GOODWOOD - Printable Version

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+--- Thread: GOODWOOD (/showthread.php?tid=3647)

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GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 30th-Mar-23

Apologies to those who follow SF as well as SR. I posted this a couple of weeks ago before remembering the creation of SR that I joined just before the world closed down.

I am on a mission to create a new track for public events where I raise money for charities. I currently operate www.havenwoodraceway.co.uk which as you will see is great for a bit of fun and was designed to maximise track length in a practical space that could be taken on the road. It also had to be modular for different venues.

JasonB was an earlier collaborator on this and helped me enormously to produce something that presents a drivable solution. 

So here we go again :-)  
Its time to get serious with my slightly smaller automotive addiction and look at creating something new.
My Havewood Raceway, will be out in force during 2023 at a number of events around the country, which I hope to see some of you at.

Not being content with one layout, I am on a mission to build a Goodwood track. I have had a scan on the forum and read many of your comments about the less than exihilarting experience of slot racing on a track that is built to emulate the real world track. Whilst I acknowledge those as reasons not to attempt a large scale Goodwood, I am also focused on public events, which mitigates the idea that this is for hardened slot racers, but more of a desire to entertain casual racers.

So in time honoured tradition, I offer you my first attempt of a plan, which I will at some stage lay down and see how it races, but for now I am keen to hear all your opinions on the design and concept.

I have used the basis of one of the Goodwood layouts I found on the web and have tweeked it for digital use.
The main difference is that I would like to make the start finish straight as similar to the Revival look as I can from a spectacle point of view and hence the 3 lane straight that I have carried around Madgwick corner.
Whilst other parts of the track could also be widened to 3 lanes, due to the tracks size and the experience of 6 cars on large circuits, those lanes would rarely get used. As it is I suspect the outside lane of Madgwick would only get used for the start sequence.

I would also like to experiment with reducing the chicane to a single car pass and therefore the sequence of two R1's followed by an R2 (Half Std) may become a bespoke squeeze section.

Lane changers often become an area of debate, which I have placed based again on some real world experience of the track and areas where there is often juggling for inside lines or in some cases outside lines. Again I appreciate these are not practical concepts that translate into slot racing for fastest laps, but the objective is as much to replicate Revival style racing where the look of something and the variety are as important as outright performance.

Enough of my pleas of mitigation on the design. Grateful for any and all feedback.
Some Stats:
Size: 5.8M x 5M
Lane length: 17.45M and 17.94M (two inside lanes).

Thank you
Paul

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 30th-Mar-23

Following some feedback I posted this detail to help.



So that is what is in my head, but for the purist slot racer I completely understand the lack of longevity the circuit might hold not to mention the unequal aspects of the lane, which means in reality it is only a single lane track.

I forgot to mention that this is a mobile track that lives under two gazebos of 8m x 4m each. Is 100% Scalextric and is used to raise money for charity. So the majority of its use will be by generalists not specialists.

Constraints on the build:
Must use Scalextric Sport/Digital track
Running Arc App

Any creative suggestions for improving it with minor modifications would be great. For example, modified track peices. Maybe rather than the lane changers into St Mary's and Lavant, I try and create some sort of racing line track pieces, which might include forcing an outside line for one of the tracks to even up track length and remove the chance of missing lane changes.

Yes, it introduces crash sites, but for public displays, that is the nature of 5 minutes of mayhem.

Thanks for taking the time to comments chaps.

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 30th-Mar-23

I then refined the track to try a smoother line for the curves and avoid curves before changers:


Which starts to deviate from the look of Goodwood


Picture courtesy of @Dopamine from SF

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 30th-Mar-23

I am now in the process of using a piece of advice from Jason to use the image of Goodwood to plan the next revision on:
WIP

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 30th-Mar-23

And here is my latest attempt at trying to evoke the Goodwood track whilst be a reasonable track to drive.

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RE: GOODWOOD - JasonB - 30th-Mar-23

Brilliant, love it.

A lot of the sloteratti will be tut, tutting at the idea of recreating a real race track, but I think if you've got that much space, it can definitely work.

It has the advantage of giving you an instant theme, and with Goodwood, what a theme that is. So many lovely cars and such an evocative circuit. I've often felt that the convenience of racing, sometimes overshadows the imagination of modelling, or recreating, or whatever you want to call it. Every race track has a history, and I think that's just as important as the cars we collect.

I'm no expert on digital, but personally, I think I might be tempted to smooth out a few kinks and maybe go for a "racing line" version of the track. I got the size of this one wrong, but you might get the idea...

[attachment=29540]

As for the difference in lane lengths, it's always 49cm on a standard Scalextric circuit without crossovers or bridges, so I don't think that's too big a deal on a 17m track.

I''m looking forward to seeing how this develops, and digging out my Trilby and checked suit for a visit.

Good luck with it.

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodcote - 31st-Mar-23

Very jealous that you have space to built a recognisable replica of Goodwood! We’ve built “Goodwood-inspired” versions at WHO Digital, but our hall is long and thin - not Goodwood-shaped at all.

I don’t know if you’ve driven Goodwood, but it is very fast. Drivers straighten the kinks and only have to worry about the four corners and the chicane. Nick Swift claimed he only brakes once, a brief dab for Woodcote. It would be easier to create a geometric replica if Scalextric made R5 or R6 radius corners!



A few ideas…

• Having three lanes through the start line is a problem with a Scalextric digital base, which only have sensors for two lanes. I’m also not sure of three lanes through Madgwick. Even getting two cars through that amazing double-apex and devilishly-cambered corner is rather hair-raising. For an authentic look and drive, two lanes would be my choice. And try to replicate the adverse camber.
  
• St Mary’s - the only original left-hander - catches people out. It’s pretty flat-out from the exit of Madgwick, a slight lift at No-Name and then down the gears for St Mary’s. I’d be tempted to put an in-to-out curved lane changer there - allowing cars on the inside to take a racing line, other cars to just hang it round the outside (both authentic lines). Cars taking the inside, but not changing will be disadvantaged on entry and exit. R2 might be too tight, but it would make the corner fun.
  
• The short run to Lavant corner can be straight - with a lane-changer before the corner. That would replicate the lines drivers take. Another in-to-out curved changer would be quite authentic for the entry into Lavant, but two lane changers so close isn’t very practical. There is a pronounced dip after St Mary’s and rising up to Lavant, which would be cool to replicate. I also think a half straight (or more) to make Lavant double-apex is necessary. Lavant is a fabulous corner - tricky entry, fast exit.
  
• The kink up the hill on the Lavant straight is surprisingly sharp - but all drivers straighten it. Even an R4 is too tight for the racing line. Similarly with the kink before the braking zone into Woodcote - it’s straightened. If anything, it’s a more authentic driving experience to have maximum speed from Lavant Out to the entry of Woodcote. Into Woodcote, drivers are on the brakes, but carrying as much speed as possible into the short run to the chicane - the choice of radii should allow that.
  
• Although you’ll never build it to scale, a single lane run through the chicane is an awesome driving experience. We’ve played with the chicane at WHO digital and it becomes the signature element that shouts “GOODWOOD!”. It also makes the pit entry more reliable than it looks on your design.
  

Here’s Mike’s Lavant-Woodcote-Chicane section from our Goodwood Revival track last September…

[attachment=29541]

It was just about possible to overtake from the inside lane into the chicane - but that was as hairy as in real life. My hunch is you could remove at least two of the straights between Woodcote and the chicane from Mike’s design to fit the scale of your layout. Driving-wise, that‘s not really a straight - merely a transition between the corner and chicane. Many of the lines through that section aren’t very straight!

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 31st-Mar-23

Thank you Jason and Andy.
Nail on head from both of you.
Will save my comments for a private chat when I create a demo layout for you both to come and try out before we commit to landscape.

If anyone needed an explanation of what the difference between SF and SR is, you only need to compare the two reactions to my original posts. Neither is better or worse than the other, they are just different takes on the same hobby. As rich as the tapestry of life.... how profound for a Friday afternoon ?

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RE: GOODWOOD - CMOTD - 31st-Mar-23

(31st-Mar-23, 02:28 PM)woodingboys Wrote:  If anyone needed an explanation of what the difference between SF and SR is, you only need to compare the two reactions to my original posts. Neither is better or worse than the other, they are just different takes on the same hobby. As rich as the tapestry of life.... how profound for a Friday afternoon ?

Intrigued by the above comment I had a look at the thread on SF and indeed there is a radical difference between the two with the usual suspects over there immediately telling you that it was a bad idea and that real circuits do not translate into good slot circuits but, as I would expect, Jason and Andy are much more supportive with positive help on here.

Leaving that aside I do wonder whether the oft quoted "real circuits do not translate into good slot circuits" is actually true with digital tracks. Certainly with analogue tracks they do have their limitations and usually heavily favour one lane over the others but with a public pay track it really doesn't matter that much as most participants will be inexperienced, liable to crash fairly often regardless of configuration and won't be using it regularly anyway. 

Now I have very little experience with digital but surely the whole point of the system is that you can change lanes at will and, with good placement of lane changers, follow the racing line as in real life so there is no real advantage for one lane over the others. In this case I would think that there is a good case for real circuit replication and aesthetically they look a lot better and much more realistic than some of the convoluted figure of eight analogue tracks I have seen.

Really looking forward to your progress on this one Paul and would love to play on it when finished.

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RE: GOODWOOD - woodingboys - 1st-Apr-23

I think you have nailed it there Brian. In a way I think Dave Jessett of Slot Track Scenics demonstrates on a regular basis just how much fun digital tracks that have been inspired by the real world equivalent can be. The lane changing makes for plenty of exciting door handle driving when in the hands of experienced slot car racers. I handed over my collection of 6 Caterhams to the old Blackcountry Boys at a UKSF on David's Silverstone. They had great fun and managed to keep all the wings on the Caterhams :-)

For anyone who lives not too far from Bicester, you can expect to see both Havenwood and Goodwood making appearances at the Scrambles in the future. The plan will be to recreate grids with their 1:1 creations.

And thanks to Antony, I have just seen his fabulous Goodwood pit from Magnetic Racing. That will most definitely be on the shopping list :-)

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