i did a few 5 lap races with ursine and tubbster a few hours before the race. I find this helps with getting used to having cars around you and hitting your marks while in the tow. And like gtking said, i try not to practice too much otherwise you tend to invent stuff that's not there. I do hardly any practice on race day and only get on 45 mins before qualy starts so im fresh...for what its worth
Have you tried it since the recent updates? It seems exactly the same to me now, my times are identical
It definitely used to be different, time trial was always faster than lobby(with fuel and tyres at zero) but since the recent updates, the past 2 weeks my times have been identical and the feel is the same
Maybe you are putting too much pressure on yourself. I know it is easier said than done but maybe just go with the flow for couple of races. If you loosen up you may find you flow a bit better and enjoy it more. I practice Tuesday and Thursday, mainly just to work out a tyre strategy by doing stints on RM and RS tyres to see the difference in durability and lap times and then calculate what would be the best strategy for me based on pit stop times. You are welcome to join me on the Tuesdays or Thursdays, there are usually a couple of us on. We often do a few short races which will help with running close to other cars. I never practice on race day, I keep myself fresh and then do a few laps to get my rhythm just before qually starts. If all else fails drop back a division or two where you are more competitive, it will be much more rewarding an experience than flogging around the back of div 2.
Well that's food for thought because I always do full race runs without stopping. However I'll still do it in a lobby. The reason why I do race runs is to get an idea of strategy because I can't afford to get that wrong. It's important to get right but it isn't helping me with peak speed and that's where I need to improve. Yeah sorry about that.
Give manual gears another go. Try mapping upshift & downshift to X and O, that worked for me better than the defaults when I was on controller. Auto gears are burning your fuel and shredding your tyres. You'll be slower probably to start, but give it a go for a couple of weeks or so and it should pay dividends. For racing around others, that's what the mid-week practice lobbies are for. Find someone willing and able and sit on their bumper for a few laps, don't pass, just try and follow as close as possible without contact. Then try some overtaking manuovers, practice races, etc. Have fun with it, it is just a game, so don't take it too seriously if you're not enjoying it. My 2 cents.
If I'm not enjoying it I should just quit... Part of the reason why I don't use manual gears is due to the extra amount of effort and brain power required to do it. However that's not to say I've never done it. I've been playing Assetto Corsa recently and the automatic gearbox can be a bit lazy so I shift manually to keep the revs up. But I play that game for shorter periods at a time and I'm sitting at a desk to play, which makes it easier for me to use the X and O buttons. In GT Sport, I have a different arrangement - upshift is L1 and downshift is R1. I do this to reduce the amount of work that my hands have to do. Trying to brake, turn and downshift with the left hand whilst trying to grip the controller is very hard. Why do that when I can use my top finger on my right hand? I have raced with this configuration before and actually did OK with it. I think it's worth a try here.
There is something called 'perceived pressure'. It is a human condition created by your own internal feelings. We can all relate to it at one time or another. A Deadline for a project / paper / essay to be handed in and leaving it to the night before / morning of to complete it.. That same pressure is there when you race. You / we don't want to hit someone by accident for not wanting to have to deal with the ramifications of that incident, nor ruin someone else's night. That fear of contact (although warranted IRL), we've applied the same rules to a game. Thus we bring some of that pressure / fear with us. I get it. Hell round 2 got me hard and I slipped down several spots as I wasn't thinking straight. There are all sorts of tips to try and off set it, etc. Many of the tips mentioned here help. I like @UrsineSaturn9 tip of jumping in lobbies during the week and focus on a certain task (not overtaking, racing next too them) Hell you could do that in a custom race. I myself try and jump on 2 or 3 times during the week to suss out strats and 'get good' at the track. Unfortunately being in WA, most people are offline by the time I get on, so I get a track to myself most of the time. I lack the close racing practice and this is where my own fear / perceived pressure comes from. I'm not naturally fast, I have to work at it and although I've made some inroads, this last track showed I still have some work to do. Make some subtle changes to how you plan your pre race schedule, you might be surprised by the outcome.
Maybe taking a month or two break might work for you. Relax, don't think about racing much. Get the hunger for the game that i know you have back. Up to you obviously, but we've all given you some fantastic ideas, pick the one that suits you
I guess that button arrangement can work, whatever works for you, there's no right or wrong. The rationale for my controller button mapping was that braking and accelerating were critical so I would only use my index fingers for that activity to build up muscle memory. I think I may have had handbrake and change view mapped to L1 and R1, basically buttons I'd never use (except race start) so I could focus on accelerating and braking. Therefore right thumb free to do the gear changes.
Thank you all for the advice you guys have given me. I'll definitely try some of these strategies out before and during this week's race. Also Ursine, I use my right thumb to hold on to the controller because if I don't have a good grip, I can't use the throttle, brake or steering as effectively. I can't really use it for gearshifts. I've tried it and it hurt my hand pretty badly because I had to move it up and down constantly. L1 and R1 work better for me in this game because it minimises the workload.
I'd almost be keen for a mandatory pit stop this round to avoid the need to slide around on mediums in the final laps. Slipstream and tyre preservation will be the order of the day (and not making mistakes)
Nooooo!! I'm really looking forward to this race as it is, if you can keep it smooth the tyres are still just ok at the end. It'll make it a hard choice on when to take on someone to try and pass though, given you really can't afford to waste any tyre at all
I'll try and fight you for the whole race this time so that you toast your tyres... sound good @UrsineSaturn9 ?
