Fragtard Racing Team

[Kenadian]

Hey guys, just curious whether or not some of you would like to create a small Racing Team?

Global Challenge didn't really work out yesterday as I hoped but it was still very cool gridding right next to Wapwap in his Fragtard Caddy. I don't know how you felt about it Wappy but it was a pretty proud moment for me to have us that close in the field and in the same race representing our Community.

...to bad it went to shit shortly after lol.

However, it did make me think that having more of a Team presence in one racing series may be good not just for us as racers, but possibly for our Community.

Also, Global Challenge is a perfect fit for this idea as it's at a lower license class in a car that has become much easier to drive since becoming a fixed series.

It also doesn't seem to split too much so chances are good we'll end up in the same race quite often.

My questions to you fine folks are:

1. Do you think having a Fragtard Team is a good idea?
2. If so, what series would you suggest we race in?
3. Lastly, are you willing to participate? Please note however, this will require you drive a Fragtard.net skinned vehicle.

Any and all feedback welcome.

Thanks.

...

First race now live at Fragtard YouTube.

...unfortunately it didn't go so well but that's alright, it leaves a bit of room for improvement.

[video=youtube;0MqarzJLXio]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MqarzJLXio&list=UUF9fLJ1E783IlyZAYWhArZA[/video]

 

[Noodleguitar]

I'd probably be up for that, it's a good idea. If we are with 4 (or more) people in one race, we can cooperate and that should make it easier than doing them individually.

Global Challenge seems to be the best choice indeed. It should be a D-class series for now so that doesn't leave too many options. They're driving on some tracks that you have to purchase but the car is free in any case. Maybe we could do some Road Warrior stuff as well (or other medium to big event races) if everyone has a D 4.00+ rating.

I probably wouldn't have a lot of time during the week to practice, but I don't mind to not be as fast as I could possibly be in a week. I also don't mind using a Fragtard skin (as long as it's not on the Mustang or the BMW, I want to keep those ).

 

[Wotan]

I absolutely hate that car. Skippy is D-class, too, btw.

 

[Kenadian]

I absolutely hate that car. Skippy is D-class, too, btw.

Have you driven it since the update?

Now that it's a fixed series the car is far more easy to get into.

 

[Wapwap]

I like the idea, i'd be up for that too! It was pretty cool gridding right next to eachother in that race. Just too bad it only lasted around 500 meters for you

The Caddy is a pretty fun and stable car to drive now. So i'm thinking that will get my vote. It shouldn't be so hard to get a C-license either and maybe drive the Ruf. Although I don't know how it handles compared to the Cadillac.

 

[Kenadian]

The Ruf C-Spec is a very tail happy car and bounces a lot so it's a handful to drive at the best of times. I think it's one of the most challenging cars in iRacing to drive but it's also very rewarding when you get it right.

Conversely, the Ruf R-Track version is very stable as are all GT3 cars by comparison however it has an issue with curbs as well and can get out of shape quickly on a bumpy surface.

I'm no sure how I feel about the Skippy though to be honest Wotan? I'm not that much of an open wheel guy which is why I always gravitate toward these types of series.

I joined iRacing specifically to race the CTS-VR and was really disappointed with the lack of participation previously.

Now that it's a fixed series there is far more participation than before however not too much where races split several times. This makes it extremely likely that most of us will end up in the same split, ideal for Team based racing IMHO.

 

[Wotan]

I was suprised how much I like the open wheelers after never driving them in any other game. I'll try to join a practice session with you guys in the Caddy and see how it works out - but mostly they begin when I'm about to hit the sack, which results in me driving even worse than normally. :icon_redface:

 

[Kenadian]

If you want Wotan, I can get on earlier on Saturday's so you're not so tired during the session. I'm definitely more than willing to adjust my schedule to accommodate you guys on the weekend so if earlier is better then so be it.

I really do think that once you turn some laps you'll come to like the car much more than when it wasn't a fixed setup. It's much more stable than before however you do have to watch how you handle it in braking (it takes longer to brake) and is squirrely even in tail braking through corners.

Also, getting on the gas too fast will result in the rear end checking out so you'll have to watch that as well.

That being said, most of these traits are present in virtually every class car that can put down the power.

By comparison, it's much more stable than the Ruf C-Spec.

 

[Kenadian]

First race of Team Fragtard now published on our YouTube Channel.

Video also added to first post.

Enjoy.

 

[Wotan]

The drama! Most entertaining, as NT said :lol:

 

[Shilka]

Watched and commented
Quite eventfull indeed!

Wotan, I still have a replay clip of you being in first position on Charlotte, then you get clipped and turned around from the back by an overly eager #2, and then the rest of the field smashes into you and rolls you across the track repeatedly, leaving you behind in this compact crumbled piece of car with 4 crooked wheels. That's really the worst bad luck I've seen anyone ever have in a race! I guess you can still remember that one :lol:

 

[Noodleguitar]

Looks nice from all those perspectives. Those races are definitely interesting with Kia's in the mix, especially on short tracks.

I'm not sure if we could get into trouble for "flaming" the guy that hit you at the start. In the iRacing forum you're not allowed to call drivers out but I guess if it's on Youtube it doesn't matter all that much (unless you put a link to it on the iRacing forum).

I noticed that Mid-Ohio is coming up in this series, which is probably awesome. On that note, if we manage to form a team, what would be the best thing to do if only 1 or 2 of us have a certain track? Should we then race the Mazda or the Grand Touring Cup or something?

 

[Kenadian]

Watched and commented
Quite eventfull indeed!

Wotan, I still have a replay clip of you being in first position on Charlotte, then you get clipped and turned around from the back by an overly eager #2, and then the rest of the field smashes into you and rolls you across the track repeatedly, leaving you behind in this compact crumbled piece of car with 4 crooked wheels. That's really the worst bad luck I've seen anyone ever have in a race! I guess you can still remember that one :lol:

I agreed wholeheartedly with your comment however I thought it wise to add some perspective into why I judge my performance so critically.

...which of course I posted in response via YouTube.

Looks nice from all those perspectives. Those races are definitely interesting with Kia's in the mix, especially on short tracks.

I'm not sure if we could get into trouble for "flaming" the guy that hit you at the start. In the iRacing forum you're not allowed to call drivers out but I guess if it's on Youtube it doesn't matter all that much (unless you put a link to it on the iRacing forum).

I kinda felt the same way about the entire "Fagot" thing but didn't worry about it too much given that's his name. Maybe there's a better way to pronounce it but if so, I won't know how to pronounce it.

I do see your point though so could you please do me a favor and post this comment on the video itself? This will allow me to respond gently just so people know we're not malice.

 

[Kenadian]

I noticed that Mid-Ohio is coming up in this series, which is probably awesome. On that note, if we manage to form a team, what would be the best thing to do if only 1 or 2 of us have a certain track? Should we then race the Mazda or the Grand Touring Cup or something?

This I'm not sure of and I'll leave it up to the masses to decide.

My personal thoughts are that multiple drivers within a race stands out much more than solo as our livery is seen continually be our competitors. It drives Fragtard home and makes us stand out more than we do currently which is a good thing.

I'm actually in the process of tweaking all our skins rear bumper to indicate Practice Pals and a link of where to find the info (which will be stickied to the front page of our blog).

I also remember Wappy stating that these fixed skins/car makes us not stand out as much as individual drivers. I attempted to mitigate that problem by making the flags much more vibrant however his point still remains.

I'm considering some changes to design that allow for better identification of individual drivers but have yet to hit on that home run idea.

That being said, it's very important that the livery look the same overall as that's what a Racing Team is supposed to look like.

As for other series, I think it's important we try to do series that don't split that much. This again reinforces the idea of multiple drivers in the same race and more of a memorable presence within the race itself.

There will also be series that some of are no longer able to compete in. For example, I love practicing with you guys in Mazda's but probably won't race them much anymore. I just don't have the time nor talent to race the amount of vehicles and tracks I'm interested in so something has to give.

As it stands, I'm racing Ruf C-Spec, BMW, CTS-VR and hope to get into McLaren (once it's balanced) and eventually Corvette or Ford GT. With all these cars, Mazda's just don't fit very well anymore and actually represent a waste of valuable practice times elsewhere.

Lastly, Mazda's while fun, do nothing for any of our perspective license classes now that we're all out of Rookie. IMHO, we should spend more time with more competivie drivers (presumably) in larger fields.

 

[Noodleguitar]

My personal thoughts are that multiple drivers within a race stands out much more than solo as our livery is seen continually be our competitors. It drives Fragtard home and makes us stand out more than we do currently which is a good thing.

I read that as "If we have more than 3 cars" one of us might actually finish .

I'm considering some changes to design that allow for better identification of individual drivers but have yet to hit on that home run idea.

If you have time I could use one of those skins too, for the Cadillac I suppose. At least, when we're actually driving as a team. I'd also be willing to make my own adaptation of the Fragtard template but I'm not that experienced with and am not sure what your general approach is to adding details. Right now you used a custom flag or something?

Its tricky to make similar looking skins yet being able to differentiate between them. I think EmptyBox did it with different colours of trim.

 

[Kenadian]

I have the templates readily available to me in a layered .psd format so I'll edit yours and just upload it to the Fragtard Custom Paint Schemes topic.

What flag do you fly, is it the same as Wapwap or NT?

 

[Wapwap]

Good job on the video Duke, it was fun to watch back that race. Too bad it turned out the way it did for you
Just one notation; while the first part of the race was easy to follow (cockpit view), from the moment you were disqualified the camera was only in tv mode. Perhaps (if not too much work) you can vary the camera's a little bit to make it more attractive to watch. Other than that, nice video. Seemed like you had some trouble with the Kia's as well

 

[Wotan]

May I humbly request a fragtard skin, too? It should have this flag here: http://www.flags.net/images/largeflags/AUST0002.GIF

What about a session today?

 

[Wapwap]

I'm considering some changes to design that allow for better identification of individual drivers but have yet to hit on that home run idea.

One thing that could be done is have different wheel colors. Now, for the Caddy it's not an option since you can't change it, but for (most) paid cars it is.
An example that could be done. Pay attention to the 'cow cars' (light blue and purple wheels):

[video=youtube_share;63KbZdsFcq0]http://youtu.be/63KbZdsFcq0?t=16m3s[/video]

Watch from 16:03 and 21:18. They've got the same recognizable look, but yet it stands out by making minor color changes like the wheels, mirrors, grille and having their name on top of the windscreen. Not sure how much work it would be do this for all the cars though!

May I humbly request a fragtard skin, too? It should have this flag here: http://www.flags.net/images/largeflags/AUST0002.GIF

What about a session today?

The image doesn't seem to be accessible for me, but I think he means this flag:

And we'll be on today/tonight Wotan!

 

[Noodleguitar]

I have the templates readily available to me in a layered .psd format so I'll edit yours and just upload it to the Fragtard Custom Paint Schemes topic.

What flag do you fly, is it the same as Wapwap or NT?

Could you send me the Cadillac template .psd file (or make it available somewhere)? I'd like to try a normal texture on the bonnet instead of a flag, if that's ok? Then I can colour it to fit nicely with the rest of the paint.

What about a session today?

Yeah I think most of us said yesterday that we would be around again today.