Team HARD. Racing League Rules

Our rules are designed to promote clean and fair racing. In short, driving cleanly means no corner cutting or track extending to gain time and no contact with other cars.

We know in racing mistakes and accidents can happen, but as a driver in one of our championships, you are required to do your very best to ensure clean racing at all times.

The rules also include guidelines for general behaviour and league participation.

1. Racing Rules

1.1 Clean racing

1.1.1
● Race cleanly at all times. No contact should occur between cars on track, and as a driver you are required to do your best to avoid this from happening. Accidents can happen, but if you are at fault for causing a collision, you are likely to be penalised.

1.1.2
● Deliberately crashing into another car will result in being permanently excluded from the league.

1.1.3
● If you accidentally take out another car, or are responsible for causing an incident, you have to slow down and safely let the affected car(s) back in front of you on track, as long as the circumstances allow it. You do need to let the affected car back through as soon as possible. If you fail to follow this rule, you are likely to receive a harsher penalty by the stewards if the incident is reported after the race. This rule can only be overruled by the affected driver telling you over voice chat to keep going.

1.1.3.1
● The above rule still applies even if lag (connection issues) is the cause of the incident, when it is obvious that your car’s lag is the cause of another driver going off, as this would still be classed as an unfair overtake. Please be more careful around other drivers if you are regularly involved in lag-related incidents.

1.2 Overtaking & Defending

1.2.1
● Excessive weaving and blocking is not allowed. When defending from another car, choose a line on the track and stick to it. Do not force a chasing car off the track by leaving it too little room. If the attacking car is alongside you going into a corner (generally if the attacking car’s front wheels is alongside or ahead of the defending car’s rear wheels), you must adjust your line to avoid contact

1.2.2
● Do not leave it too late to defend a move. Make your move clearly and fairly. If you move too late and the car behind has no time to react, it is not them who will be blamed.

1.3 Corner cutting/track extending

1.3.1
● Stay within the track boundaries with at least two tyres at all times. The track boundaries are defined by the white lines, not by the edge of the kerbs. Penalties will be distrubuted where appropriate either in-game or post-race.

1.3.2
● If you overtake another driver with all four wheels off track, or as a consequence of cutting a corner, you must slow down and give the position back.

1.3.3
● Reports of track limits may be investigated by the organisers, their word is final.

1.4 Qualifying etiquette

1.4.1
● In qualifying, it is your own responsibility to find free space on the track when starting a hot lap. A car on a hot lap does not have to yield for a faster car approaching from behind. If you are on an in- or out-lap, however, you have to let faster cars pass you without blocking them. If you are on a fast lap approaching a slow car, flashing your lights is a way of notifying them that you’re on a fast lap.

1.5 Spacial Awareness

1.5.1
● If you spin off whilst the pack is close, rejoining the track immediately is ill-advised. Remaining off-track is the best option until the other cars have avoided you. It is far easier to avoid a stationary obstacle.

1.5.2
● If you go off the track, rejoin in a manner that is both safe and in no way a danger to other competitors.

1.5.4
● We strongly recommend using the in-game spotter, an external app like the crew chief or at least enable the proximity arrows to be always aware of your surroundings.

2. General Behaviour

2.1 Communication

2.1.1
● We urge you to use a working headset while in the race lobby, to effectively receive any potential messages or instructions from the League Coordinator. Having the ability to talk to other drivers during the race can also make it easier to avoid – and resolve – any on-track incidents.

2.1.2
It is not mandatory to be in game chat and use a headset, but it is desirable.

2.2 Lobby etiquette

2.2.1
● Shouting, name-calling and generally speaking rudely is not acceptable. Drivers who are a disruptive influence on the lobby atmosphere will be penalised accordingly, or in extreme cases removed from the league.

2.2.2
● Respect the other drivers. Keep a friendly atmosphere in the race lobby and treat your fellow drivers as equals, regardless of them being quicker or slower than you.

2.2.3
● Respect the League Coordinator. Listen if he is giving a message, and accept the decisions he makes. If you feel any actions/decisions are wrong, address the issue calmly and maturely. Coordinators’ decisions are final within the lobby, but may be reviewed later if you feel an error has been made.

2.3 Race etiquette

2.3.1
● If you are involved in an on-track incident, don’t overreact. It may be frustrating, but you need to stay calm and get on with it. Losing out due to another driver’s mistake or recklessness is no excuse for retaliation or acting against the rules.

2.3.2
● If another driver does something you feel is against the rules, report it to the Stewards Panel after the race rather than argue about it over the voice chat or in the forums post race.

2.3.3
● During the race keep talking to a minimum. The only reason for talking should be to give viable information about safety or anything else that needs to be addressed mid-race. Wait until everyone has finished the session, both qualifying and race, to discuss the race.

2.4 Rage-quitting

2.4.1
● Deliberately quitting the race in any way – whether that is by quitting through the pause menu, getting yourself disqualified or deliberately crashing your car – is not allowed.

2.4.1.1
● Excuses such as ‘poor driving’ and ‘connection issues’ will be monitored.

2.4.1.2
● Connection issues can strike anybody, but drivers who are continually unable to race safely due to connection will be removed from the league.

3. Participation

3.1 Missing races

3.1.1
● If you are unable to attend a race, you have to give sufficient notice for your absence before the race starts. This is done by informing your League Coordinator of your situation, by sending a private message or email.

3.1.2
● No-showing a race because you don’t like the track, because you “can’t be bothered”, or other similar reasons are not accepted and you position in the league will be put under review immediately.

3.2 Connection & Lag

3.2.1
● It’s an unfortunate aspect of online racing that having a stable connection can be critical to being able to race closely with other cars. While we understand that not everyone can have perfect connections, and that occasional lag can’t be avoided, we reserve the right to ask a driver to step down from the league if their connection is causing too many issues for other drivers.

3.2.2
● To be accepted into a league, your connection’s ping towards a UK-located server needs to be lower than 150ms. It’s also required to have an upload speed of 2Mbps and a download speed of 10Mbps. You can test this here.

3.3 Pulling out mid-season

3.3.1
● If you have to pull out of the league while the season is ongoing, you must let a member of the team know.

3.3.2
● It’s impossible for us to stop anyone from leaving if they’ve made their mind up, but keep in mind when signing up that pulling out of the league without a proper reason while the season is ongoing will see you placed on the blacklist. A proper reason would be something happening in your life that forces you to quit – something that you didn’t expect when signing up – or that your equipment (hardware or lag issues) leave you unable to carry on. However, choosing to quit due to getting bored of the game, having a bad season or because something goes against you, is not a good reason. Remember, when signing up you commit yourself to racing for a full season, not only for a few races.

3.3.3
● Note that the above rules only apply while the season is ongoing.