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Formula De (FDE) WBC 2024 Event Report
Updated October 7, 2024
57 Players Stephen Peeples Event History
  2024 Champion & Laurels
 

Newcomer Stephen Peeples Races To Finish At Valencia!

With the largest field since 2015, we had 57 racers compete in this year's Formula De tournament. Each of the four Heats ran four tracks, with 27 playing in more than one, and six playing in every Heat. The table host was free to pick any track they wanted, and we saw eleven different tracks played in the Heats. Monaco was the most popular with three tables, but Hockenheim Ring, Austin, and Buddh were each played twice. The 10th Anniversary track was a nice one to see. Of the sixteen qualifying races, only six finished clean with no crashes. Lots of drivers taking risks to secure first place.

It only takes one win to make it to the Semifinal, with two wins skipping to the Final table. John Schoose and Stephen Peeples won in the only two Heats they played; Stephen having just learned the game on Sunday afternoon. This left us with twelve single winners to race on Sotchi and Singapore. Some scheduling conflicts required us to pull in a few non-winners who had still reached the podium a few times. Sotchi has lots of quick turns, so that drivers push their cars to limits to avoid missing a roll. Two of the six racers crashed early on the second lap. Singapore is a more typical track, with only one racer crashing, due to a blown engine. Though 5th place did spin out twice.

Racers with byes got the top spots in the Final, which the remaining players rolling off against the person with the same finish in the Semifinal. That order was:

  1. John Schoose
  2. Stephen Peeples
  3. Patrick Shea
  4. Mark Jensen
  5. Rich Shipley
  6. Kevin Burns
  7. David Jensen
  8. Anthony Daw

The Final was three laps at Valencia and allowed racers to customize their cars with two extra build points. Builds were chosen in secret, and only two players picked the same configuration. Everybody brought extra tires, since they replenish even on a quick pit. Some pulled points from their body or brakes in order to add in engine, transmission, or even more tires. Our winner brought 11 points of tires.

The race was interesting right from the start. Patrick began with a quick start, zooming from third to first, and maintaining that for the whole first lap. The first turn was just out of reach for most drivers, with six using the optional Red Line rule to force their engines into the first turn. Eight players makes for a tight race, as David found when he failed his second body check on the third turn. He was one of three racers to pull a point from body for more tires but had the worst luck on the d20.

Stephen had a rough start at the beginning. He failed one body check on the first turn and fell short of the second turn. He was also unable to enter the pit after the first lap, due to a blocked lane. That may have worked to his advantage though, as he was able to jump to first with the extra speed. The race was incredibly tight at that point, with four cars being in the same gear on the same stop on the third turn of lap two. With that congestion, the bridge was a dangerous place. Patrick and Kevin failed engine checks on the same turn, leaving only one clear path for the rest of the field. Unfortunately, it was Kevin's last point.

The third lap was also tricky, as drivers only had two points of repairs available at the pits. So, resources were running low. John used his last tire on the third turn, blocking the only clear path as he got back up to speed. Which he did indeed, taking the 4th turn too fast, and exiting the race. Stephen was able to repair his tires after the second lap, retaining enough of a lead to play things safe. The next three cars were within one space after the 5th turn, but Patrick got there in a higher gear and was able to zoom into second position. While fighting for third, Mark failed his second suspension check driving over debris, and Rick took a turn too hard.

Of the eight racers we started with, five did not finish. This may be the first time I saw all four types of DNF in the same race. Congratulations again to Stephen Peeples, who won the only three games of Formula De he's ever played. Looking forward to seeing lots of new and repeat players next year, and a large variety of tracks.

 
2024 Laurelists Repeating Laurelists: 0
Shea, Patrick Daw, Anthony Shipley, Rich Jensen, Mark Schoose, John
2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th
 
Smiles for the camera with Rob Kircher and Roger Jarrett. This driver looks like he has an evil plan.
A thumbs up for the photographer. Finalists with GM Eric Meader.
 
 
GM  Meader, Eric [1st Year]