim for is somewhere shortly before that patch of asphalt - a maintenance road, apparently - on the right after T13L.

Approach T14R on the left, similar to T1R. Do not brake much upon entry, and try the same moving-over-to-the-right technique we mentioned for T1R.

T14R has four sections - section one, in which you bleed off speed; this section ends somewhere after the tires start on the right hand side; section two, in which you maintain a certain level of speed and drift over to the left again - this one comes naturally, no need to define it; section three, in which you stay on the left for a while waiting for the right point to move back over to the right - this section ends once again at the three trees which mysteriously appear on the left hand side (thanks Papy ;); and section four, where you move over towards the right hand side and begin to accelerate for the front straight, driving a more or less classical line through that final section of the corner.

At the exit of T14R, use the full width of the track, as entry speed is essential with a straight as long as this one.

Alright, this was Mexico - good luck for you!

Monaco

By Achim Trensz

There is no such a thing as a single key to Monaco. Monaco requires bravery in some sections, and discipline and self-restraint in others. Being a real street track, the pavement is far from being smooth and even. There are huge bumps that can in no way be mastered by the suspension, no matter what settings you use. All you can do is drive around them, or try to be careful with the throttle while the car is pondering whether to become airborne or not.

You can even drive on the sidewalks, if you like, in the Loews hairpin left hander to widen your angle of attack. But it hasd yet to be determined whether that makes you faster or not.

For the setup, I'd suggest to be on the smooth side at the rear, and a little stiffer at the front. You need precision, but it is not of utmost importance, you can learn to handle a somewhat less precise car. Start with a smooth setup, and then dial in some precision using stiffer springs and a-r- bars at the front.

There are many corners in either direction, so there will be a lot of camber changes. Try to use fairly even camber settings. There's not much use in preparing the car especially for one type of corner at Monaco. And use sufficient wheel lock - that'll make you faster in the hairpins.

The driving in these old cars is trickie than in the newer wing cars. It is difficult to achieve optimum acceleration and braking. As opposed to what others suggest, I find that for many corners, slamming the brakes full for a moment and then gradually releasing them is the fastest way of slowing down. This is also logical, as the type of brakes they were using at that time may well have had that characteristic. I've driven this type of brakes in many motorcycles, and some of them had this braking characteristic. They wouldn't catch on hard in the beginning, but they would rather start building up braking power - until they'd either bake in or fade when the brakes got hot.

For example, after accelerating hard out of T1R, you will want to brake for the left-hander section preceding the Casino. I suggest you brake hard for a split second, and then gradually release as you try to bring the car into the corner. In the second part of that long left hander, you'll get real slow - much slower than in modern F1 cars. Use your throttle to bring the rear end around a little better.

The subsequent downhill right hander only has one decent ideal line - very close to the right hand curb. You have to avoid as much of that huge hump on the left as you can, as it badly upsets the car and prevents you from accelerating. Take it easy on the throttle here. If you've set your gears right, you'll get close to max speed in second before you have to brake again for the right hander. If you have time, have a look at the beautiful scenery while you're pulling down that short downhill straight.

The right hander is slow. Try and watch your lines in the replay. You usually tend to drive a wider line through this turn, but the replay suggests that a narrow line close to the curb might also work. Be easy on the throttle here - you don't want to upset the car, as merely following the S shaped track upsets it enough. It would spoil both your acceleration and deceleration phase, and would cost you all the time you could have gained on this short straight.

For the Loews left hander, you might want to try and use the sidewalk as a braking zone. If you're careful, entering the sidewalk won't upset the car heavily, and will allow you to use a wider line upon entry into Loews, thus allowing you to accelerate earlier. However, you'll have to decide for yourself whether that makes you faster or not. One thing is certain in Loews, though: brake early, because every inch you drive beyond the end of the wall at the inside apex of the corner is one inch driven in the wrong direction. Being fast in this corner is not what you want to be - you'll want to complete the rotation quickly, is all you want.

Between that hairpin and the subsequent right hander, don't accelerate excessively. Keep the car steady, and find a clean, fast line through the right hander. Again, turning in earlier than your eyes suggest may be the way to go.

The same goes for the stretch between here and the right hander that takes you into the tunnel straight. Take it easy and make sure you're fast upon exit into the long pseudo-straight. Allow the car to use the full width of the street, and start accelerating moderately once the car is point towards the tunnel.

As opposed to wing cars, the tunnel straight is a corner for '67 cars - and a pretty tight one as well. It has two sections. You enter the first one at full speed, but for the second part, inside the tunnel, you have to get off the throttle, and make sure you don't hit the rail or curb at the exit of the tunnel.

Enter the tunnel from the left, and as you enter, reduce throttle just enough to maintain your current speed, or even bleed off some speed if necessary. You have to stay close to the right, because at the exit of the tunnel, you'll be pushed over to the left, and touching that curb on the left upsets the car so much that only Alison can catch it ;)

From there on, you have two choices. Either you move over to the right, nail it and hope that you can point the car through the chicane, or you move over to the right, nail it and hope that you can point the car through the chicane. Well, actually, there's a third alternative. You move over to the right, take it a little easy while the car goes over the hump, point the car at the chicane, coast through the chicane, and then nail it. Being off the throttle through the chicane makes it easier to control the car. Get back on the throttle after you've calmed the car down and aren't sliding madly across the track anymore.

Then, nail it briefly, but make sure you're back in second or first gear for the left hander. This one must be taken from the far right, moving to the far left. Enter this turn early, and be on the left near the rail plenty early. Try not to be too fast here to avoid getting carried over into the right hand rail upon exiting that corner. The slower you take this corner, the easier it is to accelerate hard for the long pseudo-straight afterwards. Once again, exit speed is what you have to aim for.

You can get up as far as into fourth gear here. But be aware that this long bent straight ends in a tight left hander before entering the right-hand hairpin. So, drive through the fast section of this pseudo-straight more or less on the right hand side, and then slow down and try to find the ideal line through the tightening section. Once again, you'll want to get fairly close to the left hand wall while slowing down continuously.

Make sure the car doesn't slide here - this would extend your braking distance, and you can't afford that. Braking earlier costs too much time, and braking late inevitably takes you into the haybales.

The hairpin once again is a very slow corner. Here, you can't do much in terms of entry or exist speed. Just make sure you're slow enough to get the turning done as quickly as possible.

Back on the front straight, accelerate as hard as you can. Use the big banner that spans across the road at the beginning of the hill as a landmark to determine your relative position for starting to brake, and make sure you are able to move from the left far over to the right hand wall in that T1R, because if you don't, you'll end up in the left hand rail. There is no need to be overly fast here - they _all_ slow down a lot at this point.

This is perhaps a good final comment - if you're frustrated with how difficult it is to be fast in Monaco, with how difficult it is to accelerate or brake hard - don't forget it is equally difficult for everybody else. All drivers are facing the same problems. There's no need for you to try and overcome the laws of physics. Just try to drive smoothly within the laws of physics, and you'll be faster than everyone else. Except me, of course ;)

Monza - The Oval Track

By Achim Trensz

"Oval!?" you'll say - has the German gone bananas now? No, he hasn't, at least not more than he always is. Monza is a bit like an oval, in that it has few and mostly fairly long corners. That implies that your driving style must be a little similar to that of a Nascar driver.

At Monza, the driving isn't too difficult. There aren't that many chances to make mistakes. As a consequence, every mistake you make will have a greater effect than on a track like Mosport, because there's a smaller chance that others make mistakes. Therefor, avoiding errors is very important. And in this Monza resembles an oval track.

There are 3 slow or medium fast corners; everything else is top speed or almost top speed.

I would recommend that you chose a stiffer setup. Because of the high speed, it is beneficial to be able to position the car accurately, and a stiffer suspension makes that easier. Don't set the camber too high, because on the long straight sections, the tires would get too hot on the inner side, and too cold on the other side. Also, use some AR-bar to get even more precision into your steering input.

One aspect for Monza is that in most corners, oversteering can make you faster. In order to make oversteering a little easier, you may even want to reduce the rear end grip somewhat, exploiting the setup change that reduces rear end grip for something else.

One measure to reduce rear end grip at high speeds is to use more positive camber, another is to use stiffer springs. Yet another is to create more front end grip, by reducing the spring stiffness, using a softer anti-roll (AR) bar or different toe-in settings at the front. Or you may reduce toe-in at the rear.

Each of these has advantages and disadvantages. More positive camber gives you better grip under acceleration, when the rear end squats down, which usually changes camber towards negative. Reduced spring and AR bar give you better grip and help you avoid understeer in fast and slow corners. And more negative toe-in also helps you steer into corners. Reducing toe-in at the rear gives you higher straightline speed.

You'll have to try for yourself what is the best for you, according to your driving style.

Curva Grande is the first example for this. CG is a long, high (but not full) speed right hander. Depending on your setup, it is a good idea to not completely lift the throttle while you're braking. I usually brake where that maintenance road on the right hand side enters the track. I stay on the throttle while braking to stabilize the rear, and nudge the car around the long corner using throttle and steering. It is important to get over to the right hand curb fairly early and stay there for most of Curva Grande, until you drift over to the left under acceleration out of CG. To help the car in achieving this, try adding clutches to the diff, or use a higher lock on the coast-side of the differential.

It is not important to be extremely fast in the middle of Curva Grande; but it is important to be fast again on exit. Make sure you don't get on the throttle too early, but make sure you can accelerate perfectly upon exit.

To the Lesmos, the same applies. For T3R, you can brake far into the corner, but make sure you get back to the right hand curb after perhaps 30% of the corner.

Ascari is a full speed left hander that needs to be taken on the far left, but entry is on the right. Approach it on the right hand side, and swing the car over once you see the first innuendo of trackmarks for that corner. Use high steering lock if necessary to stay on the right hand side, and then drift over to the right when you're approaching the exit. The trick is to maintain maximum speed in this corner, and also to be at max speed upon exit, because of the long Retifiglio straight following Ascari. There's a roadsign on the right hand side. Start drifting over to the right as you pass that sign, approximately. This allows you to carry the maximum speed into the subsequent straight, as you'll basically steer less and thus allow the car to pick up more speed.

And steering as little as possible is the second clue to speed in Ascari. Steering hard costs you a mile or two, definitely. Upon exit, top drivers achieve speeds of 180 or more.

The Parabolica actually consists of two corners; the first one is slow. Approach it on the left, but start moving over to the right before you actually enter the corner, so as to target the apex of the first section. Brake into it almost until you reach the apex, then bring the car around somewhat and accelerate moderately - short shifting upon exit may be advisable unless you're very good with the throttle.

When you pass one of the grandstands - don't get frightened by strange noises. That's the hot-blooded Italian crowd cheering as you pass by. I think you can make them cheer even louder if you do some spectacular stunt within their field of vision - wanna try?

Mosport - Pure Elegance

By Achim Trensz

Mosport is a technically challenging melee of medium fast and slow corners, and is highly interesting for the driver. It requires utmost precision especially in T2L, T4L and just before the jump preceding T8R.

The setup for Mosport should be on the stiffer side, to give you better car control, and it should be well balanced to allow you to maneuver the car precisely to where you need it to be. If you are a smoother driver, like for example Damon Hill and many other English drivers, the gears should be a little on the long side, to help you prevent excessive wheelspin. If you're more on the wild side, like for example Jean Alesi (and myself <g>), you'll set the gears in such a way that you are always in the top-power region of the rpm band in those sections of the track where you really need to steer the car using the throttle.

Also, when setting up the camber and tire pressure, remember that less can be more. While it would be nice to have the tire temps distributed across the tire surface perfectly, the ideal camber for an individual section of the track might actually make the car almost undriveable somewhere else. Therefor, don't go to extremes with the camber. The wheel pressure should probably be 18 or 19, depending on your driving style (I use 18).

For the differential, you'll want plenty of lock to accelerate quickly out of the corners, but that makes the car undriveable. I use the classical 85/60 setting for the lock, with 3 or 4 clutch disks. You might try 85/45, to give you some added stability under braking, and see whether that matches your driving style.

The driving is pure fun. All corners are equally important, although in the slowest section, the T5 sequence, and the final corner which takes you back onto the s/f straight, you can probably lose the most time. The biggest mistake in both is entering them too quickly, BTW. Aim for utmost precision and a smooth, perfect line rather than diving into them at breakneck speed.

Before driving Mosport, prepare yourself mentally. Mosport is a track whose rhythm is the absence of rhythm. All corners are challenging in different ways. This track separates the artists from the butchers.

In T2L and T4L, the main task is to be pefrectly smooth across the crest of the preceding hill, and to point the car precisely to the left hand side of the track where the actual corner behind the hill begins.

It is important to get back on the throttle soon after passing the hillcrest to transfer some weight to the rear tires, but it is equally important to be in a neutral position or off the throttle while passing the hillcrest. Both T2L and T4L are downhill corners - even T1R is one to some extent, which makes them particularly challenging, and the only way how to be fast in them is to not be _too_ fast.

In a race, as described above get your braking done before entering them, and pull the car through them with some moderate throttle input after you've crossed the hillcrest. In Qualifying, you may be a little more daring and take a risk, by getting your braking done in the initial meters of these turns (i.e. braking later), and then smoothly reapply some throttle quickly as you loosen the brakes to use the rear end for steering.

If you keep losing the rear as you are diving into the descent, lift off the brake more, before the car goes across the crest and starts the dive into the downhill corner.

For T3R, approach the corner on the far left, and be aware that this corner consists of three sections - the first section, which should be an almost straight line on which you brake far into the first part of the corner, only steering right very moderatel. The second section, where you are slow enough to seriously steer the car into the corner and follow the right hand curb, and the third section where you accelerate moderately until you finally leave the corner and go flat out towards T4L.

I won't describe and reference points for these sections, as they come pretty naturally to the driver anyway, once you are aware of this triple-section scheme.

In T4L, you'll be afraid of applying throttle as the rear end seems to be sliding anyway, but some careful application of power will rather stabilize the car than throw you off the track.

In T5a, you have to bring the car around in a narrow line. It'll do some uphill understeering, and tends to run wide. So, keep it tight. Stay off the throttle while entering the uphill section, and then use the throttle to accelerate again and make the car use the full width of the track as you drive uphill - because in the exit of this uphill section you can actually accelerate moderately.

For Moss it is most important to exit cleanly, as the long straight that follows enhances the smallest speed advantage you gain on the initial meters. So, enter the corner cleanly, and exit it accelerating as smoothly as you can. If you are good at throwing the car around, you may try to use an effect caused by the uneven track surface when entering that corner. If you get it right, and point the car nicely towards the inside apex of that corner, the car will throw the rear around a bit as you enter this corner - probably because the uneven track surface and the weight transfer causes the right rear wheel to lose contact with the ground. A nice effect, and makes you awfully proud when you manage to do it the first time ;-)

For T8R, it is important to be in a straight line across the hillcrest. Brake some just before you get to that little crest right before the corner, and continue to brake afterwards, but be off the brake while going across that crest, because one axle will probably be in the air, and locking up wheels in the air changes the balance of the car, and also messes up the stability. Then brake almost full briefly after landing, and continue to brake carefully thereafter while approaching and entering T8R.

In T9L, make sure you're close to the left hand curb most all the way through, and especially at the exit.

In T10R, the final corner, just follow the tire marks. Don't try to enter on the far left, and cut over to the right hand side soon to lengthen the straight line you drive on the s/f straight. Follow the tire marks and enter T10R on a tight line, that's fast enough, and probably easier to do than going some creative line.

Good luck!

Rouen - The Precision Track

By Achim Trensz

Can you say Roo-haww with both digit fingers plugged firmly into your nostrils? Yep, you got it. That's how you pronounce Rouen. Well, almost ;)

The landscape and track graphics of Rouen are incredibly realistic. Rouen is like jumping into a video! It reminds me of many beautiful Sunday mornings on German country roads on my motorcycle.

Rouen shows you both sides of racing. One half of the track is fast - pedal to the metal. The other half is strategic and tricky, you have to be patient and restrain your temper to be successful.

Both halves merge right behind the finish line, near the pits. And that brings us to another important part of Roo-haww - the setup.

Jim Clark was said to be bad at setting up a car, because he was so good at driving; he just drove around any problem a car had. Of course we are equally good and don't really need this setup stuff, but heck, we do it just for fun, don't we?

For Rouen, we need a both slow and fast setup. However, there's only two really fast corners, so actually, the car doesn't need to be that good in high speed corners at Rouen. It's better to set the car up for good grip at medium and slow speeds. The track is also smooth, so we don't nee to worry about the car bottoming out too often.

Use longer gear ratios - that'll make it easier to get the power onto the road, and will give you a good top gear for the faster side of the track.

As for the tires, chose the round, black ones. They'll do for Rouen. ;-)

As for the actualy driving, it is important to prepare yourself mentally. Be aware of the fact that at Rouen, precision is the key to speed. There's no use in working the throttle like a sledge hammer, no use in stomping on the brakes - all that'll do for you is send you all over the place. If the rear wheels spin when you accelerate, reduce throttle, until they don't spin anymore. This can go as far up as third gear. In first, I only use one third of the throttle travel, in second maybe use up to half, and in third 4/5th. Also, you can use more throttle at lower RPM, but once the power curve rises with rising RPM, back off on the throttle when the wheelspin starts.

Another trick for smoothness: when shifting up, push the button, and then immediately release the throttle somewhat for a split second, and then get back onto it smoothly. That'll make your shifting smoother, and help you avoid rear wheel spins caused by the clutch being hammered in mercilessly. With the more advanced and realistic damage settings, you'll need to do that anyway.

Use a realistic approach to driving. Don't take risks. Take it easy, concentrate on keeping the car smooth and calm, and on driving a clean line. Follow the tire marks on the track.

The crucial spots for Rouen are not as prominent as at Spa, for example, because there are so many corners in the medium and low speed range, and because corners are lined up like pearls in a rapid succession. You can't make up laptime by taking 20% of the corners particularly well, you have to get them all right.

I'll use corner numbers rather than names, because there are more corners than names on that track.

T1R. You can go through there in the second highest gear at medium RPM, if you take it easy on the throttle. Use the full width of the track, especially on the exit side. Turn in early, as the inevitable understeer will take you around the apex.

T2L. Make sure you enter that turn on the left hand side, and slow down sufficiently. The trick is to get back on the throttle reluctantly and smoothly.

T3L. A full speed corner. Don't brake, but reduce throttle to 50% before entering this corner. Turn in early for the second, tighter section of the corner, and move over to the left while maintaining good car control. Do not get on the throttle early, or at least do so in a very restrained manner.

T4L/T5R - this is a tricky combination. The problem is to slow the car down for T5R (the Nouveau Monde hairpin), without losing the rear end in T4L, and without overshooting T5R into what looks like the front yard of an Austrian hotel. It's best to brake before T4L, get almost but not entirely off the brake through T4L, and then back on between T4L and T5R. Undulate the brake if you run of out track. And make sure to enter T4L on the far left hand side. That'll allow you a fairly straight line, and gives you room for correcting the inevitable rear end slide under braking. Be prepared to make corrections early, as your rear end will be magnetically attracted by the right hand side of the track - or the grass on that side.

T6L. Like T2L. Enter that turn on the left hand side, accelerate moderately at first, then flat out towards the uphill-quasi-hairpin T7L.

T7L is taken in first. Follow the trackmarks and make sure you don't lose too much momentum. In order to achieve that, slow down sufficiently before the corner, so you can drive an optimal line in this corner and take sufficient speed with you to the exit.

After T7L, the problem is to get decent acceleration despite the fact that the wheels would much rather spin madly. A medium-narrow T8R is followed by a wide T9R. Try to combine both into one turn, taking it easy through T8R by briefly interrupting the acceleration, and accelerating fairly hard into T9R, thus making the car drift around the apex of that corneer.

T10R must be approached by sticking firmly to the ideal line, i.e. hitting the apex on the right hand side. This is achieved by turning in much earlier than you think you should. Somehow the momentum will carry you around that turn, believe me, and leave you with enough room on the exit side to slide over to the left in a controlled manner. Everything else is slow or ends up in the forest. Make sure to be at no more than 50% or even less throttle through this turn.

From then on, it's flat out. The long full-speed right hander is taken from the left, but decidedly moving the car over to the right to follow the trackmarks. Use the wheel and the throttle to slide the rear end a little if the front end understeers.

As a brake marker for the final semi-hairpin, use two of the trees on the left hand side. Go past these two trees - how far exactly is a matter of experience, but a good point is where the trackmarks seem to become a little lighter and then return to full black, and then brake for the hairpin. Do not forget to slightly undulate the brake if the tires lock up, to shorten the braking distance. The best braking results are achieved if the tires do just not yet squeal, or barely just squeal. If your braking balance has been set too far to the front, you can aid your braking by shifting down early - but don't do that with damage set to advanced or realistic, or only in an emergency.

Take the hairpin in first or second, but try not to lose speed - glide through the corner gracefully, and after the apex, gradually increase acceleration. The trick is to recognize that this is not really a hairpin, but allows moderate speeds if you don't enter it too fast and from the wrong position.

That's a good rule for all the slow and medium fast corners at Rouen and in this sim in general. Enter the corners at moderate speeds. Don't try to be slowest at the apex of the corners, but somewhere before that, in some corners even before the entry into the corner.

For the final right hander, don't be ashamed to brake slightly. Turn in early, and let the car drift over to the left upon exit.

Good luck!

Silverstone - The English Track

By Achim Trensz

Silverstone requires you to find a rhythm of your own. The righthanders are fairly easy, but the lefthanders are slippery and difficult. Nonetheless, they are as crucial to the laptimes as the righthanders.

Once again, I won't talk much about setups. Steve did a superb job with his book, so nothing needs to be added. Plus, he's giving more advice in his Advanced Setup Guide, so if you want some in-depth discussion, this is a place to look for it.

Copse - start braking when you're almost two lengths of a car into the tiremarks. Stay on the line, and follow the line to the right hand wall. Use the throttle to pump the car into the corner - some understeering needs to be overcome to get a close line.

Out of Copse, it is important to not spin the rear wheels. You need every inch of actual acceleration you can get. It doesn't matter whether you come out of Copse on the left or on the right hand side, as long as the exit and the following straight are one long smooth streak of acceleration.

For Maggots, move over to the right. You should be in high 4th or low fifth. Do not steer late. Rather, get off the throttle and steer left early. Point for the left hand curb, and point the car to a point somewhat before the apex at the left hand curb, because the inevitable sliding will take you further into the corner and make you slide past the apex anyway. Do be careful, though, as touching the curb probably ruins your line. That curb is unforgiving.

Once the car has slid past the apex, make sure the car's bearing (i.e. the direction it is moving into, not the direction the nose is pointing into) is no longer towards the grass on the right hand side. Once this is the case, get back on the throttle. If by mistake you do slide into the grass, reduce the throttle so as to just barely maintain your current speed (or even slightly lose speed), and carry on in parallel to the track. There's a maintenance road, a pretty ide patch of tarmac, up ahead only a few yards away. Once you've reached that patch safely, return to the track and prepare yourself for Becketts.

Becketts - if you're arriving here coming from where you should come from - i.e. you didn't follow my above emergency guidelines - approach the corner on the left, where the tiremarks are, or on the right. It doesn't really matter. The important thing is to be over on the right hand side where the tiremarks move over to the right, and have the car moving into the corner at this point rather than towards the grass on the left. You need to have control over the car at that particular point.

If you have control here, you will be able to get back on the throttle and slide the car into Becketts and accelerate early around the second apex, drifting over to the left. This way, you can get the max out of the short subsequent straight.

Chapel is similar to Maggots, but slower. You should take it using the Maggotts technique, but in third gear. Make sure you get a clean exit, as the long Hangar Straight requires you to be able to achieve top speeds, and also there's no handy patch of tarmac to save you from mowing the lawn extensively.

So, upon exit from Chapel, once you've avoided the grass, accelerate hard and move over to the left.

Stowe resembles Copse, in that you brake late, and pull the car over towards the right hand wall as you speed permits. Here, it is important, though, to upon exit accelerate towards the left hand side of the subsequent straight, as this allows you to accelerate earlier. I.e., try to glue the car to the right hand wall for a moment, and then accelerate smoothly drifting left into the straight.

On the straight, you'll get into the highest gear. Club corner is very slow, and wants to take exactly where the tiremarks are. No big secret, just find out where to brake and take the corner cleanly. Upon exit, use the width of the street for acceleration.

Abbey requires the same technique as Maggotts or Chapel - this time in third gear. Once again the trick is to turn in somewhat early, drift around the apex, and accelerate in such a way that you just barely avoid the grass - but avoid it.

Woodcote is a bit tricky. You approach it at max speed. Brake two car lengths after the tiremarks begin, and start steering right immediately. Try to have your right front wheel follow the seam between the road and the entry into pit lane. Use the brake and the wheel to produce some minor sliding moves of the car in order to counter the car's understeering tendency.

You may also try to steer to the right of the tire marks, a little earlier than where the corner actually begins, aiming to shortcut slightly across the outer perimeter of the pit entrance area, but that's up to your personal preference.

You have to accelerate into the s/f straight plenty early again, using the entire width of the road. As a rule of thumb, you should shift back in fourth before you cross the s/f line.

Good luck!

Silverstone Addendum

By Alison Hine

Silverstone has a relatively simple layout, but it's a very challenging place to drive well. Getting those last couple of seconds requires great precision - and patience.

More than most circuits, Silverstone is a throttle control circuit. It's known as a fast circuit, one of the fastest in all of Grand Prix racing, but in reality it is a collection of second gear corners connected by short straights. Therefore, you use short gearing, and always have an abundance of torque coming out of the slow corners.

In GPL, most of Silverstone's corners are banked, but the surface is quite crowned and in many corners goes off camber at the exit. This means you must enter very precisely to get down inside the crown for the middle of the corner. At the exit, you can't boot the throttle when you think you should because the track is falling away, removing the banking just when you need it.

That's the reason you need patience; you have to wait...wait...wait till the tires are hooked up and you can get the power down. If you boot it too early, the tail will snap out, and once that happens, it's all over.

Similarly, you need precision; enter a fraction of a second too early, and at several corners (notably Maggots and Abbey) you'l bash the curb, which at best will kick you off line and more likely will spin you out. Enter a fraction of a second too late, and you won't make it down inside the crown. Without the extra banking, you'll skate off the outside into the grass at the exit.

Recently, I decided to work on my Eagle setup for Silverstone, and after beating on it for a while, suddenly it all came together. I'd gotten the setup working reasonably well, and at last I found "the groove", getting into a rhythm, threading the needle between the curbs and the off-camber exits. For a few golden laps, I was able to attack, and anticipate exactly what the car was going to do. The last few laps felt wonderful!

Spa - The Exit Speed Track

By Achim Trensz

The key to Spa is exit speed. All crucial sections at Spa have one thing in common: they are followed by long straights. Exit from them one mile slower, and you'll be one mile slower for a long time.

The exception is T5R/6L, where the problem is not to lose the rear end under braking. The general rule for the others is, don't try to be fast on entry, but chose an ideal line and carry as much speed out of them as possible.

Eau Rouge

Don't let anybody fool you into thinking you could take this corner flat out. In Eau Rouge, it is much faster to brake - somewhere near the beginning of that little wall on the left hand side. Brake hard, and release the brakes carefully. If you jump off the brakes, the car is likely to slide and spin.

When going through Eau Rouge, never think about the corner that comes next, always think about the corner that comes next and the corner that follows the corner that comes next. What I'm trying to say is - a line may make you awfully fast in one corner, but result in an exit from that corner that completely messes up the entry into the subsequent corner. Eau Rouge is one of these. When you're in the uphill right hander, aim for the perfect inside apex of the subsequent left hander, and play with the throttle to point the car into a direction that will allow you to accelerate flat out towards Radillon. Don't worry if the car bottoms out in Eau Roug to some extent. It makes the rear end snappy, but you can handle it if you're careful.

Radillon (T4L)

Exit Eau Rouge on the right hand side, and be careful with the throttle over the subsequent jump on top of the hill. Through Radillon, accelerate moderately, then nail it when you're on the straight.

T5R/T6L

Exiting T5R, the rear end swings over to the left. If you brake hard there, you'll lose the rear. So, make sure the swing has ended before braking hard. Better steer in a straight line before braking, or at least brake carefully while still steering. Enter T5R early and try to be far on the right hand side at its exit - that leaves you room to drift over towards the left side apex of T6L.

Les Combes (T6L)

This is a very long corner. Remember that entry speed isn't as important as exit speed, as Les Combes is followed by a long straight. Drive a clean line through the first 66% of that corner, and then gradually accelerate, allowing the car to drift over to the left. Take it easy on the throttle, and consider short shifting if you can't keep it steady.

The T7L/T8R-Esses

Enter T7L at full throttle, and steer to the right before you can actually see T8R. This is the only way to find the ideal line through T8R and avoid too much sliding.

Burnenville

This one is taken at max speed. Enter T9R slightly to the left of the center of the track, and try to stay there by playing with throttle and steering to moderately slide the car through there. Near the end of T9R, gradually move over to the right, preparing yourself for the breaking into T10L. In order to bring the car to the right, you'll have to get off the throttle, and then play with throttle and wheel. The second part of this is not a full speed section anymore.

The corkscrew-esque T10L/T11R section (Malmady - ed.)

Brake soon after leaving T9R. As you turn into T10L, the rear swings to the right. Stop braking briefly, and tap the brakes again if necessary once the car is aligned for T10L. T10L is entered by pointing the car to the right hand heath at the point where the road drops. Drop the car into the ditch while off the throttle. The track camber gives you more grip than you expect, so accelerate fairly early but carefully.

The Masta Kink (T13L/T14R)

Get off the throttle near the tree with the road sign. Steer into T13L earlier than you'd think you should, and do the same for T14R - steer into T14R while you haven't actually left the left hander yet. Once the car is aligned for T14R - but not before that - get back on the throttle smoothly first, and then nail it!

Stavelot (T16R)

Stavelot is actually two corners. Part one is taken off-throttle, following the tiremarks on the track - more or less. After you're sure you won't slide off the road into the heath on the left, you may undulate the throttle a little, still decelerating overall, but keeping the car up to speed when possible for brief moments with brief thrusts. This corner takes you down into 3rd, probably.

La Carriere (T17R/T18R)

These look like innocent little kinks, but they aren't. For T17R, wait until the car has settled down after T16L before braking - if you want to brake. You don't really need to. The fastest way through both kinks is to turn in a bit early, and perhaps even to touch the grass slightly at the inside apex. Make sure, not to touch the grass at the exit, because this probably ruins that lap for you - that muddy grass strip there is very slippery.

La Source

La Source is faster when you take it slow - that's all there is to say about it. It sounds contradictory, but is true. Any sliding and wobbling will extend the period of time during which you can't point the car towards the straight and accelerate.

Watkins Glen

By Achim Trensz

In Watkins Glen, the corners which affect the laptimes most are all right handers. Before taking to the track, tweak your setup to be optimal in medium-fast right handers.

The main challenge at the Glen is obviously the Loop; use the Loop for determining whether you like the setup, and only make minor modifications if the setup is too undriveable elsewhere. Also, measure the tire temps after exiting from the Loop.

T1R is entered from the left. Pull to the right under braking to touch the right hand curb near or behind the apex - a classical approach. You should be far on the right when exiting T1R.

Do no accelerate excessively as you are entering the section called "The Esses" that follows T1R. The goal is to be able to take T2L far on the left, stay there until exiting T2L, and to be able to make the transition from left to right required for T3R as smoothly as possibly.

T3R needs to be taken on an inside line. When you exit from T2L, you have to immediately pull over towards the right hand curb, while you are accelerating as hard as you can without upsetting the car. At this point, the car will probably backfire - it'll twitch and put you in danger of touching the right hand curb. The best way to avoid this - and this has to be avoided at all cost - is to take it easy on the throttle.

Once you're able to hug the inside line, stay there until you see the exit from T3R, and then allow the car to drift over to the left under heavy acceleration, following the tiremarks on the track.

This is the exit from the Esses, and you are now entering the Front Straight. This section appears to be fairly easy - the only trouble here is from the car twitching under full acceleration, and getting a wheel on the grass. If that happens, thje cure is simply - get of the throttle until you have regained control.

As you are approaching the Loop, you should have prepared yourself mentally for the difficult entry into that banked corner. Start braking hard when that advertising sign on the left just disappears out of your peripheral vision. Break briefly, until you are a little closer to the beginning of the dip. At that point, released the brake partially. How substantially you release it depends on how well you can handle the car's instability when diving into the dip.

Try to drive across the crest in a line that already points towards the inside of the track at the entry into the Loop, but make sure you got the steering done before the road actually falls away underneath your car. The car will become very light and unstable for a moment; depending on how close at the limit you are driving, you will be able to wait safely until everything has settled down, or you will have to resume the braking and steering even slightly before the car has settled down again.

It may be a good idea to at that point, if you _have_ to resume braking early, actually be prepared to steer to the left a little, although the corner goes into the other direction. But you'll hav to see what your car actually does there. I _always_ enter the Loop while steering to the left - I have to.

The Loop can be roughly divided into two sections - in the first section, you're either still bleeding off some speed and then continue to the middle of the Loop at a diminishing speed while drifting over to the lap, or if you entered slower, you'll be on a line parallel to the tire marks without drifting too much.

In either case, you should enter the second section of the Loop from the left, in order to be able to cut the corner and accelerate as early as possible from the inside of the Loop into the Back Straight, drifting back over to the left again. I know you're creatively moving away from and back onto the ideal line indicated by the tiremarks, but this is what I have found to be a good compromise between speed and safety.

The Back Straight ends when you enter the Speed Trap. This is a full speed corner. Pull over from the right to the left early, so that you go through at least half of the Speed Trap on the inside, on the tiremarks.

After the Speed Track, there's a point where the tiremarks are somewhat interrupted, and then they begin to blacken again. Start braking just after they begin to be real dark again. Almost immediately after beginning to brake, you should begin to move over to the right very carefully, towards the right hand side of the track at the entry into the Big Bend.

The Big Bend seems to be fairly intimidating, as it causes the car to slide somewhat for an unknown reason briefly after entry. The solution is to enter the corner on the right hand side and stay there. This corner in the beginning always deceived my about its real ideal line, and about the real course it takes. In order to determine the ideal line for you, it may help you to look at this corner in the track map. It is actually a very straightforward, classical corner, and by following the tiremarks you can't go wrong here.

That little left hander between Big Bend and the "90" needs to be exited on the left. The goal is to drive a straight line between the exit of the left hander and the right hand curb at the entry into the "90", to give you a straight line for optimal braking which also leads you to the optimal entry point for the "90".

So, you should try to prepare yourself and the car for this by driving a line out of the Big Bend which takes you and the car to that exit of the left hander on a course, bearing and attitude that supports that important task of finding that straight line, rather than impeding it.

The "90" is on of those corner where you need to be fairly slow, and - most important - you need to _coast_ through most of that hairpin. Go around the hairpin on the right hand side, and once you can see the s/f straight, point the car towards the left hand side of the track somewhere on the straight (select a point not too far away from the corner) and start accelerating as early, but smoothly.

Here you go - good luck!

Zandvoort - Ice Skating with Antje

By Achim Trensz

For you English speaking folks, that's pronounced "Unt-ye" (as in "ye old folks").

The key to Zandvoort is to be easy on the throttle, and to adapt to what's happening rather than sticking to what you intended. Zandvoort is too slippery and tricky to always be on the line, or for the car to always do what you intended it to do.

Another important aspect at Zandvoort with its long sequences of corners is to understand that it's not the ideal line through one corner that makes you fast, but the optimal line and speeds through the entire sequence of corners.

Consider this: whenever there are several corners line up like pearls on a necklace, you can only take one or two of these on an ideal line, because using the ideal line in one corner will probably to some extent compromise your entry into the following corner, either because you enter the following corner from the wrong track position, or with the car pointing in a less than optimal direction, or at too high a speed for the following corner.

In each case, you'll enter that following corner in a less than optimal way, although you may succeed in regaining the ideal line for a corner further down the sequence. Another alternative is that you'll lose it altogether and limp through the remaining corners like an ox suffering from mad cow disease ;)

The solution is - don't look for the ideal line through only one corner, but look for the best compromise that gets you through all corners in a sequence. At the end of a sequence of 10 corners, it's not the time between corner 1 and 3 that counts, but the time you need from entering corner 1 to exiting from corner 10.

At a track like Zandvoort, another capability is substantial. You'll be sliding around a lot, and during the race, it will get crowded on that narrow track. Passing is difficult and usually requires the cooperation of your opponents. It may be a good idea to negotiate passing rules before the race, and it is definitely a good idea to take time when you come up to a competitor and wait for a decent passing opportunity, rather than make a breakneck pass. Keep in mind that your opponent has the same problem controlling his car as you have with yours, and sometimes can't avoid careening across the track even if he wants to.

In the light of the above described circumstances, make sure your setup allow you to put the car exactly where you want it, and allows accurate driving.

As I said, the driving is a search for compromises, combined with self-restraint. T1R is very long, so make sure to get in a good position for accelerating as early as possible into the subsequent straight. When entering it, you'll brake fairly far into it. Somewhere near the apex you may want to hang the car's rear end out a little to position the car in such a way as to allow you to accelerate out of T1R as early as possible. When accelerating out of T1R, aim for the left hand side of the little hill that is part of T2L.

Before you reach that point described above, flick the car slightly into the corner carefully, and try to have the steering wheel returned as far as possible to neutral before you brake. Lift off the brake briefly while passing the peak of that little hill at the apex of T2L, then continue to brake towards T3R. Enter T3R on the right hand side, get off the brake early, and coast through T3R. Try to use the car's understeering tendency to avoid the right hand curb, don't accelerate until you're sure you can avoid the left hand curb. Being off the throttle here is faster than accelerating early.

In T4L, don't forget that braking makes the car understeer - so find the right combination of braking and coasting to get through this turn. A good brakemarker is where the tiremarks get dark. If you're too fast, you may try to induce a little slide - that'll slow you down more than just braking. However, try not to go too far to the right - that's the longer way and also take more time. Stay more or less in the middle of the track or to the left of the track center. When you've reached the apex, prepare the car for the exit from that corner by hanging the tail out slightly, so that at the apex of the second half of that hairpin, the car is pointed towards the right hand side of the track a few metres after the end of the corner.

Then, begin to accelerate carefully, and once you've left the corner and the car is safely pointed to a point to the left of the track center on the subsequent hill, shift into second and accelerate hard.

Cross the hill slightly to the left of the center of the track, and prepare yourself to bring the car to the right just behind the crest for T5R.

Enter T6L from the right, but pull over in such a way that your left hand front wheel stays to the left of the tiremarks until past the apex. The car's understeering tendency, which you can control using the throttle, will do the work for you. That's not easy, especially since the car is difficult to control. You'll have to get off the throttle to be able to follow the line cleanly, and back on to push the car around the apex. It is important to leave this corner fairly far on the left hand side, to find the right line through the subsequent two corners.

T7R is the twin brother of T6L, in a way. You also have to pull over to the right early, the tiremarks show you exactly where. This time, though, you'll slide over to the left. Use the throttle to move over to the left - the car will drift over willingly.

T8R is entered from the left, but you should allow the car to follow gravity into the groove quickly. As you get off the throttle and brake, your rear end will do part of the steering for you when you enter the corner. Stay on the groove until you're more than halfway through, then hang out your tail a little (just for fun ;) and begin accelerating carefull while the car drifts over to the left.

Aim for the left hand side of the road just before the crest of the little hill that is also T9L. Keep accelerating hard until you are back at sea level again, then shift back into third (if you got as far as fourth here) and again, steer over to the left plenty early and get off the throttle as you coast through T11L (T10L was at the bottom of the hill just behind you).

Between T11L and T12R, it is important to keep the car steady. You have to enter T12R immediately after you've made it out of T11L. Move over carefully, but early, and keep the throttle in a 40% position - or as much as you can safely handle. Steer over to the right decidedly - do not procrastinate too long, and use the throttle to push the car around the apex.

T13R is also taken by steering to the right plenty early. Begin steering to the right where the tiremarks begin. The car's understeering tendency, which you can control using the throttle, once again will do the work for you. You'll probably take this corner in fourth.

Enter T14R on the left, brake slightly where the tiremarks start, and use the sliding rear end to bleed off any excess speeds. This is a standard corner, the only thing to make sure is to not steer in late, but rather early.

The same applies to T15L, whose racing apex is pretty much near its entrance, because once again the car's understeering tendency will bring the front end around the apex despite your steering in early, unless you're too slow. This is not a very slidy corner - you should be fast but the car should be fairly stable.

The next little crest is your brake marker. Brake on it or slightly before it - maybe one car length, and make sure the car is pointed somewhere not too far to the right, but is positioned nicely in the middle of the track. That should make you end up somewhere in the middle of the track of the final right hander, as you slide across the crest while off the throttle and off the brakes simultaneously.

After you see where you ended up, use throttle, brake and wheel to carry the car around the corner, and there you are.

Make sure you get clean acceleration here, using the full length of the track, because the long straight needs high entry speeds if you want good laptimes. Use the old trick - hand the tail out a little to allow you to accelerate a little earlier, or drive a wider line just before the final section of this long right hander to be able to accelerate a little earlier through the final section of the corner.

As you approach T1R again, make sure to not brake where the tiremarks start - they start approximately two car lengths too early.