As a subscription based service since launching in 2008, it’s an outlier when it comes to racing games. But as iRacing players pass 3 billion sim racing laps, it shows the dedication of members in what is one of the best competitive online racing platforms.
iRacing originally launched in August 2008, and had more than 16,000 members in just under 12 months. By 2013, iRacing subscribers had grown to 50,000. And after the recent surge in attention due to global events, the numbers are now somewhere around 160,000.
The number is based on a total of 4.6 billion miles recorded, with an average racing lap coming in at 1.53 miles. Which is certainly true of Lime Rock Park. And we can assume the Nordschliefe roughly balances out the half mile oval dirt tracks.
So 4,601,734,862 miles, which would be 28,760 miles per current member. Or around 18,800 laps of Lime Rock Park each. But given that numbers have searched recently, there certainly must be iRacers who have recorded some massive mileages. For example, looking at 2020 so far, I’ve managed 2,454 laps.
Which means I need to practice more, and there must be some iRacers with hundreds of thousands of laps recorded in their favourite series.
By way of comparision, GT Sport (released in October, 2017) was recently revealed to have a total of 25.5 billion miles, recorded by 8.2 million users. Which equates to around 3,000 miles. Which would be just under my 2020 total for iRacing so far…
So as iRacing players pass 3 billion sim racing laps, how many have you managed in your career so far? And which has been your most popular series? For me, it’s massively skewed towards road and oval racing, as I’m working towards my A licence.
Logically, you might expect the most miles to be racked up by endurance racers. But Indy and NASCAR oval sim racers could also well be in contention for the most miles covered, especially at the higher average speeds they can achieve.
And it’s no reason not to turn your first lap in iRacing now. You can sign up to the sim racing subscription service for the PC here. Or check out the latest iRacing news, the full car list, and the complete track list, which also show what you get included in the base level of membership. And if you’re starting with sim racing, why not also take a look at our guide to the best wheels and pedals for beginners?
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