Tracks Watkins Glen International

[LilSki]

Well I was asked by a few people if I had a thread about Watkins yet and obviously I didn't. So here it is. I started working on it on and off about a month ago. Time has been tight this summer with other real life projects so progress has been a little slower than usual. Hopefully things will calm down towards the end of the month and I can really get this thing going.

Plans for this will be 4 layouts. Both the short and boot layouts with and without the bus stop. There is a possibility of a vintage glen at some point but I am not making any promises on that. The primary focus for now will be a 2016/17 version of the track.

Anyway here is a 2 lap video around the current build. Main thing I have been sorting out is the curbs. I still need to set them up in the boot but the Nascar circuit is all setup. 1st lap is the Nascar loop and second is a sloppy lap around the boot.

 

[aphidgod]

[inarticulate expression of excitement]

 

[After_Midnight]

Great to see YOU're on it

 

[Kenny Paton]

As an old man this is inapropriate I know but

 

[Jebus]

All I can say is, CANNOT WAIT!

 

[garyjpaterson]

This is one of the many tracks I've heard so repeated so often, but am so uncultured I don't actually know anything about it... Can't wait to find out

 

[Manfredk2]

Saw the Nascar race there last week in TV and now i can´t wait

 

[Kenny Paton]

This is one of the many tracks I've heard so repeated so often, but am so uncultured I don't actually know anything about it... Can't wait to find out

YouTube is your friend
Do you know what would look great round it a Ford Transit

 

[Ryno917]

Very excited for this one, one of the few circuits I've managed to get to in person. Brilliant place.
I'd also just like to throw my support behind a 60s version of it, too. Would love to see that, maybe even more than the modern one!

This is one of the many tracks I've heard so repeated so often, but am so uncultured I don't actually know anything about it... Can't wait to find out

You're going to love it. Absolutely fantastic circuit.

 

[Burke Wells]

Hell freakin' yes. Seriously taking time off from work upon release...

Boss: "Taking a trip?"
Me: "Yes sir. Gonna spend some quality time at a very special place up in New York. Will be doing a lot of driving."

There is a possibility of a vintage glen at some point

Not gonna lie, I might've peed a little bit when I read that.

 

[Dave R]

Fantastic news. A fantastic track from a fantastic track maker

 

[Wayne Kerr]

if you need onboard video from this year's imsa weekend as reference / what not. lmk, might be able to hook you up.

 

[Lorenzo Bonder]

God bless your soul LilSki.

 

[LilSki]

if you need onboard video from this year's imsa weekend as reference / what not. lmk, might be able to hook you up.

I have some good footage from 2016 and early 17. I actually found some slow driving videos from the 'drive the glen' program which is great as things are not flying by crazy fast.

What would be most useful would be images of the various buildings around the track. I have access to iracing for reference but that is an older version with different grandstands and some buildings were added/changed since then.

 

[Wayne Kerr]

that i don't have i only worry about what's on the track (incl surface change, where they used or didn't use sealant, etc)
the stuff out of the track wasn't part of my focus unfortunately.

 

[Stereo]

I'm curious what people want from the old layout, all the best parts (from 1st corner to the outer loop) are essentially the same other than resurfacing. I guess as a backdrop for historic racing it'd be nice to have the older theme but the circuit itself's not much different.

 

[LilSki]

I'm curious what people want from the old layout, all the best parts (from 1st corner to the outer loop) are essentially the same other than resurfacing. I guess as a backdrop for historic racing it'd be nice to have the older theme but the circuit itself's not much different.

Well if a historic version is done just about everything gets deleted. No guard rails and almost no buildings. There would be essentially two layouts for the historical. One with the chicane and one without. Can-Am used the chicane which is actually still there today and used for emergency vehicles. You would enter it just after the current day bus stop and exit in the outer loop.

 

[Mitja Bonca]

lot of work done in a month. Are you using Lidar (of course you are)? Looks great indeed.

 

[LilSki]

lot of work done in a month. Are you using Lidar (of course you are)? Looks great indeed.

Yes the Lidar data is from 2014 so it has most of the latest buildings and the current style grandstands in it. It even has these little spikes everywhere which turned out to be power line poles.

 

[Emery]

Apart from retaining only 80% of the NASCAR corners, an historic version is not even close to the same thing in experience. S/F was around the corner of current track's T1. That historic final corner was treacherous compared to modern circuit's T1 with it's paved runoff.

Historic version would also feature the incredibly dangerous pit entrance. Narrow lane, downhill righthand corner, and, like old Brands Hatch, virtually no room to maneuver a car in the pits.