Sage SIM advice from fellow PCA Sim Racers!
by Dean Chapman, Northern New Jersey Region PCA
What do you ensure you always do before a race?
Dave Kraige, “Check that the right car setup is loaded. Check fuel calculations. Set placeholder services for your first pit stop. Make sure the delta display is set right; otherwise I don’t know if I’m fast or not!
James Legault, “I’m 66. Hitting the head before a driving stint is priority #1!”
Matthew Kuekes, “Go to the restroom! Make sure all my inputs (steering, pedals) are hooked up and registering as expected. Load the Race Setup after qually!”
Todd Panek, “Breathe, relax, cross-crawls (thanks Ross Bentley)”
What do you ensure you always do in a race?
Dave Kraige, “Stay relaxed, but focused. Keep reciting your braking points, visual cues, muscle memory, etc. every single lap. Not saying I actually do these things successfully, but I try! Maintain the mentality that incident points are evil, and do whatever it takes to avoid them. Treat it like it’s real like you’ll have to pay the repair and medical bills for whatever mayhem you get into!”
James Legault, “Have fun, take what the car will give you, and learn something that I can build on for the next race.”
Matthew Kuekes, “Keep focused on my medium-term goal for the race until the end. I always try to keep in mind my pace and find the spot I need to be on track to get the best result I can.”
Todd Panek, “Breath, relax, eyes up, look ahead.”
What do you recommend racers never do before a race?
Dave Kraige, “Change something about your rig, your car setup, your router, a Windows update, anything. Stick with what you know works.”
James Legault, “It’s always good to have a plan, but someone wiser than me once said that no plan ever survives contact with the enemy. Don’t mentally lock yourself into a plan that may be obsolete before the first lap is over. .”
Matthew Kuekes, “Don’t ever make changes to graphics, hardware, or setup without having tested it out ahead of time.”
Todd Panek, “Drink a bunch of anything.”
What do you recommend racers never do while in a race?
Dave Kraige, “Say something while you’re angry, or do something selfish or reckless that takes somebody else out of the race. Keep calm, drive clean, wait for others to make mistakes, and wait until seeing the replay before flipping out on somebody.”
James Legault, “Never take it so seriously that you lose perspective. It’s SUPPOSED to be fun!.”
Matthew Kuekes, “Don’t get too focused on one individual battle early in the race. More aggressive drivers will likely have an incident later you can use to your advantage compared to keeping them behind and hurting your pace.“
Todd Panek, “Don’t try anything new, don’t fixate on mistakes”
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