Nazareth Level II Setups and Comments

Enclosed are my setups for Nazareth (nazaqual.stg and
nazarace.stg).  Noting the bizarre results of that race, I
thought I would share some general comments and strategy.  It's
not my intention to come across as patronizing, condescending,
egotistical, or whatever...these are just some thoughts I wanted
to share; thoughts that crossed my mind as I went from crashing
every race the weekend before last to winning every race a few
days later.  These suggestions may be a little too abstract for
practical application, but hopefully they'll give you something
to think about. As I wrecked car after car, I began to break the
problems at Nazareth down into three groups: wrecking myself
(oversteer or understeer), failure to hold a line when going
through crowded corners 2-3 cars wide (getting trapped in a
pack), and failure to make a clean pass. The first problem I
attacked was my inability to simply drive around the track
without hitting the wall.  Doing this 176 times as fast as
possible actually requires some amount of concentration and a
good setup.  The setup I uploaded is much faster than any
competitor you'll face in the Level II competition.  I tuned the
front wing to stay in the groove running flat through turn 2. 
If it was going to push, it would happen there.  I tuned the
rear wing to turn 3.  I wanted to be able to draft down the
backstretch and pass sharply inside T3 without oversteering.  My
final race setup seemed to handle both these areas quite well. 
I had no problems with the tires and I never touched the sway
bars. The next problem was avoiding accidents that resulted from
getting trapped in a pack.  You'll be cruising along gaining on
the field, when you hit a pack of 5-6 cars completely blocking
the track.  Don't even think about getting in that mess...don't
even get close!  In a trial race, I was shadowing a pack of 6 (3
wide, 2 deep) into T3, when one of the guys in back hit a guy in
front...it was chaotic; cars went everywhere!  I had been
hanging back and safely scooted on by with 5 less competitors to
worry about (1 car survived).  The point is to hang loose -
they'll break up one way or another.  Sometimes it's just lead
cars passing backmarkers and it'll thin out in a lap or two. 
The problem then comes when a car approaches you from behind. 
The natural reaction is to race forward and into the pack to get
away.  If you can't get by the pack, the car then closes in
behind you and you're trapped in.  A safer solution is to just
get out of the way and let him by.  I watched cars dash by me
and charge into the middle of a pack, forcing it into smaller,
more manageable groups of 1 or 2 cars...let your opponents do
that sort of dirty work. That brings me to the obvious problem
of safely passing.  More than anything else, this requires you
to know the limitations of your setup on a particular track:
under what circumstances can you pass with a 100% chance of
success, when can you make a risky pass, and when should you
hold position?  This just takes alot of practice.  Of course,
you can pass along the stretches...catch a draft, hold it for a
second, and sling past on the inside.  You can also easily pass
on the inside of the second apex of T3.  The groove goes wide
there (and so do your opponents) and you can easily turn inside
it...I did most of my passing here.  Always look ahead and make
sure you have room to run after the pass...what's the point in
passing if it's going to put you behind a pack and trap you in? 
Don't pass on the outside at all - it's simply not worth the
risk.  If you pass inside two cars running side-by-side, watch
the car on the OUTSIDE, as well as the car in the middle.  When
you pass the middle car, you might find yourself neck and neck
with the guy that was on the outside and you'll have to take the
upcoming turn wheel-to-wheel...again, not worth the risk. 
Always try and force the competitors to yield to you: if you
approach another car in just the right way going into a turn,
the other car will deliberately turn wide, letting you inside. 
Even the race leaders will do this...there's no risk and you
gain a position or two.  The point here is don't take any
unnecessary chances.  Every time you pass someone, you risk
losing the entire race to gain a single position...make sure you
minimize that risk.  With 176 laps, you have plenty of time to
pass only 15 cars. As I used these techniques and concentrated
on just surviving the race, I went from DNF'ing every time to
consistently finishing first...there was never a middle ground. 
For that reason I believe if you can finish the race, you can
win it.  This is the general strategy: Start with 35 gallons of
fuel anticipating an early pit stop.  I absolutely NEVER start
with a full tank!  Running a little low gives you a slight edge
in speed, but more important, you miss the fun and excitement of
a crowded pit stop.  Concentrate on just surviving the race. 
Remember, you don't have to win it in the first lap, or even in
the first 50 laps...  When the race starts, drop to the back and
relax.  I do this to let the car warm up and the field thin out.
 Hang out in back until you're about 10s down from the leader,
then begin passing.  If the cars in front of you are in a pack,
hang loose and let them break up.  Stay far enough back that if
they wreck or brake for yellow you'll be safe.  If someone
threatens you from behind, let them pass and stay back.  As cars
fall out of the pack, try to pass them 1 or 2 at a time.  Only
pass when you know you can do it safely and when you have room
to run afterwards so they don't stay on your tail.  Remember,
you can make a risky pass on this lap or you can wait a lap and
maybe they'll get out of your way.  I try to make it a habit to
always follow a car through at least a couple turns to see if he
yields.  Don't rush it!  The only thing I worry about at this
point is staying in the lead lap.  If the leader gets about a
20-22s lead, he's going to be coming up behind you and you might
want to get a little more aggressive...  Follow this strategy
patiently and pit with 1g left.  The pits should be empty (read
that "safe").  Make note of the laps remaining, change the
tires, and top off the tank...if you don't see the "Waiting"
message, you're going too slow.  The disadvantage of pitting
early is that you'll now have to match your cold, heavy car
against faster competitors.  When you pull out of the pits,
watch your mirrors and look for a gap.  If you can't find one,
just pull over and let everyone pass.  Don't even try to be
competitive...take at least a couple laps without passing
anyone.  The car will get up to speed and the competition will
start pitting...be expecting this and don't draft or pass anyone
on the backstretch!  I've seen cars on the outside of the
backstretch brake and cut directly through other cars
(literally) to jump into the pits.  The pitting car seems to
become immaterial, but it still causes confusion and accidents. 
You'll gain at least a lap while your competitors pit and
another lap while they warm up again, then resume the slow
process of waiting and passing...  When you pit for the second
time, note the number of laps remaining.  Do the math and figure
out how much fuel you'll need to finish the race.  For me, it's
usually about another 35g.  Leave the pits, again, carefully
yielding to faster traffic.  Once the competitors have pitted a
second time, you'll probably be in the lead.  Continue this
strategy until you've got a good 15-20s lead on the closest
competitor (if he hasn't been lapped already).  Now is the time
for EXTREME caution...  Don't pass at all unless the competitors
throw themselves out of the way to let you by.  Check your lead
on the pit board and make sure the car in second isn't gaining
on you.  Relax and bring it home... This strategy certainly
isn't foolproof.  If a competitor decides to ram you from
behind, there usually isn't a lot you can do about it, but
following these techniques and warnings would have allowed me to
avoid the vast majority of crashes I had.  There are also other
factors to consider, such as controllers and controller setup,
which play an ENORMOUS role in improving your driving. I hope
you find this imformation useful, and good luck on the course! 
Any comments, suggestions, or feedback would be sincerely
welcome.

Sean Ormond SeanPO

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