The Admin's Blog - Click here for '14 IFCA News & Opinions

Post from 11/10/13:

Hello IFCA Members!

The gears are officially rolling here with the announcement of our first two series. Trans-Am begins a this Friday, and the Scion FR-S Challenge is due to begin next Monday. Sign ups are now open for both series in the Racetrack section.

So far we've had more than 20 people sign up for their 2014 applications, which meets our expectations thus far. However, we've noticed that one process in the application has not been so smooth for some of you: The Career History part.

The whole goal behind this is to highlight our current members over the more than 2500 user accounts on this forum. We could have just separated everyone into "Active" and "Inactive," but we wanted to take it a step further with the Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Groups. Each is based on driver achievement in their entire Forza Motorsport careers, not just here at the IFCA. On our handy Excel Spreadsheet, those of you who have not put any career information are marked with an X, and are not full members as of right now. All we are asking is that you think of your greatest achievement as an online racing driver so we have an idea of which group to put you in.

Hopefully, that will answer some of the questions and clear some of the confusion that some of you have encountered. If you are one of the drivers with an X on the chart, feel free to post your information in the Applications Thread. You don't have to do the whole application over again - just that part.

Moving on, we would like to thank EZT and Virtual Motorsports for sharing their events with us in the "Announcements from Other Online Racing Associations" Section. If you know of an event that you would like to share, feel free to post a topic in that section. We also encourage you to send a picture of your results to the Forza League Racers group who is organizing this year's World Rankings List.

Speaking of the Forza League Racers, we'd like to thank them for mentioning us in their blog called "Pitstop Blog." Remember, each IFCA race's results will be sent to the Forza League Racers, giving you an opportunity at qualifying for the 2014 Forza World Championship! The ratings of those who drove in IFCA Rated events in 2013  have rolled over to the start of this season. If you'd like to see if you're on the list and your ranking, go to www.forzaleagueracers.com.

Now back to IFCA. Though we've tried hard to improve the forum for this new season, we have received some complaints about navigating the forum. In response, we've been moving some things around, and will continue to improve the layout of the IFCA Forum throughout this week. On the same note, we have been working out various forum errors regarding the ability to post in some important sections, along with other basic problems. Please remember that we are not as experienced with working the technical side of the forum as others in our field, but we are becoming more familiar with the system each day.

You are welcome to PM us with any and all feedback. We would prefer that you send a PM to both of us (MNM Smurfy and AAR ABEnstein) at the same time to allow for a quicker response. However, if it is an issue with something in a series section, please include the manager of the series in the PM as well.

Lastly, remember to like us on Facebook (where we've reached nearly 30 likes within the month) and follow us on Twitter. Quick links to both are embedded in the Portal, which is the first thing you see when you go to this website.

Thanks for reading! If you'd like to follow this blog, click "watch topic" on the bottom right of your screen, and you'll receive an email when new posts are created.

Sincerely, AAR ABEnstein & MNM Smurfy

Update 9/30:

The IFCA website will be undergoing a remodeling project this week. The World Championship Contenders have been sent an XBL message. We will debut the new site ASAP, but our goal is to finish by Wednesday.

We are still looking for people to help out with the forum once it reopens.

First post from 9/7

Hello IFCA Drivers! This is where you will find some insight and previews ahead of the 2014 season written by BAR Smurfy and me.

Cue the first press release for the IFCA 2014 Season:

If you have visited the IFCA in recent weeks, you know that changes are to be expected for 2014. AAR GTDon has given BAR Smurfy and me the leadership of the IFCA and we, as previously mentioned, want to transform it into a more professional and organized online racing league. There are a lot of things that Smurfy and I will discuss in the coming months before we officially unveil the 2014 season.

I want to use The Admin's Blog as a way of giving some small details as to what is planned for the coming season. We also want to hear your opinions on the changes we are planning.

We are currently discussing an entirely new forum layout, including color theme changes and new usergroups. We are also looking at new series logos, as well as a new banner that will be the first thing our guests see when they arrive on the reinvented ifcaracing.com.

Smurfy and I also want to reinvent the way things are done here at the IFCA. We are looking at new series concepts, and also ways to improve current ones.

Also, there will be changes in the IFCA Rating System and how we work with our affiliates. AAR GTDon is currently overseeing these changes.

What I can say now is to expect these changes to be announced in the coming weeks. These changes will begin to take effect a few days after the 2013 IFCA World Championship Finale.

Here is the first thing about 2014 that I'd like to say:

The IFCA will be sanctioning events on both Forza Motorsport 4 and 5. I will not be spending $750 (XB1 + XB1 Wheel +FM5) on the next console. I need that money for things like real racing and college. I know a lot of Forza players are in the same boat. Expect some leadership positions to be announced based on console preference.

Question of the post: What do you want to see the IFCA change or keep the same for 2014?

The fact that I less than 2 years ago spent money on the CSR etc etc, there is no way in hell I am getting the XBOX 1 and a new wheel. I will wait until they support the fanatec wheel I have. If they dont then my Forza career has come to an end.

I can't understand how they can go totally the other route when it comes to wheels, I mean, there simply is nothing like the CSR, not even the new wheels, so they need to get their act together.