
Riverside Park Speedway for the NASCAR Racing 2003 simulation.

Short Track (0.25 Mile - oval)


[ To read this file, select Format/Word Wrap from the menu above. ]


TABLE OF CONTENTS:

[1] HOW TO INSTALL THE TRACK
[2] GENERAL TRACK INFORMATION
[3] CREDITS
[4] KNOWN ISSUES AND NOTES ABOUT THIS TRACK  
[5] TROUBLE REPORTING
[6] DISTRIBUTION INFORMATION
[7] AGREEMENT OF USE

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[1] HOW TO INSTALL THE TRACK
====================================

Unzip the zip file to:  C:\Papyrus\Nascar Racing 2003 Season\tracks\. If you have multiple instances of NR2003S installed, you will need to manually select the tracks directory where you wish to install this track.



[2] GENERAL TRACK INFORMATION
====================================

Type: Real track

AI: Yes.  Working pit stalls for 24 total cars (23 opponents)

Mod support: GNS, CTS. (This track was not tested using any other physics other than those.)

Track Information: 0.25 mile high banked (15 degrees) asphalt oval in Agawam, MA. 

Track History and Overview:  During it's 50 year run from 1949 through 1999, Riverside Park Speedway was perhaps one of the most popular and successful speedways in the entire country.  Located on the banks of the Connecticut River inside of the Riverside Amusement Park in western Massachusetts, thrill ride adrenaline junkies converged with racing enthusiasts on Saturday nights to watch some very wild and compelling action on the track. "The Park" featured weekly racing showcasing the Modifieds, the Northeast's premier racing division, with all of the top-named drivers including Wild Bill Greco, Richie Evans, Reggie Ruggiero and a host of great names in modified racing.  

The racing card would also highlight the wildly popular figure 8 races, demolition derbys and a host of other promotions that would guarantee to pack the stadium's 6200 seat capacity grandstands. 

Following the park's 1999 season, Premier Parks, Inc. (the operators of the amusement park and speedway) made several major changes that directly affected the future existence of the speedway. The company re-branded the park  to "Six Flags: New England" for the opening of the 2000 season. During this time, Six Flags permanently closed the speedway to make way for a spectacular new roller coaster, Superman-Ride of Steel. Much of the new coaster and more than half of the park's "D.C. Superhero Adventures" section, now sit on the land once occupied by the track's racing surface. Thus came the historic end of one of New England's most beloved racing facilities.

This NR2003 version of Riverside Park Speedway is an attempt to closely resemble the track as it appeared at times during the 1990's.  It is not, however, an exact replica nor do the limits of NR2003 allow it to be.  This project represents the culmination of over four years of work with many contributors.  It is a tribute to all of the many fans who loved and visited Riverside Park and a small replica to help them relive those great times at one of New England's favorite tracks.


[3] CREDITS:
====================================

The following is a list of the people who contributed to this project:  

1.  J.R. Franklin:  Original track concept and project development, graphic detailing and immersion, object editing, textures, horizons, start grids, Lps, AI (Artificial Intelligence, i.e. the computer controlled cars), surface grip levels, quality assurance and testing.

2.  Ian Smythe (Smiffsden.com): custom 3do object modeling and animations (Colossus Ferris Wheel, Swing Ride, Centrifuge Ride, Tower Lift Ride, skid marks, groove), Lps, cameras, troubleshooting, quality assurance, testing and overall general assistance and consulting.

3.  Wayne "Bowtie" Anderson: custom 3do object modeling (Thunderbolt Rollercoaster, flagstand, rollback, track lights, etc.) and general assistance/consulting.

4.  Carl Sundberg (Riviera71):  Base track layout done with Butter's Principle, custom 3do object modeling and overall project consultant.

5.  Robo19:  Custom 3do track object work (pit snack bar) and general assistance.  

6.  Matt Gilson:  cameras, quality assurance and testing.

7.  Wayne Faircloth:  Default Fast GNS and CTS setups.

8.  Aaron Maynard, Robin "Amtronic" Tice, John Hopkins and all of the guys in the NR2k3Tracks.com Editors forum:  beta testing and general assistance/consulting.


Additional credits:  

9.  Charli Brown:  WMT Haulers

10.  Denis Rioux:  1970's hauler objects.
  
11. NR2k3tracks.com for their help and support.  

12. Reference sources:      
    a.  TheChromeHorn.com
    b.  The FaceBook.com "I Remember the old "Riverside Park" & "Riverside Park Speedway" Agawam, MA group.
    c.  Photographers Howard and Mary Hodge of RacerHub.com "Riverside Remembered". 
    d.  ThirdTurn.wikia.com

13. To anyone else whom we may have unintentionally neglected to mention but contributed in the creation of objects that have been borrowed from other NR2003 tracks for this project, we sincerely apologize.  Although you were not mentioned individually, your contributions to NR2003 and this track are greatly appreciated.
 

We owe a debt of gratitude to each of you for your contributions, time, support and help.



[4] KNOWN ISSUES AND NOTES ABOUT THIS TRACK
============================================= 

1.  Pitting.  This track was constructed under "Butter's Rule" to make it capable to run with AI.  However, because of the size of this track at .25 mi., it pushes the NR2003 simulation to beyond the limits of what it was originally intented.  So to ensure the best and most enjoyable racing experience, the track was set up to allow the end user and AI to run the full 200 lap distance on a full tank of gas and the original set of tires.  For the most part, the AI will only pit for damage.  However, with this in mind you should not think you can run the full 200-lap distance all-out because you WILL wear out your tires!  Be advised to be aware of tire management to go the distance.  You can also adopt a strategy to pit for tires and work your way back throught the pack.

2.  It is highly recommended that this track ONLY be run with "Pit Stop Frequency" set at 1X.  Higher Pit Stop Frequency" settings of 2X, 3X or 4X will introduce problems, cause confusion with the AI and should not ever be used.

3.  Penalties.  At the end of pit road on the left is a box outlined in white paint with diagonal white lines through it.  This is the box where the pace car stall is and to the left of where the Stop/Go Paddle Official stands during races.  Please be warned NOT to drive over this area upon exiting the pits.  If you drive over that section, the NR2003 sim wil  consider you to have left the apron and re-entered the track, resulting in a blend line penalty being assessed to you.

4.  Caution Pacing.  During caution laps, the A.I. will speed up, then slow suddenly, then speed up again, etc.  Please be aware of this and be prepared to stop suddenly.  This is an issue we have observed in other tracks this size built under Butter's Rule.  Unfortunately, in no cases have we been able to solve this speed up and slow down behavior. 

5.  When a caution comes out, the field sometimes takes awhile to get themselves lined back up under caution pacing.  Please remain patient as they will eventually get themselves sorted out and properly lined back up before going back to green.

6.  We have intentionally set the caution pace speed very slow at 30 mph. The pit road speed has been set slightly higher at 35 mph.  This was done to allow cars to make pit stops without losing a lap.  Testing has found that you can make at a minmum, a 2-tire change and still remain on the lead lap.  In some instances, depending on where you are in the running order and how close behind the pace car you are during the caution laps, you can complete a full 4-tire stop with gas.  So plan your pit work accordingly.   

7.  AI cars are observed being "pulled" into their pit stalls.  This is especially evident for the first two pit stalls on the right and left when you enter the pits.  Be aware of this.  All efforts have been made to fix this issue, but the tiny configuration of this track unfortunately pushes the limits of the sim.  (NR2003 was not designed to have 1/4 mile tracks with working A.I.).

8.  AI cars will often stack up and wreck upon entering the pits at the conclusion of races.  This is due to the tight confines of pit road.

9.  AI cars will sometimes exhibit other odd behaviors that are unfortunately inherent in short tracks made for NR2003.  However, our tests have shown that for the most part the AI performs very well in this track during offline races.

10. A slow draw-in of trees is observed in the rear view mirror.

11. Attempts have been made to remedy all of the issues/problems detailed above, however, all were ultimately unsuccessful.

12.  This track features multiple grips allowing 2 distinct racing groves just like the real Riverside Park Speedway, so race 'em low or race 'em high.  The AI will occasionally go 3-wide to provide an exceptional and exhilarating offline racing experience.  However, passing on this track is pretty difficult.  An AI car beside you (either on your outside or inside) will put up a great fight for several laps and will not relinquish the spot easily...if at all.

13. This track was not tested with CUP or PTA physics.  All testing and track.ini settings are for the GNS and CTS physics only, which the author of the track feels are best suited to racing at Riverside Park Speedway.  The CUP physics will work, but the AI has not been tested or balanced for CUP.

The A.I. for this track were constructed using a default papy_ai.ini, the default fast setups for each physics (CUP, GNS and CTS) and the opponent strength set at 97%. Ratings for the car sets used in testing and in developing the A.I. for this track are from the NRatings program using the MasGrafx Full Season V3.1 formulas. We went to great efforts to make the AI and racing as realistic as possible. At the same time, we also took some liberties with the A.I. tools available in the track.ini to enhance the "fun" factor. We're confident that you'll enjoy the offline racing experience against the AI the way we have set them up for you. 

We also made an effort to get the A.I. to have an occasional random wreck that would bring out some cautions to further enhance the realism.  

To enjoy the best results, we recommend that you use the default fast setups provided with the track and car sets containing ratings as described above. Your results, however, may vary depending on the type of mod used, the ratings of your specific car set, different setups used, driving style, skill level and countless other variables that make it practically impossible to predict the results that you will achieve while racing on this track.

We hope that you will enjoy the racing at this track as much as we have bringing it to you.


[5] TROUBLE REPORTING 
====================================

This track is not supported by or affiliated with Vivendi Universal Games, Sierra Online, or Papyrus Racing Games so please do not call or email.

You may use the forums at www.NR2k3Tracks.com for questions regarding the track.



[6] DISTRIBUTION INFORMATION 
====================================

Distributing Websites:

www.nr2k3tracks.com

THIS TRACK SHALL NOT BE POSTED AT ANY WEBSITES, OTHER THAN THE ONE(S) PROVIDED, WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM J.R. Franklin.  To obtain permission to post, please PM J.R. Franklin at www.nr2k3tracks.com.


[7] AGREEMENT OF USE
=====================================

Use of this track by installation into a racing simulator constitutes agreement with this and the following statements:

1) This track shall not be sold or distributed for commercial purposes, or money exchanged for this track or any part thereof.

2) This track shall not be redistributed without written consent of the author(s) as listed above. 

3) This track cannot be modified without written consent of the author(s) as listed above.

4) This track, or any parts thereof, shall not be converted to rFactor or any other simulation without the signed written consent of the author(s) as listed above.

5) This track must always maintain an unmodified copy of this CREDITS_README in whatever form it is distributed.

6) This track is covered by implied intellectual property laws, in that it is the property of the author(s).

7) This track is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.



