It’s been more than a year since I wrote here and it saddens me that we couldn’t do more seasons after the 2009 Summer Cup. I have fond memories of that Championship and we had some great racing despite the low number of participants.
The lack of proper and easy-to-use tools for results and season management, and export to website format, has put me off about organizing further series. This, as well as myself and Oliver being very busy, meant that THOR just had to go into hibernation for indefinite amount of time.
Anyway, I’ve not been away from simracing and had done some enjoyable rFactor mod testing, producing some nice to watch onboard laps on Youtube. Here is a link to my channel where you can see all of them:
Well, folks, now that our first Championship (if I may call it that) is over, it’s time to take a break and think about it a bit. It was just 2 and a half months ago when we began, but there have been a lot of ups and downs during this time. Regardless, it can’t be denied that despite the low number of attendants, we sure had some great racing along the way.
Of course, I would probably have to begin with an appology of not being the greatest host at times, but it seems I’m still failing to separate racing from administration and that leads to complications. Lesson learned for the future, hopefully.
As for the Summer Cup itself, I think we had a very appropriate choice of tracks and apart from a few glitches, it all went pretty much without complications. Of course, we can’t ignore the problematic rolling starts that strained the nerves of everyone on each of the 3 ovals we ran, especially the last race. As much as most of us would like to have it realistic, if we don’t find a solution that will allow us to have easy and troublefree rolling starts, they’ll have to be dropped for the future.
Looking ahead, we’re considering a change of format based on the observations from this past few months. Although it seemed plausible initially, it came obvious that running a different event each week is too hectic. Not just that, but two races per event as well. So for next season it’s very likely we’ll have just a single race each 2 weeks. Just like most leagues (oh no, our uniqueness is gone, lol). We’re also considering making the races a bit longer, so pitstops would play a role everywhere, not just on ovals.
Of course, we’re going to upgrade to the full release of CART Factor, that’s beyond question. Personally I haven’t tried the mod yet, but I have faith it’s an improvement of Prologue, so… well, it better be! On the tracks side, there hasn’t been any discussion yet.
As for the car choice, since the full release has 18 teams now, we’re willing to assign different cars to different drivers and not allow any car changes once that’s done. It would be both to equalize the field as much as possible by giving faster cars to slower drivers and vice versa, as well as having a colorful and realistic field of cars.
Well, that’s it for now, folks! While you’re taking a break off THOR (that may last a month or more), enjoy some of the Highilights of the season captured on video:
Well, folks, it’s time for the 10th round of our 2009 Summer Cup and with the last minute change of venue from Surfers Paradies to the 2 mile D-shaped Michigan super oval, it’s all set for the grand finale!
While the track itself appears to be a no brainer, the high speed combined with the Handford device chassis is a prelude to a fiercely competitive racing and a lot of passes in and out of the high banked corners.
A few words on setup, it’s a typical strongly assymetrical setting with the special super speedway wings set at a very low angle to reduce the drag. Tire pressures are run high to help with the drag even more and the ride height is just high enough to avoid scraping the road, particularly during banking transitions.
While the lap lasts around half a minute and is done completely on full throttle, there are a certain lines that can give you that final hundred of a second which can make the difference from 5th to 1st on the grid.
The lap begins on the slightly curving s/f straight and it’s comfortable to keep a middle line as you go past the main grand stands. Eventually that will send you to the right and near the wall so you can get a nice wide curve into turn 1.
It’s important to turn in on time so you don’t scrub much speed readjusting your line inside the corner. Go down near the line, but not closer than you need to prevent the car from slowing too much.
T2 and the exit should be done gradually without any sudden movements and you need to straighten up as early as possible, aligning paralel with the wall.
Nothing fancy about the back straight, so your only job is to focus on getting a good line into T3. Turn in early as the banking starts to increase its angle, so you get sucked into the leu.
Again as in T1, stay down low, but not too much. As you enter T4, begin to unwind the steering wheel a bit earlier because the track widens up on the exit and you should use the whole road, nearly touching the wall on the outside.
Don’t straighten up yet though, keep turning slightly so you go across toward the infield which would allow you to take a straight line until the s/f line. This will help the car build up a little more speed and give you an advantage compared to taking the outer line but having to turn slightly all the time because of the curving track.
Well, that’s it, folks, hope you have a good race!
The venue for the 9 round of the 2009 Summer Cup provides excellent conditions for classic racing. Despite its low average speed, the track offers quite a challenge for the drivers and cars with its bumpy, narrow road. The long slow and medium speed corners are intersected by long fast straights and that poses a challenge for finding the right balance in the car setup.
The lap itself begins on a rather lengthy piece of road that is also used for drag racing. As you cross the start finish line in 6th gear, the top speeds reach around the 180 mph mark before braking hard for the slowest part of the track. The braking point is a tricky one to pick here as it quite depends on how much are you willing to risk on the entry to T1, but somewhere between the 400 and 300 marks seems to work best.
T1 itself is a slow 90 degree right followed by a near hairpin left. You can cut the entry well enough, but take care not to do it too much and unsettle the car of the outside edge of the curb. There are also some big bumps here, especially near the apex and also all the way through the left hander, so well positioned car and a little bit of throttle helps carry the speed without sliding too much. The whole section is taken in 2nd gear and although the road widens on the exit, it’s better not use the full width of the track or you’ll be forced to sacrifice some speed to tackle the next right hander.
Because of the heavy acceleration and change of road surface, plus the narrowing of the road, you have to be extra careful when going around this short right bend. What works quite well is slightly lifting up the throttle as you shift up to 3rd and then operate carefuly with the steering wheel – any wrong movement here would disturb the front end too much and possible cause a spin.
Up to 4th or even 5th depending on your gear ratios, the next double right hand corner can be quite deceiving on entry. It appears wide and fast, but if you don’t turn and lift up early enough you’d be visiting some greenery for a while. Despite its double apex nature, you have to stick relatively close to the inside all the time, staying in 4th gear, then accelerate carefuly past the 2nd apex.
The following two bends appear to be similar, but offer a different amount of grip. Both are taken in 3rd gear, but the righthander has a good camber slope at its apex that allows you to carry more speed. Apart from a bump near the entry of the turn, the rest of it is relatively smooth and you can accelerate earlier. Carrying a lot of speed here is key point and you end up sacrificing the entry to the left hander, but that’s ok and it’s faster overall to do it that way.
The left turn is quite segmented and complex. You really need to brake and turn in it very early, else the bumps and off camber on the outside would send you wide. The inside is more comfortable though and once you tuck in it will keep your car near the curb. Despite the turn opening on exit, you have to be patient with your acceleration and wait until you’re pointing as straight as possible, mostly due to the slight crest there that lifts the car up a bit.
Once you get back on full throttle, go left as much as possible to get a good entry for the following long right that resembles the previous two bends, except it tightens in its curve. Nothing special here, except you need to focus on getting as good exit as possible for the following fast bit where it’s all about top speed. Be careful to avoid riding the curbs and short shift into 4th if you must to avoid a wheelspin in the slightly curved section before the straight.
The speeds reach around the 180 mph mark again here, in 6th gear, followed by a very fast, almost flat out, left and right chicane. The first part is taken flat out, but you need to time your entry perfectly, otherwise you’d be forced to lift up to correct. Use as much of the inside curb as possible to straighten the curve. The right hander tightens and the road narrows a bit, so you need to go down a gear or two as you’re turning in, lifting up slightly in the process.
As soon as you come out of that and go towards the outside of the track, start braking and change down to 3rd for the final corner. A good entry point for this one is just before the outside curb starts on the left side. Trail braking deeply into this corner helps a lot and you can also use a bit of its inside curb if needed. The acceleration out of this one is cruical so you need to time it right and do it smoothly. Watch for the end of the wall that runs around the outside of the bend – as soon as your frontend points towards the end of it, you can begin your acceleration and unwind the steering wheel. Be careful with the two bumps that can unsettle a car if it’s not positioned straight enough.
Nearly brush the wall on the outside and complete the lap, preferably under one minute!
The Sun and dust are ever present when it comes to racing around Laguna Seca, one of the best American circuits, nested on one of the many hills in Monterey California. A real test to the driver’s bravery and skill, as well as mental and physical preparation, it takes a special approach if you’re to do well here.
But before you can properly do a whole race, you have to be able to do a single lap right, right? The lap begins on a higher part of the track, with the start finish straight leading to two left hand kinks, each of which go over a crest and downhill. As you accelerate continuously and up into 6th gear going around this part, it’s time for the difficult braking and turn in of T1.
There are different lines possible for the taking in T1 and especially in racing conditions while fighting with other cars, but for what seems to be close to an ideal line, it is the one that goes a bit wide on entry, skipping the first apex of this double corner, then straightening up the second part of the turn and clipping the second apex before flooring it out. All that is done in 2nd gear and care must be taken to avoid running wide on the exit as the road tightens.
Up to 3rd gear before going down to 2nd again for the following left hander. Despite it’s simple layout, the corner is nearly flat and that can take away the car’s rearend grip if you’re not careful, especially under throttle on the exit. The curbs are rather narrow, so using them carries the risk of going over the dirt and sand on the outside.
Accelerating up to 4th gear before the next fast right. Fast, but also very slippery and with a lot of chances to get it wrong and have an off. It’s important to neither turn too early or too late in this one, or you risk losing a lot of time having to lift off to avoid spinning off onto the dusty offside.
You accelerate up to 5th before the next 3rd gear left hander that sets the start of the long climb up the hill. It’s a really nice corner as it has some banking and the car is stable around it, but it’s very easy to go wide if you don’t turn in on time, so precision is essential here. You can get on the throttle very early and clip the curb on the exit without much worry, although there’s a slight dip which might cause some oversteer if you’re not going in a straight enough line.
The next bend is one of the most difficult on the track and a real challenge for the driver. You arrive in 5th gear at very high speed to what is a little plateu where all your visibility is reduced to zero for a second and that’s when you need to turn in. The more you practice, the more confident you can feel about this corner, which is taken with a slight lift off the throttle, but it’s important to pick a good reference point for turning in. In these particular cars, the 200 mark on the right works rather good. You can cut over the inside curb relatively safe here, but doing it too much would compromise your exit and therefore your top speed on the following straight.
Straight is not exactly what it is, as the road weaves slightly left and right as it goes up the hill and over the two crests, but it is taken flat out, that’s for sure. The trees and bill boards on the side go in a flash as the speeds reach very high levels here and the narrow road makes it feel even faster. What follows next is one of the most difficult braking zones in the world, the one that leads into Corkscrew.
You have to start braking before the crest at the highest altitude point of the circuit and be careful not to lock up as the front end gets lighter for a second as it goes over. Continuing to brake heavily and down to 1st gear, you need to turn in slightly earlier and drift into the furrow of this insanely steep left hand chicane. Once you go into it, the car is very easy to unsettle, so stepping back on the throttle has to wait a bit. A short shift up to 2nd works very well here.
Another fast part follows and it keeps going downhill, with a left hander that tightens on the exit, so a very late apex is the best line you can take. The camber of the corner varies throughout its length, so you have to feather the throttle at some points to avoid losing the rearend of the car. That is particularly true on the exit as you clip the outside curb.
Short straight leading to the next right hander which you can take in either 3rd or 4th, depending on your setup. It is a very nice corner, with a lot of banking that keeps the car at bay, but you have to turn earlier than what seems right. If you do that, you can floor the throttle quite early and gain a good speed before the last turn.
The braking for the last corner can be a problem, but you better do it a bit early than risk drifting wide and going off into the sand. Again, using the distance signs on the road side gives some good reference points if you’re to do it consistently lap after lap. The corner itself is a 1st gear sharp left hander, which has relatively high grip, but the exit is a place where it’s very easy to spin off if you don’t time your acceleration right.
Once you gain enough traction from the rear tires, you go up the gears and complete the lap. That was fun, wasn’t it!
It is no wonder that they call it the American Spa Francorchamps, it’s for a really good reason. One of the few remaining brutally fast tracks of the past, without modifications to slow it down with chicanes or sharper corners. To be fast here on a consistent basis requires perfectly balanced aerodynamic setup of the car and at the same time good mechanical settings for the slower bits. The gearing is also very important and it’s often impossible to set your gear ratios to match all corners, so you have to do some compromises.
The lap begins with a change from 5th to 6th just as you cross the s/f line and accelerate up to and above 300 km/h before turn one.
The first corner of the track is a real test for your skills as it’s seriously fast and narrow, with no much rumble strip to play with on the edge of the road. You brake very late, almost into the corner, change down 2 gears and turn later than you feel is correct. This is to avoid going wide on the exit where the the corner radius becomes a bit smaller. It’s very easy to step onto the grass in this turn, both on the inside and outside, so special care has to be taken to avoid that.
As you accelerate up to 5th before T2, the track goes downhill and then flat again. You brake where the slope ends and change down into 3rd for the medium speed right. It’s important to turn early here or you risk drifting wide on the exit. The relatively flat and broad curbing on the inside and outside act as a buffer that you can use to your advantage. You can accelerate quite early out of this corner.
What follows is one of the fastest parts of the track, a slightly weaving straight that goes downhill near its end. What follows after this is the slower corner of the track, a very slow left that tightens on its exit. You brake hard at around the 300 mark and shift down into 2nd or 1st, depending on your gearing. It helps to turn in a bit earlier than you feel is right, and go over the inside curb. The car naturally drifts wide on the exit and it’s important to be patient with the throttle application at this point as it’s easy to get a wheelspin and spin off.
The track goes uphill very steeply at this point and passes under a bridge into a 90 degree left that’s relatively slow. What makes it tricky is that the road becomes flat once more as you tackle the corner, so turning early and using as much of the curbs as possible helps to avoid drifting too wide into the grass.
Once you have stabilized the car, it’s maximum attack into the next fast right that goes downhill, taken into 4th gear. You have to be very precise here and neither turn too much or too little as there is really just one safe line through the turn. Depending on the car you may be able to use the inside curb, but normally it unsettles the car too much.
The following downhill straight leads to another 90 degree left that you need to brake hard for and turn in early, using as much of the inside curb as possible. The exit can be deceiving and if you accelerate too early you will find yourself into the grass. You can use the flat broad rumble strip on the outside, but take care to return to the track on time before you hit the grass edges.
The following corner is an endless 180 degree right hander that is taken in 4th gear. Flat out early on, it goes downhill slightly and you need to lift up the throttle to regain some front end grip there. Once the car is stabilized and positioned on the outside, you accelerate hard and turn back toward the inside, touching the 2nd apex before exiting the turn and changing into 5th.
Another very fast section follows, with a narrow right hand kink that is taken flat out in 6th. Nothing difficult here, but it can be an issue if you’re following another car.
The next corner is approached at maximum speed in 6th gear and as you brake at around the 300 mark, going down to 3rd or 2nd, you have to turn very early as there’s lack of grip around this bend. The car drifts as you decelerate into and past the apex, before hitting the throttle once you’re pointing straight on the exit.
The following right and left handers are taken flat out, though the 2nd one could pose a problem with more fuel or unbalanced car. Staying in gear helps here, even if you run out of RPM, as any gear changes disrupt the balance of the chassis.
And so onto the last corner, a real skill tester! It begins with a slightly curving straight, followed by a constantly closing radius that forms a medium speed 90 degree right hander. It’s easy to go off during braking here, as well as it’s easy to miss the apex of the corner. You brake at around 250 mark and start turning while braking, and that goes on until the apex. In other words, a major trail braking exercise! It’s nice if you manage to use the inside curb for this corner, but it’s often difficult to judge it right. Special care must be taken on the exit and although there is a wide curb that you can use, it is rather short in length, so you must return back onto the tarmac as soon as possible.
No corners left until the end of the lap, but the amazingly steep section that leads to the s/f line should be taken with the car positioned perfectly straight, otherwise you risk unsettling it when it loses downforce for a second over the crest. Not that it can spin you around or something, but it would lose some straight line speed.
Hello folks, this time it’s a real gem in the world of motorsports – Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The 4 corner quad oval with such a vast history, both glorious and tragic.
On the surface – not much to be seen during a single lap. But as soon as you actually get to drive around, a lot of details become evident. Factors that make or break (literally!) a run.
Since we’re using the Super Speedway spec of the cars here, with the Handford device that significantly reduces top speed by increasing the drag (with hope of easier passing), the track becomes quite different. The top speeds don’t exceed 370 km/h on a lone run, thus making the corners flat out as long as you have a decent setup and take the appropriate lines around.
As for the layout itself, T1 and T3 are very similar, if not identical, as are T2 and T4. With mirror profile in from and out to the long straights, you have to apply mirror approach to each corner in succession. OK, this probably sounds confusing, so here in detail.
Approaching T1 at full speed, you have to delay your turn in as the banking is steeper on entry and there is a lot of grip. Past the middle point of the corner the banking goes lower though, so the front develops a lot of understeer. That’s why you need to turn later, get a late apex and cut accross to avoid being sent into the outside wall on the exit. If you just miss the line by a bit, it’s really difficult to avoid collision, even if you scrub off a lot of speed.
For T2 you have to do the opposite – turn early, compensating for the lack of proper banking on entry. Then start unwinding the steering wheel as soon as you feel more grip coming to the front end of the car. You want to maximize the exit speed, so the earlier you go wider and straighter, the better.
Some zzz… exercise and a few seconds later you arrive at T3, which, as mentioned above, is quite identical to T1, though it seems that it has slightly less grip on exit. So delay your entry again, then cut accross and down towards the inside and don’t unwind the steering early or you’ll kiss the wall. T4 is similar to T2, try to turn early, but not too early or you’ll go over the inside curb (bad!), then open the corner as soon as the front grips more and you feel the steering wheel become lighter.
Well, that’s it, one lap around Indy. While it may not feel too exciting during a sole run, it should provide plenty of overtaking and wheel to wheel action during a race. Isn’t that what we’re all looking for? Keep the answer for yourself, but it’s not a fluke why Indianapolis stands out above the hundreds of oval tracks out there.
The early race is fast becoming the wild card run with 4 different winners in 4 different rounds. This week’s run on Clevelands airport circuit would definitely provide opportunity for another surprize winner.
Through qualifying this seemed unlikely as Hristo looked like he had the course and competition well in hand as he dipped into the 56s to snatch pole. Behind him Guillaume, Dom, Lorenzo, Oliver and Dave all lined up.
The drama for the oAo Airfield GP began even before the green flag was waved. Guillaume, partaking in a bit too much pre-race tea, nipped off to find a port-a-potty during the warmup. Little did he know the kind folks at BuffaloBalls had been handing out armfuls of their new energy drink to thirsty fans that scorchingly hot Sunday and as a result of that and BuffaloBalls secret power formula record numbers of fans were hitting the portapots to regain their comfort. As a result, Guillaume missed the start and spent the first 10 laps in line with a screaming bladder. After this he stormed out of his portapotty in search of the BuffaloBalls big wigs only to be stopped at their tents entrance by some scantily clad BuffaloBalls girls. With a little coaxing he was calmed down and treated to a case of free drinks…
While all that was happening there was a race going on across the runways. Dom jumped into the lead as Hristo struggled with his Ipod, stuck on his favorite new band (the J Giles Band) and his favorite new song, Freeze Frame. This all became rather coincidental as it gave way to Hristo’s frames freezing and then thawing in time for him to see the wall rudely crumpling his front suspension before he had even completed a lap. Luckily this got his ipod rolling again and he was able to enjoy the rest of the album with a can of Buffalo Balls behind the wall.
Behind Dom the battle heated up between Dave, Oliver and Lorenzo. Oliver desperately wanted by the two and in the end they both obliged with a bit of synchronized spinning through t1. By this time Dom was well on his way and while Oliver could maintain the gap the damage was done. Dave, trying Oliver’s trick of running oval tires on a street course, was also doing damage. After many panoramic views of the circuit he parked it and sat in the back of the garage drinking BuffaloBalls and eating chicken wings. Lorenzo thought he’d also tear the course up in pursuit of Oliver. He didn’t stop there! He tore his car up as well and soon retired to get in on this free BuffaloBalls before Dave drank them all.
This left Oliver and Dom alone. They toured around and around until Oliver daydreaming that he was at Spa instead of some stupid airfield in the US was shaken back to reality with the sound and sight of his car’s front corner crumpling against the wall. Always believing in symmetry, after a pitstop, Oliver promptly rammed the other front corner of his car into the pit dividing wall. Not interested in BuffaloBalls and without a concern for the pounding his own were taking over the bumps Oliver continued with his wheels all askew. Dom was happy enough to coast around and become the first repeat winner of early races and take the championship lead!
This post was brought to you by BuffaloBalls. The energy drink that gives you balls!
Hello folks, it’s that time of the week again and there’s no time for rest as round 5 draws close. To add to the diversity of venues we run on, this time it’s an airfield based track, the famous Cleveland!
The track is unique, even among the airfield tracks, because of its extremely bumpy surface and fast sweeping bends, uninterrupted by chicanes of any sort. Well, except perhaps the final corner, but it’s more like 2 corners close to one another than a typical “slow down” chicane that you can see on most modern tracks.
The lap starts in 3rd gear as you exit left hander and there is no time to lose as T1 approaches very quickly, so you have to move over to the left as soon as possible to line up well for the braking zone. Despite the short run, you can easily reach 6th gear here.
The toughest braking point on the track, go down to 2nd or 1st, depending on your gearing, and turn early to avoid drifting too wide. Since the track is completely flat, there is no camber to help you make the corners, so it’s necessary to turn earlier into most corners and let the car drift a bit.
Patiently wait to point straight again, opening the throttle gradually and then step on it, going all the way up to 6th on the approach to T2, which is a fast 3rd or 4th gear right hander that gets narrower on its exit. The key here is to brake deep inside the corner and turn a bit later, otherwise you get a bad line for the for the next left.
From here on it gets a bit ugly as the bumps become increasingly more severe, so you have to avoid any sudden throttle and steering applications. Once you position the car for the corner, you just wait until the bumpy zone is over before accelerating away. It’s easy to go wide and onto the grass here, so take caution and time your acceleration well.
The next left is similar to T2, except it’s got a bigger bump and you can’t carry as much speed through it or cut to the inside as much as you would want to. Staying in 3rd gear all the way around this section, you got to line up the following right hander well and be ready for another big bump which delays your acceleration.
As soon as you feel a smooth road again, use as much of the track width as possible and go up to 4th and even 5th gear. The very fast and deceptive right hander that follows is tricky as the track gets narrower on the exit once more, so a good line is important. That’s not always possible because of the track sheer width and it can be difficult to spot the apex on time, so rely on your guts feeling and experience. This section is where the more practice you get, the betterr, and it really makes a difference.
The following right which narrows even more, has the added risk element in the face of a concrete wall on the outside. Hitting that is very easy thing to do, but avoiding it is just a matter of not taking excessive risks and finding a good reference point for acceleration. As long as you don’t carry too much speed into the corner, you can throttle out as soon as you’re past the apex.
Up to 6th towards the final right left combination, past the pit entry (avoid the pit wall that separates the track), it’s a very narrow section with just a single line through it and unfortunately it runs over some huge bumps. It helps to run slightly wide and avoid the biggest bumps that are found right at the apex of both corners, otherwise it’s very likely you’d be spun around.
Accelerate once the car suspension settles and complete the lap! What an exhausting track!
A very tricky and very technical track, Mid-Ohio demands ideal balance of the car setup and precise driving. It really takes no prisoners if you go wrong at any part of the lap. With its slippery curbs you have to keep it on the black stuff as much as possible and be careful with the throttle, especially over the crests and dips.
The lap starts as you exit the last turn in 3rd gear, flat out, and onto the short start finish straight. Accelerating up to 5th, you lift up slightly and turn left just before the bridge at T1, which is a fiercely fast sweeping bend. It’s important to avoid riding the inside curb as well as not going too wide on the exit. The sooner you accelerate, the better.
From there on the track goes slightly up hill as you accelerate toward T2, possibly shifting to 6th depending on your gearing. T2 is a 180 degrees corner, with a dip in the middle which can send you wide if you’re not careful. It’s important to brake late, but point the car toward the late apex as soon as possible. That way you can floor the throttle early and achieve high speed on the fastest part of the track that is about to follow.
From 2nd up to 6th gear on this very fast section ,which goes slightly downhill and curves to the right (not really counting this as a corner), you approach T3 at around the 300 km/h mark and brake very late and deep into the sweeping right hander which offers a lot of grip, but can also be deceiving as it tightens up hill. It’s important not to run too wide on the exit so you can have a good line for the next corner, the slowest part of the course.
T4 goes over a steep hill and it’s really easy to be thrown wide there as the front end loses grip, so you got to turn in as early as possible and decelerate intensively. The exit can be tricky as the rear end of the car can snap around as the track plunges downhill, along with the bumpy surface that requires some patience before applying the throttle.
T5 looks faster than it is and it’s also low grip, so you can short shift to 3rd there and accelerate toward the next left right combination that goes up and down another crest. Another short shift is often needed here to avoid sudden wheelspin as the downforce level changes because of the undulations.
Approaching T8, one of the hardest corners on the track, you go down from 4th to 3rd, braking and turning earlier, before the uphill road takes away your front end downforce and cause some understeer. It’s very important to carry as much speed as possible here without running wide and at the same time without going over the inside curb. As the car goes over the crest the throttle is held half open, otherwise you risk spinning out of control because of the low grip available at that moment.
Once the car goes past the crest you can step onto the gas again and accelerate up to 5th toward the next hill and brake very late for the fast narrow left hander on top of yet another crest. It’s taken in 4th and as soon as you point towards the apex you step on the throttle full time again.
The final two corners are extremely technical and can catch the careless off-guard. Although it feels logical to take a wider line on entry and then turn late for the tightening right hander, the better line is on the inside. You turn in early and brake at the same time, staying near the curb and going over the banked strip that covers the road there.
The final corner is completely dependent on the exit of the previous one and with a good line and stable car it can be taken flat out. That completes the lap of Mid-Ohio!
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