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Back to Basics

This year we will being holding Speed Circuit events exclusively.  If we do hold an event using other racing games, then they will be for exhibition and not count toward the championship.

The points system has changed since last year.  I tried to keep the spritit of the original Speed Circuit system while accounting for the larger number of drivers we typically have in a race.  Points are granted as follows:  1st = Number of Cars +3;  2nd = Number of Cars +1;  3rd = Number of cars -2; 4th = Number of Cars -3, etc.  Up to 14 cars, then 14+ = 1pt.  DNF or Crash (CR) = 0pt.  One bonus point is awarded for leading the first two laps of a three lap race or the first lap of a two lap race.  Below is an example of the points system:

	6 Cars	8 Cars	10 Cars
First Place	9	11	13
Second Place	7	9	11
Third Place	4	6	8
Fourth Place	3	5	7
Fifth Place	2	4	6
Sixth Place	1	3	5
Seventh Place		2	4
Eight Place		1	3
Ninth Place			2
Tenth Place			1

We will be paying homage to the drivers and teams of the 1966 Formula One season.  Check the calendar for upcoming events.

Hope to see you at the races!

In between official racing seasons, I like to introduce new racing games to our group.  After announcing I planned to host a bicycle racing game, the group expressed a high level of skepticism.  The hardened group of wargamers I play with barely tolerate our once a month excursions into racing games.  But, bicycle racing…yikes!

On game night, I setup Flamme Rouge including its Peleton expansion; got odd stares from other folks at the game shop.  Are those bicycles?  Is that a French game?  Are you serious?

We had had seven players.  Two players had to share a team.  By the end of the first stage all skepticism seemed to melt away.  We finished a second stage and then everyone insisted we run a third.  Everyone had fun and seemed impressed with the game.

The game mechanics are very simple to learn and provide a good balance of luck and strategy.  Flamme Rouge may not be a bicycle racing sim like Racer One, but it is thematically spot on and very fun to play.

Six players showed for the two stage Rallyman game on 5 September 2018.  Miki Hakkinen finished the first stage in 2 minutes and 47 seconds nearly a minute ahead of the nearest driver.

During the second stage, several drivers lost control.  Villeneuve finished with the best time, 2 minutes and 28 seconds, but not fast enough to win the overall rally.  Hakkinen won the rally with a total time of 6 minutes and 22 seconds, 26 seconds ahead of Villeneuve.

1st Ray G. (M. Hakkinen) 6:22
2nd Steve (J. Villeneuve) 6:48
3rd John H. (D. Gurney)* 7:04
4th Jerry (L. Hamilton) 7:06
5th Den (P. Hill) 7:39
DNF Bill (B. Marshman)

After receiving feedback about limitations with the traditional points system (it does not scale very well beyond a six car race), I developed a new system based loosely on the current F1 points system.  But, like the old Speed Circuit system, points change based on the number of cars entered into a race.  Here it is:

PLACE	Pts =>10 Cars	Pts => 8 Cars	Pts = 6 Cars
1	25	20	15
2	18	15	12
3	15	12	9
4	12	9	6
5	10	6	2
6	8	4	1
7	6	2	1
8	4	1
9	2	1
10	1
11	1
12	1
13	1
14	1
15	1
16	1
17	1
18	1
19	1
20	1
21	1
22	1
Bonus	1	1	1

Time is flying.  We have already completed 7 of the 10 races we planned for the 2018 Speed Circuit/Legends series and I have yet to publish a race report.  A season update follows:

#1 January – Speed Circuit – Kyalami:  Eight cars entered the race and six finished.  Regazonni started on pole, picked up bonus points for leading a lap, but then suffered suspension failure and could not finish the race.  Raikkonen started in 2nd position, but pushed his car too hard and suffered a transmission failure.  Niki Lauda and Phil Hill worked their way up from the back of the pack.  Lauda lead the second lap, but Hill passed him on the last lap to win the race.  Watson finished a steady 3rd.

#2 February – Speed Circuit – Monaco 1970s:  This was the debut of Steve’s historically accurate and very challenging Monaco layout.  Team Honda started on the first row and dominated the race.  Hakkinen lead the race from start to finish.  Phil Hill worked his way from 7th to finish 2nd and Raikkonen finished third.  Really tough to pass on this circuit and wear management was key.

#3 March – Moto GP – Catelunga:  This was a fun race with lots of position changes.  For example, Hunt started 5th, moved to 1st, and finished 6th.  After the dust settled, Phil Hill won followed by Watson and Regazonni.

#4 April – Speed Circuit – Interlagos:  Regazonni started 6th, but broke through the pack to lead the initial lap.  Hunt fell from pole position and stayed behind Regezonni.  Lauda suffered a season ending crash.  Meanwhile, Phil Hill weaved his way from 8th to third.  Regazonni ran out of wear and was passed by first by Hunt and then Hill finishing the race in 3rd place.  Team McLaren started on pole and 8th place and ended with the first team 1st and 2nd place finish of the season.

#5 May – Thunder Alley – Indy:  18 drivers participated in the race and 3 did not finish.  Watson won with Marshman second and Biden third.  Everyone had a fun time playing Thunder Alley.

#6 June – Speed Circuit – Silverstone:  The field was crowded with 14 participants.  Mika Hakkinen dominated from start to finish.  Hunt made a strong run against him during the last lap, but could not catch him.  Hakkinen finished 1st followed by Hunt and Watson.  All 14 drivers finished the race.

#7 July – Race Formula 90 – Hungoring:  Race Formula 90 is the most complex racing game scheduled for the season and it took a long time for folks to grasp the rules and formulate good strategies.  The “robot” team members seemed to do better than most of the primary drivers.  We ran out of time and had to end the race before completing the full number of turns.  Villeneuve finished first followed by Rick Mears and Phil Hill.

Next race is Speed Circuit – Monza!

After Speed Circuit Season 7, between October and December 2017, we held several non-Speed Circuit sessions including Triplanetary, Rallyman,  and Moto Grand Prix.  Holidays limited the size of the group, but everyone who participated seemed to enjoy racing space ships, rally cars, or motorcycles.  Each game has a different game mechanic and each fit the flavor of the type of racing it emulated.

We had so much fun that we decided to integrate a variety of racing games into the 2018 Tabletop Racing Club’s Season 8.  Instead of selecting drivers and teams from a specific historic Formula 1 season, players will choose from a list of legendary teams and drivers from 1950 until today.  Speed Circuit will remain the primary game, but every other month we plan to rotate in a different racing game.

Here is a list of games we may use in addition to Speed Circuit:

– Rallyman (Rally Car Racing)
– Moto Grand Prix (Motorcycle Racing)
– Thunder Alley (NASCAR Type Racing)
– Formula D (Formula 1 Racing)
– Grand Prix (Formula 1 Racing)
– Race Formula 90 (Formula 1 Racing)
– Leader 1 (Bicycle Racing)
– Regatta (Yacht Racing)

First event is on 17 Jan 2018 – Speed Circuit race at Kyalami.