derBayerische March/April 2022 - 10

NCC Sim Racing Program 2021 Recap
By Scott Kim
N
CC's newest program just wrapped up its second year in 2021 with its
largest number of members and drivers ever, as well as 48 weeks of
racing! We continued to grow steadily even as things were returning to
normal (e.g. people traveling and back to work, etc.). We stuck to our game plan
and rotated through four seasons (each season being 10-12 weeks of races)
using two different cars. We alternated
between driving the new M4 GT3 and the
M8 GTE. The GTE series in IMSA is now
discontinued, but the M8 remains a
favorite among the drivers. In addition to
alternating cars, we varied our race duration,
settling on 40-minute races and
including at least one pit stop. As we got
better, the races seemed to get shorter,
and 40 minutes seemed to be the sweet
spot for everyone. Requiring a pit stop
added a new spin to our program - drivers
had to strategize when to stop, how
much fuel to add, and how to save fuel
when racing. It all impacted each driver's
overall place in the standings and it
added a lot of twists to our overall experience! What's interesting is that the M8
GTE is actually more fuel efficient than the GT3, even while being the faster car;
maybe that's why it's an " endurance " car and not just a sprint setup like the GT3.
For 2021, we introduced a sponsorship and donation program so that we
10
■ (Top) A sea of M8 GTEs ready to race before the green flag drops.
(Above) We love racing at nighttime at Charlotte.
received numerous sponsorships from multiple companies throughout the year.
Many came from the current drivers. Our first sponsor, Hagerty insurance,
became our title sponsor. Darin Treakle's insurance agency stepped up and
funded our initial budget, followed by a fellow driver, Sten Sellier of Beltway
Brew Co., a local brewery in northern Virginia. Sten would go on to sponsor
three seasons for us! Then, out of
nowhere, a company from Kansas, SEO
Mike, decided to sponsor us for two seasons;
the owner, Mike Black, is a friend
of NCC sim racer, Dean Thuline, and
Mike was glad to help us out. SEO Mike
was so happy with our work that he
signed up to be the title sponsor for 2022
before I had a chance to announce that
opportunity! Finally, Chris Hill, who is a
BMW Performance Center driver on the
west coast, decided to sponsor us for his
driving school: Precision Driving
Instruction (PRI). We have also had
some generous donations from multiple
drivers, including Brian Kennedy, Colin
Kortanek, Joe Geadrites, and Matt Stover. We can't thank them enough!
Those sponsorships were necessary to provide a race broadcasting
could attract businesses who want to advertise their companies. We were
nervous about attracting funding initially, but word got out quickly and we
service, which is the most requested item from the drivers. Who wouldn't want
to see their family and friends drive live every Thursday night in real-time?
The drivers also love to re-watch the race afterwards. We stuck with our friend
Matt Houston's RaceVerse sim racing broadcasting service throughout
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derBayerische March/April 2022

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