Jan 31

2020 Endurance Races

I'm sorry that we couldn't get the Daytona 24hr together. I think Bathurst is too unforgiving. I propose that we run Sebring on March 3/13-15 and Petit Le Mans on 10/2-4. Le Mans on 6/20-21 might be a possibility. I feel the GT3 Mercedes is the best choice as it seems faster than most other cars and a bit easier to drive.

4-6 drivers seems about right per car. That can be changed if need be. We should plan on practice to work through driver changes and car setup. Maybe some hosted sessions and there is a weeks open practice before each race. Let me know if you are interested.

urs.mueller59

Jan 31Edited: Jan 31

I would be interested, but according my vacation planning, it is only possible on March.

Is the schedule for the series to find anywhere? How much time take the race and how much the stints. I guess there are 24h races. Edit: got it on iracing.com 😄

kendummer

Feb 1

Unfortunately i'm not around for Sebring in March. However the Petit Le Mans in October could work and right now the Le Mans in June also but June is always a busy month so could change! Would love to get into the endurance racing more!

gtgene54

Feb 7Edited: Feb 7

I would be interested for Sebring and the others. About the only week I am not available is the first full week of April as that is Masters week here.

Joel Martin

Mar 5

Thinking of Sebring on March 14. Start time 0800 EST. Probably the GT3 Mercedes. We have in the past run single stints but double would probably work. The number of drivers would determine the rotation. The session includes a 30 minute practice and then 2 laps of qualifying. Race should start about 8:45 AM and run until 8:45 pm. We have 2 60+ teams already set up. Reply with you are interested.

urs.mueller59

Mar 6

I‘m interested but never participate in a team-race.

gtgene54

Mar 6

Like Urs, I am interested too but have never participated in a team-race. I have run a couple of short endurance races in real life. Yes, I was the slow guy on the team but I was consistent and took care of the car.

Joel Martin

Mar 6

It is easier than it seems at first glance. The only difference is driver changes. All you do is drive to the pit stall and exit the car. The replacement driver is waiting ready to go and they click on "Race" at the top of the screen and they are in the car. All the information is available on iRacing under teams. We also will practice before the race just to iron out things like this.

gtgene54

Mar 6

@Joel Martin How many drivers do we need?

Joel Martin

Mar 6

@gtgene54 Minimum 2 max 16. Generally 4-8. Some guys only want to run a stint or 2 and that's OK. Some have other things to do and so is that. That is why we use the schedule I shared to enter when you would like to drive.

gtgene54

Mar 6

I am practicing with the Merc to get an idea of how it handles.

urs.mueller59

Mar 6

@Joel Martin what is about setup and pit stop for fuel and tires?

Joel Martin

Mar 6

I will have a decent easy to drive set really soon. We fill the car with fuel and change tires at the end of every stint. Usually about an hour per stint. Practice will tell us how long and how the tires wear. Sebring is pretty abrasive and wears tires so I would think we would have to change every fuel stop.

Joel Martin

Mar 6

Send me an email on iRacing message and I will send you a set

gtgene54

Mar 6

I am in and looking forward to this.

urs.mueller59

Mar 6Edited: Mar 6

Thanks Joel and sorry for the lot of questions. But another one: Are I‘m right, that the ingame race start is at 01:00 am and so we drive into the morning sunrise?

edit: 01:00 am not pm

edit 2: a little bit of trouble with your language: I mean sunrise 😄

Joel Martin

Mar 6

Session opens at 2PM, 1400 GMT. 30 minutes practice and 10 minutes Q. Then the race starts. I have a setup.

urs.mueller59

Mar 7

Thanks for the setup Joel. I tried it yesterday and its very safe. Compared to the VRS-setup the car is more stable at braking and it is easier to turn in. Very good setup to drive many many laps without problems. My lap time with full of fuel is around 2:03.000. I hope with more training I could get a 2:02 in safe laps.

gtgene54

Mar 7

Got the setup and ran it this morning. After 2 laps I was in the 2:04 range. With more practice I think I can hit 2:01s. Seems pretty stable. I am still too slow through turn 3 and 4 and then again in turn 7. I will be working on improving those this week.

urs.mueller59

Mar 7

@gtgene54 As you wrote before, the lap times are not so important. Really important is to be consistent and have no extra repairs.

I think, with 2:01 and 120l fuel you would be with the fastest guys. Look at the results for the actual Sebring contest for teams in week13. The fastest guys have around 1:57 to 1:58 and with 2:01 you would be with drivers have an irating of 2500-3000. And they have for sure not 120l 😄

gtgene54

Mar 7

Urs, I am currently running clean at between 2:04.5 and 2:05.2, but after a few laps the tires seem to go away. I can run 2:06 consistently for over an hours time frame. I know that I will most likely be the slow guy on the team but I am working on it. Clean is the biggest thing. This is endurance racing, not a sprint, and that is what I have to keep telling myself.

urs.mueller59

Mar 7

It doesn‘t matter if you have a 2:05 or 2:01. Imagine if a fast guy have 2:01 for 30 laps and gains around 120 seconds and then have a repair for 5 minutes....

Joel Martin

Mar 7

All very true. Endurance racing takes a different mind set.

gtgene54

Mar 7

What I am working on is consistency without mistakes. So far I can run about 70laps without an incident. I am learning a bunch about this car, was a little squirrely at first but I think I have the hang of it now.