#FX17 2017 Buckyball Race (first one back gets to name their own star system!)



"Between 10AM and 7PM BST on the Elite Dangerous stations, you can take part in the official #FX2017 Buckyball Race – race across the galaxy along a pre-determined route! Our Ambassadors will monitor your progress and time, and the Ultimate FX2017 Buckyball Champion will be able to name their own star system in the game."

https://expo.frontier.co.uk/news/i-don-t-want-to-miss-a-thing-how-to-frontier-expo

Not sure if there's going to be an official FD thread about this but in the meantime, since I've been organising this event, I thought I'd create a thread to answer any questions I can and also to provide some racing tips and tricks and to host some general race banter.

I won't post exact details of the race (unless FD say I can do so) so that everyone will have an equal chance when they turn up on Saturday (i.e. no practicing!).

That said, if anyone does want to get some race practice in, then the Buckyball Racing Club's latest in-game event, entitled "Fat Tony's Festival of Racing", is on now and will run until 15th October 3303. Click my forum signature for details.

Looking forward to meeting y'all on Saturday.

Fly Fast commanders.

o7
 
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Sounds great! Hope it all goes well.

Just to clarify since I'm not 100% sure from the description, is this race being run in-person by visitors at the Expo?
 
Sounds great! Hope it all goes well.

Just to clarify since I'm not 100% sure from the description, is this race being run in-person by visitors at the Expo?

Yes it is (sorry ... assuming you're not attending). There'll be a number of "gaming stations" available on the show floor, some of which will be running the race event. If possible, I _might_ get around to posting exact details of the race here on Saturday so people who aren't attending can have a crack at it for their own amusement and for the satisfaction/annoyance of knowing that, had they attended, they coulda' been a contender! :p
 
Oh great! It look like an amazing event !
It will be a pleasure to take part of this race during the FX2017.
 
Is there HOTAS and VR available? :) I doubt I've got much hope of getting close to the leaderboard, but without HOTAS I'll have zero chance. I can probably put up with lack of VR, though, at a push. :p
 
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Is there HOTAS and VR available? :) I doubt I've got much hope of getting close to the leaderboard, but without HOTAS I'll have zero chance. I can probably put up with lack of VR, though, at a push. :p

VR I don't know about (I doubt it) but perhaps Ed can confirm? Other head tracking solutions? (I'm guessing not).

I believe the gaming stations will have Thrustmaster T.16000M FCS Hotas joysticks. Knowing Frontier there may also be gaming pads available.

As far as I'm aware the stations will have default bindings for the Hotas. You might be allowed to tweak these a bit (although, if you are, we won't be as indulgent as we were at Lavecon ... you hear me Archon Fury? no spending 25mins getting your bindings just right this time!). I've done a quick crib sheet for these default bindings (with the main ones you'll need for the race circled in red) to try and help:

CCxa2ZZ.png


P.S. if anyone who owns one of these joysticks could confirm that these are in fact the default bindings I'd really appreciate it.
 
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Ok. So my next question... This gravity braking thing... I've been trying it quite a lot recently and have only had one (out of probably hundreds) effort that went somewhere near according to plan. Most efforts end up in the loop, and I'm sure it's a slower loop than I'd get if I followed the 6 second rule.

I'd like some pointers and tips. :) I've watched a few videos with people doing this, but am still not entirely sure of the method (and have utterly failed to work one out). Should it work with every station, or do you need a gas giant nearby to thread the needle? If I try to use planets to brake, I simply don't slow fast enough. Am I meant to be heading towards them at full throttle (I've tried variations)?

Landing is something I'm quite happy to do at high speed, and I've almost perfected the bellyflop technique (or the nose down technique when I misjudge the speed slightly). I've even been recording my game sessions recently... Might put together a little medley for amusement (my own, if no-one else's!). Flying and SRV driving I also usually do at full speed. My weakness is supercruise... And I just can't work it out (after two months game time... I really shouldn't have looked at that yesterday). :D
 
Ok. So my next question... This gravity braking thing... I've been trying it quite a lot recently and have only had one (out of probably hundreds) effort that went somewhere near according to plan. Most efforts end up in the loop, and I'm sure it's a slower loop than I'd get if I followed the 6 second rule.

I'd like some pointers and tips. :) I've watched a few videos with people doing this, but am still not entirely sure of the method (and have utterly failed to work one out). Should it work with every station, or do you need a gas giant nearby to thread the needle? If I try to use planets to brake, I simply don't slow fast enough. Am I meant to be heading towards them at full throttle (I've tried variations)?

Landing is something I'm quite happy to do at high speed, and I've almost perfected the bellyflop technique (or the nose down technique when I misjudge the speed slightly). I've even been recording my game sessions recently... Might put together a little medley for amusement (my own, if no-one else's!). Flying and SRV driving I also usually do at full speed. My weakness is supercruise... And I just can't work it out (after two months game time... I really shouldn't have looked at that yesterday). :D

OK - gravity braking should work (to a greater or lesser extent) with all planets. The effect is stronger with gas giants/heavy planets and weaker with small moons. Basically, full speed from system entry towards the station (giving other bodies in your way a wide arc to avoid their "SLOW DOWN" effect). When the ETA gets down to 0:06 get ready and as soon as it drops to 0:05 zero the throttle. You should also have been paying attention to the holographic representation of the station on your HUD and have some idea of where the entrance slot is by this point. Arc around so you start heading in towards the entrance side. Since the station roughly faces the body it orbits, this approach will naturally put the body between you and the station. Keep an eye on your speed (and pay attention to the sounds of acceleration/deceleration as this gives you some terrific audio cues). If it goes back up to 0:06 accelerate again and if it drops to 0:04 while you still have a way to go, use either wild up/down pitching motions or else go into a corkscrew approach where you maintain full pitch up and use roll/yaw to keep spiralling in towards the station, to reduce your ETA back to 0:05. When you start to see the planet as more than just a dot, re-align to make sure the station is behind it and then allow your speed to pick up. Ideally (and this varies according to size/distance of planet so this is where it becomes a bit of an art form) aim to skim close by the planet (being careful not to cut inside the yellow/blue exclusion/drop zone circles) with an ETA of around 0:03. When you get past the planet (now approaching station) watch your speed. While you can still "feel" the drag of the planet keep the throttle on, as soon as you can't try to get the ETA back to around 0:05 (if it drops below then more pitching/corkscrewing to reduce it). As soon as you're 10Mm or less you can whack the throttle back to full and be ready to disengage the FSD as soon as you see the safe drop message.
 
It occurs to me that a tie for 1st place is quite likely (unless Archon Fury spends 9hrs tweaking his bindings and nobody else gets a go). Anyone got any suggestions for a tie breaker? Arm wrestling? who can eat the most "Pig of Doom" pork scratchings without crying like a baby? Talking for a minute about the Pro's and Con's of Open vs. Solo without hesitation, deviation or repetition?

Oh dear, this started out so professionally and then Bran showed up and now it's gone to hell. :p

I've just realised one big handicap I've been giving myself too. I hate orbital lines. :D

Yeah - you want those turned on really, otherwise your chances of an emergency drop are quite high.
 
Does it have to be race related? How nasty may it be? How much time have you got?

If the answer to the last one is "a lot", race from al-din prospect to Hutton Orbital.

If the time available is rather less than that, head to head race from Schneider Relay to Barcelo Penal Colony (both Epsilon Indi). No guns, but accidental rammings might happen...

If it may get nasty, head to head Farseer canyon race with stock Eagles - shooting permitted.

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Addendum: in the last one, get some referees with force shell cannon positioned around the course on the plateau. If you see anyone, knock them back down into the canyon.
 
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