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4. Fuel Usage & Tyre Wear simulations

The Fuel Usage and Tyre Wear simulations are simply toggled on or off in the Endurance race set-up menu. To turn them on, slide the toggle to the right and the background turns green. Tapping on the text does the same thing - there is no sub menu to customise the simulation. The default setting is what you get - after each lap the fuel and tyre condition decrease by a set amount.

         

The fuel and tyre gauges start green, go through amber to red and flashing red - that is your last chance to pit before the car drops to its calibrated low speed. Don't forget that the Race Screen is explained on page 18 of the ARC Pro Quick Start Guide. Here are the fuel and tyre gauges...

         

In more complex race management programmes like SSDC and RCS64, fuel consumption is related to the amount of throttle you use - it is possible to eke out extra laps between pits stops. Similarly in RCS64, tyre wear can increase if you brake too often or by using the wrong tyres for the conditions.

With the ARC app, the simulations are simple - but they are still a lot of fun. Of course, it means you must pit every twelve laps - sooner if you prefer or if your Fuel Load has been reduced. That's the same if you are running a 3 metre lap or a 30 metre lap - and that's where track design comes into play.

To get the most out of an ARC Pro endurance race and the fuel and tyre simulations, I recommend building as big a track as you can. With a small set track, you will be pitting every 30 seconds, whereas on a big track with a 10 second lap time, you'll need to pit once every two minutes. That's pretty much the pit stop frequency we use in our digital club racing for 15 or 20 minute races - and it is great. Even pitting every minute gives a nice rhythm to an endurance race. Weather and incidents are other simulation options to use in an ARC race, but I don't think they are necessary in an endurance race - at least not to begin with. The regular pits stops, the racing and team work are enough to concentrate on and enjoy.

5. Team work

Racing as part of a team against other teams is a different sort of racing challenge. Successful team racing means that the driver concentrates on the track, while their team mate keeps an eye on the screen and selects the important data to communicate - not too much to distract the driver, but not too little that they start peeking at the screen themselves. The crucial information is when to pit - giving the driver time to change lanes and then enter the pits. I like to know when the tyre and/or fuel gauge goes amber, then red - and when a driving change is coming up.

Driver changes are important in developing your endurance format. At Le Mans, drivers can change at any pitstop. In the Blancpain and British GT Championships there are designated 'driver change windows' - a specific time when the driver change must take place. That might be thirty seconds either side of ten minutes in a twenty minute ARC Pro race. A team can choose to change at a pit stop early in that window or leave it late. They might want to let their better driver have more driving time - or avoid a congested pit lane. That is part of the strategy and should be pretty much decided before the race starts - only tweaked slightly according how the race develops.

In our team racing we have two methods of signalling a driver change. One is to turn on a flashing light to signal a 20 or 30 second 'driver change window' either side of the halfway point. The other - ideal for shorter races - is to ring a bell (or set a timer alarm) exactly on half way and all cars must make a pit stop and change driver that lap. If a team misses the window, they should be penalised - usually a lap on a first offence.

As with all the race formats I am looking at, these are just ideas to inspire you to use your imagination and emulate your favourite racing series or make up your own. The features and simulations in the ARC app are just a start - it is the creativity and enthusiasm of the user that can create something very special with Scalextric's entry-level digital system. I am very aware that there are still Incidents and Weather to look at, as well as features such as Start Type and the Tournament, Drag Race, Arcade and Pace Car modes. I'll probably look at them in that order...