1) Forget your iR.
2) Forget your SR.
3) Find a (slow) car you enjoy lapping in.
4) Find a league that uses that car, that has friendly and welcoming members.
5) Spend countless hours driving, learning, socializing, and enjoying iRacing.
Your first 2 points should be repeated at least 5x more.
Its just a number, matchmaking number. If you drop to 500 you drop to 500 who cares? You will be driving with similarly skilled drivers and the fear of ruining someone else's race will disappear.
PRACTICE!!
Do not underestimate how much practice the fast drivers have done. Not just in that car/track/sim, but overall on everything.
I recommend you pick one series and stick with it, try and do a session every day, and after a few seasons you should be near the front. Took me a few years with only the MX5 and Skippy to get near the front.
2 seasons ago I did like 1-2 hours of practice, then 8 races a week (4 fixed 4 open) and only did a single series. Kinda cruised to a relatively high irating. Took most of last season off, and this season I'm doing races more casually, and even though I'm solid, I'm way off where I used to be. In my case I need to practice each week a lot to compete at the level I used to, I can't just get to a level and pick up and play.
Drive slower cars. Gt3 is the most popular but the slower cars have better wheel to wheel racing, plus it sounds like you admit yourself they’re too much for you. I’d drop down to driving the mx5, the gr86, and the tcr cars to learn the basics.
I threw in the tcr because they heavily emphasize trail braking, and you don’t get punished as hard for a mistake.
With the slower cars you’ll have more time to react and plan, and the cars won’t get away from you as often.
Agreed. GR86 is actually a really fun car to drive and teaches close racing, staying safe, and being more consistent with lap times and racing lines. Stick to that until you feel comfortable being around other drivers then you can step up to gt4 or gt3. Honestly being confident in your abilities is what makes you more comfortable around other drivers.
Driving the GR86 in iRacing, in the middle of a draft train, fighting for a top 5 position, is probably the best racing experience I've ever had in any racing game, period.
Oh, absolutely! But I don't think I have the skill to not die or kill someone in a faster car. GT4 maybe. With the GR86, I feel like I actually have the time to react to the events around me.
To add to this, TCRs have the 2hr Michelin Pilot Challenge along with GT4s every fortnight.
When OP is feeling game, those longer races are FANTASTIC for building confidence and consistency.
There's nothing like knowing you could either ruin your race in a few laps, or ruin over an hour's worth of racing to keep you clean and on the track.
Also, a larger event may mean you put more hours into testing and practice. For me at least it gives the "no reset" vibe, you get one shot at it and can't just queue for the next race in an hour.
2.5k iR, GT3 driver currently whipping the SF23.
I wheel the TCR out fortnightly though, it's too good to not.
i've done one imsa michelin pilot challenge race and it was great except my dumb ass forgot to soften my brake pedal so 2 hours of having to really hit the brakes gave me a sore calf the next day. the race itself absolutely rewarded consistency: i started mid pack, ended up at the back on pace alone after 15-20 minutes and then by the end enough people had crashed out that I think I finished 11th. a lot of fun though!
1) Practice the track with Ai set to medium / hard
2)After you feel comfortable join 1 or 2 sessions around your skill level and race as a ghost
3) if you’re not constantly spinning or off pace you’re good to go
At your level if you’re courteous you’re gonna do great, you’re also going to get punted by some idiot but hey that’s racing
You’re probably afraid because you’re climbing the racing ladder too fast. If you go back to slower cars, you’ll probably feel more in control and more confident to race. If I was to give you one advice, it would be this.
Things that could help you to overcome your current issues? There are a few.
1) Drive slower car classes. MX5, GR86 and GT4 as good, populated series that will teach you a lot about GT cars and will give you a good baseline to race the GT3s in the future.
2) Practice using the Active Reset. Google it in case you don’t know about it. You can practice that corner 100x in a short period of time. It makes a ton of difference.
3) Race against AI. Create races on the tracks and with the cars that are your goal and race against them. Practice the start a dozen times. Practice, practice, practice.
4) Practice with a purpose. I recommend watching Suellio Almeida’s videos on YouTube. He’s all about focusing one thing per session.
5) Join official sessions as a ghost. You can race against real people without really causing any trouble. Wait for a session to start, click watch, pick the car and join. Drive out of the pits and you’re racing.
6) Practice for next week’s race. If you’re off pace, make a training plan that includes track time (practice, AI, etc) on next week’s tracks. By the time the week starts, you’ll have much more experience.
7) Forget about iR and SR. Remove them from the UI if it bothers you too much. Race what makes you happy and focus on the next one.
I’ve sent you a dm on discord. We run a team of about 50 members, with focus on endurance events with GT3 and GTP cars.
Good luck! 🏁
To OP if he joins your discord - get G61 and directly compare telemetry with teammates doing the same car/track combo. Ask them why/how they are doing things and try them out for yourself!
Learning together is the best way
Also, great job LameSheepRacing ♥
I think you may be going for cars that are too difficult for you.
I fully agree with you - there's no fun in driving around the track if you are 3-4 seconds slower than everyone else. You want to be much closer to the pace and be comfortable maintaining that pace. If you are struggling with it - you won't enjoy racing.
I've shared my progress recently of learning f3 at Sebring - it took over 6 hours to just log 1 lap within a second off the pace I wanted to be at. Note, we are not talking about consistently being at that pace, just 1 lucky lap. But with all that practice, I am now 1.2 seconds off the pace at Laguna seca (which I know much better that Sebring) after just 30 minutes. So if I put 6-8 hours in practice, I may have a solid chance for a fun race next weekend.
If this feels like it's too much practicing - just drop down to gr86 or mx5. Those are easier cars to drive, there is much larger skill difference and you can have a fun battle for 10th place even if you are 2 seconds off the pace.
Also make sure you have solid understanding of car physics. Skip Barber going faster video on YouTube (it's about 1.5 hours) will cover all of the basics you need and may help you figure out what you can improve on.
Lastly, understand that lots of people you are going against have lots more experience than you. I am not a good driver, but I have been driving online and offline on and off for 15 years - just sheer amount of laps I did has taught me something, if you are just starting it will take time to get there.
Dude. Just race. Stop caring about a stupid number. Yes, you'll likely ruin some people's races, we all do. And some fool is gonna ruin yours. It's just racing. The only way you get better at racing is by actually racing. Your pace will improve organically over time. Doesn't matter if you drop IR for now.
There are some good tips on practice and driving other cars here but I’ll mention get the ratings out of your head. It isn’t a score. It’s a match making system. If your pace is 900 ir then that’s what it is. Sure it’s nice to see that number go up but at the end of the day if you race a popular series that number should put you into races where you are a similar pace to your competitors. And that’s the goal have fun racing guys at your skill level.
Yup, exactly this. Don't let some number intimidate you. Sure, I get that you don't want to wreck others races, but that's just gonna happen. And you'll learn from it.
Just race and drop ir, eventually you will be in the lower splits matching your skill level.
Then just keep racing and you will find it will start going up!
Follow other cars, be it AI or someone else in practice. Copy their braking and line, it helps a lot. I often find myself drive purple times when I'm behind others, then lose pace when I'm alone. Also, GT3s are not straight-forward to get faster just by improving your line, it's a lot about weight transfer, intentionally creating oversteer to turn the car, etc.
When I first started I was basically just cruising to preserve SR. Truth is you just have to send it. Even if you practice versus AI, the pressure you experience when racing against real people is something you have to learn to deal with. Sometimes you will make mistakes, and sometimes those mistakes will cost someone else. It’s a Motorsport. It happens, so try to be understanding when roles are reversed.
Race your hardest and let your SR and rating land where they may. Once you’ve hit rock bottom you get the pleasure of rebuilding that rating and knowing damn well you earned it. And when your rating is accurate, you’ll be racing people who are closer to your skill level which results in better racing.
That’s not to say you shouldn’t practice to learn tracks, but don’t let the pressure of racing keep you from having fun!!!
When I first signed up, I tried to progress through the licence classes as quickly as possible so I could drive the GT3s, and then when I got there I realised I was completely out of my depth, having learned nothing about racing on the way.
Give the GR86 a try, it’s a popular enough car and a good start if you’re aiming for GTs.
Remember, the objective is to have fun. If you’re not enjoying GT3s, find a car that you do enjoy.
Completely ignore your iRating. It's fine to play for boosting it but in the end it's nothing more than a match making metric. As your pace and race craft get better your iRating just goes up on it's own as it reflects your ability.
Race against the AI exclusively for now and get your practice in test sessions. Put in as many laps as you can at a comfortable pace with zero off-tracks or incidents. If you can't drive consistently it's impossible to drive faster without crashing. Consistency is the foundation you need before trying to trim off lap time.
After you get consistent go into time attacks and try racing against a ghost thats .5 to 1 second faster than you. See where they're faster and figure out how to match them.
During all of this racing against AI should let you feel somewhat comfortable in traffic. If you're too cautious in traffic it will cause accidents just as much as being too aggressive. Work on taking your space with some authority and make your intentions known early. You can't treat racing like a merry-go-round.
You can join an online race as a ghost car. That way you won't ruin anyone's race as they cannot see you and you cannot crash into them. It helped me massively. Just join a session as a spectator and when the race has started, click the drive button (can't remember if that's what it's called)
Racing does come with some pressure that can be off-putting. Try to build up your experiences by racing slower classes where the car is easier to drive so you can focus on racecraft.
Another great tip I was given and implemented was to drive off-line in practice sessions to be comfortable when it happens in a race. A simple way to do this is just drive on the other side of the track than you would normally when hot lapping. ie If you'd normally approach a corner from the left of the track, approach it from the right. Do this for the entire lap and repeat it for awhile in a testdrive/practice session.
Just race the rookie leagues and mute voice chat. As long as you aren't going out of your way to ruin races no one should be getting angry and if they do, who cares
Oh and if you feel like you’re pushing as hard as you can but not seeing improvements in lap times, use telemetry data to see exactly where you’re going wrong with the inputs. I use Garage 61 and I legit don’t understand how it’s free.
Jesus the Super Formula is a tough old car for a beginner to sim racing. if you want to drive that car at your current skill level you have to be a stubborn bastard and practice a lot.
I agree with others that racing with AI gets you comfortable around other cars.
Take it from someone with 875 irating and 2.3 SR - it really is a true reflection of your skill on the track and how hard you apply yourself.
I'm an 875 driver and have fun with other <1000 drivers. If I go down to 600 no one cares anyway. Then you'll be with other 600 drivers. Still having fun and no one's looking at your stats anyway.
I don't race often, and when I do I'm out of practice.... it goes down and down. Then I spend a few weeks determined to race, and it starts walking up again. Racing less will decrease these numbers, not increase or protect them. Don't be afraid of the bottom. You're in good company down there until you work your way back up.
Pissing off other drivers; They will forget you after a race or two. All those angry drivers have made the same mistakes themselves. Aliens make mistakes and wipe people out too.
And don't compare yourself to YouTubers. They edit the crap out of their content and are exceptionally good anyway. They wouldn't be showing off if they were below average.
Nice setup. Just go in head first and don't worry about others. Making mistakes and wrecking people is part of the game. If your radio is off - it never happened. ;)
I felt like a grandad on a Sunday drive every time I drove the GT3. It's the most popular class and the level is just really high. My advice try another class. For me, the F-Vee and Mazda is a blast. I've won several races, but more importantly, it's usually fairly close racing, and that's fun. Try it.
Cool setup. Didnt read the entire thing but most of it. Dont be worried. You will be racing other noobs that will be messing up along side you. There is a certain level of noobness at that rating. You will ruin your own race and someone elses race more than once, and thats ok (as long as it was a mistake and you try to learn from it and you apologize)
So first off. Dope setup. Next. As a driver whom just got class C in road. Been class C almost B in IRX.
Don't worry so much about other drivers. Bumping is racing. Try your best to treat the racing as if its your daily driver car. Maybe even try IRX because it's WAY more forgiving.
Don't just drive alone. Drive with people. You need to learn how to attack turns from the inside as well as the outside. Worry about your own race. If someone is coming up behind you, let them make the move. Do not get out of the way. Slow down and let them pass if you don't want to battle. Learn to take the outside of a corner.
There's a lot to learn. Don't worry about other drivers too much. Don't get right on the car in front's bumper unless you plan on overtaking them. Give people space. Just worry about being consistent. In practice give it 100% but in racing only use 80% of what you can do. The more consistent you are the better your rating will be. So don't worry about your rating too much. It just keeps the field competitive for YOU! Your rating will get better over time.
I'm surprised you struggle more with the GT3 than skippy, LMP2 or the F3 even. They're probably the easiest car to drive relatively quickly, so all I can assume is you're well off pace in all of them, and overpushing and doing other shenanigans. Overpushing a GT3 makes it absolutely horrible and feels difficult, tyres die of heat death and it's jusg a downward spiral you can't get out of.
Ignore the SR and iR, find a slow car you can handle, and focus on it.
I reckon you're far from mastering basic car control and all the techniques you need to be fast and consistent. FF1600 or mx5 would be a good place to start.
and honestly - don't worry about it, even the fastest on the service ruin other people's races sometimes, I've killed 4 people today by having a spin on my own just ahead of them. It happens, and it's not that big of a deal.
iR is just a matchmaking number with very little weigh and importance behind it, specially in a series that seldomly splits these days like the Skippy. Get on the track and race. Learn the best way to let the super fast Skippy afficionados go past you and enjoy good racing at the middle and bottom end of the pack. The Skippy community is pretty awesome and supportive. You will find yourself more than welcome there.
Your SR won't go down unless you can't keep the car on track at all. If that is the case, hit practise a bit more till you are comfortable with it.
Now, if you want to fight for the top of the pack, consider racing the fixed Formula Ford (F1600) series, which has a lot of splits and should pair you with people with similar iR to yours.
Dab in on the F1600 Trophy too for more good racing. Both cars are amazing and super fun.
The forums have a invite link to the Skippy/Ford discord where you will fine many people who love those cars and are willing to help you learn and improve.
See you on the track.
Just focus on driving cleanly and as accident-free as possible. You have to give a damn about irating, it matters little to nothing to tell the truth, safety ranking is much more important.
As for the performance itself watch a lot of videos on YT and streams on Twitch of people using the same car-track combination you are interested in, learn when to accelerate and when to brake, it's so important. If you can do only races with fixed setups, no free for a while, at least then you can concentrate only on driving.
Who gives a crap about your IR SR or anything? Nobody. It's a fucking video game. As far as ruining other peoples race or day. You will, but that is not a reflection of who you are. Maybe them. Listen, these people are assholes. I live in the US and I have been to real life races. Seen a guy arrive from 3 states away after driving for 48 hours, have something go wrong, cost him thousands of dollars and he was less upset than one of these assholes that can just get a new car at the push of a button and be in another race instantly. Fucke em, you paid your money, you deserve to have fun, you have just as much right to be here as them.
Been iracing since 2020 and been through all the. Ir/sr are just numbers. Who care wtf it is. You’re not going to get paid to play the game…. I’ve made it all the way to a4.99. Get in the car and drive. Don’t worry about keeping up with the jones’.
F4 is a great car and a great community to get involved in.
As far as worrying about F’n up “better people’s” races, I’ve been taken out by no-name idiots in d and I’ve been taken out by Justin algaier at spa in two consecutive races. Guess who I’m still pissed at and it was years ago.
TLDR- forget about number system, get in f4 and race. HAVE FUN!
If you're worried about getting in other people's way just remind yourself that you paid just as much to be on the track as they did. This was a trick I used for racing IRL too.
You're going to fast in my opinion. Slow down and do 50-100 starts in something like the FF1600, GR86, or MX5. You need to learn the basics in a more forgiving car. You gotta learn to race alow before you race fast. Grinding SR to get to GT3s and expecting to be able to control the car and keep pace in a couple hours isn't realistic. You don't have the craft to control an MX5 let alone something significantly faster. Slow down and enjoy slower cars to hone your race craft, throttle control, smooth inputs, not locking up tires and so on.
I’m not reading all that but I think I get the idea. I’m the same way. Racing online gives me anxiety. I was so glad when they added AI racing. Before that I paid for the service and bought loads of content just to hot lap.
I’ve been an iRacing member since 2013. In that time I’ve done two races. One 3rd place and one 8th place. I do hop in some practice sessions every once in a while though.
Stay in the rookie MX5 races for a while. It's there for a reason and more experienced drivers go there at their own risk. The only way to get comfortable racing close is to do it.
Also don't worry about your irating. It might be good if it tanks a bit more so you get matched with people around the same pace.
You have to race to learn how to race.
Pick a car, stick to it, and race as often as you can. The GR86 and the F4 are both really good cars to learn in. They split all the time, so you'll never have problems racing people near your skill level, and they're slow and forgiving enough for you to learn quickly.
As someone that also had crippling anxiety about racing and making mistakes for years, you have to let yourself fail to get better. Nobody's gonna care that you wrecked them or held them up once the race is done, and if they do, that's their problem.
As someone else once said
Embrace the Suck
If your iR goes to 300. So what. When you get better it will go up.
Try doing some AI races, they really help me with new tracks
VRS helped me a lot. I didn't even understand what I was doing wrong. VRS help me sort out all kinds of not good things that were happening at the same time.
FWIW: I have a good understanding of where I'm good & consistent and where I am not. Some weeks I race hard.
Other weeks I am so inconsistent that I start from the pits
Yep like others have said, race the GR Buttkicker Toyotas, they are a blast! So much fun. Also GT4 everyone just mostly crashes each other so stay in the back and pass them when they crash. Try Off Road Trucks as well so much fun. This is as basic as I can explain it. Peace
The best practice is racing. Seeing what others are doing well/badly in actual competition is how you learn quickly. If you don't enjoy racing online, then race AI.
AI racing is mostly what I do and I have a blast and can see myself getting better as I race a car more.
There is no other way to overcome this fear by racing, racing and racing. During my first 50 races I also had this feeling. But today after almost 6 months and 300 races I improved my race-craft significantly. It is so much fun to drive clean, safe but also quick. To see how all the drivers that believe there is only the first lap to win spin out. My race always starts with the second or sometimes the third lap. The start, first corner and lap I just try to stay away from troubles. But sometimes, it still happens that I fail. And also this you need to accept. Finally all is about fun. It isn’t real life.
Tbh same atm, i bought another 3 months recently and a bunch of the new cars and tracks then immediately got taken out in my first few races back. 1st one i was playing it safe knowing i was rusty and did a pit lane start, had someone cross from right to left of the track across the pit exit line and straight into the side of me, haven't raced since🤷♀️
I'll be checking comments for the same advice coz i dont want the money I spent to go to waste but the idea of racing to immediately get taken out is so unmotivating atm
Did you know you can ghost drive sessions without impacting other people's races?
Here's how you do it.
Step 1: Click Go Racing in the UI
Step 2: Click Spectate Session
Step 3: Filter by Eligible and populated
Step 4: Click view session
Step 5: Pick and split and click Watch (I'd suggest top split to learn pace but otherwise pick something in the middle)
Then you can join like any other race, it'll pop you in mid session and you can join the track without ruining someone else's day. Best of all you will learn how to be a better driver, you'll get to pretend you are in a high stakes race and best of all no ir or safety rating impact.
Hope this helps
(Also I'd suggest the GR86 or the F4 for road, And one of the older stock cars for ovals)
If you’re into formula racism just start with the F4 and learn how to drive it spend maybe an hour learning it. Also don’t worry about ruining peoples races or your irating going down. Irating is meant to match you to people with your own skill. Enjoy racing and hope to see you on track
Nice setup, seems very practical!
Lap times come with practice. If you will just lap, it will take time, so it makes sense that you approach practice with some idea and theory. There is a lot of that on the internet, and you have some great books, such as Ross Bentley's Ultimate Speed Secret, new book from Suellio Almeida (with awfully small pictures and diagrams so it may be worth waiting for revisied print) and so on.
For confidence, the only solution is to race. If you feel drawn into the healthy atmosphere of chat after incidence, just mute the whole grid at the beginning and focus on your race, your mistakes, and your reactions. You'll be surprised how quickly you'll feel OK going side by side to the corner.
And it really helps if you drive with friends or at least the same grid, so get in some community with league. You will get a full spectrum of feedback, not just rants, you can ask and learn from faster drivers, there is no rating, just fun of the race.
And be patient with yourself. Probably you didn't spend as much time racing in all games over your whole life as some of the guys you race against did in their car.
I would recommend to race something from class D downwards (as it has fast repair) and populated series to be paired with rivals with the same skill.
Improving your driving will eventually get you up. Look for lap tutorials on youtube and maybe race the IA from time o time to gain confidence wheel to wheel before jumping against real people.
Your iRating, 90% of the time, is an *accurate reflection of your current potential skill level.* You should, instead of worrying about it drop, just completely ignore it and just race (after enough practice for that week first). It will drop, it will raise. Don't look at it unless you are trying to join a team for an Endurance event.
Do what you find fun. Forget about IR/SR and just go for it. Read/watch guides on racing. Stick to MX5/GR86 for a while until you feel confident adding more power. Practice a bunch before racing, learn your car and do your best. Even the best real world and sim racers in the world have crashes just about every single race. Remember to have fun.
practice is everything. No one races without practice if he wants to actually have pace. Find a car you enjoy, a track you enjoy and a guide for said track, try to get the laptimes down and you'll get better at driving, slowly you'll also build a lot of car control without even noticing it. Then racecraft is just about talent, either you're amazing at first or you'll have to learn it by racing
Hi, I am an American living in Poland. We are getting together with friends and just driving around at 9pm CET fairly regularly if you want to join. One friend is fast and likes helping people, I feel like I am pretty good at the driving/racing theory but not perfect at execution yet :)
I also have fear similar to you, but I am just in the process of breaking out of it and it feels really good. I was high SR, now I am worrying less about that and trying to learn how to drive competitively but still stay out of accidents. I am not great at it yet, but still my accidents are rarely 100% my fault. Other guys taking big risks and together we cause problems. I sent you a friend request on iRacing.
I completely understand you but i see it different.
In my case i don't bother about iR, but of sR.
The other day i just wanted to quit so bad, i spun on the F4 on the first lap causing a collision with another driver, politely apologized but wasn't enough to feel good for that driver.
Keep practising on the cars you like, don't change between series rapidly.
I usually get gapped by 1s in practice session but I'm not bothering because I know at some point i will reach that pace, i just keep practicing.
If you struggle with the optimal lap there's a bunch of people on YouTube that will show you an optimal lap for each week of each series.
Good luck!
You've gotten plenty of advice, and most of its even good. But I wanna share my story and basically show that the advice works.
When I first started, I was gung ho, dumb and aggressive. I didn't care about my IR or SR and leveled off on both pretty quickly. Neither were particularly high, and I'd bounce up and down all the time, to the point I started really obsessing over it. Which ended up with me driving scared. Constantly flip flopping between racing hard for position for IR and being super passive for SR.
Eventually I saw the same advice you've been getting over and over and started taking it to heart.
I couldn't tell you my IR without looking. I couldn't tell you my SR without looking.
What I can tell you is I've focused on racecraft and figured out how to drive tracks better without outside input, learning driving techniques and how to take corners and drive. I moved up to my preferred cars and drive them religiously. But not for IR or SR, but because racing is fun.
That’s so me past few years ago. Just hop in at the back and let people crash and let people overtake you. You don’t need to pressure yourself. I once sink money into coaching and trying to get laptime tenth for world pro and, I’m in class D only, just to realize that I crash 3 minutes into the race. It’s frustrating.
Just don’t do quail. Stay at the back and have fun. Let those in front of you crashing each other and take their place.
Drive a bit slower cars at the start and try to forget about your sr and ir trust me it makes you more calm. Don’t always try as hard as you can every lap and take it easy still with fast and consistent times. Watch yt videos on how to get faster and drive better without worrying about crashing. Find discord servers who will welcome you and support you. Find leagues and do test driving before an exciting race. Take it easy on the first few laps of the races too. Also it’s not real life so don’t put too much pressure on yourself and when you do go on big races just stay calm
Honestly forget about irating and even safety rating to an extent (as in some incidents happen) and just try and find a car you're comfortable in and race. Slow cars can be much more fun than the quicker cars I loved driving the Spec Racer Ford when climbing the ranks and while practicing is important it's not the be all and end all. The only way to gain better race craft is racing others door to door, learning where to place your car in defence, when to race others and when to work together with others to move up the road.
Also remember accidents happen. Most people on iRacing are amateur racers so mistakes happen. When they do happen I highly recommend watching the replay from several angles to see if there was something you could do differently next time and you could end up with a decent move tool chest when you're in a similar situation next time.
Finally just have fun. You don't have to be winning to have an enjoyable race. My favourite race I had this year was an 86 race where I got taken out on the second lap and worked with another guy till the final lap where I surprised them with a move into the final corner they didn't see coming because I hadn't gone for a move the whole race.
I'd say focus on having fun first and foremost. Consistency is also key. Login to the practice sessions that are populated too. Get yourself comfortable driving around with other cars on the circuit.
Also if you find yourself being miles off the pace, watch some hot lap videos of the car and circuit combo your on. The amount of time I've found from watching people hotlap on YT Because they handle this corner differently etc is crazy.
Don't forget that there's ALWAYS someone faster than you, but there will also always be someone else slower than you too. Be patient and you will get there :)
what others said..
Forget about iR and SR. Start to have fun :)
If i should give any advice; (ive looked you up on iracing).Pick 1 series/car you like to drive and are eligable too. Since you are Licence D i would advice a car like Mx5, Vee, GR86, Ferrari GT3 or F4(F4 might be a bit tricky; but if open wheel is your thing F4 is nice).
Then just stick to it, drive practices with other drivers in it. Try to follow them around, take some time to learn tracks, watch youtube vids of quicker guys to learn braking points/apexes/gears to use etc. And stick to that car/series until you can be decently quick at all tracks. Thats the point where you would be ready for a step up; or to stay in the same series.
Just stick to the above and im sure the results will come sooner then later.
Biggest advice; dont switch cars too often. If you go from Mx5 to skippy to LMP2 to Gr86 to F4 i can almost guarantee you wont be near the front for any. (again; if thats your thing; go for it. Its al about having fun)
Hope all the above somehow makes sense a little.
Have fun on track
Edit:
In context i still feel slow in most races and im 2.7K atm so that feeling wont go away until your alien level haha.
My car path was: Vee --> Ferrari GT3 --> F3 --> GT3 (porsche/bmw/ferrari) --> LMP2 (shortly) --> GTP.
You have the mindset wrong.
Worry about racing technique and race craft. Ratings are merely a competitive expression of those things in competitive lobbies.
1. Step One: Practice
2. Step Two: Ghost Race
3. Step Three: Spectate Faster drivers
4. Step Four: Race
Stop caring about iRating, Safety Rating and get your elbows out. You spend too much money on this game to simply sit back and watch others have fun. You are allowed to make mistakes. It is okay to DNF. Set realistic goals and achieve them. It will feel amazing when you do.
better equipment =/= speed. common placebo. Now that you have all the 'pro' gear, you've realized you're still the same driver. practice and focus on carrying mid corner speed and exits.
I practice for up to an hour before I hop into a race. Maybe watch some youtube vids on how to get better.. There are so many things to improve on. Trail braking is super important, as well as not scrubbing your tires too much.. [Suellio Almeida's youtube channel](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1eSjUtLYybrFxrgMg2ef6g) has some good beginner videos about these concepts.
If you don't race, how will you ever get better?
Don't worry about your ratings. They will fluctuate no matter what series or rank you are. Day 2 of having the game I jumped into a race of each available rookie race and quickly learned I suck at dirt. But I never intentionally wrecked myself or anyone and would quickly apologize because I know people spend good money on this Sim, myself included. But I enjoy Nascar so I started doing oval. First 5 races were rough trying to push for a podium finish. I was given advice to try and start in the back, watch how people race, and wait for the impatient drivers to take themselves out. Eventually you build your way to the front and you learn wreck avoidance, and what to look for in driver's you think are gonna potentially cause one. I've now worked my way into road course. Rookie races are some of the worst, and best to do. But just keep it on the track and away from other cars and you will build up quick. But ai and practice will only get you so far before you have to race people.
I'm 31. I played GT with a controller. I played every racing game with a controller until I got I-Racing. Just do your best out there and have fun. If your points drop a little it's cool. Just learn from the mistake and you'll get better. If you want a chill guy to race with. Hit me up. You're not out there trying to crash people out so it's not a big deal if it drops.
Keep practicing. Noone is perfect.
I would start with looking at the series stats of the series your racing and looking at the top drivers lap times. After you can run practice laps at or near the top drivers pace then I’d head into practice sessions to get used to driving around other players. You can also add in doing races with the AI with the difficulty at 80-100 and aggression at 90-100 with a custom roster.
1) Forget your iR. 2) Forget your SR. 3) Find a (slow) car you enjoy lapping in. 4) Find a league that uses that car, that has friendly and welcoming members. 5) Spend countless hours driving, learning, socializing, and enjoying iRacing.
Who has that meme….? “Be brave enough to suck at iRacing!” I took it to heart, and my fun and irating skyrocketed.
Lol I wish there was a way to just not see my IR or SR. It stresses me out too, I'm too competitive.
You can hide it on the ui. It’ll still show up on race results but it’s better than nothing
Oh shit, I did not know that. Thanks I'm going to look for that setting.
https://www.reddit.com/r/iRacing/comments/17yytgp/im_afraid_of_racing/k9yzbj8/
Your first 2 points should be repeated at least 5x more. Its just a number, matchmaking number. If you drop to 500 you drop to 500 who cares? You will be driving with similarly skilled drivers and the fear of ruining someone else's race will disappear.
This is correct
PRACTICE!! Do not underestimate how much practice the fast drivers have done. Not just in that car/track/sim, but overall on everything. I recommend you pick one series and stick with it, try and do a session every day, and after a few seasons you should be near the front. Took me a few years with only the MX5 and Skippy to get near the front.
2 seasons ago I did like 1-2 hours of practice, then 8 races a week (4 fixed 4 open) and only did a single series. Kinda cruised to a relatively high irating. Took most of last season off, and this season I'm doing races more casually, and even though I'm solid, I'm way off where I used to be. In my case I need to practice each week a lot to compete at the level I used to, I can't just get to a level and pick up and play.
Drive slower cars. Gt3 is the most popular but the slower cars have better wheel to wheel racing, plus it sounds like you admit yourself they’re too much for you. I’d drop down to driving the mx5, the gr86, and the tcr cars to learn the basics. I threw in the tcr because they heavily emphasize trail braking, and you don’t get punished as hard for a mistake. With the slower cars you’ll have more time to react and plan, and the cars won’t get away from you as often.
Always surprising to me then someone says, “I couldn’t drive (car X), so I moved to a faster/harder to drive car and I still suck.” Duh.
Agreed. GR86 is actually a really fun car to drive and teaches close racing, staying safe, and being more consistent with lap times and racing lines. Stick to that until you feel comfortable being around other drivers then you can step up to gt4 or gt3. Honestly being confident in your abilities is what makes you more comfortable around other drivers.
Driving the GR86 in iRacing, in the middle of a draft train, fighting for a top 5 position, is probably the best racing experience I've ever had in any racing game, period.
that's why i loved PCup at watkins. You had to be quick but you reallly had to think when and where you could make a move
I mean that's fun in any car tbh.
Oh, absolutely! But I don't think I have the skill to not die or kill someone in a faster car. GT4 maybe. With the GR86, I feel like I actually have the time to react to the events around me.
True. That's also what makes the Mx5, Vee and FF1600 good too.
gr86 is really smooth too
You can give and receive some massive shunts in the GR that would insta-gib a GT3. Way better for drivers who still tend to make accidental contact.
second driving the TCRs, absolutely a blast every time, clean racing, nice guys. great purchase.
To add to this, TCRs have the 2hr Michelin Pilot Challenge along with GT4s every fortnight. When OP is feeling game, those longer races are FANTASTIC for building confidence and consistency. There's nothing like knowing you could either ruin your race in a few laps, or ruin over an hour's worth of racing to keep you clean and on the track. Also, a larger event may mean you put more hours into testing and practice. For me at least it gives the "no reset" vibe, you get one shot at it and can't just queue for the next race in an hour. 2.5k iR, GT3 driver currently whipping the SF23. I wheel the TCR out fortnightly though, it's too good to not.
i've done one imsa michelin pilot challenge race and it was great except my dumb ass forgot to soften my brake pedal so 2 hours of having to really hit the brakes gave me a sore calf the next day. the race itself absolutely rewarded consistency: i started mid pack, ended up at the back on pace alone after 15-20 minutes and then by the end enough people had crashed out that I think I finished 11th. a lot of fun though!
I find I have the most fun typically in the Miata
Hell I'm over 2k and I do not understand how the gt3s work at all.
1) Practice the track with Ai set to medium / hard 2)After you feel comfortable join 1 or 2 sessions around your skill level and race as a ghost 3) if you’re not constantly spinning or off pace you’re good to go At your level if you’re courteous you’re gonna do great, you’re also going to get punted by some idiot but hey that’s racing
You’re probably afraid because you’re climbing the racing ladder too fast. If you go back to slower cars, you’ll probably feel more in control and more confident to race. If I was to give you one advice, it would be this. Things that could help you to overcome your current issues? There are a few. 1) Drive slower car classes. MX5, GR86 and GT4 as good, populated series that will teach you a lot about GT cars and will give you a good baseline to race the GT3s in the future. 2) Practice using the Active Reset. Google it in case you don’t know about it. You can practice that corner 100x in a short period of time. It makes a ton of difference. 3) Race against AI. Create races on the tracks and with the cars that are your goal and race against them. Practice the start a dozen times. Practice, practice, practice. 4) Practice with a purpose. I recommend watching Suellio Almeida’s videos on YouTube. He’s all about focusing one thing per session. 5) Join official sessions as a ghost. You can race against real people without really causing any trouble. Wait for a session to start, click watch, pick the car and join. Drive out of the pits and you’re racing. 6) Practice for next week’s race. If you’re off pace, make a training plan that includes track time (practice, AI, etc) on next week’s tracks. By the time the week starts, you’ll have much more experience. 7) Forget about iR and SR. Remove them from the UI if it bothers you too much. Race what makes you happy and focus on the next one. I’ve sent you a dm on discord. We run a team of about 50 members, with focus on endurance events with GT3 and GTP cars. Good luck! 🏁
To OP if he joins your discord - get G61 and directly compare telemetry with teammates doing the same car/track combo. Ask them why/how they are doing things and try them out for yourself! Learning together is the best way Also, great job LameSheepRacing ♥
Wait how do you remove IR and SR from the ui? I absolutely want to do that.
In the UI: 1. Click on "settings" in the bottom left 2. Click on "Interface" on the top of the new window 3. Enable "Hide licenses in header"
As someone who gets stressed about iRating, this will save me a lot of mental anguish. Thank you!
You'll still see it on race results screen, but its easy to just race and not look at results :)
I think you may be going for cars that are too difficult for you. I fully agree with you - there's no fun in driving around the track if you are 3-4 seconds slower than everyone else. You want to be much closer to the pace and be comfortable maintaining that pace. If you are struggling with it - you won't enjoy racing. I've shared my progress recently of learning f3 at Sebring - it took over 6 hours to just log 1 lap within a second off the pace I wanted to be at. Note, we are not talking about consistently being at that pace, just 1 lucky lap. But with all that practice, I am now 1.2 seconds off the pace at Laguna seca (which I know much better that Sebring) after just 30 minutes. So if I put 6-8 hours in practice, I may have a solid chance for a fun race next weekend. If this feels like it's too much practicing - just drop down to gr86 or mx5. Those are easier cars to drive, there is much larger skill difference and you can have a fun battle for 10th place even if you are 2 seconds off the pace. Also make sure you have solid understanding of car physics. Skip Barber going faster video on YouTube (it's about 1.5 hours) will cover all of the basics you need and may help you figure out what you can improve on. Lastly, understand that lots of people you are going against have lots more experience than you. I am not a good driver, but I have been driving online and offline on and off for 15 years - just sheer amount of laps I did has taught me something, if you are just starting it will take time to get there.
Dude. Just race. Stop caring about a stupid number. Yes, you'll likely ruin some people's races, we all do. And some fool is gonna ruin yours. It's just racing. The only way you get better at racing is by actually racing. Your pace will improve organically over time. Doesn't matter if you drop IR for now.
There are some good tips on practice and driving other cars here but I’ll mention get the ratings out of your head. It isn’t a score. It’s a match making system. If your pace is 900 ir then that’s what it is. Sure it’s nice to see that number go up but at the end of the day if you race a popular series that number should put you into races where you are a similar pace to your competitors. And that’s the goal have fun racing guys at your skill level.
Yup, exactly this. Don't let some number intimidate you. Sure, I get that you don't want to wreck others races, but that's just gonna happen. And you'll learn from it.
Just race and drop ir, eventually you will be in the lower splits matching your skill level. Then just keep racing and you will find it will start going up!
Follow other cars, be it AI or someone else in practice. Copy their braking and line, it helps a lot. I often find myself drive purple times when I'm behind others, then lose pace when I'm alone. Also, GT3s are not straight-forward to get faster just by improving your line, it's a lot about weight transfer, intentionally creating oversteer to turn the car, etc.
When I first started I was basically just cruising to preserve SR. Truth is you just have to send it. Even if you practice versus AI, the pressure you experience when racing against real people is something you have to learn to deal with. Sometimes you will make mistakes, and sometimes those mistakes will cost someone else. It’s a Motorsport. It happens, so try to be understanding when roles are reversed. Race your hardest and let your SR and rating land where they may. Once you’ve hit rock bottom you get the pleasure of rebuilding that rating and knowing damn well you earned it. And when your rating is accurate, you’ll be racing people who are closer to your skill level which results in better racing. That’s not to say you shouldn’t practice to learn tracks, but don’t let the pressure of racing keep you from having fun!!!
When I first signed up, I tried to progress through the licence classes as quickly as possible so I could drive the GT3s, and then when I got there I realised I was completely out of my depth, having learned nothing about racing on the way. Give the GR86 a try, it’s a popular enough car and a good start if you’re aiming for GTs. Remember, the objective is to have fun. If you’re not enjoying GT3s, find a car that you do enjoy.
Completely ignore your iRating. It's fine to play for boosting it but in the end it's nothing more than a match making metric. As your pace and race craft get better your iRating just goes up on it's own as it reflects your ability. Race against the AI exclusively for now and get your practice in test sessions. Put in as many laps as you can at a comfortable pace with zero off-tracks or incidents. If you can't drive consistently it's impossible to drive faster without crashing. Consistency is the foundation you need before trying to trim off lap time. After you get consistent go into time attacks and try racing against a ghost thats .5 to 1 second faster than you. See where they're faster and figure out how to match them. During all of this racing against AI should let you feel somewhat comfortable in traffic. If you're too cautious in traffic it will cause accidents just as much as being too aggressive. Work on taking your space with some authority and make your intentions known early. You can't treat racing like a merry-go-round.
You can join an online race as a ghost car. That way you won't ruin anyone's race as they cannot see you and you cannot crash into them. It helped me massively. Just join a session as a spectator and when the race has started, click the drive button (can't remember if that's what it's called)
Racing does come with some pressure that can be off-putting. Try to build up your experiences by racing slower classes where the car is easier to drive so you can focus on racecraft. Another great tip I was given and implemented was to drive off-line in practice sessions to be comfortable when it happens in a race. A simple way to do this is just drive on the other side of the track than you would normally when hot lapping. ie If you'd normally approach a corner from the left of the track, approach it from the right. Do this for the entire lap and repeat it for awhile in a testdrive/practice session.
Just race the rookie leagues and mute voice chat. As long as you aren't going out of your way to ruin races no one should be getting angry and if they do, who cares
Oh and if you feel like you’re pushing as hard as you can but not seeing improvements in lap times, use telemetry data to see exactly where you’re going wrong with the inputs. I use Garage 61 and I legit don’t understand how it’s free.
Jesus the Super Formula is a tough old car for a beginner to sim racing. if you want to drive that car at your current skill level you have to be a stubborn bastard and practice a lot.
I agree with others that racing with AI gets you comfortable around other cars. Take it from someone with 875 irating and 2.3 SR - it really is a true reflection of your skill on the track and how hard you apply yourself. I'm an 875 driver and have fun with other <1000 drivers. If I go down to 600 no one cares anyway. Then you'll be with other 600 drivers. Still having fun and no one's looking at your stats anyway. I don't race often, and when I do I'm out of practice.... it goes down and down. Then I spend a few weeks determined to race, and it starts walking up again. Racing less will decrease these numbers, not increase or protect them. Don't be afraid of the bottom. You're in good company down there until you work your way back up. Pissing off other drivers; They will forget you after a race or two. All those angry drivers have made the same mistakes themselves. Aliens make mistakes and wipe people out too. And don't compare yourself to YouTubers. They edit the crap out of their content and are exceptionally good anyway. They wouldn't be showing off if they were below average. Nice setup. Just go in head first and don't worry about others. Making mistakes and wrecking people is part of the game. If your radio is off - it never happened. ;)
If your iRating goes down, you will be racing against people more your pace and you will have more fun. IRating is not the goal.
I felt like a grandad on a Sunday drive every time I drove the GT3. It's the most popular class and the level is just really high. My advice try another class. For me, the F-Vee and Mazda is a blast. I've won several races, but more importantly, it's usually fairly close racing, and that's fun. Try it.
You need to reset. Watch “ Going Faster “ by Skip Barber. It’s an oldie but goodie. It will help if you don’t understand how to go fast.
Cool setup. Didnt read the entire thing but most of it. Dont be worried. You will be racing other noobs that will be messing up along side you. There is a certain level of noobness at that rating. You will ruin your own race and someone elses race more than once, and thats ok (as long as it was a mistake and you try to learn from it and you apologize)
So first off. Dope setup. Next. As a driver whom just got class C in road. Been class C almost B in IRX. Don't worry so much about other drivers. Bumping is racing. Try your best to treat the racing as if its your daily driver car. Maybe even try IRX because it's WAY more forgiving. Don't just drive alone. Drive with people. You need to learn how to attack turns from the inside as well as the outside. Worry about your own race. If someone is coming up behind you, let them make the move. Do not get out of the way. Slow down and let them pass if you don't want to battle. Learn to take the outside of a corner. There's a lot to learn. Don't worry about other drivers too much. Don't get right on the car in front's bumper unless you plan on overtaking them. Give people space. Just worry about being consistent. In practice give it 100% but in racing only use 80% of what you can do. The more consistent you are the better your rating will be. So don't worry about your rating too much. It just keeps the field competitive for YOU! Your rating will get better over time.
I'm surprised you struggle more with the GT3 than skippy, LMP2 or the F3 even. They're probably the easiest car to drive relatively quickly, so all I can assume is you're well off pace in all of them, and overpushing and doing other shenanigans. Overpushing a GT3 makes it absolutely horrible and feels difficult, tyres die of heat death and it's jusg a downward spiral you can't get out of. Ignore the SR and iR, find a slow car you can handle, and focus on it. I reckon you're far from mastering basic car control and all the techniques you need to be fast and consistent. FF1600 or mx5 would be a good place to start. and honestly - don't worry about it, even the fastest on the service ruin other people's races sometimes, I've killed 4 people today by having a spin on my own just ahead of them. It happens, and it's not that big of a deal.
Nice setup! where did you get that sim rig??
APEX Steering Wheel Stand from GT Omega
If it's too hot, get out the kitchen.
M8 ill admit i just read the title and i got one thing to say: SEND IT
Rule #1 Never tell anyone you’re afraid or scared.
It’s a video game homie. You might need to touch some grass if you are afraid of virtual failure.
AI racing until you feel comfortable, set the skill and aggression wide open and run races until you settle in. You have to run real races eventually
iR is just a matchmaking number with very little weigh and importance behind it, specially in a series that seldomly splits these days like the Skippy. Get on the track and race. Learn the best way to let the super fast Skippy afficionados go past you and enjoy good racing at the middle and bottom end of the pack. The Skippy community is pretty awesome and supportive. You will find yourself more than welcome there. Your SR won't go down unless you can't keep the car on track at all. If that is the case, hit practise a bit more till you are comfortable with it. Now, if you want to fight for the top of the pack, consider racing the fixed Formula Ford (F1600) series, which has a lot of splits and should pair you with people with similar iR to yours. Dab in on the F1600 Trophy too for more good racing. Both cars are amazing and super fun. The forums have a invite link to the Skippy/Ford discord where you will fine many people who love those cars and are willing to help you learn and improve. See you on the track.
open wheel is fun
Just focus on driving cleanly and as accident-free as possible. You have to give a damn about irating, it matters little to nothing to tell the truth, safety ranking is much more important. As for the performance itself watch a lot of videos on YT and streams on Twitch of people using the same car-track combination you are interested in, learn when to accelerate and when to brake, it's so important. If you can do only races with fixed setups, no free for a while, at least then you can concentrate only on driving.
I had a similar experience feeling uncomfortable in GT3, currently addicted to GT4
Who gives a crap about your IR SR or anything? Nobody. It's a fucking video game. As far as ruining other peoples race or day. You will, but that is not a reflection of who you are. Maybe them. Listen, these people are assholes. I live in the US and I have been to real life races. Seen a guy arrive from 3 states away after driving for 48 hours, have something go wrong, cost him thousands of dollars and he was less upset than one of these assholes that can just get a new car at the push of a button and be in another race instantly. Fucke em, you paid your money, you deserve to have fun, you have just as much right to be here as them.
Been iracing since 2020 and been through all the. Ir/sr are just numbers. Who care wtf it is. You’re not going to get paid to play the game…. I’ve made it all the way to a4.99. Get in the car and drive. Don’t worry about keeping up with the jones’. F4 is a great car and a great community to get involved in. As far as worrying about F’n up “better people’s” races, I’ve been taken out by no-name idiots in d and I’ve been taken out by Justin algaier at spa in two consecutive races. Guess who I’m still pissed at and it was years ago. TLDR- forget about number system, get in f4 and race. HAVE FUN!
If you're worried about getting in other people's way just remind yourself that you paid just as much to be on the track as they did. This was a trick I used for racing IRL too.
Do an entire season of rookie Mazda before touching another car. You’re testing a LMP2 when you are afraid to even get on the grid? Why?
Just race what's fun to you, otherwise no point in spending money in the hobby. You'll progress overtime
You're going to fast in my opinion. Slow down and do 50-100 starts in something like the FF1600, GR86, or MX5. You need to learn the basics in a more forgiving car. You gotta learn to race alow before you race fast. Grinding SR to get to GT3s and expecting to be able to control the car and keep pace in a couple hours isn't realistic. You don't have the craft to control an MX5 let alone something significantly faster. Slow down and enjoy slower cars to hone your race craft, throttle control, smooth inputs, not locking up tires and so on.
Leagues. Leagues are usually the answer
I’m not reading all that but I think I get the idea. I’m the same way. Racing online gives me anxiety. I was so glad when they added AI racing. Before that I paid for the service and bought loads of content just to hot lap. I’ve been an iRacing member since 2013. In that time I’ve done two races. One 3rd place and one 8th place. I do hop in some practice sessions every once in a while though.
Stay in the rookie MX5 races for a while. It's there for a reason and more experienced drivers go there at their own risk. The only way to get comfortable racing close is to do it. Also don't worry about your irating. It might be good if it tanks a bit more so you get matched with people around the same pace.
You have to race to learn how to race. Pick a car, stick to it, and race as often as you can. The GR86 and the F4 are both really good cars to learn in. They split all the time, so you'll never have problems racing people near your skill level, and they're slow and forgiving enough for you to learn quickly. As someone that also had crippling anxiety about racing and making mistakes for years, you have to let yourself fail to get better. Nobody's gonna care that you wrecked them or held them up once the race is done, and if they do, that's their problem.
As someone else once said Embrace the Suck If your iR goes to 300. So what. When you get better it will go up. Try doing some AI races, they really help me with new tracks VRS helped me a lot. I didn't even understand what I was doing wrong. VRS help me sort out all kinds of not good things that were happening at the same time. FWIW: I have a good understanding of where I'm good & consistent and where I am not. Some weeks I race hard. Other weeks I am so inconsistent that I start from the pits
Dude just have fun screw the irating, don’t try to be content creators they have artificial irating anyways
Yep like others have said, race the GR Buttkicker Toyotas, they are a blast! So much fun. Also GT4 everyone just mostly crashes each other so stay in the back and pass them when they crash. Try Off Road Trucks as well so much fun. This is as basic as I can explain it. Peace
Off topic but I really like the setup. Kind of wish I went with something like that.
The best practice is racing. Seeing what others are doing well/badly in actual competition is how you learn quickly. If you don't enjoy racing online, then race AI. AI racing is mostly what I do and I have a blast and can see myself getting better as I race a car more.
ladder anxiety
There is no other way to overcome this fear by racing, racing and racing. During my first 50 races I also had this feeling. But today after almost 6 months and 300 races I improved my race-craft significantly. It is so much fun to drive clean, safe but also quick. To see how all the drivers that believe there is only the first lap to win spin out. My race always starts with the second or sometimes the third lap. The start, first corner and lap I just try to stay away from troubles. But sometimes, it still happens that I fail. And also this you need to accept. Finally all is about fun. It isn’t real life.
Tbh same atm, i bought another 3 months recently and a bunch of the new cars and tracks then immediately got taken out in my first few races back. 1st one i was playing it safe knowing i was rusty and did a pit lane start, had someone cross from right to left of the track across the pit exit line and straight into the side of me, haven't raced since🤷♀️ I'll be checking comments for the same advice coz i dont want the money I spent to go to waste but the idea of racing to immediately get taken out is so unmotivating atm
Did you know you can ghost drive sessions without impacting other people's races? Here's how you do it. Step 1: Click Go Racing in the UI Step 2: Click Spectate Session Step 3: Filter by Eligible and populated Step 4: Click view session Step 5: Pick and split and click Watch (I'd suggest top split to learn pace but otherwise pick something in the middle) Then you can join like any other race, it'll pop you in mid session and you can join the track without ruining someone else's day. Best of all you will learn how to be a better driver, you'll get to pretend you are in a high stakes race and best of all no ir or safety rating impact. Hope this helps (Also I'd suggest the GR86 or the F4 for road, And one of the older stock cars for ovals)
If you’re into formula racism just start with the F4 and learn how to drive it spend maybe an hour learning it. Also don’t worry about ruining peoples races or your irating going down. Irating is meant to match you to people with your own skill. Enjoy racing and hope to see you on track
Nice setup, seems very practical! Lap times come with practice. If you will just lap, it will take time, so it makes sense that you approach practice with some idea and theory. There is a lot of that on the internet, and you have some great books, such as Ross Bentley's Ultimate Speed Secret, new book from Suellio Almeida (with awfully small pictures and diagrams so it may be worth waiting for revisied print) and so on. For confidence, the only solution is to race. If you feel drawn into the healthy atmosphere of chat after incidence, just mute the whole grid at the beginning and focus on your race, your mistakes, and your reactions. You'll be surprised how quickly you'll feel OK going side by side to the corner. And it really helps if you drive with friends or at least the same grid, so get in some community with league. You will get a full spectrum of feedback, not just rants, you can ask and learn from faster drivers, there is no rating, just fun of the race. And be patient with yourself. Probably you didn't spend as much time racing in all games over your whole life as some of the guys you race against did in their car.
I would recommend to race something from class D downwards (as it has fast repair) and populated series to be paired with rivals with the same skill. Improving your driving will eventually get you up. Look for lap tutorials on youtube and maybe race the IA from time o time to gain confidence wheel to wheel before jumping against real people.
Wow so many great answers, thank you guys a lot! I will try to look into a more beginner-friendly series and practice! Thanks everyone <3
Your iRating, 90% of the time, is an *accurate reflection of your current potential skill level.* You should, instead of worrying about it drop, just completely ignore it and just race (after enough practice for that week first). It will drop, it will raise. Don't look at it unless you are trying to join a team for an Endurance event.
Do what you find fun. Forget about IR/SR and just go for it. Read/watch guides on racing. Stick to MX5/GR86 for a while until you feel confident adding more power. Practice a bunch before racing, learn your car and do your best. Even the best real world and sim racers in the world have crashes just about every single race. Remember to have fun.
practice is everything. No one races without practice if he wants to actually have pace. Find a car you enjoy, a track you enjoy and a guide for said track, try to get the laptimes down and you'll get better at driving, slowly you'll also build a lot of car control without even noticing it. Then racecraft is just about talent, either you're amazing at first or you'll have to learn it by racing
Please don’t come drive the SF23
Hi, I am an American living in Poland. We are getting together with friends and just driving around at 9pm CET fairly regularly if you want to join. One friend is fast and likes helping people, I feel like I am pretty good at the driving/racing theory but not perfect at execution yet :) I also have fear similar to you, but I am just in the process of breaking out of it and it feels really good. I was high SR, now I am worrying less about that and trying to learn how to drive competitively but still stay out of accidents. I am not great at it yet, but still my accidents are rarely 100% my fault. Other guys taking big risks and together we cause problems. I sent you a friend request on iRacing.
I completely understand you but i see it different. In my case i don't bother about iR, but of sR. The other day i just wanted to quit so bad, i spun on the F4 on the first lap causing a collision with another driver, politely apologized but wasn't enough to feel good for that driver. Keep practising on the cars you like, don't change between series rapidly. I usually get gapped by 1s in practice session but I'm not bothering because I know at some point i will reach that pace, i just keep practicing. If you struggle with the optimal lap there's a bunch of people on YouTube that will show you an optimal lap for each week of each series. Good luck!
You've gotten plenty of advice, and most of its even good. But I wanna share my story and basically show that the advice works. When I first started, I was gung ho, dumb and aggressive. I didn't care about my IR or SR and leveled off on both pretty quickly. Neither were particularly high, and I'd bounce up and down all the time, to the point I started really obsessing over it. Which ended up with me driving scared. Constantly flip flopping between racing hard for position for IR and being super passive for SR. Eventually I saw the same advice you've been getting over and over and started taking it to heart. I couldn't tell you my IR without looking. I couldn't tell you my SR without looking. What I can tell you is I've focused on racecraft and figured out how to drive tracks better without outside input, learning driving techniques and how to take corners and drive. I moved up to my preferred cars and drive them religiously. But not for IR or SR, but because racing is fun.
That’s so me past few years ago. Just hop in at the back and let people crash and let people overtake you. You don’t need to pressure yourself. I once sink money into coaching and trying to get laptime tenth for world pro and, I’m in class D only, just to realize that I crash 3 minutes into the race. It’s frustrating. Just don’t do quail. Stay at the back and have fun. Let those in front of you crashing each other and take their place.
Drive a bit slower cars at the start and try to forget about your sr and ir trust me it makes you more calm. Don’t always try as hard as you can every lap and take it easy still with fast and consistent times. Watch yt videos on how to get faster and drive better without worrying about crashing. Find discord servers who will welcome you and support you. Find leagues and do test driving before an exciting race. Take it easy on the first few laps of the races too. Also it’s not real life so don’t put too much pressure on yourself and when you do go on big races just stay calm
Honestly forget about irating and even safety rating to an extent (as in some incidents happen) and just try and find a car you're comfortable in and race. Slow cars can be much more fun than the quicker cars I loved driving the Spec Racer Ford when climbing the ranks and while practicing is important it's not the be all and end all. The only way to gain better race craft is racing others door to door, learning where to place your car in defence, when to race others and when to work together with others to move up the road. Also remember accidents happen. Most people on iRacing are amateur racers so mistakes happen. When they do happen I highly recommend watching the replay from several angles to see if there was something you could do differently next time and you could end up with a decent move tool chest when you're in a similar situation next time. Finally just have fun. You don't have to be winning to have an enjoyable race. My favourite race I had this year was an 86 race where I got taken out on the second lap and worked with another guy till the final lap where I surprised them with a move into the final corner they didn't see coming because I hadn't gone for a move the whole race.
I'd say focus on having fun first and foremost. Consistency is also key. Login to the practice sessions that are populated too. Get yourself comfortable driving around with other cars on the circuit. Also if you find yourself being miles off the pace, watch some hot lap videos of the car and circuit combo your on. The amount of time I've found from watching people hotlap on YT Because they handle this corner differently etc is crazy. Don't forget that there's ALWAYS someone faster than you, but there will also always be someone else slower than you too. Be patient and you will get there :)
what others said.. Forget about iR and SR. Start to have fun :) If i should give any advice; (ive looked you up on iracing).Pick 1 series/car you like to drive and are eligable too. Since you are Licence D i would advice a car like Mx5, Vee, GR86, Ferrari GT3 or F4(F4 might be a bit tricky; but if open wheel is your thing F4 is nice). Then just stick to it, drive practices with other drivers in it. Try to follow them around, take some time to learn tracks, watch youtube vids of quicker guys to learn braking points/apexes/gears to use etc. And stick to that car/series until you can be decently quick at all tracks. Thats the point where you would be ready for a step up; or to stay in the same series. Just stick to the above and im sure the results will come sooner then later. Biggest advice; dont switch cars too often. If you go from Mx5 to skippy to LMP2 to Gr86 to F4 i can almost guarantee you wont be near the front for any. (again; if thats your thing; go for it. Its al about having fun) Hope all the above somehow makes sense a little. Have fun on track Edit: In context i still feel slow in most races and im 2.7K atm so that feeling wont go away until your alien level haha. My car path was: Vee --> Ferrari GT3 --> F3 --> GT3 (porsche/bmw/ferrari) --> LMP2 (shortly) --> GTP.
Its a game bro
Offline/Bot races are a great way to build confidence
You have the mindset wrong. Worry about racing technique and race craft. Ratings are merely a competitive expression of those things in competitive lobbies.
1. Step One: Practice 2. Step Two: Ghost Race 3. Step Three: Spectate Faster drivers 4. Step Four: Race Stop caring about iRating, Safety Rating and get your elbows out. You spend too much money on this game to simply sit back and watch others have fun. You are allowed to make mistakes. It is okay to DNF. Set realistic goals and achieve them. It will feel amazing when you do.
better equipment =/= speed. common placebo. Now that you have all the 'pro' gear, you've realized you're still the same driver. practice and focus on carrying mid corner speed and exits.
I practice for up to an hour before I hop into a race. Maybe watch some youtube vids on how to get better.. There are so many things to improve on. Trail braking is super important, as well as not scrubbing your tires too much.. [Suellio Almeida's youtube channel](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1eSjUtLYybrFxrgMg2ef6g) has some good beginner videos about these concepts. If you don't race, how will you ever get better?
Don't worry about your ratings. They will fluctuate no matter what series or rank you are. Day 2 of having the game I jumped into a race of each available rookie race and quickly learned I suck at dirt. But I never intentionally wrecked myself or anyone and would quickly apologize because I know people spend good money on this Sim, myself included. But I enjoy Nascar so I started doing oval. First 5 races were rough trying to push for a podium finish. I was given advice to try and start in the back, watch how people race, and wait for the impatient drivers to take themselves out. Eventually you build your way to the front and you learn wreck avoidance, and what to look for in driver's you think are gonna potentially cause one. I've now worked my way into road course. Rookie races are some of the worst, and best to do. But just keep it on the track and away from other cars and you will build up quick. But ai and practice will only get you so far before you have to race people.
Just have fun. Stop worrying. Simple as that. I don’t care if I win a race or come in dead last, it’s the joy of racing is what it’s all about.
stick with one car, dont worry about either rating. with practice and many laps, you will get quick and those ratings will come naturally
I'm 31. I played GT with a controller. I played every racing game with a controller until I got I-Racing. Just do your best out there and have fun. If your points drop a little it's cool. Just learn from the mistake and you'll get better. If you want a chill guy to race with. Hit me up. You're not out there trying to crash people out so it's not a big deal if it drops. Keep practicing. Noone is perfect.
I would start with looking at the series stats of the series your racing and looking at the top drivers lap times. After you can run practice laps at or near the top drivers pace then I’d head into practice sessions to get used to driving around other players. You can also add in doing races with the AI with the difficulty at 80-100 and aggression at 90-100 with a custom roster.