V8 Supercar Race Driver - Strategy Guide (Page 02)

Below are the cheat codes, hints and help for V8 Supercar Race Driver - Strategy Guide (Page 02).

It is VERY rare that the player can only adjust the tuning of
one aspect of the car without causing one or more parts of
the car set-up to be out of balance.  For example, for racing
at Monza, the downforce and ride height should both be
lowered as much as possible; to counterbalance the cornering
difficulty inherent with these downforce and ride height
settings, anti-roll and suspension stiffness should both also
be lowered as much as possible to lessen (although not
necessarily eliminate) the difficulty in cornering.

Pro Race Driver allows for a total of 32 car set-ups to be
saved on the memory card in Memory Card Slot 1.  If there is
more than one Career Mode game saved on the memory card, the
saved car set-ups can ALL be accessed from within ANY of the
Career Mode game saves.  In other words, car set-ups are NOT
career-independent.

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BRAKING
The first step in driving fast is knowing when, where, and
how much to slow down (braking).  In some games, a brake
controller can be acquired or purchased, allowing the player
to customize the brake strength by axle or by adjusting the
bias of the brakes toward the front or the rear of the car.

The use of a brake controller will affect the braking zone,
as will other factors.  Specifically, the car's speed on
approaching a corner, the amount of fuel in the car at a
given moment, the drivetrain of the car, the weight of the
car, and even the car's center of gravity can all affect the
braking zone.  Similarly, the driving conditions - sunny,
overcast, damp, wet, icy, snowy etc. - will affect the
braking zone for each corner (as well as the car's ability to
attain high speeds).

Except for purely arcade-style games, the braking zone will
differ somewhat for each car depending upon its strengths and
weaknesses.  It certainly helps for the player to try a Free
Run or a Time Trial (if these modes exist in a given game) to
learn the circuit(s) - including the braking zones.

When looking for braking zones, try to find a particular
stationary object near the entry of each corner; it helps
tremendously if this object is far enough away from the
circuit that it will not be knocked over during a race.  To
begin, try using the brakes when the front of the car is
parallel with the chosen stationary object.  If this does not
slow the car enough before corner entry or if the car slows
too much before reaching the corner, pick another stationary
object on the following lap and try again.

Whenever changes are made to the car - whether to the brake
controller or to other aspects of tuning and/or parts - it
would be a good idea to go back into Free Run mode and check
that the braking zones still hold; if not, adjust as
necessary using the method in the paragraph above.

For those races which include fuel loads, the car will become
progressively lighter during a race.  The lesser weight can
often mean a slightly shorter braking zone; however, if tire
wear is excessive (especially if there have been numerous
off-course excursions), that might dictate a longer braking
zone.

Cars with a higher horsepower output will inherently attain
faster speeds, and will therefore require a longer braking
zone than cars with a lower horsepower output.  Try a
Volkswagon New Beetle, a Mini Cooper, a Dodge Viper, a Panoz
Esperante GT-1, a Corvette C5R, and an F-2002 (all in
stock/base configuration) along the same area of a circuit
and note how their braking zones differ.

A final note on braking: To the extent possible, ALWAYS brake
in a straight line.  If braking only occurs when cornering,
the car will likely be carrying too much speed for the
corner, resulting in the car sliding, spinning, and/or
flipping.  (Some games purposely do not permit the car to
flip, but a slide or spin can still mean the difference
between winning and ending up in last position at the end of
a race.)

If nothing else, players should strive to become of the
'breakers' they possibly can.  This will essentially force a
player to become a better racer/driver in general once the
player has overcome the urge to constantly run at top speed
at all times with no regard for damages to self or others.
Also, slowing the car appropriately will make other aspects
of racing/driving easier, especially in J-turns, hairpin
corners, and chicanes.

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CORNERING
Ideally, the best way to approach a corner is from the
outside of the turn, braking well before entering the corner.
At the apex (the midpoint of the corner), the car should be
right up against the edge of the pavement.  On corner exit,
the car drifts back to the outside of the pavement and speeds
off down the straightaway.  So, for a right-hand turn of
about ninety degrees, enter the corner from the left, come to
the right to hit the apex, and drift back to the left on
corner exit.  See the Diagrams section at the end of this
guide for a sample standard corner.

For corners that are less than ninety degrees, it may be
possible to just barely tap the brakes - if at all - and be
able to clear such corners successfully.  However, the same
principles of cornering apply: approach from the outside of
the turn, hit the apex, and drift back outside on corner
exit.

For corners more than ninety degrees but well less than 180
degrees, braking will certainly be required.  However, for
these 'J-turns,' the apex of the corner is not the midpoint,
but a point approximately two-thirds of the way around the
corner.  J-turns require great familiarity to know when to
begin diving toward the inside of the corner and when to
power to the outside on corner exit.  See the Diagrams
section at the end of this guide for a sample J-turn.

Hairpin corners are turns of approximately 180 degrees.
Braking is certainly required before corner entry, and the
cornering process is the same as for standard corners:
Approach from the outside, drift inside to hit the apex
(located at halfway around the corner, or after turning
ninety degrees), and drifting back to the outside on corner
exit.  See the Diagrams section at the end of this guide for
a sample hairpin corner.

If there are two corners of approximately ninety degrees each
AND both corners turn in the same direction AND there is only
a VERY brief straightaway between the two corners, they may
be able to be treated like an extended hairpin corner.
Sometimes, however, these 'U-turns' have a straightaway
between the corners that is long enough to prohibit a
hairpin-like treatment; in this case, drifting to the outside
on exiting the first of the two corners will automatically
set up the approach to the next turn.  See the Diagrams
section at the end of this guide for a sample U-turn.

FIA (the governing body of F1 racing, World Rally
Championship, and other forms of international motorsport)
seems to love chicanes.  One common type of chicane is
essentially a 'quick-flick,' where the circuit quickly edges
off in one direction then realigns itself in a path parallel
to the original stretch of pavement, as in the examples in
the Diagrams section at the end of this guide.  Here, the
object is to approach the first corner from the outside, hit
BOTH apexes, and drift to the outside of the second turn.

FIA also seems to like the 'Bus Stop' chicane, which is
essentially just a pair of quick-flicks, with the second
forming the mirror image of the first, as shown in the
Diagrams section at the end of this guide.  Perhaps the most
famous Bus Stop chicane is the chicane (which is actually
called the 'Bus Stop Chicane') at Pit Entry at Spa-
Francorchamps, the home of the annual Grand Prix of Belgium
(F1 racing) and the host of The 24 Hours of Spa (for
endurance racing).

Virtually every other type of corner or corner combination
encountered in racing (primarily in road racing) combines
elements of the corners presented above.  These complex
corners and chicanes can be challenging, such as the Ascari
chicane at Monza.  See the Diagrams section for an idea of
the formation of Ascari.

However, in illegal street/highway racing, the positioning of
traffic can 'create' the various corners and corner
combinations mentioned here.  For example, weaving in and out
of traffic creates a virtual bus stop chicane (see the
Diagrams section at the end of this guide).  Slowing may be
necessary - it often is - depending on the distance between
the vehicles.  See the Sample Circuit Using Some of the Above
Corner Types Combines in the Diagrams section at the end of
this guide; note that this is a diagram for a very technical
circuit.

At some race venues, 'artificial chicanes' may be created by
placing cones and/or (concrete) barriers in the middle of a
straightaway.  One such game which used this type of chicane
is the original Formula1 by Psygnosis, an F1-based
PlayStation game from 1995, which used this at Circuit
Gilles-Villeneuve along Casino Straight (shortly after
passing the final grandstands at the exit of Casino Hairpin).

One thing which can change the approach to cornering is the
available vision.  Blind and semi-blind corners require
ABSOLUTE knowledge of such corners.  Here is where gamers
have an advantage over real-world drivers:  Gamers can
(usually) change their viewpoint (camera position), which can
sometimes provide a wider, clearer view of the circuit, which
can be especially important when approaching semi-blind
corners; real-world drivers are obviously inhibited by the
design of their cars and racing helmets.  Great examples of
real-world blind and semi-blind corners would be Mulsanne
Hump at Le Mans, Turns 14 and 15 at Albert Park, and each of
the first three corners at A1-Ring.

Also important to cornering - especially with long, extended
corners - is the corner's radius.  Most corners use an
identical radius throughout their length.  However, some are
increasing-radius corners or decreasing-radius corners.
These corners may require shifting the apex point of a
corner, and almost always result in a change of speed.
Decreasing-radius corners are perhaps the trickiest, because
the angle of the corner becomes sharper, thus generally
requiring more braking as well as more turning of the
steering wheel.  Increasing-radius corners are corners for
which the angle becomes more and more gentle as the corner
progresses; this means that drivers will generally accelerate
more, harder, or faster, but such an extra burst of speed can
backfire and require more braking.  See the Diagrams section
at the end of this guide for sample images of a decreasing-
radius corner and an increasing-radius corner.

For traditional road racing circuits, increasing-radius and
decreasing-radius corners may not be too much of a problem;
after several laps around one of these circuits, a driver
will know where the braking and acceleration points are as
well as the shifted apex point (should a shift be required).
However, for stage-based rally racing, where the roads are
virtually unknown and the driver knows what is ahead only
because of the navigator's instructions (which - based upon
notes - may or may not be absolutely correct), the unknown
can cause drivers to brake more often and/or more heavily.
For rally-based games, such as the Need for Speed: V-Rally
series (PlayStation/PSOne) or for World Rally Championship
(PlayStation2), there is often specialized vocabulary used:
'tightens' generally designates that a corner has a
decreasing radius, whereas 'widens' or 'opens' indicates that
a corner has an increasing radius.  This need for 'extra'
braking is also tempered by the fact that in much of rally
racing, corners are either blind or semi-blind, due to trees,
buildings, cliffs, embankments, and other obstacles to clear
vision all the way around a corner.

One particularly interesting aspect of cornering is one which
I honestly do not know if it works in reality (I am not a
real-world racer, although I would certainly LOVE the chance
to attend a racing school!!!), but which works in numerous
racing/driving games I have played over the years.  This
aspect is to use the accelerator to help with quickly and
safely navigating sharp corners.  This works by first BRAKING
AS USUAL IN ADVANCE OF THE CORNER, then - once in the corner
itself - rapidly pumping the brakes for the duration of the
corner (or at least until well past the apex of the corner).
The action of rapidly pumping the accelerator appears to
cause the drive wheels to catch the pavement just enough to
help stop or slow a sliding car, causing the non-drive wheels
to continue slipping and the entire car to turn just a little
faster.  Using this rapid-pumping technique with the
accelerator does take a little practice initially, and seems
to work best with FR cars; however, once perfected, this
technique can pay dividends, especially with REALLY sharp
hairpin corners, such as at Sebring International Raceway.

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RUMBLE STRIPS
Depending on car set-up and weather conditions, rumble strips
(sometimes also called 'alligators') can be either useful or
dangerous.  The purpose of rumble strips is to provide a few
extra centimeters of semi-racing surface to help keep cars
from dropping wheels off the pavement, which can slow cars
and throw grass and other debris onto the racing surface
(which makes racing a little more dangerous for all involved,
especially in corners).  Generally, rumble strips are found
on the outside of a corner at corner entry and corner exit,
and also at the apex of a corner - these locations provide a
slightly better racing line overall.

If a car is set with a very stiff suspension (i.e., there is
not much room for the suspension to move as the car passes
over bumps and other irregularities in the racing surface),
hitting rumble strips can cause the car to jump.  Even if
airborne for only a few milliseconds, at speed, it could be
just enough so that the driver loses control of the car.
Obviously, if one or more wheels are not in contact with the
ground, the car is losing speed, which could be just enough
of a mistake for other cars to pass by, and the lack of
contact with the ground could result in excessive wheelspin
which risks to flat-spot the tire(s) when contact is regained
with the ground.

When the racetrack is damp or wet, however, it is generally
best to avoid using the rumble strips.  Since rumble strips
are painted (usually red and white), ANY amount of moisture
will make the rumble strips extremely slick as the water
beads on the paint, so that hitting a rumble strip in the
process of cornering (especially at the apex of a corner)
will cause the tire(s) to lose traction and often send the
car spinning.

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CONCRETE EXTENSIONS
Similar to rumble strips are concrete extensions.  These are
generally (much) wider than rumble strips, and may or may not
be painted (at FIA-approved F1 circuits, for example, these
are generally painted green).  Also, whereas rumble strips
protrude slightly above the level of the racing surface,
concrete extensions are at the same level as the racing
surface.

Concrete extensions can be used in the same manner as rumble
strips.  However, if painted, concrete extensions should be
avoided for the same reasons listed above for rumble strips n
the event of wet or damp racing conditions.

Players should note that in some games - especially where
challenges or license tests are involved - concrete
extensions are often NOT designated as part of the official
track, resulting in an 'Out of Bounds' designation.  This is
true, for example, in EA Sports' F1-based series (F1 2000, F1
Championship Season 2000, F1 2001, and F1 2002) and in the
Gran Turismo series.

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TIRES
As a 2000/2001 Michelin commercial campaign (shown in the
States) stated, the tires are the only safety features on the
road which actually TOUCH the road.  Implicit in this series
of commercials is the message that special care must be given
to tires.  In the case of Michelin, this means that choosing
Michelin tires is far safer than choosing any other brand of
tires (note that this series of commercials had been running
since LONG before the Firestone/Ford controversy erupted in
2000).

In the case of racing/driving games, this same implicit
message - that the tires are the only safety features on the
road which actually TOUCH the road - means that special care
must be given to the tires to keep them from wearing out too
quickly.  Of course, some games (usually arcade-style games,
such as the Ridge Racer series) do not use tire wear.  Other
games do offer an array of tires, but simply to provide
higher levels of pavement grip as higher levels of tires are
acquired or purchased (such as Tokyo Xtreme Racer Zero).
Other games have races which are simply too short to make
tire wear a viable issue; an example of this type of game
would be Downforce.  In general, tire wear is not an issue in
rally racing games.

Some games simply provide Levels of tires.  Here, the
assumption is that Level 1 tires provide the least amount of
pavement grip, with higher levels providing more pavement
grip than previous levels.  However, many games (especially
simulation-based games such as Le Mans 24 Hours and the Gran
Turismo series) offer several choices of actual tire
compounds.

For non-racing cars intended for mundane street use, Normal
tires are standard issue.  While Normal tires may work well
on the highway and on city streets, they are virtually
worthless in an actual racing situation.  Normal tires do not
provide adequate grip to be effective in racing.  This is
most noticeable when trying to corner at relatively high
speeds with a vehicle with Normal tires.

Simulation tires supposedly give a more accurate feel of what
it is like to drive a racing-tuned car.

Sports tires are a little better than Normal tires.  When
first playing a racing/driving game which offers Sports
Tires, one of the best things you can do to improve your
chance of success is to upgrade to Sports Tires as soon as
possible.  This will improve cornering ability, and provide a
little more grip for acceleration (especially from a standing
start).

Racing tires come in an array of 'flavors,' with each tire
compound giving a varying level of grip countered by an
inverse level of durability.  Not all racing games offer such
a variety of tire compounds from which to choose.
   Super-slick    Least grip, maximum durability
   Slick
   Medium-slick
   Medium         Average grip, average durability
   Medium-soft
   Soft
   Super-soft     Maximum grip, least durability
Note that in some games, Slick and Super-slick are more
likely to be called Hard Tires.

Dirt Tires are required for dirt-based rally events.  In some
racing games (primarily Gran Turismo 2 and Gran Turismo 3),
some non-racing cars can also be equipped with Dirt Tires -
and in some cases can easily outperform rally-dedicated
vehicles if given proper tuning considerations.

Intermediate Tires are often used in games with varying
weather effects, such as Le Mans 24 Hours.  Whereas Normal,
Sport, Super-soft, Soft, Medium-soft, Medium, Medium-slick,
Slick, and Super-slick Tires are designed specifically for
dry racing conditions, Intermediate Tires are generally used
when the pavement is damp.  A good indicator as to whether
Intermediate Tires or Wet Tires (see the following paragraph)
should be used is whether there is a large spray of water -
often called a 'rooster tail' - coming up from underneath the
car at high speeds on the straightaways.  If there is not a
rooster tail, or if the rooster tail is fairly small, then
Intermediate Tires should be a good choice.  Unfortunately,
EA Sports has never included Intermediate Tires in its F1-
based games, despite the fact that Intermediate Tires are
used in real-world F1 racing; Intermediate Tires very much
came into play, for example, at the 2002 Grand Prix of Great
Britain.

Wet Tires are designed for truly wet conditions.  A good
indicator as to whether Intermediate Tires (see the preceding
paragraph) or Wet Tires should be used is whether there is a
large spray of water - often called a 'rooster tail' - coming
up from underneath the car at high speeds on the
straightaways.  If there is a large rooster tail, then Wet
Tires are definitely needed.

Some racing games have an on-screen tire indicator.  This can
range from a set of brackets or an image of the car with the
tires highlighted in a particular color to a small line with
an arrow indicating the condition of the tires.  If the color
system is used with a bracket or an image of the car with the
tires highlighted, then the following colors are often used
to indicate tire conditions:

   At the beginning of a race and immediately after a Pit
   Stop, the tires are brand new ('stickers') and need to be
   brought up to temperature as quickly as possible so that
   they can provide the best possible grip.  This is noted by
   dark blue tire indicators.  During this period, sharp
   turns or extremely-fast cornering will almost certainly
   cause the car to slide, and perhaps even spin.  However,
   slides and spins will bring the tires up to optimum
   temperature even faster, so you may wish to purposely
   induce slides when entering corners, IF the tire
   indicators are dark blue.

   Once the tire indicators are green, the tires have reached
   their optimum performance temperature, thus providing you
   with the best possible grip for that set of tires.  The
   amount of time the tire indicators remain in the green
   color range depends on your driving style, the amount of
   time off-course (in the grass or sand) or banging the
   barriers (or other cars), and the initial selection of
   tire compound.  Note that in some games, new tires put on
   in a Pit Stop and tires on the car at the beginning of a
   race start with green indicators (bypassing the 'stickers'
   condition mentioned above).

   As the tire indicators switch to yellow, you need to start
   taking better care of your tires.  You may experience
   slides when cornering.

   Orange tire indicators are a warning to get to Pit Lane to
   change tires as soon as you possibly can.  You will be
   sliding around a lot more.

   Red tire indicators are effectively Game Over.  Unless you
   have a HUGE (multi-lap) lead or a significant horsepower
   advantage over your competitors, you will not have a
   chance of winning the race, especially if you stop to
   change tires.  Essentially, you are driving on pure ice,
   and the only way to 'reliably' get around the circuit is
   to ride the rails (barriers) alongside the circuit.

   Note that not all four tire indicators will be the
   same color at all times.  If even ONE tire shows a red
   indicator, you need to limp back to Pit Lane to change
   tires as soon as possible.

Even if a game does not have a tire wear indicator, players
will inherently KNOW when the tires are worn due to the
amount of slipping around, primarily when cornering and
during extreme braking and acceleration.  Some games, such as
F1 2002, will have team radio communications which state that
the tires are wearing down.

If available in a given game, traction control affects tire
durability.  With a low traction control setting, the tires
will spin for a while (especially on a standing start or when
under strong acceleration out of a corner) before they
actually grip the pavement; the friction of the pre-grip
spinning wears away at the tires.  With a high traction
control setting, wheel spin is reduced or even eliminated,
thus extending the durability of the tires.

One of the best ways to reduce the durability of the tires is
to corner at high speeds.  The game manual for Gran Turismo 3
gives an excellent, highly-detailed description of what
occurs with the tires when cornering; this explanation should
be read at least once by EVERY serious gaming racer.  In
short, cornering at high speeds causes a high percentage of
the tire to be used for speed, and a low percentage to be
used for the actual cornering.  To combat this and thus
extend the durability of the tires, try to brake in a
STRAIGHT line before reaching a turn, thus reducing overall
speed and providing a lower percentage of the tires to be
used for speed, and a greater percentage used for cornering.

Note that if the percentage of the tires used for speed is
too high compared to the percentage used for cornering, the
car will slide and/or spin.

Perhaps one of the best things to do to learn to take care of
the tires is to play a racing game (such as F1 2002) in which
vehicle damage is available.  Playing with the damage option
on will certainly make the effects of worn tires quite
visual.  As tire grip wears away (due to a long stint,
multiple off-track excursions, etc.), the car may begin
sliding around, potentially resulting in car damage (broken
and missing parts), which REALLY makes driving a nightmare at
high speeds.  Many racing/driving games do not make this
damage visibly clear, so it is easy to underestimate the
condition of the tires; similarly, without any car damage
(generally due to licensing concerns, but also because damage
modeling requires MUCH more from the game programmers), cars
in these games can simply 'ride the rails' around corners
when tire conditions are less than optimal.

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DRAFTING/SLIPSTREAMING
One very useful racing technique is drafting, also known as
slipstreaming.  In some forms of motorsport, especially in
oval track racing such as NASCAR and IRL, drafting is
essential to making passes; NASCAR even raises drafting to an
art form at its restrictor plate races by forcing cars to
draft off each other simply to stay in contact with the
leaders.

Drafting works because of the aerodynamic vacuum which occurs
behind a vehicle moving at a high rate of speed.  As air
flows around Car A, there is an area around which the air is
forced as it flows off Car A's rear end.  If Car B can get
close enough to Car A, its front end can get into this vacuum
area.  Since vacuums prefer to fill their void with anything
possible, Car B is drawn closer and closer to Car A.  If the
driver of Car B does not do anything or does not react fast
enough, then Car B will eventually crash in to the back of
Car A.  However, once sufficient vacuum-assisted momentum has
been gained, Car B can pull out to the side, exiting the
vacuum with added momentum/speed, and rocket past Car A.

By using Car A's natural high-speed vacuum in this manner,
Car B will emerge from the draft with a major advantage in
terms of speed without ever pressing harder on the
accelerator.  Often, drafting results in an additional
5MPH/8KPH over Car A; while this may not seem like a lot of
extra speed, it is often enough to make a successful pass.

Drafting is a great tactic for oval and tri-oval courses.
However, its effectiveness at road racing venues is
essentially limited to just long straightaways.  In this
case, it is highly important that Car B safely make the
drafting pass well before the braking zone for the next
corner, as the added speed will require earlier and/or
stronger braking.  Also, cars with variable downforce -
especially cars with wings, such as CART and F1 cars - seem
better able to make use of the draft.

Specific to F1 2002, there is a draft/slipstream meter on the
right side of the screen during races and other events (such
as challenges) in the game.  This can be useful, with the
meter lighting up from bottom to top as Car B approaches the
rear end of Car A.  When the meter is fully lit, the player
should quickly pull out of the draft/slipstream or risk an
accident.

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WET-WEATHER RACING/DRIVING
Almost everything written to this point in the guide focuses
solely upon dry-weather racing/driving conditions.  In fact,
most racing/driving games deal ONLY with dry-weather
conditions.  However, simulation-based games will include at
least a few wet-conditions situations.  This can range from
Gran Turismo 3 - which uses two circuits (hosting a total of
eight races between Simulation Mode and Arcade Mode) where
the roadway has A LOT of standing water, as if the races take
place just following a major prolonged downpour - to F1 2002
- where in most situations, players can purposely select the
desired weather conditions for a given race.

In wet-weather racing/driving conditions, it is IMPERATIVE to
use tires designed for wet-conditions usage.  For example, in
F1 2002, in a full 53-lap race at Monza, I purposely tried
running as long as I could with Dry Tires, then switched to
Rain Tires when I could no longer handle the car's inherent
sliding about... and my lap times instantly dropped by more
than five seconds.

In games which offer Intermediate Tires, such as Le Mans 24
Hours, the period when the racing circuit is simply damp (at
the start of a period of rain, or when the circuit is drying
after a period of rain) can be tricky in terms of tires.
Intermediate Tires are certainly best for these racing
conditions, but the time in Pit Lane spent changing to
Intermediate Tires can mean losing numerous race positions,
especially if the weather conditions change again a short
time later and require another trip to Pit Lane to change
tires yet again.

Tires aside, simulation-style games simply will not allow a
player to drive a circuit the same way in wet-weather
conditions as in dry-weather conditions.  The braking zone
for all but the gentlest of corners will need to be extended,
or else the car risks to hydroplane itself off the pavement.

Throttle management is also key in wet-conditions racing.
Due to the water on the circuit, there is inherently less
tire grip, so strong acceleration is more likely to cause
undue wheelspin - which could in turn spin the car and create
a collision.  If a car has gone off the pavement, then the
sand and/or grass which collect on the tires provide
absolutely NO traction at all, so just the act of getting
back to the pavement will likely result in numerous spins.

In general, cornering is more difficult in wet conditions
than in dry conditions.  To help ease this difficulty in
cornering, simulation-style games will sometimes allow the
player to change the car's tuning during a race (if not, the
player will be forced to try to survive using the tuning set-
up chosen before the beginning of the race).  Tuning is
covered in more detail in another section below, but the main
aspect to change for wet-weather conditions is to raise the
downforce at the front and/or rear of the car; this will help
improve cornering ability, but will result in slower top-end
speed and slower acceleration.  If the car's brake strength
can be adjusted, it should be lowered, as strong braking will
raise the likelihood of hydroplaning off the pavement;
lowering brake strength will also mean an additional
lengthening of the braking zone for all but the gentlest
corners of a given circuit.

When the circuit is damp or wet, rumble strips and concrete
extensions (which are usually painted) should be avoided as
much as possible.  The water tends to bead on the paint used
for rumble strips and concrete extensions, making them
incredibly slippery, especially if a drive wheel is on a
rumble strip or concrete extension while the player is in the
process of turning the car; this will cause undue wheelspin
in that particular drive wheel, usually resulting in the car
spinning.

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CIRCUIT HISTORIES
The 'ancient' predecessor to this section was a guide created
due to a personal inquiry for a guide for F1 2002, as I was
wishing to learn more about the history of the race venues
then used in F1 competition; this section takes that
information (from my Circuit Histories Guide) and expands it
to cover other racing venues (F1 and otherwise) worldwide.
This is not intended to be a detailed history of all the race
venues, but more of a general overview of the many circuits
included in Pro Race Driver.

The majority of information for this guide comes from
circuits' official Web sites, Formula1.com NASCAR.com and Driver Network  In some cases, historical
information is taken directly from the circuits' own official
Web sites.

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CIRCUIT HISTORY: A1 RING
The A1-Ring has been the host of F1's Grand Prix of Austria
since 1997, but also hosts Truck Grand Prix, Classic Grand
Prix, Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, and motorbikes, among
other racing series.

The 2002 Grand Prix of Austria was surrounded by controversy
following an extreme Ferrari public relations faux pas.
Reubens Barrichello had truly dominated the entire race
weekend, and was definitely on his way to his second-ever F1
win.  In the closing laps of the race, teammate Michael
Schumacher (P2) began closing in on Barrichello, but the
assumption was that this move was to allow Ferrari's cars to
be close enough for a photo opportunity for its sponsors.
However, since Michael Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya
(Schumacher's closest expected competition) were at that
point very close in points in the Drivers' Championship,
Barrichello - who that week had signed a contract extension
as the NUMBER TWO TEAM DRIVER behind Michael Schumacher - was
ordered to pull aside in the final meters of the race to
allow his teammate to gain an extra four points in his lead
over Montoya (P1 awards 10 points; P2 awards 6 points).
While FIA could not do anything against the team or the
drivers for the team orders, the fans in the stands (and
myself watching live on television at 7AM in Arizona) were
FURIOUS.  Michael Schumacher having officially 'won' the race
was to take the top rung on the podium, but instead took the
second rung and pushed the 'true' winner Reubens Barrichello
to the top rung; the FIA took objection to this and
sanctioned the team and the drivers at a special hearing
later in the year.

F1 winners at A1-Ring: Jacques Villeneuve (1997), Mika
Hakkinen (1998 and 2000), Eddie Irvine (1999), David
Coulthard (2001), and Michael Schumacher (the official winner
in 2002 - see the note on the controversy above, as many
consider that Reubens Barrichello won the race).

See the official Web site for more
information.  Unfortunately, it does not appear to have any
historical information on the circuit itself, nor can I find
any such information online.  Also, the official Web site is
entirely in German, a language I cannot read.

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CIRCUIT HISTORY: ADELAIDE
This 3.22-kilometer (2.01-mile) temporary street circuit was
used for eleven years by Formula1 for the Grand Prix of
Australia (which is now held at Albert Park in Melbourne).
It is currently used by Australia's V8 Supercars series in
the same configuration as the F1 series.

Official history relating to the Clipsal 500 V8 Supercars
race:

   Since the inaugural 1999 Sensational Adelaide 500
   attracted 162,000 patrons - a record for a national
   motorsport meeting in Australia, the event has not stopped
   growing in popularity and audience.

   The 2000 event attracted another record crowd for a
   national motorsport event, 164,000. The 2001 event raised
   the bar even higher, attracting a crowd of 166,800
   spectators and the 2002 event surpassed all expectations
   with a new record attendance of 171,200.

   The event has been awarded the AVESCO 'Motorsport Event of
   the Year' for each year - 1999, 2000, 2001, as well as the
   Yellow Pages Tourism Award as South Australia's best major
   festival or special event.

   Over its three-year history the Clipsal 500 Adelaide has
   provided economic benefit to SA totaling $44.9m, with
   visitor bed nights having increased forty two per cent to
   43,400, and the length of stay of visitors increasing from
   five to seven nights.