It’s a new year and a new season . . . almost. First comes Week 13 and a final chance for iRacers from Rookie to Class B to move up to the next rung of the license ladder in time for 2014 Season 1, and for iRacers of all stripes to have plenty of fun.
With two official series to choose from, oval and road racers alike have an opportunity to advance to the next license level. On the oval racing side there’s the Street Stock Challenge with stops at Charlotte (both the Legends and the 1.5 mile ovals), Lanier, Oxford Plains, Thompson, South Boston and USA International. Road racers can get their left and right kicks in the Legends Road Series at Charlotte (road), Laguna Seca, Lime Rock, Okayama (long and short) and Summit Point (Jefferson Reverse).
Safety Ratings and iRatings are in effect in the official series, giving competitors a final opportunity to boost their license ratings before promotions for Season 1 are finalized at week’s end. Likewise, rookies who have yet to complete the category-specific minimum participation requirements for graduation to a D license (two official races or four time trials in each category) can do so in Week 13.
Officially-speaking, there’s $50 in iRacing credits on the line for the winner of the Week 13 Gymkhana which features the RUF RWD in one lap qualifying sessions every five minutes on Virginia International Raceway’s Patriot Course.
Last but by no means least on the official side of life, Week 13 sees the Riley Daytona Prototypes and RUF C-Specs begin practicing and qualifying for the opening round of the new Road Warriors Series – the Rolex 2.4 Hours of Daytona – scheduled for January 25-26.
The week’s unofficial competition sees the NASCAR Gen6 cars in the Carburetor Cupat Talladega Superspeedway along with four (count ‘em, four) 24 Hours of Fun series. When the new build is released, 24 Hours of Fun 1 will see the awesome new Super Late Model competing on seven different short tracks. The 24 Hours of Fun 2 has three cars (Radical SR8, McLaren MP4-12c and RUF-Track) in two classes (Radical and GT3) on seven different road courses, while the 24 Hours of Fun 3 also has the Cadillac CTS-V, KIA Optima and Mustang FR500 competing on a different road course every day of the week. The 24 Hours of Fun 1, 2 and 3 will all use the updated tire model as soon as the build is released. Finally, the 24 Hours of Fun 4 will feature the Mazda MX5, VW Jetta TDi and Pontiac Solstice on just one track: Irwindale’s Figure 8. Ouch!
