Table of Contents
 

1. Shootout Administration
1.1 The Flashpoint Driver Shootout is a tiered Racing Event. All Flashpoint Drivers are eligible for qualifying. The day of the event, all drivers will run a one shot qualifying attempt. The top 30 drivers will advance into the main Shootout race

1.2 The Flashpoint Rankings is based on the ELO Chess Scoring System.
1.3 The Flashpoint Shootout incorporates all penalties that NASCAR 2003 may issue along with “Real Time” Shootout Officials. Penalties that you think are unfair, whether handed out by the game software or an Official, are final.

2. General Rules
2.0 During all sessions of the event, (Practice, Warm-up or Race) drivers must follow basic guidelines of entering and exiting pit lane. Do not enter the racing line directly from pit lane, enter only as noted by the game when it is clear, which is usually at the beginning of the backstretch. We will start enforcing this. Drivers that go straight onto the track from pit lane will NOT be able to qualify, and will start in the back of the field. If you are told to take a provisional start and qualify anyway, you will be ejected from the race.
2.1 Drivers will conduct themselves properly on the track through all sessions leading up to the drop of the green flag. No intensional wrecking of other drivers. Any driver found guilty of not abiding by this rule will be immediately ejected from the server.
2.2 Drivers are expected to prepare for this race and be able to maintain a "Low" and "High" line for the track selected for the Shootout. This applies during all green and yellow flag conditions. If you make a mistake and hit a wall or catch the apron and your momentum is slowed, do not pull back into the racing line. It is the driver’s responsibility to ensure they are back up to race speed before entering the racing line. Pay the small price of losing a position or two if need be. If you are involved in a wreck due to your poor choice of entering the racing line, when not up to speed, the Race Official will eject you from the race.
2.3 It is important that each driver becomes aware of their surroundings on the track and uses their mirrors and spotter. Be aware that the spotter is not always correct, so use visuals and your F-2 key as needed. This Shootout is a very competitive environment and respect for one another, on and off the track, will help make it successful.
2.4 When issues do arise, handle the situation in a professional manner. If an issue arises from an on track incident or a chat violation, Race Officials will deal with the situation. We do not tolerate any type of retaliatory action by any driver after any incident. If a driver retaliates by targeting and/or wrecking another driver, especially under cautions, the Race Official will eject that driver from the race. Possible expulsion from any further Flashpoint Shootout participation may be warranted.

3. Chat/Auto Chat
3.1 We DO NOT tolerate any FLAMING or negative chat. Under no circumstances is it tolerated. Please refrain from saying something you will regret later. Flashpoint Shootout Race Officials will not tolerate chat violations and will deal with the situation promptly. Flaming is any badgering, swearing, constant chatter in reference to an incident on the track. The best thing to do is type "I’m Sorry" or "No Problem." If you respond saying "TY" or "Thank You Moron,” "WTF", "WTH", or anything else of that nature, the Race Official will eject you from the race
3.2 Personalize your Auto Chat messages in NASCAR 2003 so that others can identify your messages as coming from you. For example, John Smith would change the default line of, "Pitting, Pass High", to, "John Smith, Pitting This Lap". AUTO CHAT MESSAGES ARE THE ONLY FORM OF CHAT ALLOWED DURING GREEN FLAG RACING.
3.3 During qualifying, there is no chat allowed until the Qualifying Session has indicated Complete. Save your congratulatory comments until after this point.
3.4 Due to past problems with chatting, ALL NON race chat is forbidden. Only Auto race chat is allowed. Pitting, pass Low, pass high, exiting pits...etc                                                                                                                              

3.5 Any driver retired or ejected from the race will not communicate with any driver, teammate, or Race Official while the race is in progress.

4. Warp and Server Performance
4.1 Please, use Control-C monitoring during races. This will give you a real time report of your latency, quality and skew. If you are in the “red”, your connection is poor and it is likely affecting your fellow racers ability to compete safely. During a race, if you notice you are warping (all the other cars disappear), or other drivers or a Race Official tell you that you are warping, you are expected to take appropriate action to ensure that you do not adversely affect other drivers. You should both pull into the pit and wait for your connection to improve, drop to the back of the field, and/or let any driver behind you pass without racing them. If complaints continue about a warping driver and that driver does not take the appropriate action on his/her own; the Race Official will ask the driver to leave or eject the driver from the Shootout.
4.2 Drivers that are warping will be directed to fall in line behind the pack of drivers they are running with

5. Disconnects
5.1 If your connection fails during the race, you may reenter the race only one time. If your connection fails a second time, your Shootout is over. Do not reconnect.
5.2 In the event of a mass connection failure (quantified by the Race Officials discretion) or server crash, the race will be restarted as appropriate.

6. Warm-Up
6.1 There will be a five-minute warm-up before the Shootout goes to Race. Warm ups are usually short and do not provide much time for practice. Drivers are responsible for doing one thing during warm up; locating your pit stalls. Is it in the front stretch? Is it at the end of pit road? Practicing the entrance to pit road during Warm-up should be your goal.

7. Qualifying
7.1 There will be NO chatting allowed during qualifying. It is a distraction to those actively qualifying. Wait to make remarks after the qualifying session has ended. If you use Game Commander or other voice recognition software, please consider turning your microphone off during qualifying in an attempt to prevent inadvertent messages during qualifying. This also includes no Whisper chatting to another driver during the qual session

8. Pace Lap
8.1 All drivers during pace and yellow flag laps will maintain a gap of 0.7 to 1.5 sec interval between their car and the car in front of them. Observe the stagger rule. Odd number positions go to the low side, even number positions go to the high side. While following the pace car, maintain a constant pace speed. If the pace speed is 70, do 70. Do not speed up and slow down repeatedly…80, 60, 90, and 60. Do not start the “Accordion.” The leader must maintain pace speed from the time the pace car leaves the track until the green flag flies. Brake checking by any car is not allowed. Brake checking is the act of tapping the brakes just prior to the restart to force the cars behind you to check-up. The Race Official will eject anyone violating these rules or causing damage to another car during a pace lap.

9. Starts/Restarts
9.1 The most critical time of any race is at the start and restart. Getting 25-40 cars up to speed and inline is no easy task, and this period requires each driver to be at his very best. We can avoid many unnecessary incidents and cautions by following the rules as outlined in this section. Before going green at the start of the race, driver’s needs to line up respectively and maintain an interval of 0.5 to 1.5 sec’s between his or her car and the car in front of them until the green flag drops. For double & single file restarts, stagger as described in section 8.1 until NASCAR 2003 directs all drivers to get inline.

9.2 The driver who is on the pole has a responsibility to pace the field correctly and maintain the proper speed until the green flag drops. The outside pole sitter must not start before the pole sitter. The race leader must maintain pace speed & accelerate only when the green flag flies. ALL DRIVERS GO ON THE GREEN FLAG ONLY!
9.3 Flying restarts are prohibited. ABSOLUTELY NO ANTICIPATING THE START A “flying” restart will be determined by anyone >5 mph over the pace speed when the green flag drops, AND they use that additional speed to gain positions. If you are too fast, fall in line, return the position(s) before the lap completes, and no penalty will be assessed.
9.4 Passing is allowed b4 the start/finish line, but must be to the outside, and you must not be speeding prior to the drop of the green flag. The admins will go back and check your speed, and will issue a black flag if you did jump the start. If you do make the outside pass, and cause an incident into the first turn, you will be blacked flagged for a FULL stop and go Penalty, and it will have to be made under GREEN flag conditions.
9.5 No passing allowed BEFORE the start/finish line to the INSIDE is still in effect. If a driver spins their tires at the start, and starts going sideways or misses a shift, then you may start to pass that driver on the inside, but don’t get passed that driver before the line, or the Sim will black flag you. Just because you may have a faster reaction time at the start of the green flag does not apply. You MUST keep your front bumper BEHIND the rear bumper of the driver in front of you until AFTER you have crossed the start/finish line. Any infraction of this rule will have you black flagged and doing a drive thru pit lane during GREEN flag conditions
9.6 Passing includes being along side another car prior to the start/finish line. Applies for passing on the inside, Remember, if you do pass prior to the start/finish line, it must be on the outside or you will be black-flagged.
9.7 After the green flag is dropped, your goal should be to fall in line behind the car in front of you and get through the first corner safely. STAY OUT OF TROUBLE Passing is allowed to the inside after the start/finish but is mindful of the situation. Again, this is the time to line up and not the time to pass. Turn 1, lap 1 pile-ups will not be tolerated. There is a lot of racing to do, so be patient. Get your tires temps up and settle in.

10. Cautions
10.1 When the yellow flag is displayed, drivers will maintain their position and race speed until they are on the front stretch. Do not start to back off before you have exited turn 4 unless you are attempting to avoid a wreck When a caution comes out it is not the time to take advantage of another drivers misfortune. Follow the rules as outlined. If you all use the same spot on the track to start slowing down, you can drastically reduce the number of incidents that occur when a yellow flag is displayed. When you take the yellow flag do not slow down suddenly. Ease off gradually until you are through turns one and two. The leader should continue at 75% normal speed until approaching the pace car and then decelerate smoothly down to pace speed.
10.2 All drivers will hold their position without passing when the yellow flag comes out. It is acceptable for all cars to race back to the line if there are fewer than 10 laps left in the race when the Yellow flag comes out. The "Lucky Dog" rule is no longer in effect with 10 laps or less remaining.
10.3 There is absolutely no excuse for crashing into another car while under caution. Anyone violating this rule will be immediately ejected from the race.
10.4 Under caution, use your F2 key to avoid hitting cars that are running slower, line up as quickly and safely as possible and maintain the field stagger. Anyone running into a stationary car at full throttle will be immediately ejected from the race. If you are near a wreck when the yellow flag is displayed, ease off slightly to give yourself room to maneuver in case you need to avoid a wreck.

11. Lucky Dog Rule

11.1   When a yellow flag comes out, ALL Drivers are to immediately slow down and maintain their current position. No driver is allowed to pass at
this time. Any driver that does pass MUST give the position back before getting to the Start finish line or will get black flagged at the next
green flag and do a drive thru pit lane, unless the incident is right before the start finish line, and is determined
the driver did not have sufficient time to get slowed down without cause another incident.
11.2   New Current Leader: If the leaders spin or wreck, the next driver in line on the lead lap after getting by the wrecked cars, will be the
current leader getting back to the Start finish line. All other drivers on the lead lap will stay behind the current leader and maintain
current position. All lapped cars will maintain their current position amongst all the lead and lapped cars
11.3   If the leader spins and brings out the yellow, but still has time to get going again and remain in the 1st position, that driver will give up
the 1st position by serving a End of longest line penalty for bringing out the yellow (EOLL). The driver will come down pit road on the second
lap to let all the lead lap cars get in front.
11.4  On pit road: If you are on pit road when a yellow comes out, you may race off pit road to keep from going a lap down. After the leaders pit,
you will NOT serve a EOLL, but will remain up front behind the Pace car as the leader of the race if all the lead lapped cars pit during the
yellow.
11.5  The "Lucky Dog" Driver: This will be the first driver one lap down. This driver will PASS the PACE CAR after the pace car has picked up the field. This driver will get a black flag, but will be cleared at the next green flag start. After the driver passes the pace car, they will pit on the second lap with all the other cars one lap down or more. This will let the leaders pit first, then put the lucky dog driver behind them all where the driver needs to be at the next start. It will also put the driver back on the lead lap.
11.6  Lead lap cars pitting: If you come in again on the second lap, the Lucky dog driver will be in front of you, he will not be forced to let you
in front of him if that driver beats you off pit road, unless the SIM tells you to pass the car in front.
11.7  Lapped cars behind leaders: If you are a lap down, and right behind the leaders that just spun out, the first car showing one lap down will get the free pass. If you were 2 laps down when leader spun or wrecked, and was in front of the leader, you have just gotten 1 lap back, and will get another lap back with the free pass on the next Green flag. "NOTICE" Only one lap down drivers are eligible for the "Lucky Dog" rule. If you are 2 or more laps down, the rule does NOT apply. You must race your way back to only being one lap down before you become eligible. You will NOT get a free pass if you are 2 or more laps down to make up a lap

12. Pitting
12.1 "Fake Pitting" is not allowed. It usually causes more problems than good when using this tactic. Incidents may occur from this and black flags may be issued to unsuspecting drivers. Use the F2 key when pitting to avoid passing other cars that are still on the track. Do not wait until the last minute and then jump down to pit; it may look good on TV but it irritates other drivers.
12.2 Pit entry will be handled by the track. Follow this rule to the letter. Incidents caused by poor pit practices will not be tolerated. KNOW THE TRACK PIT SPEED. There is no excuse for not knowing.
12.3 You must stay inside the yellow line after you have exited the pits. Your crew chief will inform you when it is okay to merge into traffic. Please note he says, “Merge when you can” which does not mean dive directly into the racing line! Use your mirrors and F2 to help guide you in your attempt to merge safely. When exiting the pits, all drivers will re-enter the track with an Auto-Chat message and only after turn 2. NO STAGGERING THE APRON, ALL 4 TIRES UNDER!
12.4 When you are preparing to enter the pits, indicate your intention with an Auto-Chat message. Drivers must move to the low groove while on the backstretch before entering turn 3. Doing so is the accepted signal to drivers behind you that you are going to pit. You must not assume that everyone will see your chat message that you are going to pit. When entering the pits, maintain your line on the inside of the two lines to the right of pit road. (The one closest to the pits) Make certain you enter the pits safely. If you do not enter safely, NASCAR 2003 may reward you with the black flag or hold you in the pits while you serve your penalty. Also, do not drive thru all the pit stalls to get to your own pit. You may drive thru 2 pit stalls prior to reaching your own pit stall
12.5 When exiting the pits, maintain your line on the outside of the two lines to the right of pit road. (The one furthest from the pits) Make sure you pit on the appropriate lap(s), only cars on the lead lap can pit on the first lap the pits open. Cars that are a lap down must pit the second lap around after a caution.
12.6 If a caution should come out with 10 laps or less when the yellow flag comes out, all cars 1 lap down or more will enter pit road on the second caution lap. This does not mean you have to enter your pit stall but you must drive down pit road and wait for the NASCAR 2003 Official to release you. This will allow all lead lap cars racing for position a chance to fight for the win.

13. Racing
13.1 All drivers must be able to drive each track safely and responsibly. Erratic, unsafe and overly aggressive driving is not tolerated in the Flashpoint Shootout. The Shootout operates under the "TWO INCIDENT RULE" A driver responsible for bringing out TWO yellows must retire from the race or remained parked in his pits, failure to do so will result in an ejection by the Race Official. The only exception: A driver's self-spin caused by a wreck or out of control cars ahead of the driver. You are NOT issued an incident if you spin by yourself, do not bring out a yellow, and no other driver was involved.
13.2 Moving another car up or down the track is not permitted.
13.3 Bump drafting NOT allowed Period. Blocking another driver is not permitted unless racing to the Checkered Flag. Blocking is defined as changing your line more than once in an obvious attempt to prevent a trailing car from safely executing a pass.
13.4 It is the overtaking cars responsibility to execute a safe pass.
13.5 If a car has position on you, you are expected to hold your line (either high or low). This may require you to get out of the gas, but you must hold your line. The trailing car must have a bumper beside the car in front prior to entering the corner to be considered "having the line".
13.6 Driving below the white Line IS Strictly PROHIBITED. Two tires below the line is considered driving below the line. Any driver that crosses the line for any reason will be penalized. The ONLY exceptions are to avoid an incident on the track, or a driver forces you below the line, then the forcing driver will be penalized.

14. Lapped Cars
14.1 Lets not forget this is a race, and every driver has the right to race for position. With that said, lap cars are encouraged to let cars on the lead lap pass. Lap cars are cars "not on the lead lap.” The only exception is if lapped cars are racing for position. Racing for position is when you are within two car lengths of a car either one position ahead or behind you. In this situation, it is the responsibility of the leader to make a safe pass.

15. Damaged Cars
15.1 If you are involved in an accident, try to get the car down to the apron as quickly and cautiously as possible, this means WAITING for all racing traffic to get past you before doing so. Do not try to turn your car around in middle of the track or in traffic. Anyone crossing traffic while damaged and causing an accident will be immediately ejected from the race.
15.2 When damaged and/or unable to move due to a blown tire, press CTRL+T to initiate a tow back to your pits. Stay low or off the track when trying to limp back to the pits for repairs. If you are less than 75% of race speed, you should strongly consider retiring from the race.

16. Post Race Procedures
16.1 All drivers will drive back to the pit road, find their respective pit stall, and park after the race is complete. The scoring provided by NASCAR 2003 is final unless the Race Official deems it necessary to adjust. THE TOP Seven FINISHERS ARE TO REMAIN back in the race arena lobby AND AWAIT DIRECTION FOR THE NEXT LEVEL OF SHOOTOUT RACING. ALL OTHERS MUST IMMEDIATELY LEAVE THE SERVER.

17. Penalties
17.1  Because of the nature of the Flashpoint Shootout, penalties are accessed as close to real time as possible. It is the job of the Race Officials to ensure all of the rules are followed and penalties are administered in a fair and just manner. With less than 5 laps remaining, if an incident occurs, The Admins will have the right to Post pone the final decision until further reviewed. It is possible the final standings to be altered in this situation. Given the time frame in this situation, an accurate call may not be rendered in time before the race would come to an end. At no time will any driver contest a Race Official’s ruling. At no time will any driver assist a Race Official in reporting or discussing the administration of the rules. Doing so will result in an immediate ejection from the race.
17.2  Three forms of penalties are awarded from a Race Official for violation of any of the Flashpoint Shootout Rules: A drive thru Pit lane, a full Stop and Go penalty, or a Race Ejection. Neither is open for discussion. When given a drive thru penalty, it must be answered under the green flag. The penalty will be given by an Admin Black flag command. This will allow the race official to keep an eye on the race knowing you will have no choice but to answer the penalty, or the Sim will Disqualify you. All you need to do is a drive thru pit lane, stopping in your pit stall will not clear this penalty. If you do stop and get tires, fix damage etc.. you must tell us Black Flag not cleared so we can do this for you. It is your responsibility to let the race official know if your penalty was not cleared coming off pit road back onto the track. With using the Admin Black flag option, it will not allow you to clear your penalty on the same lap if a yellow would happen to come out.. EXP: >> Green flag waves to restart race, car serving penalty takes green flag, Then yellow flies 2 seconds later after the black flag has been given to this driver..He/She will not be able to come down pit road and clear the penalty under a yellow condition. At this point, your spotter should say pit road is closed. This driver will have to take the Green again and hope yellow does not come out before he/she can get on pit road to finally serve the penalty. This also is less chat the other drivers have to look at during the race
17.3   For all RACE EJECTIONS. This can be answered by either leaving the track, or bringing your car to pit road and retiring. It is not necessary to leave the track. All drivers are welcome to remain and watch the completion of the race.
17.4   No driver will park on the track to exit the race, you must drive to your pit stall first. Any driver that parks on the track will be suspended for 1 month before being able to participate in another Shootout Event…only exception would be car is unable to continue.

18.  Penalty List
A) Driving under the White Line- Admin Black Flag
B) Forced under the White Line –The forcing driver will be served an Admin Black Flag
C) Passing under yellow Admin Black Flag
D) Intentional Wrecking - Ejection- Disqualified
E) Flaming- Ejected, Disqualified
F) Aggressive Driving, Unsafe Pass. If your aggressive driving takes out another driver, you will be served an Admin Black Flag
G) Self Spins  If you spin on your own, and you bring out a caution, but do not involve any other driver, you will do a Drive through Pit lane on the second lap, with the cars one lap down so you will start at the end of the longest line, and will occur your first of two incidents you have before you must retire under the two incident rule. If you involve other cars from your self spin, a FULL Stop and Go will have to be done After the race goes back under Green. The Admin will issue you a Black flag once the green flag is waiving.
If you spin again, you will retire under the 2 incident rule.
H) Slowing and Then Spin|: If a driver breaks loose in front of you, and he slows up, or even applies his brakes to get control of his car, and does not spin, wreck, or bring out a caution, it is the drivers responsibility behind him to be able to slow down, and keep your car under control without hitting the driver in front. This will be a judgment call by the officials if they feel there was ample room for you to have slowed down and not further escalate the situation. If the driver behind fails to slow and keep control, then this driver will be penalized if he brings out the caution. Obviously, if you are right behind the driver breaking loose, you will not have time to slow and the driver who breaks loose will be charged. The same rule above will also apply, whether you do a drive through or a Stop and Go after the next restart. If you restart 1 or more laps down, stay low on the track and signal you are pitting next time by.
I) Obvious Bump Drafting: Drive thru Pit lane

19.  Admin Procedures
A) The Admin has the right to extend a yellow flag condition if so needed to make sure the right calls are made
B) The Admin will also use the “Clear_Black Flag command after the driver is issued a Black Flag to insure it was cleared when the driver leaves pit road
C) If a wreck happens, and it is just so close to call who was at fault, the Admin can call this a racing deal, and neither driver will be penalized
D) In the closing laps of the race, if a yellow does come out, the race official will let the race end. After the race is over, the race officials will review the replay, decide on a final verdict, and then the results will be altered. This could be the driver at fault loosing a lap, moving to the End of longest line, or just declared a racing incident.