To start with what is sim racing? Simulate means to create as realistic of an environment as possible to something in real life to test, train, and learn.
That is exactly what racing simulators do. They recreate the scenario of driving a race-car with as much realism as possible. People always ask how realistic the sims are. I have never driven a race car in real life, so instead I will direct you to the video below. Professional driver Daniel Morad walks through a race he did in real life versus on the simulator and compared them side by side. Surprisingly, the difference in his times was only 5 hundredths of a second. I would argue that the simple fact that professional drivers of all disciplines use sim racing as a training tool tells us just how realistic they are.
The important thing is to look at sim racing logically and understand that the sim rigs aren't moving, so approaching the corner going 120 mph with the direct drive wheel bouncing with the road is never going to match what that would feel like in real life.
The video below gives a look at how one of us mere mortals can handle an F1 car under braking. They can't even keep their head up the force is so intense. Not to mention you don't have all the moving parts with things like transmissions, and brakes that would add feeling to your drive in real life. To be fair, it does appear that someone neglected to tighten his harness.
I don't know about you but sweating through a flameproof suit in 90 degree heat for two hours doesn't particularly sound pleasant.
I am not saying I wouldn't do it for a chance to drive one of these race cars. For me and I think most serious sim racers it is a hobby that is always challenging, often frustrating, and never truly mastered. For the casual driver the once a month or once a week type of person it is simply escapism at its finest. You get into the rig and disappear into the car. And as always the best part is that there are no serious consequences if you happen to wreck.
- Tim
PS If you're interested in testing a racing simulator out, hit the button below! You'll be laughing out loud by the first corner.
Comments