Time trials and aches and pains

[timm]

Is it just me, or are the Time-Trials much more difficult than the equivalent Single-Races? I've done all the single-races and tournaments up to Venom (except Manor-Top - arrgh!) and a few on Flash. But I've only managed a few Time-Trial golds, all on the Vector level.

I can hit all the speed pads, never let go of the accelerator, don't use the air-brakes, don't hit the sides, and still miss gold. I've even started using heavier ships like Icaras or Piranha to get a smoother racing line.

Any hints?
many thanks,
Tim (Veteran 73 - but not a veteran of the time-trials :? )

[lunar]

Not using brakes doesn`t necessarily make you faster. Brakes can help keep you on a better line even in slow classes, especially if you use the sideshift feature. Are you using barrel rolls? Some TTs would be almost impossible to clear without them.

And welcome to WZ btw :)

[Drakkenmensch]

Barrel roll like a maniac. Each succesful roll wiill shave off around 0.4 second to your lap, more or less. Enough rolls will significantly lower your race time.

[Brianetta]

TT is more difficult than a normal race. I play each track over and over until I get the TT gold, then I do the race - and get the gold first time. I believe it's possible to get the gold in any track using any vehicle, going by my best lap times, but it's difficult to play that well consistently.

Eventually, you get the gold. It feels like it's impossible until you do it. In fact, ten minutes ago I snuck off to the gents (it's a slow day at work, but I can hardly play at my desk!) and got gold on Blue Ridge in my Venom class Triakis (with the sound on mute). I hadn't previously managed to even get the silver.

[eLhabib]

ROFL! You play purE in the restrooms of your office?! How cool is that! 8)

[infoxicated]

Why not? :D

I was playing GTA Liberty City Stories on the crapper at the weekend and it's a liberating experience I can tell you! ;) :lol:

[Dogg Thang]

Heh, I do the exact same thing. GTA, having so many different things to do, is a great toilet all-rounder. I think some of the people I work with must think I have severe digestion issues...

Anyway, I'd go with Drak's barrel roll advice. The only other thing I'd say that worked for me (and better players would likely disagree with me) is that, if your goal is to get the golds, I find you should allow yourself the odd scrape and even nasty hit every now and again if it gives you a good racing line. Now that's not going to work beating the experts' times but I found at times that you can lose much more time on a bad racing line than you can with a collision. Also, pick your boost locations carefully - I used to think that they'd be best for getting me out of a corner quickly, not realising that I was losing the momentum whilst turning. Sometimes you'll get more use out of them on a straight or setting you up for a barrel roll.