RDRC Season 6 - Rules

[Jack Hintz]

RaceDepartment
Rally Championship
Season 6​

 

[Jack Hintz]

Contents​

Championship Overview........................................................................... Post 3
RDRC Directing Team................................................................................ Post 3
1 - Competing in on-line Rallies at RD..................................................... Post 3
1.1 RaceDepartment Licensed Members...................................................................... Post 3
1.2 RallyClub and RDRC Rallies.................................................................................... Post 3
2 - Championship Entry.............................................................................. Post 3
2.1 Driver Sign-up.......................................................................................................... Post 3
2.2 Championship Entry Form........................................................................................ Post 3
3 - Sessions and Round entry..................................................................... Post 4
3.1 Time Zones............................................................................................................... Post 4
3.2 Extra Sessions......................................................................................................... Post 4
3.3 Re-Runs.................................................................................................................... Post 4
4 - Non-Original Stages.............................................................................. Post 4
5 - RSRBR Updates.................................................................................... Post 4
6 - Reduced Damage................................................................................. Post 4
7 - Accumulating Damage and Repairs..................................................... Post 4
8 - Tyre Choice.......................................................................................... Post 5
9 - Penalty Times...................................................................................... Post 5
10 - Car Classes......................................................................................... Post 5
10.1 RDRC…................................................................................................................... Post 5
10.2 RDRC-2……………………........................................................................................ Post 5
10.3 RDRC-3…………….................................................................................................. Post 5
10.4 – RDRC-3 Car Homologation……………………………………………………………..... Post 5
10.5 Changing cars during the season......................................................................... Post 5
11 - Driver Grading Criteria and Eligible Car Classes............................... Post 5
11.1 Professional Grade.................................................................................................. Post 5
11.2 Amateur Grade......................................................................................................... Post 5
12 - Manufacturers Championship......................................................................... Post 5
12.1 Factory Teams.......................................................................................................... Post 5
13 - Points System..................................................................................... Post 5
13.1 Points Tables…........................................................................................................ Post 5
13.2 Bonus Cups.…......................................................................................................... Post 5
13.3 Points Allocation...................................................................................................... Post 5
13.4 Power Stage…......................................................................................................... Post 5
13.5 Rally-2 (Retirements)................................................................................................ Post 5
14 - Calender............................................................................................. Post 6
15 - Parc Ferme......................................................................................... Post 6
16 - Complaints.......................................................................................... Post 6

 

[Jack Hintz]

Championship Overview
​

The RaceDepartment Rally Championship (RDRC) is an online rally championship using the Richard Burns Rally simulator and RSRBR2014 mod/add-on available from www.rallyesim.com. All drivers must be licensed members of the RaceDepartment forum and agree to follow the rules of the site. This season, the championship will be run over a 2 series, 12 round calendar starting on 22nd February 2014 and finishing on 9th December 2014. Each rally will include between 8 to 15 stages and have an upper limit of 130km. Stages will mostly be used twice each rally and a mixture of Original format and tested BTB stages will be used to allow the directing team to adjust weather and time-of-day as well as the use of drivers replays for promotion and the adherence to the rules. The RDRC will run as an RSRBR championship event (accessed via the "Public Sessions" button in the RSRBR start-up screen) and use Accumulating/Reduced car damage.

RDRC Directing team
​

Series co-ordinator/Event Director Jack Hintz
Clerk of Course Jack Hintz
Media Producer (Audio/Video) TBA
RaceDepartment Liaison Ole Marius Myrvold (Staff)
RallyClub Liaison Roy Magnes
Series Scruitineer TBA



1 - Competing in on-line rallies at RD

1.1 - RaceDepartment Licensed Members

To be able to compete in the RDRC or any series, championship or competition at RaceDepartment Forum a driver must first become a licensed member of the forum site. Follow the tutorial in the link below to become a Licensed Member.
Click here

1.2 - RallyClub and RDRC Rallies

To enter a RallyClub or RDRC event a driver should follow the tutorial in the link below.
Click here



2 - Championship Entry

Prior to being eligible to sign-up for the RDRC every new driver must compete in an official RDRC grading event or have a grade from a previous season of the RDRC. These grading events will be created for each driver and must be driven alone so no comparison with other drivers will be possible. The grading event will use 3 stages (tarmac/gravel/snow) run 3 times each and use either a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 or Subaru Impreza N14 Prodrive from the N4 car packs. Each driver will be able to nominate which of these cars they wish to use. Damage will be set to realistic/NON-accumulating so each stage will start with a repaired car. The fastest 2 runs of each stage will be averaged and on the basis of this time the drivers’ grade will be established using pre-set target times known only to the directing team. Drivers will then be informed of their grade though PM and can select the appropriate car for the championship and their grade. To obtain a grading event a driver must contact the series co-ordinator (Jack Hintz) to arrange a time and be provided a password. The stage selection for the grading event will not be revealed prior to the session and each grading event may be different. Only stages from the original Richard Burns Rally game will be used. Grading events can be arranged at any time during the season for drivers that wish to sign-up later, however the driver will not be eligible for points or appear in the results before they have signed-up and been graded. Should a driver have a proven record in a rallyesim.com official rally championship they may submit those results to the series co-ordinator instead of competing in a grading event. If a driver with an existing grade from a previous RDRC season wishes to be re-graded they can request to run a grading event. These drivers can be moved into a higher grade from their current grade, but not moved lower. Should a driver fail to score grade points during the season they will fall to the next grade. However, since Season 4 a driver will not be able to fall lower than one grade from their highest achieved grade.

2.1 - Driver Sign-up

Drivers must Sign-up in the Championship sign-up thread before they will be able to score points for the championship. Here you must state your Name, car, team (if any), RSRBR name and driver grade. A driver can also request a number, as long as it is above their ranked number from the previous season. A championship entry list will be posted on 17th February 2014 stating all drivers in ranked order entered by that date. Any driver entering after that time will be given the next available number regardless of previous participation. This is to allow enough time for those creating skins for drivers to place the correct number on the car.

Once a driver has completed the grading event or has a current driver grade from RDRC Season 5 they must sign up using the following entry form and post it in the sign-up thread.

A driver may sign-up for the championship at any time during the season, even if there is only one round remaining.

Once a driver has signed up for the championship, they are automatically enrolled into every event.

2.2 - Championship Entry Form

*****************************************************
Driver: (RD Name)
RSRBR name: (RSRBR sign in)
Number: (Drivers may select a number higher than their ranked number)
Car: (car and car pack)
Car Class: (RDRC, RDRC-2, RDRC-3)
Driver Grade:
Team: (If no team is nominated use drivers name)

I have read and understand the rules and agree to abide by them for the duration of
RDRC S6. - Type Yes here
*****************************************************

 

[Jack Hintz]

3 – Sessions and Round Entry

3.1 - Time Zones

3 time zones (EU/US/OC) will be made available on each day of the rally weekend, starting from Saturday to Tuesday. Each session will be identical and provide an opportunity for drivers from all over the world and all walks of life to take part in the event. Each driver will compete in ONE session officially with all of the session times combined to find an overall event winner. Sessions will be numbered 1-4 in regard to the day they are driven on.

3.2 - Extra Sessions

There will be NO extra sessions created once the round commences. The ONLY exception to the creation of extra sessions will be in the case that the organizers make an error with session creations.

3.3 - Re-Runs

Once a drivers FIRST SPLIT time is registered from their chosen session their results from THAT session will stand. This means that if a driver experiences a server problem between logging in and starting the first stage they can join another session without penalty. However, once they cross the first split marker in the first stage that session will be the one used as their official time. Should a driver experience computer, server or driver issues they should continue the event for as long as they can as they will not be permitted a restart and may still be able to gain points for the championship.

3.4- No driver is allowed to re-start a stage during an online session. All drivers are reminded that they can only attempt each stage once in the order shown in the event thread.

Should a driver accidently restart a stage, they must report it immediately after they finish their session, and will be given a default time for the stage.

Should a driver be found to have re-started a stage during an event without reporting it they will be disqualified from the championship.



4 - Non-Original Stages

4.1 - During the course of the championship, a selection of non-original stages will be used. In an effort to make sure the RDRC runs smoothly, currently original format stages (included in the main RSRBR download) will be used. Successfully tested and working BTB Stages will be included in specific rallies. The extra surface MOD’s available in RSRBR can also be used so all drivers should familiarise themselves with each of the mods to understand how they change each stages. Should a driver experience difficulty running any of these stages because of random failures or high graphics level requirements they should report this to the event organizers AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. In the event that an RSRBR update is released in the period 2 weeks prior to the event and refer to a stage being used, that stage will be replaced or cancelled by the organizers. As adequate time will have been given for all drivers to make sure these stages work for them and their system, NO leniency will be given for drivers failing to finish a stage or rally due to technical difficulties, power, system or hardware failures or just giving up. NO re-runs will be permitted under ANY circumstances. It is the drivers’ responsibility to ensure their system is updated and running smoothly prior to the event, not the directors.



5- RSRBR Updates

5.1 - During the season RSRBR and rallyesim.com will release updates to the RSRBR2014 mod. Should an update be released during the weekend of a championship round it is strongly suggested that a driver DOES NOT update their system until after the round has taken place. In the past these updates have fixed problems while possibly creating others. If drivers update their system and experiences problems with running the championship round due to this, they will not be given any leniency. The directing team reminds all drivers that it is THEIR responsibility to make sure their system and copy of RSRBR is working without issue.



6 - Reduced Damage

6.1 – In this season of the RDRC, the damage level will be set to REDUCED. This decision was made to be a bit more lenient on the competitors, and to allow for some new cars that will be featured in Season 6. However, drivers will still need to be precise with their driving to avoid big mistakes that can accumulate permanent damage over time. It is the advice of the Directing team that drivers, whether they can spend time practicing or not, drive in a realistic manner to finish the rally. Those that are clean, smooth and avoid mistakes will gain the best results.

It is of great importance that a driver considers the damage model and how it affects their car when selecting it.​

7 - Accumulating Damage and Repairs

Accumulating damage is used during the RDRC Season. Accumulating damage means any damage your vehicle suffers during a stage will be carried over to the following stages. The car will be automatically repaired at the next service point to brand new. If you retire (DNF) from a stage your vehicle is automatically repaired to new with the exception of the body panels (opening bonnet, doors.) If a driver finishes a stage with an extremely damaged vehicle they can select the ”REPAIR NOW” button between stages. Doing this will cause the driver to be retired from the NEXT stage but start the following stage with a repaired vehicle.

 

[Jack Hintz]

8 - Tyre Choice

Tyres can only be changed at service points. Therefore all drivers should take note of the surface and weather conditions for the group of stages until the following service and determine the most suitable tyres. Should a driver retire from a stage they will still not be able to change tyres until the following service.


9 - Penalty Times

The imposed derived penalty times for not finishing a stage will be set by RSRBR and rallyesim.com. Should the Directors of the RDRC feel the need to modify these times, drivers will be notified in the event post


10 - Car classes

The following car classes will be used during Season 6. Each driver grade will be limited to the classes they can use and all drivers must use cars only from those listed.

10.1 - RDRC: All A8W99 - 13, Group_B car packs

10.2 – RDRC-2: All N4_S2000, A8, R4, R5 (TBA) car packs

10.3 – RDRC-3: All N4 (excluding S2000), R3 car packs

10.4 - If you do not see a car available that you want in RDRC-2/3, you will be able to apply for homologation for the proposed car. This way we can ensure that it is tested properly to make sure there are no faults and such for the car’s physics.


10.5 - Changing cars during the season

Each driver should consider the competitiveness, strength and enjoyment of each car before posting their selection in the sign-up thread as drivers will only have ONE car change in the entire duration of the season. However, the driver can decide when the change will be.


11 - Driver Grading Criteria and Eligible Car Classes

11.1 – Professional Grade

To qualify for the Professional Grade a driver must have:-

- Finished in the top 10 of an RDRC event in Season 5

- Classified as Grade 2 after the final round of Season 5 of the RDRC
- Set a Professional Grade qualifying time in an RDRC Qualifying event.

Professional Grade drivers can select from RDRC or RDRC-2 classes.

11.2 – Amateur Grade

To qualify for the Amateur Grade a driver must have:-

- Classified as Grades 3-4 after the final round of Season 5 of the RDRC,
- Set an Amateur Grade qualifying time in an RDRC Qualifying event.

Grade 2 Drivers can select from RDRC-2 or RDRC-3 Car classes


12 - Manufacturers Championship

12.1 - In addition to grade and Class championships, Season 6 will feature a brand new Manufacturers Championship. This will involve Factory Teams in each class. Professional Grade will be eligible for the RDRC and RDRC-2 Factory Teams on offer, while Amateur will be eligible for the RDRC-2 and RDRC-3 Factory Teams

12.2 – Applying for a factory team seat will be made through a dedicated thread. Each driver must put down 2 preferred team choices as this is a first in first served basis, there may be a conflicting amount of cars for each team and you may end up with your second preferred choice instead. .

The Top 10 finishers in RDRC Overall Season 6 will get priority in choosing Factory seats first.


12.3 - RDRC Factory Teams will consist of:
M-Sport Ltd (Ford Fiesta RS WRC - 2 cars available)
Citroen Total Abu Dhabi WRT (Citroen DS3 WRC - 2 cars available)
Volkswagen Motorsport (Volkswagen Polo R WRC - 2 cars available)
Hyundai Motorsport (Hyundai i20 WRC - 2 Cars Available) See 12.8
Prodrive WRT (Mini WRC - 2 Cars Available)


12.4 - RDRC-2 Factory Teams will consist of:
Citroen Motorsport (Citroen DS3 RRC - 2 cars available)
Drive DMACK WRT (Ford Fiesta RRC - 2 cars available)
Prodrive Motorsport (Mini RRC - 2 cars available)
Peugeot Sport (Peugeot 208 R5 - 2 cars available) See 12.8


12.5 - RDRC-3 Factory Teams will consist of:
Subaru Tecnica International Rally Team (Subaru Impreza N14 Prodrive - 2 cars available)
Ralliart International Rally Team (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X - 2 cars available)

Teams points will be taken from the Class the members are in and combined to provide the team’s score.


12.6 - Privateer teams are always welcome as usual, and must consist of two drivers to be eligible for team points.


12.7 - A team may be formed at any time during the year, but once a team has registered for the championship no changes will be permitted.

12.8 – The Hyundai i20 WRC and R5 car are currently unavailable until a later date. However if you wish to drive these, you can still apply for a seat and drive ONE nominated RDRC/RDRC-2 car until they are released, when upon you can freely change to your nominated car.


13 - Points System

13.1 - Points tables will be run for

Overall
RDRC-2
RDRC-3
Professional Grade
Amateur Grade
Manufacturers Championship

13.2 – Bonus Cups

Bonus Cups will be awarded within the RDRC for Season 6 to the highest placed driver in their respective points table for that category.

Group A Cup - Eligible to all RDRC-2 A8 Cars
Group B Cup - Eligible to all Group B Cars
2WD Cup - Eligible to all 2WD Cars


13.3 - Points Allocation

1st - 25
2nd - 18
3rd - 15
4th - 12
5th - 10
6th - 8
7th - 6
8th - 4
9th - 2
10th – 1


13.4 – Power Stage

For the second time in RDRC, we will again be featuring Power Stages. This is usually the final stage in a rally, and will have points available to the quickest drivers through the stage in each class.
The points are as follows:

1st – 3 points
2nd – 2 points
3rd – 1 point


13.5 - Rally-2 (Retirements)

In order to score points for the rally being participating in, each driver must finish a minimum of 70% of the stages. No powerstage points will be given if the powerstage has not been completed regardless of the amount of drivers who finish the powerstage.

 

[Jack Hintz]

14 - Calendar

14.1 - The RDRC will run once every three (3) weeks in place of that weeks’ RallyClub event and will commence on the weekend of 22nd of February 2014

14.2 – Season 6 will feature 2 official non-scoring rounds where drivers are welcome to enter using their RDRC chosen car and compete head to head with the rest of the RDRC field in 2 very unique events. They can also provide the possibility of testing car setups for the start of each series.


Winter Series

Bonus Round - 22nd – 25th February (Introduction to RDRC) - Non-Scoring

Round 1 –15th -18th March (Rally Norway)
Round 2 – 5th – 8th April (Rally Alsace)
Round 3 – 26th – 29th April (Sno*Drift Rally)
Round 4 – 17th – 20th May (Donegal International Rally)
Round 5 – 7th – 10st June (South Swedish Rally)
Round 6 – 5th – 8th July (Barum Rally)


Summer Series

Bonus Round - 2nd – 5th August (Pikes Peak International) - Non Scoring

Round 7 – 23rd – 26th August (Rally Whangarei)
Round 8 – 13th – 16th September (Geko Ypres Rally)
Round 9 – 4th – 7th October (1000 lakes Rally)
Round 10 – 25th – 28th October (Hokkaido Rally)
Round 11 - 15th – 18th November (Rally Costa Brava)
Round 12 – 6th – 9th December (Rally of Wales)



15 - Parc Ferme

15.1 – All drivers will have to submit their stage replays to the organizers within 7 days of results being posted. 2 RDRC directors will view replays at random and must come to a unanimous decision regarding legality.

15.2 - Season 6 will feature penalty points.
Each driver will begin with 0 points. If they fail to submit replays for a round, they will gain 4 points. If a driver accumulates 12 points in a season, they are disqualified from the season.

In accordance, should a driver been seen to be taking an illegal line, cut or to be wall-riding they will:-

1/ 3 illegal cuts/lines/wall-ride or less during one rally = 2 points

2/ 4 illegal cuts/lines/wall-ride during one rally = 4 points and disqualification from the event.

Should a driver be disqualified twice during the season or gain all 12 points they will forfeit all points from the championship and not be able to score again until the following season.

15.3 - The RDRC Season 6 will restrict setups to those deemed legal by rallyesim. To ensure legal setups are used the official setup checker will be used for the top 5 outright drivers and each car class winner. All drivers that change their setups away from the default should use this program to make sure it is legal for this championship.

http://forum.rallyesim.fr/viewtopic.php?f=68&t=7413



16 - Complaints

16.1 - Inflammatory or aggressive posts in the RDRC can put off new drivers form joining the championship. It brings the championship into disrepute. NO inflammatory or aggressive posts will be tolerated. All complaints will be taken seriously and dealt with as quickly as possible.

16.2 - All grievances should be sent to either the RDRC co-ordinator or the Clerk of Course. Any driver that posts aggressive or inflammatory posts in the RDRC forum will have their results removed from the most recent round. Should a driver continue to post these types of comments publicly they will be reported to the RaceDepartment Staff and lose all of their points in the championship, and/or be banned from completing in the following RDRC season. This rule will also apply to the RDRC Directing team.