DP. So here's my almost fully formed idea for a handicap series which should promise fun racing with a variety of winners/placings. I wanted to do it with MR cars, but it works in principle with anything.
First: some history. UKGTPs have historically run a handicap series where there are a set selection of vehicles, everyone starts in the fastest, and if you win a race, you graduate into the next SLOWEST vehicle. Eventually, someone gets into the slowest vehicle of all (usually a lot slower than the prior one), and the first to win in that slowest car wins the event.
Well, this idea is like that, except turned on its head, and completely open for vehicles.
I call it: The Snowballin' Handicap System.
You start off with a PP Limit - and you can choose a lowly kei car, say, to suit that. Let's say the limit is 350PP, and you add an exhaust and sports ROM/computer to get it there.
Now you go race with (say) six friends. When you place, you take your position multiplied by "a fudge factor", and add that number to your personal PP limit. If you placed third, and the week/race's factor is 3, then 3*3=9, your new PP limit is 359. The winner will be on (350+1*3=) 353, last place will be on (350+7*3=) 371.
Everyone uses power adders to tune their car up to their new PP limit, and then we start race two! The PP change for last can be a substantial jump - but you can pretty much guarantee the placings won't be the same for race two...
After the week's round of three races, if you're awesome, you'd be on 359, and the ubersuckiest racer would be on 413 - but that's highly unlikely. Race controller can adjust how fast the PP limits rise with the fudge factor. 3 is pretty fast, 2 is probably adequate - and good with larger fields of drivers, 1 probably doesn't work quickly enough - especially for small fields.
The increase in PP limit for everyone lends the name - the scores have snowballed!
What it does mean is that the car you chose at the beginning of the week might not be able to cope with all the PP you're throwing at it. Hence, change the car! Car choice would be open given the basic rules (e.g. MR street cars, power mods only) and you are free to change your car at any point whatsoever - as long as you don't break your PP limit.
As for winners, well, I don't care too much. There could be some fancy formula which figures out who has had the least PP increase throughout the series/consistently highest placing... but the point is we have a lot of close, fun, varied racing around a theme... a handicap!
If anyone wants to try this out, I'd like to seed the first race, so 'LIKE' this post to show interest, and have a play with this:
Buy/select a Hommell Berlinette R/S and get in it.
Oil it. Check you are completely stock in settings, PP should be 402
Arcade Single Player / Time Trial / Original / Cape Ring South (page 3 top centre).
Track Settings / Grip Reduction / Real
Driving Options / Only ABS and Driving Line allowed in aids.
Car Settings / BUY S/H, C/S, and C/M tyres... then set front as C/S, rears as S/H.
Otherwise, the car should be totally stock, don't change anything (not even brake settings.)
A. Do a few laps, then set yourself a clean time.
B. Now swap to C/M fronts, C/S rears, and do a few more laps, then set a clean time.
C. Estimate an 'average clean' time from the session you preferred driving in.
PM me these three times; e.g. "A) 1m32.425 B) 1m35.742 C) I preferred the CM/CS session, low/mid 1m36s."
The little coupe is a nice drive. It's pretty safe around Cape Ring South on the CS/SH, but it's mighty fun with CM/CS.
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