MONSTER's N3 DRIVING TIPS

MONSTER's

This section is devoted to helping you become a better driver. This is not going to make you a unstoppable racer capable of driving thorugh any situation, but you may find a hint or two as to how to win a race of attrition...by ramaining in the race, you would be surprised how many positions (and consequentially wins) you can pick up in this game.

First off, when you look at the track, there is a grey line all the way through the turns, and sometimes this continues all the way around the track. This is the "groove." The groove is typically where are the action in the race is going to take place, unless of course someone gets out of it and slams a wall. The trick here is to slow the car down enough before or during the turn (depending on the track,) to let the car stay in the groove. If you go into a turn and you are okay with the entry and the car is feeling pretty well-blalnced, but you end up drifting high towards the wall anyhow, you are most likely trying to carry too much speed through (or into) the turn. You will need to slow down (possibly more than you are comfortable with) to allow the car to settle down and stay on the line. You will come to see what speed the car likes to maintain though the transitions inside the turn itself. Although you might be able to partly remedy this by set-up adjustments, your set-up can only help you so much here, and if you are carrying too much speed, no amount of adjustment can really help that.

Inside the wide "groove", there is often a darker patch...this is often the preferred line. This line may look as though it is too high in the turn, but on some tracks it is actually beneficial to widen the turn out a little to maintain your speed. You want to shoot for this patch when driving the track. Which most times is easier said than done. Especially with a full grid of racers out there. This leads to my next point...

Be patient. After you have found where your car wants to run, beit the low line, or a bit high, you must remember that other cars may sometimes (often at the least convenient moment for you, unfortunately) run a slightly different groove, but cut across your preferred line. This something that prctice laps before the actual race can help you determine. Don't try to haphazardly pass every car as soon as possible...plan your attack. If you get stuck in traffic, try to maintain a line in course with the rest of the field, and watch. There is always a spot on the track that is better for passing, and less likely to cause you to make a date with the wall. Find this spot, and take advantage of it. ( I go into greater detail on passing strategy on my passing help page.)Remember where your car is going to want to go, and you this to slide around the opposition. This is fairly straightforward, and is a very good technique for passing computer opponents. But humans...

Against a human opponent, and over the internet, things can get very hairy very quickly. Here is becomes an issue of holding your line, and hoping the other guy will do the same. The whole point here is to not cause the other guy to panic. You want him to feel as though you are in complete control of your car (heheh, not that you necessarily are.) If you are racing down the straightaway, and on the inside, remember that you are going to have to slow down sooner than if you were on the outside. The turn will be tighter, and you should accomodate for that on your entry. If you hit the turn too fast, chances are that you and the guy racing you outside are going to get into one another and end up with a wreck. On the outdside, speed is something which you can maintain without fear of tagging the other guy, but there comes a point (especially on banked turns,) where the car is more than likely going to drift towards the wall. Keep your cool, and let of the throttle, Cutting the wheel sharply can take you down too low to the opponent, and, viola, another ride on the back of the tow truck.

There will inevitably be that time when someone slips up (hopefully not you) and there is contact. Sometimes, the contact is merely a "kiss" and you can both recover and continue, albeit after a gesture or two. But then there is the wreck. Here your are completely at the mercy of your tires, with the car spinning wildly out of control and not really sure which way you were heading a split-second ago. As the car spins, you can try to make a recovery...Steer into the spin (these cars are rear wheel drive...) The car wil begin to slowly stop spinning, and you can usually get the nose pointed in the correct direction and drive through it. It is very seldom that you will recover and not have hit the wall at some point first though. This is especially true if the track has any banking. More often than not you will hit the wall rather hard after a spin.

Well, I feel that crash recovery is a very important aspect of the game. Crashes occur on every track, so it is nicce to be able to avoid them if possible, and drive through them when they occur.

Many racers love to run Talladega. It is a huge 2.66 mile tri-oval track, and has the fastest speeds you will obtain in the game. With a great setup, you can turn average lap speeds of 200mph (@225mph in Arcade mode!) The most important thing on a track like this is drafting. This is when you get your car directly behind the car in front of you, in order to let their car cut through the 'dirty air' in front. By putting yourself in position directly behind the car in front of you, you reduce your drag, and gain speed much more quickly. It also helps the car in front that you are drafting with, because the drag from his rear spoiler is reduced, giving him a boost in acceleration as well. Drafting can be beneficial in the turns also, but the drag reduction comes at a price...less downforce on the front wheels of the car for the guy in back, and less rear downforce for the lead-car. This means that the car may not turn as sharply (or out in front, make the car a little loose.) Combine this with the fact that you are already travelling at a higher speed then normally possible, and you are looking at an interesting entry to turn 3. Remember to take into account that the car is going to give you a little more trouble in the draft off the backstretch.

Check back in a little bit for more tips...