To make RC more accessible to the average user, we've provided several
video tutorials showing off different aspects
of the application. The first set of tutorials talk about the Race
Coordinator setup screens at a very high level to give the user a
better idea of how to use Race Coordinator. They also provide a high
level description of the various options Race Coordinator supports.
After viewing these tutorials the hope is that the user will understand
how
to use Race Coordinator to setup their race nights as well as give the
user a good idea of just how much Race Coordinator
can do.
The remaining tutorials go into the low level details of the
different Race Coordinator configurations. Each tutorial talks
about a very specific aspect of Race Coordinator from setting up simple
race formats to understanding and creating extremely
complicated formats such as group races.
Each tutorial shows what version of Race Coordinator the tutorial
was done with. Generally speaking, the tutorial will be
correct for that version or newer. If changes occur that invalidate a
tutorial, the tutorial and the version required will
be changed accordingly.
If there is anything unclear or confusing about these tutorials,
please let us know. We've done them to help the community
not hinder it. We'll take any comments into consideration and figure
out what's best to do. Visit this page for contact
information.
This tutorial talks at a high level about the different
components that make up a Race Coordinator race. Included is a brief
discussion of what a track, driver, race, car and event mean within the
context of Race Coordinator.
Wizard Overview
This tutorial explains the basics behind the Wizard setup
screens. Although there is a unique wizard for each Race Coordinator
component, the general behavior of the wizards is all the same.
Manager Overview
This tutorial explains the basics behind the Management
setup screens. Although there is a unique manager for each Race
Coordinator component, the general behavior of the managers is all the
same.
Race Coordinator Race Properties
Race Properties Nine Part Overview
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Name
Track
Car Filter
Minimum Lap Time
Heat Rotations
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Heat Scoring
Finish Method
Allow Finish
Drift Time
Heat Callouts
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Auto Advance
Auto Start
Callbutton Delay
Practice Best Lap Prefix
Heat View (***Not actually a property, but discussed
anyway)
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Accumulate
Points
Carry Over Percentage
Heat Points
Fastest Lap Bonus
Fastest Heat Lap Bonus
Fastest Lane Bonus
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Step Up
Number To Step Up
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Drop N Heats
Hot Start
Heat Start Behind Sensor
Heat Start Location
Restart on False Start
False Start Penalty
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Start Delay
Start Randomizer
Restart Delay
Restart Randomizer
Groups
Max Groups
Allow Empty Lanes
Force Multiple
Balance Seeds
Minimum Advancing
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look. ***Note, this tutorial skips over
the Interface Setup which will be discussed in a tutorial by itself.
Teams
Team Count
Start Prefix
False Start Audio
Yellow Flag Audio
Heat Over Audio
Race Over Audio
Off Start Light
Staging Start Light
Go Start Light
Red Flag
Yellow Flag
Green Flag
White Flag
Checkered Flag
This tutorial gives a high level overview of the following
race properties. If you're interested in more information on these
particular properties have a look.
Race Day XAML
Race Start XAML
Race Restart XAML
Self Performance
Heat Performance
Race Record Performance
Race Formats
What follows are several common race formats found throughout the
community. These are by no
means all the formats Race Coordinator supports, but they represent a
large portion of what the community runs. Each format is accompanied by
a video demonstrating the particular format being setup within RC. Keep
in mind that a race format can always be changed and the tutorials
shown here are merely examples. How you race is truly up to you with
Race Coordinator.
If your race format isn't explicitly demonstrated here hopefully
there's enough information collectively in these tutorials and within
Race Coordinator wizards themselves for you to
make the proper adjustments to your format. As always, we are here to
help so please do not hesitate to contact
us.
Straight Round Robin
One of the simplest and most common race formats is the
Straight Round Robin race. This race is also
one of the easiest races to setup within RC because all of the more
advanced settings can be ignored.
Practice
A practice race is a race in which no scoring is kept. Laps
are timed and counted, but there is no final standings. The seeding the
drivers have coming into the practice race is the same seeding when the
practice is over. These races are very useful to run before the main
event so that drivers can get use to the track and tune their cars.
This is also a very simple race to setup because most of the properties
can be ignored.
Sprints
The Sprint race is another really
easy race format to setup within RC. We will demonstrate it's setup
here using a Single Lane heat rotation in
which the driver races on the track by themselves and can use any lane
on the track for the duration of the heat. This will also demonstrate
setting up a race that is scored by fastest lap time rather than total
number of laps.
Round Robin with Guaranteed Track Marshals (customized round robin)
Sometimes race night just doesn't have a large turnout. But
you still want to race and are running on a track that really requires
at least two marshals. No problem RC supports any heat rotation you can
dream of including ones that force one or more sit outs no matter how
many drivers show up. This example shows how you could configure a 4
lane race that requires two marshals. This rotation will guarantee two
marshals no matter how many drivers show up and at the same time will
use all 4 lanes every heat if 6 or more drivers show up.
Custom Rotations
Race Coordinator supports more heat rotation types than
simple round robin or single lane rotations. In fact, RC supports
literally any heat rotation you can think of. To create your own
customized heat rotation, you must create rotation files and add them
to the race format. Once done, your custom rotation will be used to
dictate heat counts and how the drivers move through those heats.
The biggest limitation to this system is that the rotation files
themselves contain the exact heat rotation for a specific number of
drivers on a specific number of lanes. This means that if you build a
custom rotation file for 10 drivers on a 4 lane track, but 15 drivers
show up, 5 drivers will not have lane assignments.
To over come this limitation, RC allows you to specify as many custom
rotation files as you need. This means that you create the exact heat
rotation you want when 10 drivers show up, then one for 11 drivers,
then 12, etc... RC will pick the rotation file to use that best matches
the number of drivers that show up for the day. As long as you have a
custom rotation file that supports at least as many drivers as you have
or more, every driver will have a lane assignment. The ideal situation
is to have a custom rotation file for the exact number of drivers you
have. If you don't you'll either get empty lanes in some heats
(including possibly completely empty heats) or you'll get drivers that
don't have any lane assignments. These two tutorials show you how to
create the custom heat rotation files and then how to create a race
using them.
Step Up
One common way to run a Step Up race
is to run each driver on a single lane and after the heat step up one
or more of the drivers to the next heat. In the case of only running a
single lane, it is common to allow the highest seeded driver in the
heat to select their lane. Then the next highest selects an empty lane
and so on leaving the lowest seeded driver in the heat no choice in
lane selection. This can be done within RC once the heat is setup but
hasn't started yet through the Race Director/Modify Heats option on the
Race Day screen.
Note that it is not unheard of to run Step Up races using Round Robin
heat rotations before the step up occurs so that each driver races on
every lane on the track.
Group Races (Mains)
Group races are the absolute most complicated race format to
setup in RC. Decisions need to be made about how many groups (or Mains) the race should be broken down into as well
as how to place drivers in the groups. If that wasn't enough group
races are usually run one of two ways. Either as a winners and loser
bracket in which two groups race, the winner of Main A is the overall
race winner, and the winner of Main B is the winner of the losers
bracket. The other way is as a qualifying race that leads into another
race in an event. In this case specifying carefully how the drivers
advance is crucial to getting the drivers you want into the next race.
In both cases the Main heats can be run in anyway shape or form. From
Round Robins, to step ups, to using F1 scoring. You name it, you got
it.
The first video here talks in depth about how groups are formed based
on the properties available. The second video shows how to setup a
group race.
Events
Race Events are one of the coolest
features of RC for the larger club races. Because events can contain
any number of any kind of race formats, we'll demonstrate creating an
event out of some of the races seen in these tutorials. We'll do a
fairly simple one in which we start with a Practice race, then do a
Sprint qualifier, followed by a second Practice(if for no other reason
than to show you can have the same race included more than once) and
finish off with a Step Up finals. What you'll see in this event is just
how powerful this can be as each race not only seeds the next race, but
determines how many drivers advance to that next race.
Definitions
The slot car community is very diverse when it comes to how a race is
run and what terms individuals use. Some of these may seem obvious, but
experience has shown that many people use these terms slightly
differently and it's important to all be talking about the same things.
Heat: A set of drivers racing around the track
for either a set
period of time or a maximum number of laps. A heat is scored
independent of all other heats. There are several settings that control
how long a heat lasts for and how the heat is scored.
Race: A collection of heats. Each driver's
heat scores are
combined to calculate the final standings for that driver. There are
many settings that control how the heat scores are combined.
Event: A series of races. The first race gets
it's drivers seeds
from the order in which they are added in the Race Day Setup screen.
Each subsequent race gets its drivers and their seeds from the previous
races final standings. Any number of races can be added to an event
allowing for any combination of Practice, Qualifiers, Semifinal, and
Finals races. Some or all drivers can be carried over from one race to
the next so that the driver field can be reduced down slowly if
desired.
Score: The value that is assigned a driver for
each heat. This
can be one of many options within RC including fastest lap, total lap
time total laps, or points. This score is then used to calculate the
drivers overall final score. Depending on the way the score is
calculated the highest score may be the winner or the lowest (in the
case of any time based score).
Round Robin Rotation: Any race that uses a
heat rotation in
which drivers race once on each lane on the track. Typically rotation
is either a shuffling one driver station over (called a Straight Round
Robin) or a more complicated rotation in which drivers race side by
side different drivers each heat (called a European Round Robin). Round
robin races are typically run to compensate for unfair advantages or
disadvantages from one lane to another. Even if the lanes are exactly
the same running length, one lane may simply run smoother and therefore
faster than another. Making each driver run on each lane evens the
playing field.
Single Lane Rotation: Any race in which
drivers race on only one
lane of the track. Sometimes they race the heat alone, sometimes with
other drivers. Typically they can choose the lane they're racing on,
and in cases where they are racing alone, they may or may not be
allowed to race on any lane on the track.
Sprint: Any race in which drivers are scored
by fastest lap
time. This can be done using a Single Lane Rotation for things like a
qualifying race or in a Round Robin format. In formats that involve
drivers racing in more than one heat, usually the best times for each
heat will be added together and the lowest total time would be the
winner. Drivers would be mindful that only their fastest lap is
important so there is no reason to hold back the speed.
F1 Style Scoring: Any race in which each
driver in a heat is
assigned points based on how they finished in the heat. These points
are then used as the method for computing the final standings. Typical
point assignment would be something like 20 for 1st, 18 for 2nd, 16 for
3rd, etc. however points can be assigned in any way desired. Heat
standings are determined by the heat configuration for the race.
Step Up: A step up race is a race in which a
set of drivers run
one or more heats together. The driver or drivers with the best scores
step up to the next set of heats. The lowest seeded drivers start out
this type of race and must step up all the way to the final heat to win
the race. Therefore it is advantageous to be the #1 seeded driver as it
ensures only running one set of heats to win the entire race. A step up
race is usually preceded by some sort of qualifying race so that
drivers can battle for the best seeds and therefore earn the easiest
chance to win the race.
Main[X]:
Some race formats require drivers to be split into two or more groups.
Each group races independently of the other groups essentially creating
sub races within the race. When all the groups have finished the final
standings are figured out by combining the group results. Each group is
a Main. If there were three groups they would commonly be referred to as
Main A, Main B, and Main C. How the groups are formed is configurable,
but usually entails an even balance of seeds across all the groups or
groups in which all the top seeds are in Main A, then the next set of
highest seeds are in Main B, and then the lowest seeds in Main C. There
are two common reasons to form groups or Mains. One is to form a winners
and loser bracket in which the group race is the final race of an event.
The winner of each Main is considered the winner of their bracket. In this
case you would normally form two groups Main A being the winners bracket and
Main B being the losers bracket. The other common reason to form groups is
to use the race as a qualifying race for the next race in an event. In this
case, seeds are usually balanced between the groups and one or more drivers
from each group is usually guaranteed to move on to the next race.
