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Bryan Rosier

A Little Story for any Potential New Recruits

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Hi , about 5 or 6 years ago my Brother Harvey ( Arrvoo ) told me about this little Race that he was joining , called the MS Round the World Race , and suggested I recruit . We both had lots of hours flying "offline" as a pleasant little hobby , occasionally together as a 2 man multiplayer , and he suggested that this race would be a great way to inject a "Buzz" into our little flying regime . He had just signed up for Avsim and suggested I do the same . Well TBH I had no idea what this race was about and only knew Avsim as a resource for some basic information about MS flight sim and some Freeware Aircraft . Although I had been flying around "virtually" since the very first "Microsoft Flight Simulator" and was very comfortable with my abilities , the very thought of exposing my potential weaknesses to a group of seasoned Professional Racers was a little uncomfortable . I had no benchmark to rate my abilities and I was a little concerned about how I would handle the pressure of this new environment . Well I took the plunge and recruited and it was the best FlightSimulation decision I have made :) I`ll tell you why . From the second that I posted, my request to join, I was inundated with "welcome" messages , advice , tips and friendly information on requirements "of which there are few" and was made to feel part of the team from that moment :) My new Pals , efficiently , introduced me to the Multiplayer and Teamspeak functions , allowing me to be immersed in this "New World" in minutes . And what a world ! My main worry was navigation . I did not know about any Procedures " SIDS / STARS , Transitions , Airways " and was quickly advised that this race is only "Point to Point , Fast as you ( Safely) can " racing and This kind of navigation was not a requirement. Phew !! I practised with the Veterans and the other newcomers in the few weeks leading up to the race , becoming familiar with the aircraft types , many of which are Default FS a/c , and practised in a few recommended Freeware Warbirds , and was quickly very comfortable and looking forward to Race Day . Race Day arrived and the old Heartbeat was racing at Ten to the Dozen . The race kicked off with a Team event , which was a perfect way to settle everyone , new and old , into the race Proper . There was no real pressure , although I still had a Ballistic heartbeat , and the race had begun . My initial thoughts for the race was that I may be a "spare part" watching the Experts with enthusiasm , and just happy to be a part , whatever that part may be . How wrong was I ;) The race legs all aim to have a Primary Baton Holder and a Wingman ( in case of an unfortunate , unexpected failing of the Baton Holders flight, be it a computer malfunction , or pilot error ) and I was entrusted with this Wingman role almost immediately . All went well , then it dawned on me , "If anything happens to the Primary then everyone will be relying on me !!!!!!!!! ) Welcome to the RTWR . Both the Primary and myself made a successful landing at the designated Airfield , and what surprised me was that all the team were watching and talking the leg/landing "Live" on multiplayer and teamspeak and Congratulated me on a successful first race leg , even though I thought I was "only" wingman . I felt an immense sense of relief and joy and I am sure my Heartbeat reduced by maybe Ten :) I was now properly addicted !! The race now had , for me , my undivided attention 24/7 for the next few days :) My First Baton Holder leg followed soon after . I remember it well . FS9 Lockheed Vega . A Century of Flight model I had little time in :) The thing with this race is it is all in "Real Time and Real weather and Aircraft Realism settings set to Full" not something I had used much before , and my baton flight was at Night , in a Pea Soup fog sad.gif . All was well, chatting to the team on Teamspeak, approaching the designated Airfield , when I saw the Red Labels of the other guys ,waiting at the Airport for my arrival , There appeared to be hundreds of them and , still to this this day , I remember my Heartbeat trebled as I sensed the expectation of a successful landing in airwaves. This is what the race is about ! Its how I felt . An increase to about 300 beats per minute followed, at least. I`m sure everyone has this sensation on their first leg . All went well and a good smooth landing and Handoff to the next Racer . I felt I had gained my wings . We went on to win the Race that year, I had many more Wingman and Baton legs , and felt Honoured and Elated to have been part of this Amazing Team and Fantastic Event. This feeling is still as strong today as then. Now , due to my Friends from this Team , I am much more immersed in this Hobby than ever :) Any Enthusiasts reading this long story and have a feeling , like I did , to " Take the Plunge " I promise you will not regret it :) All others , I hope you find it a nice little story to read :)Here is a little taster of the race from RedGreen ( from our fellow competitors at Flightsim ) of our Race last year .

Lots of information available from this Forum ( feel free to ask any Questions ) or the Official Website here :-http://www.fsrtwrace.com/index.htmIf , like me , you feel inspired to "go for it" please feel free to register your interest here :-http://forum.avsim.net/topic/354983-rtwr-2012-signup/Look forward to meeting you in the Skies soon BryThis years Years Awesome Race will start Sat 18th Febat 15:00 utc for about 4-6 days , Routing dependant . Hope to see you there biggrin.gif
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TEAM AVSIM "Fly Anything" Member     BAW 1193

 

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I second Bry's sentiments. Racing is a natural extension to the FS experience but one which relatively few of us get the chance to enjoy. The RTW Race is probably the Premier FS racing event on Planet Earth today, it's heart pounding as Bry says, but it's a great honour to be among the few brazen participants who endure its hardships. Out of the four teams there are probably no more than sixty or seventy participants in all the world, so it is honour and glory to all.


Mike Beckwith

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the old Heartbeat was racing at Ten to the Dozen
Well put!That is the exact feeling, and don't forget: Even now, after 5 or 6 races, you STILL get the old heartbeat up!BRGDSSven

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My first RTW was the third race.I joined the FlightSim team, and had some interesting practice sessions before the race across Russia in the snow and ice before the race. I quickly learned my flying habits were not sharp enough.I worked at it, and when the race started - it was a jump into the deep end. We didn't have a kickoff event that year, and only learned the race start point and key route elements two hours before the race start.We took off from Cairo just as dusk was falling. The first leg was assigned to my fellow newbie practice buddy as all the 'old hands' were working on the route. His direction from the team 'leaders' was to head west as fast and as far as possible. We didn't have the wingman that year. Legs were flown alone and everything rested on your shoulders.After his flight, an experienced pilot took the baton and I was up for the third leg. He had misfigured his fuel and twice changed his destination airport, finally landing at Basrah in Iraq (ORMM) - I took off for Kerma in Iran (OIKK) in the FSD Piaggio Avanti. That is one fast, hot plane, but you also have to fly it carefully watching to not overspeed.Then I discovered about 40 miles out that Kerma does not have an ILS. A night landing on a never practiced airport with no ILS in a touchy plane. I still don't know how I made it, but I did. I've made plenty of mistakes over the years. Crashed the plane on a couple flights - saved a couple other flights as wingman. Every minute of the experience was worth it!!!As Bryan said - joining this race was the best Flight Sim decision I've ever made.Get in touch with the team, join in. You will not regret your decision.

Edited by Reggie_Fields

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My list of RTW experiences is much too long to list here. There's no doubt that the race has made me a much better sim pilot. And I've learned much about geography, politics, history, aircraft, navigation, avionics, and generally have always had a blast with great pilots in a friendly, yet competetive environment.My first race was 2004, I think. I was looking for people to fly online with and happened to join a server (I think we used MSN Game something-or-the-other back then) with FlightSim.com's pilots about 1/2 way through the race. I was flying the baton an hour or two later because there was nobody else around to take it (yeah, things were a bit different back then). It was a trial by fire. Over the years I've had some incredible experiences - like flying alone across the Atlantic and landing on a dark runway (the other team members parked along the runway to give some basic markers) with only 5 gallons of fuel left, flying Concorde across the Pacific and having my nose wheel collapse on landing in Chile but not crashing, etc., etc.The RTW race is the pinnacle of sim aviation and anyone who wants a fun experience and wants to master their flying skills and ability should participate.

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This is the RTWR's 10th Anniversary ... (2003 being the first year, we have to include in it in the count) ... never the same twice and hands down the best online event in any arena from Flight Simulator to online Checkers.I suppose that would be because it's "Live" ...No do overs, and situations that demand immediate resolve that come out of nowhere (for the most part) at places in the sim world that are new and unfamiliar.All of your instinct and attained knowledge exercised to it's fullest as well as all of the fine descriptions already posted here of the taxation on your personal flying skills, and desire to not let the team down.Shoved through a funnel created by that year's rules ... It's like all of the energy you can muster is being drawn and pushed at the same time and you have one shot to make the right directive ... 24/7!No way to replicate that with anything that I know about.Would have to include the priceless byproduct of the camaraderie across the entire community even if for just a while during the year. I'd really love to see ... one year soon perhaps ... the baton and wingmen of each team flying on the same server.For quite a few times in the last few races we could have literally waved at each other .... we were that close.Last year there was only 5 minutes that separated 2nd and 3rd ... this after running flat out for 5 days straight ... and I lost count of how many times the lead changed hands ... just incredible excitement!Brilliant and absolutely free ... one must participate to "get" what would take volumes to try to explain in writing.The experience can not be conveyed .... it simply has to be captured through being there in person.

Edited by salt_air

salt_air

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