Let me start by saying I had no business finishing this race, much less coming in 4th. I was incredibly lucky in my dice. To recap the rolls:
T22: Brake w/ 1sp (modified 5)
T28: Top Speed (naked 7)
T28: Forced Pass w/ 2sp (modified 8)
T29: Brake w/ 1sp (modified 7)
T30: Chance w/ 1sp (modified 6)
T32: Chance w/ 1sp (modified 5)
T36: Brake (naked 6)
T37: Brake w/ 1sp (modified 7)
T46: Brake (naked 8)
T46: Chance (naked 8)
Of my ten dice rolls, three were on the chance table with only one bad outcome. Nor was the ‘bad’ roll all that bad – a spin in a situation that did little harm (to me, anyway). Lady luck was shining on me.
As this was the final race in the 3-race grand prix, I set my ultimate goal to winning the GP. Fabio and I went into the race in a dead heat on points. The only other driver with a chance to win the GP was Chris, who would’ve needed to win or place combined with a disaster from both Fabio and I. Basically, I had my sights set on Fabio the whole race and that is what drove many of my in-race decisions.
Lap 1: I was ok starting in the 5th spot but I made my first error in not pushing the start speed. If I’d done so I would’ve gotten through the first corner on turn 2. I ended up stuck in the corner and couldn’t make that first break. I spent 1/3 of my wear catching up to the chase pack and right after I did I made my second error, in Fagnes this time. Once again, I got myself stuck in the corner and was not able to keep up with the leaders. At this point I wasn’t sure how I would prevent Fabio from beating me.
Lap 2: I started to drop wear like it was going out of style. I needed to catch the chase pack to have a chance. By turn 23 and after dropping massive wear, I was only 2 spaces behind Fabio – however, he did have a six-wear advantage. I figured if I could somehow get in front of him, I might be able to stay ahead of him by rolling on the chance table. If I crashed in front of him, there would still be a possibility that I would roll Fabio up in the crash and end up tied for the GP. My opportunity came in the long back straight where my 180 top speed (with a push to 200) allowed me to jump in front. Yay for me! My first chance roll went well in the Bus Stop, luckily for those behind me... this time.
Lap 3: My second chance roll through La Source was also successful. By the way, at this point in the race those two chance rolls represented the only thing that could’ve tripped Randy up and stopped him from winning (hey, collateral damage – it happens). Once he passed me, he was in the clear and finished in impressive style. I caught a small break when Fabio missed a racing line but he did eventually catch back up. Unfortunately, he hit some bad dice and got stuck in the Paul Frere. That gave me just enough of an edge to gain inside position going into the Bus Stop chicane. Cody was a wild card here and, throwing caution to the wind, rolled his own dice to nail down 3rd place. His spin pushed me to the outside where I also spun, effectively blocking the track and setting up the drivers for that catastrophic T47. I knew the Bus Stop chicane would eventually bite! At this point, Fabio would need some luck on both the passing and chance tables to get back in front. His bad dice continued ensuring a GP victory for the red car. Inexplicably, I screwed up on the last turn, letting Cody grab 3rd in front of me.
Although I didn’t win, I felt this was both my best (& worst) run race. The early mistakes put me in a hole and catching up was not easy but I did it and even ran in first place for half a lap. Speaking of which, I don’t know if any of you had issues with me rolling on the chance table from the front spot but please consider my goal – staying ahead of (or crashing) Fabio was my primary goal and those dice were thrown in service to that goal. Sorry, Fabio - this was not personal and I think I played the game in the spirit it was intended to be played. I also set up future expectations for the field: The #25 Marines car will not be predictable in season 2 (yeah, Cody set those expectations too)!
I look forward to reading perspectives of this race from some other drivers. While not required, these post-race analyses (or EOG's in Diplomacy parlance) are both enlightening and entertaining. What was your best moment? Worst? Did you learn anything? Any new rivalries? We want to know!
Mike
T22: Brake w/ 1sp (modified 5)
T28: Top Speed (naked 7)
T28: Forced Pass w/ 2sp (modified 8)
T29: Brake w/ 1sp (modified 7)
T30: Chance w/ 1sp (modified 6)
T32: Chance w/ 1sp (modified 5)
T36: Brake (naked 6)
T37: Brake w/ 1sp (modified 7)
T46: Brake (naked 8)
T46: Chance (naked 8)
Of my ten dice rolls, three were on the chance table with only one bad outcome. Nor was the ‘bad’ roll all that bad – a spin in a situation that did little harm (to me, anyway). Lady luck was shining on me.
As this was the final race in the 3-race grand prix, I set my ultimate goal to winning the GP. Fabio and I went into the race in a dead heat on points. The only other driver with a chance to win the GP was Chris, who would’ve needed to win or place combined with a disaster from both Fabio and I. Basically, I had my sights set on Fabio the whole race and that is what drove many of my in-race decisions.
Lap 1: I was ok starting in the 5th spot but I made my first error in not pushing the start speed. If I’d done so I would’ve gotten through the first corner on turn 2. I ended up stuck in the corner and couldn’t make that first break. I spent 1/3 of my wear catching up to the chase pack and right after I did I made my second error, in Fagnes this time. Once again, I got myself stuck in the corner and was not able to keep up with the leaders. At this point I wasn’t sure how I would prevent Fabio from beating me.
Lap 2: I started to drop wear like it was going out of style. I needed to catch the chase pack to have a chance. By turn 23 and after dropping massive wear, I was only 2 spaces behind Fabio – however, he did have a six-wear advantage. I figured if I could somehow get in front of him, I might be able to stay ahead of him by rolling on the chance table. If I crashed in front of him, there would still be a possibility that I would roll Fabio up in the crash and end up tied for the GP. My opportunity came in the long back straight where my 180 top speed (with a push to 200) allowed me to jump in front. Yay for me! My first chance roll went well in the Bus Stop, luckily for those behind me... this time.
Lap 3: My second chance roll through La Source was also successful. By the way, at this point in the race those two chance rolls represented the only thing that could’ve tripped Randy up and stopped him from winning (hey, collateral damage – it happens). Once he passed me, he was in the clear and finished in impressive style. I caught a small break when Fabio missed a racing line but he did eventually catch back up. Unfortunately, he hit some bad dice and got stuck in the Paul Frere. That gave me just enough of an edge to gain inside position going into the Bus Stop chicane. Cody was a wild card here and, throwing caution to the wind, rolled his own dice to nail down 3rd place. His spin pushed me to the outside where I also spun, effectively blocking the track and setting up the drivers for that catastrophic T47. I knew the Bus Stop chicane would eventually bite! At this point, Fabio would need some luck on both the passing and chance tables to get back in front. His bad dice continued ensuring a GP victory for the red car. Inexplicably, I screwed up on the last turn, letting Cody grab 3rd in front of me.
Although I didn’t win, I felt this was both my best (& worst) run race. The early mistakes put me in a hole and catching up was not easy but I did it and even ran in first place for half a lap. Speaking of which, I don’t know if any of you had issues with me rolling on the chance table from the front spot but please consider my goal – staying ahead of (or crashing) Fabio was my primary goal and those dice were thrown in service to that goal. Sorry, Fabio - this was not personal and I think I played the game in the spirit it was intended to be played. I also set up future expectations for the field: The #25 Marines car will not be predictable in season 2 (yeah, Cody set those expectations too)!
I look forward to reading perspectives of this race from some other drivers. While not required, these post-race analyses (or EOG's in Diplomacy parlance) are both enlightening and entertaining. What was your best moment? Worst? Did you learn anything? Any new rivalries? We want to know!
Mike