Dirt Oval and Short Asphalt Oval Update News from Tony Gardner

April 19, 2023 ~ Jeff Kendrick ~ Leave a comment

iRacing president Tony Gardner provided more specific information about the upcoming dirt and asphalt oval update coming to iRacing in June.

Good day,

On February 3rd of this year I posted a development update to members. One of the main focuses of that update was to address concerns related to the state of oval dirt racing and oval pavement racing. I mentioned that we formed a team focused on tackling these issues head-on, beginning with dirt, and we have internally been referring to these efforts as “dirt racing refresh” and “oval racing refresh”. It actually is more than just a refresh, but we didn’t want to call it overhaul either, because that is also not the case. It has been a couple of months since the previous update and we are now cautiously optimistic that Dirt Refresh will ship in June, so I wanted to provide more details on what to expect.

Dirt Racing Refresh:

Tracks:

We updated the water content of the soil resulting in a greater difference in soil strength between “fresh” and “dry.” This results in a bigger variation between driving on the ‘fresh or tacky’ part of the track vs the ‘dry or slick’.
We updated the relationship of the dirt surface and the tire allowing for a more “in the track” feel.
We updated variation in track wear / track prep. There is a larger gap between low track wear and a lot of track wear as a result of laps being run.
We added track bumps through dirt and water variation. This adds a layer of variation in track prep session to session. Some races may have a smooth surface (think what is on members now) and some races may have a more rigid and bumpy surface. Bumpiness may vary session to session and change slightly throughout the track wearing process.
We added water variation scaling. This is another variable that may be noticed session to session. Think of a water truck watering the track. The higher parts of the track may be drier than the lower parts due to gravity and the water seeping to the bottom. For example, the top of the track may be drier than before and the bottom may be wetter. The water truck is not a perfect science so it may vary in how dry or wet specific parts of the track are race to race.

Vehicles:

Every oval car that races on dirt was tuned either through tires, physics, or both. This includes Stock Cars (Current NASCAR Cup Cars, NASCAR Trucks, ARCA Menards Impala) and as a bonus also includes the Off-Road Trucks (Pro 4, Pro 2, Pro 2 Lite)
Tire wear was introduced to the Dirt tire model, and independently tuned per vehicle. Whether a 75 lap super late model race or a 30 lap 360 sprint car race, paying attention to your race length and tires will be important.
Some vehicles received sound improvements and updates.

New Damage Model Enabled:

Super Late Model
Pro Late Model
Limited Late Model

New features:

The ability for Hosted Racing hosts to disable the virtual mirror for their session.

Bug Fixes:

A handful of dirt tracks had dark seams around their perimeter. This was visual only and did not affect the physics. This has been fixed.
Remote car wheels could seem to twitch oddly. This has been fixed.
Certain tracks did not have collisions applied to their catch fencing. This has been fixed.
Rebuilding DTI data to fix odd cushions at certain tracks.
And more…

While it won’t make our “Refresh” release, dirt AI is also in the works, although there are technical hurdles we still need to overcome before we’re ready to make it available.

As I mentioned last time, work is underway on an Oval Refresh as well. This project has similar goals to those achieved with the Dirt Refresh: a thorough assessment and tuning of all systems that combine to create the oval racing experience, in particular dynamic track and its impact on multigroove. Progress is also being made generally in regard to tires and the model.

We are also making significant progress on our new weather system along with rain and are still hoping to release these features later this year. This will bolster our service as a whole but more directly impact the road racing side of things. We also have several exciting tracks in our pipeline including we are doing a little tour of Italy this week, scanning Misano as well as Mugello. (I don’t think I mentioned Mugello in my last post.) As usual, plenty more in the works, but I wanted to simply focus on the dirt racing refresh with this update.

New dirt content will also be arriving later this year with the release of Kern County. Kern features both a dirt oval and half-mile pavement oval on the property, and the iRacing release will include both of them.

We are really excited about the results of these efforts, and our testing team has enjoyed the improved raceability of the cars and enhanced track dynamics. Thanks for your patience throughout this process, and know that we hear you and are working hard every day to improve the iRacing experience across our many racing categories and sim systems.

As always, thanks for being members and good racing!!!!

iRacing 2019 Season 3 Update from Tony Gardner

May 8, 2019May 19, 2019 ~ Jeff Kendrick ~ Leave a comment

iRacing president Tony Gardner has once again stepped up with a small development update for the 2019 Season 3 build coming up in early June. For those who have not seen it, I’ll provide some highlights plus the full update.

The new form of racing — Short-Course Off-Road Trucks is on pace for the June release. This includes two trucks and two tracks.
Fairbury American Legion Speedway (FALS) is in development but will not make the June release. Look for that in September.
On the NASCAR side, the Ford Mustang Cup Car and the 2019 Chevrolet Silverado should be in the June build.
The Modified Cars may also make the June build. The 208 Tour Modified champion’s car was scanned. This will bring brand new Tour and SK Modified cars to iRacing.

Below is the full update.

Good day,

Thanks to everyone for your membership and the time you spend iRacing!

I know some members are curious about what is coming next so I figured a good time to do a brief content production update with the quarterly software update about four weeks away.

I’ll start with the new form of racing — Short-Course Off-Road Trucks. The Pro 2 and Pro 4 trucks are on pace for the June quarterly release as are two tracks, Wild West and Wild Horse. It is going to be Wildly fun! Later this week we will work on a video for your viewing pleasure. You will get both the Pro 2 and the Pro 4 truck for the price of one vehicle.

While working on the short-course trucks, we improved the dirt particle effects which will carry over to other forms of dirt racing. Speaking of that, we are in full production of Fairbury Speedway. That will miss June, but it will release in September (or earlier) probably. It is far enough along to take screenshots, and we will do that soon with videos to follow. We have also started work on Lernerville Speedway which would be next after Fairbury. We have a full list of tracks that we are doing and then will take it from there. Most on the list have been scanned.

Staying on dirt, we also are working on our first ever purpose-built RallyX track. That track will not make the June build, but plenty more will, keep reading.

We are shooting to get NASCAR Ford Mustang (Cup) in the June build. Same with the 2019 Silverado.

We also are working hard to get a brand new NASCAR Modified car in the build. An all new car including a complete physics update. We scanned the reigning champs car, Justin Bonsignore, who is the 2018 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Champion. We will simply replace the old Modified car so if you own the old one, you will get this for free. We will also be providing two versions like we do now, same car body basically but two different engines (SK and Tour). Again both cars are in the same package for one price if you were to buy it new. (This car will be used in the playoffs for the 2019 NASCAR Ignite Series by the way. The regular season will be the Legends Car, just like last year. A press release is coming out this week about that.)

I don’t want this to turn into a development update, but here is a little tidbit while talking about NASCAR. We are fairly optimistic we will get green-white-checkered into this build. We also have one of the 2019 Xfininity cars done but waiting to get them all done before we release them. As usual, a time consuming and painful process getting all the licensing done and getting our hands on the data to build the cars. On the bright side, we are having some good conversations with our wonderful partners to make this process easier in the future.

Flipping to the road side, we are close on the Audi RS3 LMS TCR car. However, it will miss the June build as I mentioned in another post. I think a completely updated Silverstone will make the June build but it will be a little tight. Barcelona is in full production as well and on track for a 2019 release.

There are multiple other cars and tracks in production but we don’t want to get too ahead of ourselves. That can get us in trouble.

There is also a tremendous amount going on in regards to new and improved features, some of it, you already know about. AI, new damage model, new sound engine, updated tire model, rain, etc. and making good progress on all of it.

Good racing!

iRacing 2018 Season 2 Update From Tyler Hudson, Steve Myers, and Tony Gardner

February 27, 2018March 17, 2018 ~ Jeff Kendrick ~ Leave a comment

The iRacing Dirt Cushion – Click for Full Sized Image

Here are some interesting updates relating to iRacing dirt that are coming up from 2018 Season 2.

The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Limaland Raceway Park have been confirmed for 2018 Season 3 by both Steve Myers and Tony Gardner.
iRacing has created a cushion or berm for all dirt tracks. Lots of testing went into making the cushion more lively and feel more like a real cushion. More dirt can build up and the height at which it can build up has been increased significantly. Along with the cushion, there’s a slight overall track grip adjustment for all tracks.
The Street Stock rev limit has been increased to 6800 RPM.
The Winged Sprint Car suspension adjustments from this season will be reverted to the initial specification (HOORAY). Also, the nose wing angle will now be adjustable in the iRacing Garage.
The Dirt Late Model Cars are getting significant suspension updates. Improvements continue. Setup rebuilding continues.
Dirt Oval Classes C and up will all include heat races.
The iRacing Dirt World Championship Qualifying Series will begin on March 19. These races will include 3 heats and 2 consolation races. Both the Late Model and Winged Sprint Series will be open to all dirt licenses. More details here and here.

Steve Reis also came forth with some more information on the Dirt late Model updates.

Updated front bumpstop rate curves with more accurate data
Updated shock lengths and positions using more accurate data
Trimmed nose valence and door skirts in the model to more typical lengths and adjusted collision elements accordingly
Adjusted collision elements in the nose and tail to allow closer racing per member suggestions and feedback

Per Reis: “The net result is a more realistic attitude/stance in terms of how the car stays up on the bars and how things look from the driver’s seat. The left rear hikes up more and the right front travels more. The car feels softer and more lively in general and is just a lot of fun to drive. We had a ton of help from a few real life drivers, and everyone is pretty excited about it. I hope everyone likes it as much as we do. I don’t think the update feels night and day different than the current member’s build, but everyone agrees it is a pretty solid improvement overall.”

AI will not be released in this build but is still on track for a 2018 release.

iRacing Development Update from Tony Gardner

January 11, 2018March 17, 2018 ~ Jeff Kendrick ~ Leave a comment

Tony Gardner posted another iRacing development update this afternoon for those who are curious about what is next in regard to development. I’ll include some of the highlights here.

New graphical and physical damage model. This should be released this year but no promises. Let’s hope the crashes get at least a little more realistic, especially in the winged sprint cars.
Dynamic time of day including moving clouds and day to night transitions. iRacing is working night and day on day to night transitions. Goal for release: this year.
New tire model version. This is a big one! If you whined and cried when iRacing made changes to the Dirt Late Model physics, you better get a new box of Kleenex, snowflake. Let’s hope this includes the dirt cars which still desperately need some kind of change to the tire. Dave Kaemmer will have more information on the new tire model in a few weeks. Goal for release: this year.
Continued work on the new interface. It needs a lot of work.
SHOCKER: iRacing is working on AI. Gardner says that they are “very far down the road with it.” As you can imagine, this opens a lot of doors. Practicing in an actual race with AI cars before you enter an official race is one of those doors. A more fun and relaxed format is another. The current plan is to offer one-off AI races as well as a career mode in which you can build your own series and schedule. There will be an AI difficulty adjustment. Nothing will ever replace racing against real drivers, but I think this will be great, especially for new members. Even if you don’t want to race AI, the development has helped iRacing with their netcode and prediction code issues and all members will benefit from that. Goal for release: this year.
Multiple new tracks for all forms of racing. One oval track [surely Pocono Raceway] is being completely reworked. Dozens of cars are also in the works.

Good stuff here from Tony Gardner. It’s always nice to hear about what is in development at iRacing, and some general release time frame.

Major iRacing Dirt Update from Tony Gardner

March 23, 2017March 23, 2017 ~ Jeff Kendrick ~ Leave a comment

iRacing president Tony Gardner posted a big update on iRacing Dirt today. It is available in the iRacing forums, but for those of you who still haven’t joined iRacing, I’ve reproduced it here. There is a lot of interesting information here and some good news! All content is available at the lower iRacing price tier of $11.95, and you get ALL the Winged Sprint Cars as a package and all the Dirt Late Models as a package. That’s six cars for less than $24, plus two free cars and one free dirt track. But read for yourself below.

Good morning,

We just wanted to provide an update in regard to the “dirt” software build. It is still on track for next Wednesday, March 29th. Everything is looking good for the release on that day and we are very excited about it. A lot went into the development and we hope you enjoy it. In the meantime, we are working on another video today showing race footage of the winged sprint cars.

We are planning on putting the dirt content for “pre-sale” this coming Monday. If you have any interest you are welcome to purchase early. There will be 5 pieces of dirt content for sale. All the content will be priced at the standard price of $11.95. (We are using the lower tier pricing for the tracks.) Don’t forget, add a 6th piece of content and you will get 15% off. If you buy 3-5 pieces of content you will receive 10% off. The reason for the pre-sale is with that much content, it will help spread the traffic AND you will be able to test the new content in our offline Test Drive feature during the update. Within the first couple hours of the maintenance period, we’ll provide members with early access to pre-ordered and free included dirt content via the Test Drive feature. Follow us on social media for notification for example at @iRacing on twitter. You will still have to download the new content during the maintenance period. The update will likely take several hours. It will be good chance to get some test laps in with Dirt before you get on track with others. That said, we sure wouldn’t mind if not everyone jumps on to update all at once. Take your time, it will help everyone!

Speaking of that (updates/downloading), we often receive messages that we need to buy more servers or upgrade to fiber and things along those lines. I assure you we have plenty of high-end servers, fiber and state of the art networking and none of that is a bottleneck. We wish it was that easy to just buy more/better. It is typically the distribution of the massive data/content that is the bottleneck. We contract with the same high-end data distribution network (Akamai) as iTunes, Microsoft, ESPN, NBC Sports, Adobe, etc. It just takes some time unfortunately for the data to get distributed and downloaded globally.

Back to dirt. The 5 pieces content going on sale will be the tracks Williams Grove, Eldora and Volusia. All the dirt tracks have day and night lighting. The cars will be a Late Model which will include three versions for the price of one. A Limited, Pro and Super Late Model. The second car for purchase will be a Winged Sprint Car which also will include three different versions in the car package for the price of one including the 305, 360 and 410. Additionally we will be granting free dirt content including a dirt version of USA Speedway, a Dirt Street Stock, and a Dirt Legends Car. Last but not least dirt versions of the Camping World Trucks (Silverado and Tundra). If you already own those vehicles, you will have the dirt package for free. They are not separate dirt vehicles, it is just that when you are on Dirt, you will have the dirt package for example when the NASCAR series goes to Eldora on the schedule. You can see all the dirt content here: http://www.iracing.com/dirt/

A few more things to keep in mind on Dirt. We made a few adjustments to safety system. Because dirt cars are meant to be sideways in corners, we adjusted the out of control spin incident well pass 90 degrees for dirt, but you can still get the incident if you do a serious spin. Additionally, we moved heavy contact to 2 points instead of 4 points like it is on pavement since there is more natural contact in dirt racing. Everything else is the same for incidents and the math is the same in calculating safety rating and iRating. It is still our hope to create a separate license for Dirt and some preliminary work has started in that regard.

We will be putting up 5 series when we release. Three official series and two fun series. The official series will be at the lower license levels with the lower HP Cars to start off at least, for a reason. (The two fun series will the higher HP cars.) We strongly suggest you start with the lower HP cars no matter how experienced you are as a sim racer. Dirt racing is much different than pavement racing. There is much more to it than throwing the car in the corner. To be blunt, it is hard and takes hundreds of laps of practice to get it but it is very fun and rewarding as you progress. I’m not any good at any type of sim racing but I really have struggled not driving dirt like I do pavement. The pedal control overall is a bugger, keeping the pedal down (mostly) through the corners on a short track, the timing of the brakes and steering, the dynamically changing lines and conditions of the dirt is difficult to be proficient never mind master. Even going down the straights you have to concentrate, that car wants to go left big time. It is critical to practice. Watch the Chris Bell video if you get a chance on our YouTube Channel, it is excellent. We will be releasing much more in the coming days and weeks about dirt racing including tips and pointers from experienced real world drivers (and sim racers). Be patient and help each other out like you always do. That is what is great about this community. Most of all, have fun.

There will be several other nice little non-dirt additions that will be in the “dirt build” next week but this post is long enough. Additionally, we are pretty excited about our June Build. Contrary to popular belief we have been working on many other things beside Dirt.

We will be watching and listening to your feedback on dirt (and everything else) and looking for ways to improve as always. I also wanted to thank our testers, both our usual testers and the new folks that helped that have real world dirt experience. They were a huge help for Dirt and we simply could not have done it without them. Also a big thanks to our licensing partners across the board. It also would not be possible without them. Most of all, thanks to all of our members, we definitely would not be doing this without you!

Good racing and a Happy Early April Fools Day!