International Stunts Master 2009

[Mark L. Rivers]

ISM 2009

I'm glad to inform you on the International Stunts Master 2009!
This edition will be characterized from big news indeed, which will regard every topic of the event: Tracks, Formula, Leading Time Bonus (new system never seen before!) and Replays. Discover the new features reading the following info and... prepare to see really a dazzling and engaging contest!

TRACKS

All the tracks will be created from contest manager, but all can be sure that he won't be able to realize useful replays before the start of the contest, thanks to the following system: just before the publication of the official tracks, I will ask to three participants to tell me a letter of the alphabet. I'll insert the three letters in the name of the track obtaining so new .TRK files, which will be the official ones used in the contest. For example, I create a track named A09.TRK. Subsequently, just before its publication, I ask to 3 drivers to tell me one letter each of them, at own their choice. Thinking that the 3 letters they tell me are B, G and X, I will rename the file A09.TRK in A09-BGX.TRK. In this way, whatever replay I had realized before on that track won't be utilizable.


FORMULA

The ISM 2009 formula joins elements from the first two editions: simultaneous race on three tracks researching the best sum of time. Differently from the past, the event will be open to all drivers, but to participate they will have to take part to a specific qualifying session.

Qualifying
Drivers will have two weeks to realize their fastest times on a single track in order to reach the qualification at the Final Phase. There will be only two updates (the first one planned after the first week, the second one planned 3 days before the end) but a LTB system will push to discover own cards. A the end of the 2 weeks, only the fastest 80% of drivers (LTB included) will be qualified, until a maximum of 10 drivers.
For example:
1) If 8 drivers will send a time to qualify, only the fastest 6 (80% of 8 = 6,4) will take part at the Final Phase;
2) If 10 drivers will send a time to qualify, only the fastest 8 will take part at the Final Phase;
3) If 13 or more drivers will send a time to qualify, only the fastest 10 will take part at the Final Phase.

Race
Drivers will have to race simultaneously on 3 tracks for almost 4 weeks. The winner will be the driver who will obtain the best sum of times of all tracks, including sum of Leading Time Bonus got.


LEADING TIME BONUS

Qualifying
There will be two checkpoint where it will be relieved the position of the drivers.
First driver at every checkpoint will gain 1"50 bonus on his final time.
Second driver at every checkpoint will gain 1"00 bonus on his final time.
Third driver at every checkpoint will gain 0"50 bonus on his final time.

Race
Leading Time Bonus will be calculated in this way: 0,05 seconds for every new leading time sent on every different track. Anyway, there are some restrictions:

1) A driver can get the Time Bonus only one time in a day, that is only one time between 00:00:00 and 23:59:59 (GMT+1) of every day.
2) Time Bonus will be assigned to a driver only if he's not already the provisional leader when he sent the new replay.
3) Contest Manager will get the Time Bonus only if his time will result the best at the moment of the update.
4) Time Bonus won't be assigned in the last two days of Race, which will be Quiet Days.

You can see an example about how this concept works watching the attached image.


UPDATE

The site will be usually update daily, so to permit to the drivers to see the statement about positions and LTB got.


REPLAYS

Sending
Drivers can send own replays by mail "as is", or zipped with WinZip/WinRar and protected with password. In every case, drivers will have to write in the subject of the mail the following data:

1) Time(s) of the replay(s)
2) Track(s) related.

For example, if a driver sent a mail attaching replays realized on Track A and Track C, the subject of the mail should be: Track A: 1.10,55     Track C: 1.05,60
The time(s) written in the subject of the mail will be assumed as official time. This will permit a faster update consenting to postpone the check of the replays (with RPLINFO utility).


Checking
Replays not zipped. Replays sent "as is" will be checked as soon as possible with RPLINFO utility. The presence of divergences between official times declared and effective times relieved checking the replays, will comport a penalty time: 1,00 second if time sent was a leading time and 0,20 seconds if it wasn't a leading time.

Replays zipped and protected. Replays sent zipped and protected with password, will be checked just after the end of the race. Just before the end of the race drivers who sent encrypted replays will have to communicate the password used for all replays sent (the same for all file zipped, thanks...) permitting to the contest manager to verify the correctness of times declared. The presence of divergences between official times declared and effective times relieved checking the replays will comport the following action:

- If the time was not a leading time, the driver will got 0,20 seconds of penalty time
- If the time was a leading time, the driver will be excluded from the final classification

The omitted communication of the password, will comport the exclusion of the classification too.


Contest Manager replays
As usual in SDR, Contest Manager will publish his times zipped and protected by password contextually at the update of the scoreboard.


DATES

05 Dec 2008 - Contest Manager asks to 3 drivers to publish on the forum a specific letter of the alphabet, at own their choice, that has to be included in the name of file *.TRK which will be used for Qualifying. The 3 drivers will have to publish their own letter just in time for the start of the Qualifying.

08 Dec 2008 – Start Qualifying on a single track
13 Dec 2008 – 1st Checkpoint
20 Dec 2008 – 2nd Checkpoint
23 Dec 2008 – End Qualifying

28 Dec 2008 - Contest Manager asks to 3 drivers to communicate him a new letter that has to be included in the name of files *.TRK which will be used for the Race. The 3 drivers will have to communicate their own new letter just in time for the start of the Race.

04 Jan 2009 - Start Race on 3 tracks simultaneously
29 Jan 2009 - Finish Race

---------------

OK, hoping this could be a glad news for all Stunts drivers, the appointment is for next December, less than three months from today.  Meanwhile, you can already see the new logo...

[AbuRaf70]

FELICITACIONES MARK, POR LA INICIATIVA..!!!

Como siempre, estaré ansioso esperando que llegue diciembre para participar en las pruebas clasificatorias de ISM 2009, para poder obtener un lugar en tan importante competencia.

[Duplode]

ISM 2009

(And loved the new logo too, BTW...)

[BonzaiJoe]

December is not 2009, of course, but looks like a great event! I'm not sure I understand all the rules, and I did give up reading at some point, but as long as someone takes care of it, I'll just race happily and try to send lots of replays

[CTG]

Of course I mustn't mention that Mark's USC/USL boycott has an obvious effect: automatic SDR/ISM boycott from me.

The logo reminds me on something else: average type of letter - Stunts format letter - average type of letter; text direction is going downwards (in a small angle), year is shown with a different color. I've seen something similar somewhere...

[BonzaiJoe]

There's an error in your pictures example though, Driver A got a bonus at 5:10 AM when he was already first with his 1.19.55 (Driver A is a real creature of the night! I think it's me...), but Driver C missed a bonus in exactly the same situation.

[Mark L. Rivers]

Of course I mustn't mention that Mark's USC/USL boycott has an obvious effect: automatic SDR/ISM boycott from me.

Good for you, you won't risk to be eliminated during the qualify... 

The logo reminds me on something else: average type of letter - Stunts format letter - average type of letter; text direction is going downwards (in a small angle), year is shown with a different color. I've seen something similar somewhere...

Very interesting... Even because, as you know very well seeing your tracker, I have not visited your site since my retirement during the last race, Zahony... 

There's an error in your pictures example though, Driver A got a bonus at 5:10 AM when he was already first with his 1.19.55 (Driver A is a real creature of the night! I think it's me...), but Driver C missed a bonus in exactly the same situation.

You're right BJ, because I wrote wrongly the explanations in the right column (for example I wrote that "Driver A wasn't first before" while he effectively was with 1.19,55, as you correctly marked). In effect, I express wrongly the concept with my example. Anyway, what I meant is this:

Driver A gets no bonus with 1.19,55 because, even if realizes a new leading time, he had already got a bonus in the same day; but

Driver A gets the bonus with 1.19,40 because he realizes it in a new day wherewith he has not already got the bonus althought he was already 1st having realized 1.19,55 in the previous day.

Instead, Driver C gets the bonus with 1.19,05 because he had not got bonus in the same day; but

Driver C gets no bonus with 1.18,90 because, even if he realizes a new leading time in a new day, he was already first with a time (1.19,05) that had permitted him to get a bonus (differently from Driver A who, with 1.19,55, had not got bonus in the previous day).

So, in my example shown in the previous picture, the attribution (or not attribution) of leading time bonus is correct for Driver A and Driver C. What is wrong is the explanation in right column.

I hope that the rule is now clear and correct and that the new attached picture results ok. Thanks BJ to have marked me the error, and, please, give me other hints if there should be found other rules-bug! 


EDIT 17/9 --> I modified again the picture so to make more clear the rule.

[Chulk]

ISM 2009

Great news! I'll start racing seriously again to find back my shape and take part there (Motivation came back a bit) and FTT and USL will be my training grounds!

You're right BJ, because I wrote wrongly the explanations in the right column (for example I wrote that "Driver A wasn't first before" while he effectively was with 1.19,55, as you correctly marked). In effect, I express wrongly the concept with my example. Anyway, what I meant is this:

Driver A gets no bonus with 1.19,55 because, even if realizes a new leading time, he had already got a bonus in the same day; but

Driver A gets the bonus with 1.19,40 because he realizes it in a new day wherewith he has not already got the bonus althought he was already 1st having realized 1.19,55 in the previous day.

Instead, Driver C gets the bonus with 1.19,05 because he had not got bonus in the same day; but

Driver C gets no bonus with 1.18,90 because, even if he realizes a new leading time in a new day, he was already first with a time (1.19,05) that had permitted him to get a bonus (differently from Driver A who, with 1.19,55, had not got bonus in the previous day).

So, in my example shown in the previous picture, the attribution (or not attribution) of leading time bonus is correct for Driver A and Driver C. What is wrong is the explanation in right column.

I hope that the rule is now clear and correct and that the new attached picture results ok. Thanks BJ to have marked me the error, and, please, give me other hints if there should be found other rules-bug! 

Bottomline... you can't get 2 bonuses on the same day, is that right? You missed me in your explanations too!

[CTG]

Of course I mustn't mention that Mark's USC/USL boycott has an obvious effect: automatic SDR/ISM boycott from me.

Good for you, you won't risk to be eliminated during the qualify... 

Bad for me, I can't win a medal there...

The logo reminds me on something else: average type of letter - Stunts format letter - average type of letter; text direction is going downwards (in a small angle), year is shown with a different color. I've seen something similar somewhere...

Very interesting... Even because, as you know very well seeing your tracker, I have not visited your site since my retirement during the last race, Zahony... 

It wasn't a charge - I just tried to point on an accidental coincidence, nothing more.

[zaqrack]

great news, hope I'll find some time to race.
looks like 2009 will be a strong Stunts season again...

[Mark L. Rivers]

ISM 2009

Great news! I'll start racing seriously again to find back my shape and take part there (Motivation came back a bit) and FTT and USL will be my training grounds!

Great! 

You're right BJ, because I wrote wrongly the explanations in the right column (for example I wrote that "Driver A wasn't first before" while he effectively was with 1.19,55, as you correctly marked). In effect, I express wrongly the concept with my example. Anyway, what I meant is this:

Driver A gets no bonus with 1.19,55 because, even if realizes a new leading time, he had already got a bonus in the same day; but

Driver A gets the bonus with 1.19,40 because he realizes it in a new day wherewith he has not already got the bonus althought he was already 1st having realized 1.19,55 in the previous day.

Instead, Driver C gets the bonus with 1.19,05 because he had not got bonus in the same day; but

Driver C gets no bonus with 1.18,90 because, even if he realizes a new leading time in a new day, he was already first with a time (1.19,05) that had permitted him to get a bonus (differently from Driver A who, with 1.19,55, had not got bonus in the previous day).

So, in my example shown in the previous picture, the attribution (or not attribution) of leading time bonus is correct for Driver A and Driver C. What is wrong is the explanation in right column.

I hope that the rule is now clear and correct and that the new attached picture results ok. Thanks BJ to have marked me the error, and, please, give me other hints if there should be found other rules-bug! 

Bottomline... you can't get 2 bonuses on the same day, is that right? You missed me in your explanations too!

Sorry Chulk, I don't understand what you are telling me... 
Anyway, it's correct, a driver can't get 2 bonuses in the same day.
I also modified again the attached picture in my main comment, making it more clear.

great news, hope I'll find some time to race.

Great! 

looks like 2009 will be a strong Stunts season again...

Indeed... 

[Chulk]

I meant both rules could be summarized with "you can't get 2 bonuses on the same day".

[CTG]

Interesting concept, I hope to find some time to race there - especially if you apply Speedgate again (Melange and this one are the greatest non-original cars).

[Mark L. Rivers]

I'm glad to inform you that the site of ISM 2009 is open and fully operative! 

From SDR Portal (http://digilander.libero.it/stunts.SDR/index.htm), accede to ISM2009 and check Info&Rules page (English and Spanish versions, thanks Chulk for your revision!  ) to know all you need to take part to the event!

In Info&Rules page I explain better the concept about LTB for the race. I have also to say, with disappointing, that there's a modify respect I had announced in the previous advice. Related to the sending of the replays, drivers can't send replay zipped and protected by password. I think a lot about it, and I have to say that there's a high risk that the race can be invalided cause unvoluntary mistakes about declared times.
What I mean is that if a driver declares to have realized a leading time sending a zipped and protected replay (that would be open only after the finish race when the driver communicates the password), I would calculate the LTB in order of his time. But if his time will result wrong at the end of the race (that is it wasn't a leading time) this would have affected the entire race, above all if the wrong leading time bonus was very strong remaining the leading time for many days.
I can't permit indeed a so high risk, and so all the replays will have to send in conventional way.

OK, more or less one month to the Qualify session, keep warm your engines... 

[Mark L. Rivers]

Strange... clicking on the link placed in my previous comment, I see the correct SDR portal (with the link to ISM 2009). Clicking on the link for SDR portal from Stunts Racing Portal I see the previous page (without the link to ISM 2009)... 

Anyway, here it is the direct link:

http://digilander.libero.it/stunts.SDR/ISM/2009/index_ISM2009.htm