i say we go with a tire choice like f1 uses, where we have 2 compounds for the race and have to use both compounds for at least one stint during the race. Maybe go with hard/medium or medium/soft. Should make things interesting.
definitely agree with shaun's suggestion of using f1 tire rules.
The issue with Tires for a Wednesday race (as opposed to a special event) comes down to practice time available. The TT is on Softs, and if we introduce multiple compounds then all drivers will need to practice on them in addition to adjusting to online physics. That may not be entirely possible for all drivers and could leave many with a serious competitive disadvantage. This is already a very tough combo and making it even tougher is not really in the spirit of the Weekly races which are an extension of the TT as opposed to being a full on race event.
And it wouldn't be spa without changing weather, would it?
And it wouldn't be fun
GT5's weather system is essentially uncontrollable (for example, you can't tell the system to start with sunny skies, rain for 15 minutes in the midle and clear back up for the finish). And even if you could, it would add a dimension to the race that is not in the TT and would require a
lot ton of extra practice from all drivers.
the fuji na start was a prime piece of goat copulation, but i'm down with a grid start for this one. Can't really get around the factor mentioned above either way unless we did a rolling start on kemmel, and where's the fun in that?
The Fuji start was messy on several levels. It's not very often one gets that messy, but Fuji does have a habit of making turn 1, and the run to it very shaky. It's the dragstrip effect compounded by a very wide track that makes drivers feel comfortable going 3-4 wide, only to find out they have to actually turn....
And I agree 100% that a rolling start on Kemmel would just be terribly .... uninspiring. We have run race cars at Spa before with a grid start and it worked out really well. It was tight, but not as tight as it may seem due to the run off area. Not to be used for gaining positions, but certainly to avoid contact. We will definitely hold practice sessions with standing starts to be sure it works.
The standing start idea at the moment involves a warm up lap, with the drivers taking their grid positions at the end of the lap - just like in real life.
The Race clock will need to be the start timer in this case as all drives will need to have the exact same reference to ensure a proper start.
When the race clock (not lap time) hits 3 minutes (just an example for now, it could be 3:30, only a test will tell what works best) the race will start.
A similar start system was used in GTPlanet's GT5 Prologue online races and it worked very well 👍
I do agree that there are so many F1 rules / regulations that could be implemented here, but for the sake of ensuring a fun, and accessible Wednesday race the overall struture for this one will need to remain relatively simple.
It's going to be tough enough to stay on track for the whole hour as it is. I don't think any of the registered drivers have ever competed in an online F1 race - a guess, but I'd bet on it if I had to