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#4539916 - 10/08/20 12:19 PM Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast?  
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DBond Offline
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A few days ago I reconnected with me old mate Durrie in a thread in the Falcon 4 forum, who I used to race GPL with in the mid-oughts over at Frugalsworld (rest its soul). GPL was a passion and an obsession for me. One of my favorite sims of all time. I loved the racing, the competition, the camaraderie. Just great times for me. I hadn't logged in to GPL Rank in many years, but talking about it with Durrie had me asking about my old laptimes. He was kind enough to indulge me and shared this

[Linked Image]

Thanks to Durrie, I also have my Monster, which is this matrix with all tracks and all chassis

[Linked Image]

Those are my personal best laptimes at each of the stock Papyrus tracks. Not bad, and good enough to be the 1124th fastest driver at GPL Rank haha. So while I'm on this stroll down memory lane I thought I'd start a thread as I know there are a lot of folks here at SimHQ who raced GPL, and maybe some who still do. Most of those laps were submitted in 2006 so it's been a long time. With it all coming back to me I have this itch to maybe give it another go, but as I said to him I am much older now and I doubt I'd be able to improve upon these PBs.

For anyone unfamiliar with GPL Rank, it's a great site where GPL drivers can submit their laptimes, which are then compared to the reference laps, which are the laptimes from each of the replays Papyrus included for each track. The difference between the benchmark and your lap is used to calculate a 'rank', and the sum of all 11 tracks is added up for a final number. A negative rank means you are faster than the reference. Aside from all the delight I got from just racing, GPL Rank was a massive motivator for me. I obsessively chased improvement through the years.

At Frugalsworld we ran our GPL Leagues with a crew of great guys, and I was fortunate to win the leagues. We mostly ran the '67 cars, but also raced one season in the '65 cars. The Eagle was my whip, which as everyone knows is the finest F1 car of all time smile But I also liked the Brabby. Still, the Lotus was the fastest car, and my PBs reflect its superiority. Anyway, not sure if anyone here still has access to their laptimes, especially if you haven't run the sim in years, like me. But I thought it would be fun to revisit these times for all of us who loved Grand Prix Legends. So what you got?


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
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#4539920 - 10/08/20 12:31 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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By FAR, GPL was the most difficult and challenging racing sim I ever played.

No, I was not fast by any means and at best I was an average player. I played GPL quite frequently but by no means was I a hardcore player. I suppose that had I been exclusively a racing sim gamer I could have become quite good but I divide my time between several different game genres.


“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
#4539922 - 10/08/20 12:43 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Feel free to check out the racing over at The Average Drivers Club when you fire GPL back up

http://forums.speedgeezers.net/index.php?s=4b28baf21899cad7be29b174c719df39&showforum=27


"I'm a hundred miles away son, ready to strike"

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#4539924 - 10/08/20 12:54 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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No doubt PM, and I've seen you comment on GPL through the years. It was a fantastic sim, and still is I reckon. I should give it another go. The physics, the tracks, the cars, the sounds -- the whole experience was wonderful. And you're right, it was hard. Massive power, no downforce and rock hard tires all added up to a sim that required skill to go fast, consistently. For me there were three or four years where I dedicated a massive amount of time to it. Hundreds and thousands of laps to shave a few tenths off the PB.

You see my Ring PB is 8:04. It took a hell of a lot of practice to both learn that track and handle the car well enough to run a lap like that. Some drivers have broken 8 minutes, but in the end that eluded me, but not for want of effort. But the real joy was in the racing. All of the practice was fun, but the real enjoyment came from our league. Each Saturday night we'd meet up and run the races in historical order. Afterwards, each driver would post his thoughts and perspective of what he experienced. It was wonderful reading, to see how each driver saw the event.

We posted replays and the results from the GPL Race Analyzer program, which showed all of the detail and statistics from the race, like laptime deviation, sector times, fastest lap and so on. Oh man, this was my jam. I miss it even today.


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
#4539926 - 10/08/20 12:55 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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DK, you have laptimes? smile

No worries if you don't care to share, but I'd love to see 'em!

And for any driver who doesn't have them or care to share, I'd still be interested in your thoughts and recollections about this classic sim.


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
#4539927 - 10/08/20 01:02 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Originally Posted by DBond


Each Saturday night we'd meet up and run the races in historical order. Afterwards, each driver would post his thoughts and perspective of what he experienced. It was wonderful reading, to see how each driver saw the event.

.



I never joined a GPL league but I did participate in the RFactor league right here on SimHQ for a couple of years way back over 12 years ago. I learned lots of lessons from that but mostly that if you were a consistent driver and played it safe and actually FINISHED the race you could usually end up in the top 10 because so many drivers would DNF. Power loss, internet loss and interruptions from the "significant other" were the banes of our existence when it came to online races that would usually last over an hour.

Last edited by PanzerMeyer; 10/08/20 01:03 PM.

“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
#4539928 - 10/08/20 01:16 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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There were times I thought about joining you guys here at SimHQ, but never did. If there had been a GPL league I would not have been able to pass that up! RFactor and iRacing were not in my wheelhouse, but GTR/2, those EA F1 sims, NASCAR 2003 and a few others were.

Speaking of the Ring, Durrie also posted this. This is me in my Eagle during a pre-race practice taking flight at Flugplatz, doing a buck-forty one. Look at how majestic the Eagle is smile

[Linked Image]


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
#4539929 - 10/08/20 01:26 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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I think my rank ended up around -27, around the same time as yours, about 15 years ago. GPL was and is simply wonderful. Probably the sim I’ve spent the most time in of them all. I’ll see if I can find my rank. I do remember that 8:12 was my best time at the Ring, in the Eagle, which also was my conveyance of choice.

I did fire it up and started practicing again a couple of years ago, and set a new PB at Zandvoort and the Glen, but then my son was born.. smile

I will never uninstall it!

DB, do you remember what setting you have to edit in which .ini to enable more tracks? I have added several in the tracks folder, but they don’t show up in-game.

Last edited by semmern; 10/08/20 01:27 PM.

In all my years I've never seen the like. It has to be more than a hundred sea miles and he brings us up on his tail. That's seamanship, Mr. Pullings. My God, that's seamanship!
#4539930 - 10/08/20 01:28 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Semmern! Hey man, how's things? I remember a particular race at Spa with you. Even Brooks ran that race, in the White Whale of all things.. It wasn't a league race, just a pick up race. Jussi was there, Frank Steinbach, Durrie, Jens and Smokin' Bob too I think. Good to see you.


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
#4539931 - 10/08/20 01:33 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: semmern]  
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Originally Posted by semmern
but then my son was born.. smile

.



Well, the course of action now is quite clear. You will need to start training your son on how to play GPL! wink


“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
#4539932 - 10/08/20 01:42 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: semmern]  
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Originally Posted by semmern


DB, do you remember what setting you have to edit in which .ini to enable more tracks? I have added several in the tracks folder, but they don’t show up in-game.


Sorry, I no longer do. Does that program GEM+ handle that? It's been too long smile


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
#4539945 - 10/08/20 03:33 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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DM Offline
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Hey I remember GPL smile was a great game. As you say, the best of its time. Although I enjoy the odd racer, I never was good at it, I just did it because it's enjoyable. For me it's OK to turn down the opposition to a level I can almost, but not quite, beat, I feel no shame over that smile

I currently enjoy PC2 as my racer game go-to, but seeing as the whole PC franchise is now a laughing stock and not likely to improve, I'm looking at adding Automobilista 2 to my racing go-tos. I hear good things about it, and it uses the SlightlyMad engine which is still a great engine, especially for VR. I'm hearing good things about its cars, AI, and FFB.


"They might look the same, but they don't taste the same."
#4539962 - 10/08/20 04:33 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DM]  
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Originally Posted by DM


I currently enjoy PC2 as my racer game go-to, but seeing as the whole PC franchise is now a laughing stock and not likely to improve, I'm looking at adding Automobilista 2 to my racing go-tos. I hear good things about it, and it uses the SlightlyMad engine which is still a great engine, especially for VR. I'm hearing good things about its cars, AI, and FFB.



I still have PC 2 installed and play it occasionally. It's a real shame that they went full arcade mode with PC 3. I guess the sales for PC 2 were lackluster?


“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
#4539974 - 10/08/20 05:44 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Originally Posted by DBond
Semmern! Hey man, how's things? I remember a particular race at Spa with you. Even Brooks ran that race, in the White Whale of all things.. It wasn't a league race, just a pick up race. Jussi was there, Frank Steinbach, Durrie, Jens and Smokin' Bob too I think. Good to see you.


Well, I got fired, like almost everybody else in the airline industry, and I am perpetually tired from junior waking up at 0445, but other than that, good smile Working my notice until Christmas, so I hope the vaccines will start working so people can travel again.

I remember that race, I think. Also one at Rouen, I think you won and I was 2nd or 3rd.

Have to get back into GPL again, and try to better my Ring time in the Lotus. I remember carving huge chunks of my rank by improving my Ring time with 5 or 10 seconds B)


In all my years I've never seen the like. It has to be more than a hundred sea miles and he brings us up on his tail. That's seamanship, Mr. Pullings. My God, that's seamanship!
#4539976 - 10/08/20 05:46 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Sorry to hear about that semmern. I hope you find another pilot position after this pandemic is done.


“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
#4539979 - 10/08/20 06:21 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Yeah, sorry to hear that Semmern. I hope you come out on the other side flying high.

We should start up a SimHQ Grand Prix Legends League eh? smile

Just don't let Frank catch wind of it....


No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time!
#4539990 - 10/08/20 09:18 PM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Originally Posted by DBond
A few days ago I reconnected with me old mate Durrie in a thread in the Falcon 4 forum, who I used to race GPL with in the mid-oughts over at Frugalsworld (rest its soul). GPL was a passion and an obsession for me. One of my favorite sims of all time. I loved the racing, the competition, the camaraderie. Just great times for me. I hadn't logged in to GPL Rank in many years, but talking about it with Durrie had me asking about my old laptimes. He was kind enough to indulge me and shared this

[Linked Image]

Those are my personal best laptimes at each of the stock Papyrus tracks. Not bad, and good enough to be the 1124th fastest driver at GPL Rank haha. So while I'm on this stroll down memory lane I thought I'd start a thread as I know there are a lot of folks here at SimHQ who raced GPL, and maybe some who still do. Most of those laps were submitted in 2006 so it's been a long time. With it all coming back to me I have this itch to maybe give it another go, but as I said to him I am much older now and I doubt I'd be able to improve upon these PBs.

For anyone unfamiliar with GPL Rank, it's a great site where GPL drivers can submit their laptimes, which are then compared to the reference laps, which are the laptimes from each of the replays Papyrus included for each track. The difference between the benchmark and your lap is used to calculate a 'rank', and the sum of all 11 tracks is added up for a final number. A negative rank means you are faster than the reference. Aside from all the delight I got from just racing, GPL Rank was a massive motivator for me. I obsessively chased improvement through the years.

At Frugalsworld we ran our GPL Leagues with a crew of great guys, and I was fortunate to win the leagues. We mostly ran the '67 cars, but also raced one season in the '65 cars. The Eagle was my whip, which as everyone knows is the finest F1 car of all time smile But I also liked the Brabby. Still, the Lotus was the fastest car, and my PBs reflect its superiority. Anyway, not sure if anyone here still has access to their laptimes, especially if you haven't run the sim in years, like me. But I thought it would be fun to revisit these times for all of us who loved Grand Prix Legends. So what you got?


What a coincidence! I think the birthday of GPL was only a few days ago (?). At the iRacing forum someone made a post a day or two about the birthday of GPL. If I recall the post correctly GPL was made the same group or core that is now running iRacing. I have been playing iRacing since 2013 and still play to this day (can't wait to get the new C8R back on track this weekend) and even ran against a few guys here at some SimHQ motorsport events in the early days before everything went quiet.


Animal Mother > Rambo+ChuckNorris
#4540015 - 10/09/20 02:21 AM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Durrie Offline
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OK DB, so I dug up my own GPLRank and its not pretty.

At least I've got one over on you neaner

Attached Files GPLRank_B2B_DB.jpg
#4540026 - 10/09/20 07:48 AM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: DBond]  
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Durrie Offline
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I had a look at your Monster rank DB, and I was shocked, shocked I tell you, to find red squares !

I mean, how serious could you have been not to make sure you were negative in each combo...sheesh. behindcouch

Attached Files GPLRank_DB_Monster.jpg
Last edited by Durrie; 10/09/20 07:48 AM.
#4540038 - 10/09/20 09:29 AM Re: Grand Prix Legends. Were you fast? [Re: PanzerMeyer]  
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DM Offline
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Originally Posted by PanzerMeyer
I still have PC 2 installed and play it occasionally. It's a real shame that they went full arcade mode with PC 3. I guess the sales for PC 2 were lackluster?


Yeah I felt that PC2 was on the right track to become one of the better racing sims, but that their new overlords stepped in and hacked it all down. Which is a huge shame, as well as being somewhat puzzling.


"They might look the same, but they don't taste the same."
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