Rules, Terms and Conditions of Service

Welcome to SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA (“SRSA”, “Sim Race SA”, “Sim Race South Africa”, “we”, “our”, “us”)!

Your agreement with us includes these Rules, Terms and Conditions. You acknowledge that you have read and understood all of the below, and agree to be bound by all of the statements.

These terms apply to all visitors, users and others who wish to access or use our services.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Terms and Conditions of Service

1. Forums

1.1. Definition of Forum: The term ‘forum’ encompasses all platforms, including but not limited to the official website, Discord forum, YouTube, social media channels (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), and the Simracing.GP community, used across SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA, whether in text or voice channels.

1.2. Content Responsibility: As the providers of this service, SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA is not responsible for the content of messages posted on the forum. Messages express the views of their respective authors only.

1.3. As a user of the Forum, you agree to the following:

1.3.1. Impersonation and User Identity: Users are strictly prohibited from impersonating others or misrepresenting their identity on the forum and associated platforms. To ensure transparency and accountability:

1.3.1.1. Usernames: Users must use regular, easily identifiable first and last names that sound authentic. The use of typical online nicknames, troll names, special characters, or numbers is prohibited. Additionally, correct capitalization of the name is required.

1.3.1.2. Consistency Across Platforms: Users are required to maintain consistent usernames across Discord, Simracing.GP, and supported sim racing titles. This promotes better community interaction, facilitates administration tasks, and ensures competitive integrity.

1.3.1.3. Guidelines for Updating Discord Nicknames: A guide on how to update Discord nicknames can be found here: https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/219070107-Server-Nicknames

1.3.1.4. Enforcement: The administration reserves the right to remove any accounts found to be using false identities or unresponsive to requests for rectification, both on Discord and during racing events.

1.3.2. Profanity: Users are prohibited from using any profane language.

1.3.3. Provoking Conflict: Users must refrain from posting content with the intention of provoking conflict.

1.3.4. Illegal Activity: Discussion, suggestion, engagement, or encouragement of any illegal activity, including but not limited to copyright infringement or piracy, is strictly prohibited.

1.3.5. Sensitive Topics: Users are not allowed to post topics related to race, gender, religion, or politics if they could potentially offend another user or spark unnecessary arguments or fights on the forum.

1.3.6. Toxic Behavior: Users are expected to maintain a respectful and positive atmosphere on the forum. Any form of toxic behavior, including but not limited to harassment, bullying, trolling, or personal attacks, will not be tolerated.

1.4. Use of Secondary Accounts: The use of secondary accounts to incite conflict or post unsuitable materials will result in the banning of both accounts.

1.5. Advice and Instructions: All advice and instructions provided by members on the SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA Forum are to be followed at the risk of the individuals receiving the advice or carrying out any instructions found on the Forum.

1.6. Moderation Authority: SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA reserves the right to delete or edit any posts on the Forum, timeout, or ban users that are deemed to be in violation of these Terms & Conditions.

2. Online Events

2.1. Whilst every care is taken to execute successful online racing events, no liability will attach to SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA for any unforeseen circumstances leading to a failure to execute a successful online racing event.

2.2. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA is not responsible for the quality or performance of connections used by users to connect to SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA’S servers.

2.3. If an entry fee, Simracing.GP fuel, or charity donation if specified for a particular event, these are not refundable under any circumstances.

2.4. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA will not be liable for any sickness or seizures experiences including but not limited to, those caused by photo-sensitivity, i.e. Epileptic fits.

2.5. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA is permitted to change the RULES AND REGULATIONS of the events without prior notice.

2.6. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA reserves the right to refuse or cancel any membership of a user for any reason.

2.7. Simulation racing hosted by SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA can only be exercised with legally-purchased gaming or simulation software. Use of pirated software will not be tolerated and will lead to removal from all championships, Simracing.GP platform, and the Discord server.

2.7.1. This includes the use of any ‘paid’ mods. If any premium content has been selected for an event (e.g. content from Race Sim Studio), proof-of-purchase that clearly indicates ownership will be required before a driver is able to participate.

2.8. The contra proferentem rule in respect of interpreting these terms and conditions shall not apply (i.e. the interpretation shall not be against the interest of the drafter of these terms and conditions).

Championship Rules and Regulations

The following rules are in place for the 2024.1 season’s championships (January to June, 2024):

3. Driver Entry Rules

3.1. Drivers will be able to enter a championship once their season application has been accepted and processed by an admin.

3.2. Account sharing, and ‘alt’ accounts are not allowed. Drivers must utilize one unique Steam64 ID associated with themselves on registration, which must be used consistently throughout the season. This applies to all server sessions, whether it be practice servers, HLQ, Qualifying or Race. Any Steam ID changes requested or noted by the admin team for a particular driver after season start will be treated as though that driver is a completely different person. For example, this can affect qualifying rankings, championship points (reset), and so on.

3.4. Drivers will be allowed to switch their car choice at any point after a season starts, however doing so will result in a points deduction. This points deduction is applied AFTER taking drop round(s) into account.

3.5. By entering a SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA season, entrants are giving permission to SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA to use their signed up names in website and social media articles, as well in live streams.

3.6. Pre-race preparation: All drivers are expected to prepare and practice in advance for a racing event, to understand and produce an acceptable level of pace around the race track, and to lap the race track in a safe and natural way. This includes preparing for the forecasted weather conditions, and having trained in them (as opposed to just ‘hot-lapping’ in optimum conditions).

3.7. If a driver attends an event and is clearly unprepared, the stewards may disqualify them from the race, in particular if they are causing multiple collisions/incidents.

3.8. Drivers must be registered on the Simracing.GP platform, and have joined the SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA community on the site (https://app.simracing.gp/communities/oxWRgNjbXRD2WGfCxnmON).

3.8.1. Users are bound to agree to Simracing.GP‘s own published terms and conditions, which can be found on their homepage (https://www.simracing.gp/terms-and-conditions).

3.8.2. Drivers are required to have registered with their real name on the Simracing.GP platform. Failing this, you will be removed from any grids and barred from entry to any SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA events, until you have updated your first and last name fields via https://app.simracing.gp/settings, and informed an admin of the change.

4. Team Entry Rules

4.1. The minimum number of drivers entered into a race belonging to the same team is limited to one and the maximum number of drivers in a race belonging to the same team is limited to two. Teams may have affiliated teams.

4.2. Any team composition changes will result in a full loss of team points for the entire team (both drivers).

5. Custom Liveries

5.1. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA has transitioned to the Simracing.GP platform for most racing events. This platform is new and evolving, and currently has certain restrictions around custom liveries:

5.1.1. Assetto Corsa Competizione (ACC):

5.1.1.1. ACC events support fully custom skins, and liveries may be submitted for an individual driver.

5.1.1.2. Sim Race South Africa makes use of the ‘Awesome Simracing’ online tool/service to facilitate the ‘self-service’ upload and sync of custom ACC liveries. See https://alpha.awesome-simracing.com/ for the software download and further instructions. There is a FAQ section and separate Discord if any help or support is required.

5.1.1.3. Participants should find the ‘Sim Race South Africa’ community via https://alpha.awesome-simracing.com/community/sim-race-south-africa , and then subscribe to the relevant livery collection(s) they are participating in.

5.1.1.4. Drivers must ensure to use a ‘unique’ enough skin name to avoid naming conflicts. For example: SRSA_RyanHill_Ferrari is better than just Ferrari.

5.1.1.5. To submit a custom livery, the folder containing the custom livery as per the above, must be uploaded to the relevant livery collection by Sunday 2pm before race week, else will not be included for that week. Liveries sent to administrators/commentators outside of this tool, will not be accepted.

5.1.1.6. Drivers may also simply utilise the in-game livery editor, or, select one of the default / provided liveries if they do not wish to submit a fully custom skin.

5.1.1.7. Note: There is a known issue/bug with ACC custom liveries, whereby a mini-freeze/stutter can be experienced each time a driver running a custom skin connects to, or disconnects from the server if they do not have the .dds files pre-generated.

5.1.2. Assetto Corsa (AC):

5.1.2.1. Custom liveries for AC are not currently supported, however optional skin-packs may be suggested by the community.

5.1.3. RaceRoom Racing Experience (RRE):

5.1.3.1. Custom liveries for RRE are not currently supported.

5.1.4. Automobilista 2 (AMS2):

5.1.4.1. Custom liveries for AMS2 are not currently supported, however optional skin-packs may be suggested by the community.

5.2. Customised cars liveries where supported as per the above, may be used provided they obey the following rules:

5.2.1. All logos and graphics appearing on the cars are to be used with full permission of their owners.

5.2.2. Written proof may be required to verify such permission.

5.2.3. ‘Fake’ liveries in an attempt to avoid direct use of a logo/graphic (e.g. Dead Bull in lieu of Red Bull, Pespi in lieu of Pepsi, etc – are not allowed, as they are still liable to the same copyright issues).

5.2.4. Logo’s found within the default version, including DLC add-on packs, of the game (or on default cars) may be used, but must not dominate the car.

5.2.5. Templates should not exceed 4096×4096, or 8192×2048 resolution, and the entire uncompressed folder should not exceed 50MB file-size.

5.2.6. We hold the right to deny any livery submitted if we feel it does not fit our standards. We will reach out to you if we feel it does not fit.

6. Division Qualification and Attendance

6.1. Division Qualification

6.1.1 Division splits for all events will be determined purely based on the Simracing.GP Pure Performance ranking system (see https://www.simracing.gp/sgp-ranking), and split dynamically using Simracing.GP’s “multi-split” functionality.

6.1.2. Historic “Drivers Champions” as listed in the SRSA “Hall of Fame” (https://simracesa.co.za/hall-of-fame) may be able to auto-qualify for ‘Split 1’ at the admin team’s discretion, should they not currently have a Simracing.GP rank score.

6.2. Attendance, RSVP and Planned Absence

6.2.1. Administrators will issue the event page URL and entry password to drivers, so that they may register for the event, which they must do so by selecting the correct car as part of their sign-up.

6.2.2. Links to the Simracing.GP event pages will be provided in Discord for convenience.

6.2.3. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA will not be held responsible if a driver neglects to complete their registration correctly before the server’s scheduled launch.

6.2.4. If a driver misses two race events in a row without excusing themselves, we will assume that driver has abandoned the season and may opt to remove the driver from a championship. Those drivers will need to reach out to an admin in order to be re-added, at which point they will be re-added to the lowest division only if there is space on the grid.

6.2.5. In order to avoid the loss of SGP Ranking points due to non-attendance, drivers must de-register for an event if they know in advance they are unable to make a race (e.g. due to load-shedding). To action this, drivers must select the ‘Cancel Registration’ button on the event page. Users will be able to re-join that championship using the issued passwords issued on Discord, before the next round. The onus is on the drivers to remember to de-register/re-register in this manner.

7. Championship Quali and Race Formats

7.1. All grid racing championship formats consist of a short practice session, a qualifying session, and one or more race sessions.

7.2. Specifics for race duration, pit-stop requirements, etc. can be reviewed on an individual championship’s Discord channel.

7.3. A qualifying session will be used to determine the starting grid for the race by taking the fastest time for each car.

7.4. Priority is always to be given to cars currently on flying laps. This means that cars on outlaps, inlaps or invalidated laps are expected to give way and not impede the performance of the passing car.

7.5. It is the driver’s responsibility to find a suitable window to set their flying lap; approaching a slower car on its own flying lap does not give either driver priority. Whilst the slower car may choose to give way in a manner that is safe (e.g. lifting on a straight) they are not required to do so. 

7.6. Use of “Return to  Pits/Garage” is allowed, provided drivers have first pulled completely off the race-track if able.

8. Championship Series Points

8.1. Points table structure may differ per championship series, and will be published on the respective Simracing.GP championship/series page. Note, ‘Field strength multipliers’ may be in effect for multi-split championships.

8.2. Drivers may need to complete a certain number of laps of the split leader in order to earn a race classification on the Simracing.GP platform, else they may be classified as DNF and score zero points. This will be automatically controlled by the Simracing.GP platform algorithm. Some sim racing titles such as AMS2 may issue a DNF if a driver exits the race session before the race session fully ends. These DNFs will not be reversed, drivers must remain in the server until the race session ends if they wish to be classified.

8.3.  At the end of the season, a pre-determined number of ‘drop rounds’ will be specified per championship series. A driver’s worst race(s) of the season will be discarded before the final championship standings are finalised (e.g. best 5 out of 7 total races to count for points). Note: Any penalties earned throughout the season are applied AFTER taking drop rounds into account.

8.4. No points are awarded for achieving the fastest lap.

9. Weather Forecast / Settings

9.1. Weather for a race weekend can and will vary between sessions. This includes weather randomness, cloud cover, rain levels, and ambient temperature.

9.2. A general weather forecast will be posted in Discord a few days before race day.

9.3. Drivers should be prepared to adapt (e.g. prepped for rain and the evolution of weather across a race weekend).

Race Day Procedure

Note: All times indicated are in GMT+2, are approximate only, and may vary due to factors such as server performance and load. Cloud-hosted servers with fewer drivers are allocated less resources and can be expected to take longer to launch in comparison with larger grids.

10. simCS

10.1. Race Day Schedule

10.1.1. 20h00 – Server 1 launch (+-5-10min)

10.1.2. 20h10 – Practice 1 (15min)

10.1.3. 20h25 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

10.1.4. 20h28 – Qualifying 1 (5min)

10.1.5. 20h33 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

10.1.6. 20h36 – Post qualification (grid spawn) = 10s

10.1.7. 20h37 – Time before a race (prep) = 120s (2min)

10.1.9. 20h39 – Race 1 (25min)

10.1.10. 21h04 – Clock hits zero, final lap (+- 2min)

10.1.11. 21h06 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

10.1.12. 21h09 – Post race (server loop / kill) = 120s (2min)

10.1.13. 21h10 – Server 2 launch (+- 5-10min)

10.1.14. 21h20 – Practice 2 (15min)

10.1.15. 21h35 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

10.1.16. 21h38 – Qualifying 2 (5min)

10.1.17. 21h43 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

10.1.18. 21h46 – Post qualification (grid spawn) = 10s

10.1.19. 21h47 – Time before a race (prep) = 120s (2min)

10.1.20. 21h49 – Race 2 (25min)

10.1.21. 22h14 – Clock hits zero, final lap (+- 2min)

10.1.22. 22h16 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

10.1.23. 22h19 – Post race (server loop / kill) = 120s (2min)

10.1.24. 22h21 – END

10.2. Start Formation

10.2.1. Standing start.

10.3. Pit-Stops

10.3.1. No mandatory pitstops are required.

10.3.2. ‘Pit white line penalty’ is set to on (i.e., you will receive a warning/penalty for crossing the white line on exit).

10.3.3. ‘Pit stop errors allowed’ is set to off.

10.3.4. ‘Manual pit stops’ is set to on (i.e., you will need to steer the car into the box and come to a halt yourself).

10.3.5. ‘Pit speed limiter’ is set to off (i.e., you will need to obey the speed limit including entry/exit and manually toggle pit speed limiter).

11. simF1

11.1. Race Day Schedule

11.1.1. 20h00 – Server launch (+-5-10min)

11.1.2. 20h10 – Practice (15min)

11.1.3. 20h25 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

11.1.4. 20h28 – Qualifying (15min)

11.1.5. 20h42 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

11.1.6. 20h45 – Post qualification (grid spawn) = 10s

11.1.7. 20h46 – Time before a race (prep) = 120s (2min)

11.1.9. 20h48 – Race (60min)

11.1.10. 21h58 – Clock hits zero, final lap (+- 2min)

11.1.11. 22h00 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

11.1.12. 22h03 – Post race (server loop / kill) = 120s (2min)

11.1.13. 22h05 – END

11.2. Start Formation

11.2.1. Standing start.

11.3. Pit-Stops

11.3.1. 1x mandatory pitstop:

11.3.1.1. To clear the mandatory pitstop, drivers must pit during the pitstop window, and either change tyres, and/or add a minimum of 1 litre fuel.

11.3.2. The pitstop window is automatically controlled by AMS2, and appears to cover the vast majority of the race duration.

11.3.3. ‘Pit white line penalty’ is set to on (i.e., you will receive a warning/penalty for crossing the white line on exit).

11.3.4. ‘Pit stop errors allowed’ is set to off.

11.3.5. ‘Manual pit stops’ is set to on (i.e., you will need to steer the car into the box and come to a halt yourself).

11.3.6. ‘Pit speed limiter’ is set to off (i.e., you will need to obey the speed limit including entry/exit and manually toggle pit speed limiter).

12. simGT3

12.1. Race Day Schedule

12.1.1. 20h00 – Server launch (+-3min)

12.1.2. 20h03 – Practice (9min)

12.1.3. 20h12 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

12.1.4. 20h15 – Qualifying (15min)

12.1.5. 20h30 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

12.1.6. 20h33 – Post qualification (grid spawn) = 10s

12.1.7. 20h34 – Time before a race (prep) = 120s (2min)

12.1.8. 20h36 – Formation Lap (+- 4min)

12.1.9. 20h40 – Race (75min)

12.1.10. 21h55 – Clock hits zero, final lap (+- 2min)

12.1.11. 21h57 – Event over Time (Max) = 180s (3min)

12.1.12. 22h00 – Post race (server loop / kill) = 120s (2min)

12.1.13. 22h02 – END

12.2. Start Formation

12.2.1. Rolling start.

12.2.2. Default formation lap (full lap, position control and UI).

12.2.3. Follow the HUD instructions carefully to avoid being out of position, or traveling at the incorrect speed. Failing to do so when the green light appears will result in a Drive-Through penalty.

12.2.3.1. Any DT’s received at the start will not be cleared – as there are no acknowledged bugs from Kunos surrounding the start procedure.

12.2.3.2. Do not follow the other cars if they slow down, speed up, or are out of position. Anybody that does not follow the proper indications carefully will receive a DT.

12.2.3.3. Vehicle collisions are disabled, so you can safely pass through cars that are not following proper procedure. If the lights go green and you are still overlapping through another car, collisions will remain disabled until both cars have disengaged and are at a safe distance from each other. Overtake and ghost through cars that may be out-of-position if needed.

12.2.3.4. A tutorial video for all of the above can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DO-2E9612E 

12.3. Pit-Stops

12.3.1. Allowed tyre sets = 50.

12.3.2. 1x Mandatory pitstop:

12.3.2.1. Mandatory refueling (1 litre minimum)

12.3.2.2. Fixed time refueling = false

12.3.2.3. Mandatory tyre change = false

12.3.3. Pitstop window covers the entire race.

Driving Rules

13. Driving Aids and Configs

13.1. Drivers may only use factory driving aids if they are available and specific to each car. E.g. Traction Control (TC),  and Anti-lock Braking System (ABS).

13.2. Electronic Stability Control (ESC) is not permitted and will be disabled server-side.

13.3. Auto-Clutch will be enabled and available for use.

13.4. DRS, KERS, and P2P if available on a car, will be enabled.

13.5. In ACC, autosteer and auto gear are disabled. Ideal line, auto engine start, auto wipers, auto lights and auto pit-limiter are available.

13.6. In AMS2, ‘force realistic driving aids’ is  enabled, and ‘force manual’ is enabled. ABS,  TCS, and SC allowed are unticked. Driving line is disabled.

13.7. Fuel and tyre wear rate, will be set to standard / 1x (100%) for all series.

13.8. Tyre Blankets, if available, will be on. At the start of the session, or after a pitstop, tyres will have the optimal temperature.

13.9. For standing start races, jump/false starts may be possible if the sim models this. Exercise caution to avoid penalty.

13.10. Damage rate per sim:

13.10.1. AC: Damage rate = 75%.

13.10.2. ACC: n/a (unconfigurable).

13.10.3. AMS2: Damage Type = ‘Performance impacting’. Damage Scale = 100%. Mechanical failures = Off.

13.10.4. RaceRoom: Damage = ‘Limited’.

13.11. Setups will be open/unrestricted for all series.

13.12. Cheating in any form will not be tolerated and will result in a permanent ban from SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA.

13.13. Failure to report a bug/glitch/game issue that gives you an unfair advantage will result in disqualification or ban if exploited.

14.1. All Sim Racing Titles:

14.1.1. CrewChief (spotter + more): https://thecrewchief.org/  

14.1.2. SecondMonitor: https://gitlab.com/winzarten/SecondMonitor 

14.2. Assetto Corsa:

14.2.1. HeliCorsa (car radar): https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/helicorsa.5199/  or, CSP Car Radar (ships with CM/CSP).

14.2.2. ProTyres: https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/protyres.14030/  

14.2.3. Track Map Display: https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/track-map-display.3508/  

14.2.4. Sidekick: https://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/sidekick.11007/ or, RaceEssentials: https://www.assettocorsa.net/forum/index.php?threads/raceessentials-v1-4-9.41103/ 

14.2.5. Content Manager (CM): https://acstuff.ru/app/  

14.3. Assetto Corsa Competizione:

14.3.1. Car radar is built-in, please enable/use it!

14.4. Automobilista 2:

14.4.1. Car radar is built-in, please enable/use it!

14.4.2. Recommend turning on the ‘Relative Times’ widget under Options -> Edit HUD Layout, and set it to the ‘Full’ level.

14.5. RaceRoom:

14.5.1. OtterHud (includes car radar): https://forum.sector3studios.com/index.php?threads/otterhud-a-custom-webhud-with-additional-features.13152/  

15. Track Limits

15.1. The use of track limits as controlled by the sim title are enforced, unless otherwise specified for a particular track/corner by the race stewards.

15.2. A driver is deemed to have left the track if more than two wheels are outside track limits.

15.3. If a driver leaves the track, the driver may return to the track by re-joining in a safe manner that does not hinder any other drivers nor gains any advantage.

15.4. If a driver leaving the track is deemed by the stewards as gaining a lasting advantage, they will be subject to a penalty.

15.5. ACC, AMS2, and RaceRoom issue automatic warnings and penalties based on the severity. These will not be cleared, and can be expected after the following scenario examples:

15.5.1. If no time was gained, you will receive a notification that a corner cut was noticed, but no warning or penalty is applied.

15.5.2. If a small amount of time was gained, you will receive a warning. After a number of warnings you will receive a drive through penalty.

15.5.3. If a large amount of time was gained, you will receive an immediate drive through penalty without warning.

15.5.4. If dangerous driving is detected (e.g. driving the wrong-way), you can receive an immediate teleport-to-pits / DQ.

15.6. For AC events, the standard Kunos provided in-game ‘Race Gas Penalty’ system will be used. These will not be cleared, and the following scenarios can be expected:

15.6.1. Any cuts will be automatically penalized with an instruction to cut gas pedal input for a specified amount of time.

15.6.2. Drivers will need to follow the instructions shown on screen, to slow down to the minimum specified speed to instantly clear the penalty, or, lift-off the gas completely for the specified amount of time. Note, any gas input before the slowdown penalty has been cleared completely, will ‘reset’ the penalty time to the full amount.

15.6.3. Drivers should not lift off in a dangerous place e.g. on the racing line or mid-corner especially when there is surrounding or approaching traffic.

15.6.4. Any issued penalties needs to be completed before crossing the start/finish line, else the game will automatically disqualify a driver. This penalty will not be overruled post-race.

16. Overtaking and Fair Pass Policy (FPP)

16.1. The Fair Pass Policy (FPP) is in effect for all championships hosted by SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA, and aims to simply make what it is understood to be a fair pass more clear in the event of an investigation. 

16.2. The policy states that if an attacking car is halfway, or further, passed, while maintaining an acceptable amount of speed, the other car during braking and/or on the approach to the apex of a corner, the car about to be passed cannot turn in and must maintain room around the apex of the corner. The attacking car must, however, allow enough room for the car being passed to maintain track limits. In other words the attacking car is not permitted to run the other car wide off the track.

16.3. If the attacking car is not half way passed, while maintaining an acceptable amount of speed, the other car during braking and/or on the approach to the apex of a corner, the attacking car must back off and abandon the move before the apex of the corner, abandoning the move as to not run side by side with the other car.

16.4. If a protest is requested the race stewards will make decisions based on whether the FPP was in direct contravention or not.

16.5. The FPP has been put in place in an attempt to stop do or die moves that lead to unnecessary contact and to bring a sense of patience and strategy to the racing at SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA. If a driver feels that another driver contravened the policy, a race investigation request may be filed.

16.6. An example scenario which illustrates what is expected of a sim racing driver here at SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA when they are involved in a scenario which involves one car passing another for position, while respecting the FPP, is published here: https://simracesa.co.za/the-fair-pass-policy-fpp/

16.7. Examples of incidents that can be subject to steward review include but are not limited to the following:

16.7.1. Aggressive Driving (not leaving racing room, minor contact, bump-passing, impatience, dive-bombing, excessive lights flashing).

16.7.2. Avoidable Contact (a driver makes contact with another driver in a manner which is deemed avoidable).

16.7.3. Blocking (a driver alters their racing line in reaction to another driver in an attempt to prevent a pass or to reduce the effect of drafting).

16.7.4. Failure to Hold Brakes (a driver is involved in an incident and failed to fully hold their brakes, therefore moving unpredictably on track or after they stopped).

16.7.5. Unpredictable (assessed when a driver has demonstrated unpredictable behaviour).

16.7.6. Unsportsmanlike (a driver behaves in a manner which is deemed unsportsmanlike by the stewards).

17. Contact between Cars, and other Accidents

17.1. If a driver is involved in an incident that they feel they may be responsible for initiating, it is encouraged that the offending driver apply the “Gentleman’s Rule”. It simply means that you safely stop or drive slower than normal until the car that you may have harmed has passed you again. Care must be given to not impede other drivers during this time, by staying off the normal racing line.

17.2. Where stewards clearly observe the Gentleman’s Rule being applied after an incident, the offending driver may receive a reduction in penalty, if a penalty is still applied. 

17.3. If a driver causes significant damage to the other vehicle, using the Gentleman’s Rule may not be sufficient and the stewards may impose penalties as appropriate.

17.4. The Fair Pass Policy (FPP) is enforced for all championships.

17.5. Drivers are NOT to publicly comment, discuss, or raise issues with any alleged incident in any way/shape/form. This includes sharing video footage of any incidents on the SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA Discord server. Your messages may be removed, and harsher penalties may apply if repeat transgressions occur.

17.6. Drivers who are off-track and cars which have spun on the track itself must resume the race in a safe manner. This may mean driving forwards and/or reversing to a safe area to first get turned in the direction of travel (parallel), and only then merging safely into the flow of traffic away from the racing line, as well as when it is safe to-do so (not into the path of an oncoming car).

17.7. The start of each race is to be treated with extreme caution. The beginning of the race must signal cold brakes and cold tyres which affect the braking distance and grip levels immensely. During the opening laps drivers are to drive with a great level of allowance when compared to their driving behaviour during the previous qualifying session. Stewards take a dim view of any Lap 1, Turn 1 incidents.

18. Ping Rate (Network Latency) Policy

18.1. All races for the foreseeable future are intended to be hosted on the AWS powered Simracing.GP platform, using the ‘Cape Town’ South Africa server location.

18.2. If a driver experiences a higher ping rate consistently higher than 350ms, or experience significant lag spike events, the driver is expected to retire from the race in a safe manner away from the racing line so as to not affect other competitors in any way.

18.3. If a driver fails to do so and in the efforts of supporting a successful racing event, the race director can ‘kick’ the driver from the server without prior notice, or award a penalty to be served during the current and/or following round of the championship in question.

18.4. WIFI or 3G/4G connections are known to cause high ping and lag (rubber-banding) – do not use these types of connections where possible.

19. Driving Behaviour and Race Abandonment

19.1. All efforts must be focused on providing a race which is as close to real life as possible.

19.2. If a driver continues to show signs of erratic or unnatural driving behaviour; the race steward has every right to remove the driver from the relevant race or the entire championship.

19.3. Drivers should not leave the server (quit) until the race event is completed (chequered flag).

19.4. If damage is incurred before this point, attempts should be made to pit, repair damage, and re-enter the race.

19.5. An admin must be contacted for an explanation if a driver DNFs from a race.

19.6. DNF levels are monitored and drivers with a high number of inexplicable DNFs (“Rage Quits”) risk facing a race ban, as this has resulted in drivers consuming server slots in a particular split.

19.7. Drivers are not to retaliate and take matters into their own hands on track. Doing so will incur severe penalties (at minimum a DQ, at most a league ban depending on the seriousness), regardless of whether the ‘other’ driver is in the wrong or right.

19.8. Please contact an admin first if you have an issue with another driver.

19.9. Abusing another driver in voice or text form, hurling insults, escalation of a dispute without consulting an admin, bullying and harassment will not be tolerated. A first and final warning will be issued, followed by a race ban, and then season ban if the behaviour continues.

19.10. Members of SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA staff (admins, moderators, commentators) will be held to the same code of conduct. Please contact Jason Holden-Jones via private message if you would like to report a staff member’s conduct.

20. In-Game Chat

20.1. Drivers are not allowed to use in-game text chat during Qualifying or Race sessions for any reason. Not only is it distracting and thus disrespectful towards other drivers, it may be picked up on Live stream broadcasts which is regrettable.

20.2. Drivers are only allowed to use in-game chat during HLQ or practice sessions, and should keep it light (e.g. a greeting, or a brief apology if caused an accident, etc.).

20.3. Violations to the above can carry time-penalties or result in race-bans depending on the severity.

20.4. Drivers are expected to participate in an ethical and sportsmanlike manner. Taunting, trash talking, and berating other drivers for any reason will not be tolerated and may lead to disqualification from the series or a ban from SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA depending on the severity.

21. Race Investigation Requests

21.1. If a driver feels they have been unfairly treated or feels a driver has been driving in direct contravention to the Fair Pass Policy, they are encouraged to request a race investigation by the stewards, which they can do on Discord, under the ‘#💥 | protest-race’ channel under the ‘🏴 PROTEST CONTROL’ category.

21.2. Protest requests must be submitted within 48 hrs of race ending in which the offence occurred, else will not be reviewed.

21.3. Offending drivers may be subject to warnings, time penalties, and race bans dependent on severity of offence and the outcome of the investigation.

21.4. Protests to do with passing attempts will be subject to the Fair Pass Policy.

21.5. Protests must be requested by the parties actually involved in the incident, by their Team Principals, or by a SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA staff member who witnessed an incident.

21.6. SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA stewards employ a ‘help us help you’ attitude. Race investigation requests will not be examined without adequate video footage provided. Raw replay files will not be accepted due to the time required to process them.

21.7. One pre-recorded video accompanying the submitted ticket, must be published to a publicly accessible site for the stewards team to access, preferably YouTube otherwise Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox.

21.8. Minimum requirements for the video footage are as follows:

21.8.1. Cockpit view of your car, with HUD showing pedal and steering inputs.

21.8.2. Cockpit view all other cars involved, with HUD showing pedal and steering inputs. Car radar (e.g. HeliCorsa) if present, may help your case. 

21.8.3. Chase cam of your car.

21.8.4. Chase cam of all others involved.

21.8.5. Heli Cam (if available, e.g. is an ACC event).

21.8.6. For each of the above snippets, 10-15 additional seconds either side of the incident itself should be provided, for sufficient context leading up to, as well as after the incident (this is to show whether the offending car ‘waited’ for you to recover or not).

21.8.7. Do NOT use slow motion playback when capturing your video. Footage must play back in real-time so as not to introduce bias. The stewards team will control the video speed during playback if necessary.

21.9. If all of the points above have not been addressed in the video footage, the stewards team have the right to reject a protest as having ‘insufficient evidence’ without reaching out to the requestor notifying them as such.

21.10. Any post-race penalties or warnings issued are considered final, as they are reviewed by a team of stewards, not an individual. If there were any room for doubt, the incident would have been deemed a ‘racing incident’. For this reason, objections or appeals to warnings or penalties issued will be ignored.

21.11. Drivers are NOT allowed to publicly comment, discuss, or raise issues with any penalties that have been issued in any way/shape/form. Your messages will be removed, and harsher penalties may apply if repeat transgressions occur.

22. Warnings, Penalties and Steward Guidelines

22.1. Live penalties:

22.1.1. Some penalties can be received ‘live’ during the race from any live stewards present, or from the game’s automated system. 

22.1.2. All penalties issued live must be adhered to and served by drivers during the race as indicated, or face harsher penalties post-race which may include a DQ.

22.1.3. ACC, AMS2, RaceRoom: Automated penalties may include speeding in the pitlane, excessive track-cuts, driving the wrong way, and so on. These penalties will not be cleared by any stewards or admins present.

22.1.4. AC: The ‘Race Gas Penalty Disabled’ setting will be set to false, meaning, penalization will be forced in-game. Any penalties issued must be adhered to before a driver completes the lap, else they will automatically be disqualified. These penalties will not be cleared by any stewards or admins present.

22.2. Post-race penalties:

22.2.1.The following are examples of post-race penalties that the stewards may issue at their discretion following a race-investigation request, depending on the severity and surrounding circumstances:

22.2.1.1. No-Action: Race-incident, no particular driver at fault.

22.2.1.2. Warning (1 penalty point): Non-intentional, basic driving infraction.

22.2.1.3. Warning (2-3 penalty points): Minor avoidable incident. Blue-Flag infractions.

22.2.1.4. Penalty (-3 championship points): Serious avoidable incident.

22.2.1.5. Penalty (-4 championship points): Dangerous or reckless driving, unsafe re-entries.

22.1.6. Race ban (next race) and/or Penalty(-10 champ points): Dangerous or reckless driving; Unsafe re-entries.

22.2.1.7. League ban: SRSA Serious Rule Violation

22.3. Penalty Points and Championship Point Deductions:

22.3.1. Drivers start the season with 0 penalty points for each series they partake in.

22.3.2. Penalty points accumulate per series.

22.3.3. Once a driver accumulates 5 penalty points, they will have 2 championship point deduction loaded for that series, and their penalty points will be reduced by 5.

22.3.4. Direct championship point deductions WILL NOT reduce accumulated penalty points.

22.3.5. Championship point deductions are applied AFTER taking a driver’s drop round(s) into account.

Flag Rules

23. Yellow Flags

23.1. There is no official yellow flag procedure currently enforced. 

23.2. Drivers are permitted to overtake other vehicles while a yellow flag is waved.

23.3. Drivers should be cautious under yellow flags. Be prepared for slow, damaged or stationary cars on track. 

23.4. Self-preservation is advised. If a driver is involved in an incident whilst under yellow flags, they can still be subjected to post-race penalties from the stewards.

24. Blue Flags

24.1. Blue flags are advisory, and mean the following: Warning: faster/lapping cars are approaching. Use Caution. Exercise sportsmanship and give racing room.

24.2. Drivers about to be lapped are not allowed to defend their position.

24.3. It is the responsibility of the overtaking car to ensure a clean pass.

24.4. It is the responsibility of the car being overtaken to maintain a predictable racing line.

24.5. If a lapped driver chooses to let a lapping driver by, the best opportunities (in order of preference) for a faster car to pass is on the straights, exiting a corner, or entering the braking zone. Overtaking a car mid-corner is very dangerous and should be avoided, unless the overtaking car is confident that the other driver is aware of the overtaking manoeuvre and there is adequate space to do so.

24.6. Dangerous or reckless dive-bombs on another driver (either for position or lapped car) may result in a penalty being applied, regardless of contact being made.

24.7. The use of indicator lights are optional, but should indicate where you will go, not where you want the lapping car to go.

24.8. Lapping cars can report a lapped car to the stewards for blue flag violations if the lapped car demonstrates any of the following:

24.8.1. Defending going into the corner;

24.8.2. ‘Parking’ the car on the apex of a corner;

24.8.3. Unpredictable / erratic driving behaviour.

24.9. Lapped cars may unlap themselves if it is safe to do so. They should make any overtaking manoeuvre to unlap themselves clear (e.g. flash of the headlights to signal a move).

25. Red Flags

25.1. Race restarts will only occur due to server malfunction. Otherwise, restarting a race is not an option (e.g. T1 pile-ups, heavy rain, drivers late, load-shedding etc. are not grounds for an automatic restart).

25.2. Restarts of the race after a red flag/server crash are at the discretion of the admin team. Numerous factors will be considered including real world time, remaining race duration, etc. There will be NO arguing with the final decision in this regard.

25.3. If the race is to be restarted:

25.3.1. The server log, replay, and other sources (e.g. YouTube broadcast) may be used to determine the positions at the end of the last completed lap. Grids will be preset / cars will line up for the restart based on this order.

25.3.2. There will be some turnaround time associated with setting this up.

25.3.3. To be allowed to rejoin the race after a red flag period, your car must not have been posted as a DNF prior to the server crash/restart point.

25.3.4. The remaining race duration will be set to closely match how much time was remaining at the point of the server crash. 

25.3.5. Mandatory Pit-stop requirements may change, pay attention to race-control / ad-hoc driver briefings / announcements that will be posted on Discord.

25.4. If the race is not restarted:

25.4.1. If the server crashes before the ¼ distance point the event will be abandoned and/or rescheduled, no points will be issued. Whether the race is rescheduled on the same night or not will be left at the sole discretion of the race admins/stewards.

25.4.2. If the server crashes after the ¼ distance point has been reached, but before the ¾ point, ½ points will be awarded based on the positions at the end of the last completed lap.

25.4.3. If the server crashes after the ¾ distance point has been reached, full points will be awarded based on the positions at the end of the last completed lap.

Brand and Marketing

26. YouTube Race Videos

26.1. Races may occasionally be live streamed on the official SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA YouTube channel, subject to volunteer commentator availability.

26.2. Whilst every care is taken to produce race videos of the championship races, no liability will attach to SIM RACE SOUTH AFRICA for any unforeseen circumstances leading to a failure to produce a live stream or race video.

26.3. Drivers are welcome to live-stream or record their own cockpits and share the links online, or in the ‘# 📸 | pics-and-vids‘ channel on Discord.

27. Marketing

27.1. Teams are strongly encouraged to actively market themselves.

27.2. Official team websites, Facebook pages, Instagram pages, YouTube videos and Twitter accounts are great ways of attracting attention and securing sponsorship deals.

27.3. Teams are encouraged to share any race videos.

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