Season 1:

Written by our Founder

Founded in October 2013 by Michel MacCulloch, The Dogs of Racing Endurance League (TDoREL) began as a quaint group of drivers looking for a true type of multi-class endurance racing compared to the racing offered by the official iRacing series currently.

 

We started off with two series running in parrallel with one another, both being just a slight bit longer than anything ran in iRacing's Official Series, being 80 minutes.  To better serve the greater community in iRacing, we staggered the races to both run on Sundays, but with one as early as possible, and the other as late as possible in order to attempt to make it possible for anyone to run in at least one of the series, regardless of where in the world you lived in.

 

Season 2:

Written by our Founder

With our first season being a growing success, we started into season 3, but came to the decision that the 80 minute races were too short, and bumped them up to 90 minutes instead.  This also proved popular, but soon after the season started, we started getting more and more people asking if we were going to hold longer events.

 

We didn't know how much longer, so we ran a poll in the official iRacing forums, simply asking:  "What's the SHORTEST length race you would consider "Endurance""

 

The poll showed us that 45% of iRacing members thought that a race between 2-3 hours was the smallest, with another 29% saying 3-4 hours!  That's an astounding 74% of the general iRacing public saying that the SHORTEST race that they would consider being an Endurance race, should be between 2-4 hours!

 

Well, that changed our minds on the little 90 minute races, however we had already started the season, and we didn't want to mess up the current season by suddenly changing the formats, so, instead, we introduced the "Ridgeback - 2.6 hour" (or 155 minute) series, which started mid-season, on Saturday nights.  Although sparcely populated, it was a success, with regular members running in the event, but we still had some people, members and non-members, asking if we would still consider doing something even LONGER!  That's when we decided that we'd start up a new series in the new season, replacing one of the little 90 minute races, with a much larger, 5.2 hour race!

 

We then set up a bunch of various polls within our own league forums, asking the membership exactly when each of the 3 new series should run.  These being the 5.2 Hour ~ Iditarod Series, the 2.6 Hour ~ Ridgeback Series & the 1.5 Hour ~ Pyrenees Series.  The results decided when these 3 series would run for the following season.

 

It was also during this season, that one of our longstanding league members, took it upon himself to start this website, in secret, and worked for untold hours getting the basics set up, before even proposing the thought to the league administrator/founder.  It was an instant hit, however the website address needed quite a bit of help, so after garnering how much use it was getting, the decision to get a proper domain name registered for it was made, and follows through as it is now, www.dogsofracing.com.  It must be said though, that without the secretive diligence and belief in the league from one member, this entire website would probably not even exist, even now.

 

Season 3:

Written by Duane Benzinger

Well everyone, TDoREL Season 3 is officially complete! What an eventful season it's been!

The event schedule was changed, eliminating the Sophie Series and replacing it with the Iditarod.

Somewhere along the line we lost several of our core members and that was sad. But, we've also welcomed in some great new members as well.

We had some great variety, not only in our active membership, but also in the cars we used and the tracks we've raced them on this past season.

Some highlights that really stick out in my mind are Williams FW-31s at Pocono, Talladega, and in the dark at Sebring. Star Mazdas at Mid-Ohio and finally at Twin Ring Motegi. Really great racing memories that make me glad to be able to be a part of this fantastic league! I must give many thanks to Michel. He puts a ton of effort into this league. For those of you who may not yet know just how much he does, just stick around and be prepared to be amazed. He works like a "dog" (of racing, of course!) Thank you Michel!

As I look forward toward Season 4, with it's further event schedule changes and the way the active membership is taking form, I'm quite excited! I think that the adjustments will still only allow me to compete in two of the series, with occasional participation in the third. Same as I was able to run in before. With the shorter races and the shifting of start times I should be able to fully compete in the two series that I do get to run in regularly. 

So, looking back, thanks to all the drivers who made this past season such fun!

Looking forward, I feel this is going to be the funnest season yet, at least for me. I think the changes in scoring are going to make this a very hotly contested season and I think overall participation will increase. Both because of the new scoring rules and the shorter races. I'm looking forward to fuller grids.

So get ready, boys and girls. If you haven't yet joined the league, get yourself registered! Season 4 will soon be here and it's going to be a fun one! I can't wait.

 

Season 4:

Written by Leila Wilson

By the fourth season, the league's routine had become a science. From the race lengths, to race times and dates, everything was determined diplomatically by league members via polls. This lead to a very interesting season, which included a few new courses, and some ovals. While this was not the first time ovals were utilized in the league, it spoke to the fundamentals of the league. This is truly the only place on iRacing where drivers will conquer any car on any track.  From Twin Ring Motegi to Talladega, to Bathurst, to South Boston, league members tamed their cars and battled the pavement.

Teamspeak proved to not only be a valuable tool for communication, but also a valuable tool for letting off steam by way of zany conversations, and light-hearted jokes. To the surprise of many a driver, this actually helped in the races, and drew many members closer together as friends and competitors. 
As the season went, the racing got better, and as the racing got better, more drivers showed up to see if they could accept the challenge of 'any car, any track.'  Some prospered, some failed, some went out in a blaze of glory and curse words. 

The most remarkable thing about the season was that many of us found out that we could really handle the challenge. We could run a Class A NASCAR car at Bathurst. We could run a Star Mazda at South Boston. We could go 5 wide at Talladega in 5 different classes, and not crash, and we could do it for well over an hour. The sort of intensity and dedication this kind of racing takes wasn't for everyone. As the season progressed, some drivers proved that they were not ready for the level of driving required in the league. It wasn't proof delivered through their inability to handle car, but rather their inability to handle being around other people. Unfortunately, in the long run, this exploded into a fireball that resulted in the Team Speak server being shut down, a broadcast being cancelled, and the league nearly being disbanded.

Yet, here we are, our fourth season nearly in the books, strong fields of drivers still showing up, and the social aspect still intact. While it seemed like the end early on, those of us who drive here knew what we wanted. We wanted to race here. We wanted to be in the league. We wanted the challenge.  Are we the most serious group of racers on iRacing? No. Are we the most dedicated? Some of us. Could we all win the DWC in oval or road? Probably not. Do we have the most fun in iRacing? Yes. Yes, we do. That isn't something worth giving up, either.  If anything, we're a stronger pack of dogs than we were at the start of the season, and we're always looking for more people to join us.

Looking back at the fourth season, there is a lot that can be said about it. The epic lead battle at Circuit Gilles, the insanity of surviving South Boston after a server error kept us on track an extra hour, the pleasure of driving Mid-Ohio in an epic mixture of classes, or the absolutely mindblowingly close finishes at Talladega. I could expound on all of these things and more, given enough space, but I give a better offer.

If you haven't joined us already, you should come witness these moments for yourself.
~Fox

 

Season 5:

Written by Leila Wilson

Six weeks. Six wildly different tracks, driver swaps, first-time tracks, new cars. Season 5 is shaping up to be the most intense (if somewhat compressed) season of TDoREL yet. The bizarre egg-shaped Darlington Oval kicks off a season that has a little bit of everything for everyone. From the frightening, ill-lit hairpins at Twin Ring Motegi's east course, to the hill-infested right-turn-only chicane-bearing oval at Mid-Ohio, then onto the high speeds and hair-raising turns of Circuit Zolder. Daytona International Speedway's high banks will bring the drafting and pack racing that that a tricky oval like Darlington will not, and lastly, the venerable Lime Rock Park will finish out the season, and also stake its claim as 'the track most resembling something people would think about, when they think Endurance Racing that isn't Zolder.'  A long title, but a shining example of the ongoing theme of  this league.  This may be a very outlandish set of tracks and cars we'll be using, but it is exactly what we want to do, and exactly how we want to do it. 

Remember, you can always race a Riley on a Roval, but where else can you race a Sprint Car at Spa? 

The points battles promise to be tighter. The competition promises to be more fierce than ever in every class of every race, and driver swaps will add a whole new element that none of us have experienced before ('cept Michel, but he's a beta tester!) While none of us can profess to know how on earth we're going to handle half of this combinations, one thing is for sure. There will *never* be another season like Season 5. When the green flag drops at Darlington, buckle up for a 6 week thrill ride, where the only way off is by crying to an attendant that this is actually a scarier ride than you thought, and being 'that guy' who makes everyone wait and the ride stop, while you're escorted down the stairs crying like a little girl.

 

***Note*** Many of these seasonal descriptions and historical recants have been written by the members of the league itself.  I cannot take credit for them all, thus the creator of the seasonal summary message is noted at the beginning of the message itself.

 

Thank you all

Michel J. MacCulloch

AKA: Lil Guard Dog

TDoREL Founder