For those who don't follow this blog space on a regular basis, we wrote last week that famed NASCAR (and really all types of racing) driver Robby Gordon was going to visit Turn 10. Well, here's the follow-up on the visit, which turned out pretty fun for all involved.
To be honest, we're never quite sure what to expect when a professional race driver comes through the studio to check out our game, although we're always relieved when they end up mastering Forza 2 after a few laps in the triple-screen. It's always hard to guess whether real-life driving experience will translate into the limited feedback of a driving sim -- no matter how good your physics engine, if you're not feeling G-forces, it's sometimes hard for folks to gauge braking distance, and hence, they go flying off the track, embarassing both driver and audience.
Well, thankfully, that wasn't the case with Robby Gordon! He came, he saw, he drove and kicked it to the curb. Well, more or less. After chatting with our car artists and game designers, he was itching to get some quality time with the triple-screen setup.
That's Robby on the left in the photo below, hanging out and checking out our cars and showing us his videos online.
Again, his primary interest in coming to Turn 10 was our triple-screen cockpit and so soon after the formalities, he sat down and began running laps on Road America in the new Koenigsegg we set up for him. It took him a few laps of running off into the gravel pit or hitting barriers before Robby got accustomed to braking distances and the feel of the wireless force feedback wheel. But after that, he began setting fairly competitive lap times (at least comparable to what we were setting in the studio).
Here are impressions from a couple guys at Turn 10 who met and spoke with Robby Gordon.
One of our program managers and huge racing fans, Brian Lockhart, had this to say about hanging out with Mr. Gordon:
"The coolest thing for me about Robby's visit was seeing him get genuinely excited while playing our game on our multiscreen setup, and talking about his own racing. It's refreshing to see someone at his level of the sport still having that level of enjoyment about something he lives and breathes every day. Listening to him talk about his experiences in the Paris - Dakar, Baja, and of course NASCAR racing - you get the distinct impression that this is a guy who loves racing so much he'd be having fun out there no matter what series he was in.
"One of those guys who'd race just as hard for a $100 purse as he would for a million-dollar factory contract, just for the love of it. Most of us only get to dream about racing, and Forza is as close as we're ever going to get to strapping into a high-end purpose built racecar like that. It's cool hearing from folks that act out that fantasy for a living that yep, it really is that much fun in real life."
Another big fan of Robby Gordon here at Turn 10 is Tyler "Supercharged Geo Metro" Brunkhorst, who had this to say about meeting one of his childhood heroes:
"It was refreshing to meet someone who has accomplished so much in their career and still remain to be one of the most down to earth, easy to talk to guy one can meet. I enjoyed talking candidly about some of his rides over the years and it was clear he was most excited about his offroad vehicles. He was so passionate about what he’s involved in he took control over one of our machines and started showing us some sweet videos he has posted on YouTube. After laying down several impressive laps in the three screen simulator he shared a few racing stories and it was the mention of the 1000hp Indy car ride he had several years ago when it hit me like a freight train: Robby Gordon has the coolest job… ever."
Throughout his session here at Turn 10, we made sure he had plenty of Doritos to eat. Robby certainly wasn't going to turn down a bag of tasty Doritos - no way. He had to leave after a couple hours to get some real business done I suppose, but he wanted to come back and put down more laptimes on the triple-screen simulator. We, of course, welcomed him with open arms, Forza 2 polo shirts, and more Doritos.
In fact, he was so into the Forza 2 triple-screen setup, he said he was going to build one right into their teamspace in their machine shop... that is, after he finishes up the upcoming Dakar Rally in his wicked Monster Energy / Toyo Tires Hummer H3.
