I got exactly the same problem as you, I just don't seem to make it...

I think it was to easy myself, did it the first time i won pretty easy. I did like this, i went to the Junkers base on a mission before that or so i think it was and bought a legionaree from that base. A fast and very easy to manuever ship and it's very good so early in the game. Costs 30k and is a damn good fighter too!
Then it's just raising. But first i did hit the thruster with that ship couse it has a very fast acceleration and when i had 200 speed i switced to cruise engines, i even thought that mission was too easy... =/

I'm not bashing anyone that is having problems with the race. When I first got there and heard race, I had some fairly serious flashbacks to some games that have been ruined by some stupid, ridiculously hard race scene.

This one was very different though. When you start the race don't click any waypoints or put the ship on auto pilot. Just kick in the cruise engine and turn on the mouse steering. You will be losing the whole race until you come to a sharp turn and then the other guy misses his turn. From then on it's up to your shields to do the work. After a few cheap shots you win.

I really think some of you are trying to hard. Make it as simple as possible and you'll beat the crap out of the guy you are racing against.

Huh: You will be losing the whole race until you come to a sharp turn and then the other guy misses his turn.
Hmm i had the lead all the time wasn't even threatened it's just to use free flight and make some sharp turnings at the waypoint and you got it =/

I tried it several times with my freighter and of course had no chance, then i simply bought the ship they are selling on that base (cant remember what it was called) first race with this: free flight, engaging cruise engines, taking the lead before the first ring and winning easily. Btw the ship was good enough for the next missions.

Supertrap: I know exactly what you mean. When I realised that this was an arcadey race mission I cursed because I HATE it when they put stupid crap like that in a game. The racing mission in Mafia comes immediately to mind. I got so frustrated with that I just stopped playing.

At least this was an easy race. I did it in the Piranha and won on my second attempt. Just remember that the physics in the game give your ships some inertia. Try to do early, sharp turns. If you try to turn gradually with the gate the angle of attack will become sharper and sharper until you overshoot the gate entirely. Better to turn early and let your inertia carry you sideways until you're lined up.

personally i found it pretty easy, using a heavy fighter, just start cruise engines immediately when the race starts, and START turning towards the way point right after you hit the last one, or else you wont turn in time, i completed the race and won it the first time though

I completed the race the first time. I was using the Crusader, or the Cavalier, I don't remember. I just fired up the cruise engine and I was able to hit all the gates. I almost missed some of them and I imagine missing or hitting only one would make you lose.

Let's get those missiles ready to destroy the universe!!

---=== THE SOLUTION HOW TO WIN THIS RACE: ===---

PRESS SHIFT + W insteaad of F2!

Best regards
Technokrata

yes the race in mafia was exacrly the same. in this game i had also big problems with the race but after a long time i became better and better and then i finally win the race. but in freelancer it is so hard that i have to practice for a long time. i'm happy about some people are so good that they win in the first try but it seems that i'm not the birn racer. nevertheless i want to continue in the story,..

i wil try the "trick" with shift+w instead of F2.
but if anyone knows how i can go on without winning the race it would make me very pleased. so thx to all answers.



... with the words of the vulcans
live long and prosper

M-A-V-T-O-O

I'VE MADE IT!!!!!! YAAAHOOOOOOOOO

It was so easy i used always F2 first and with this it was very much to hard to made it but now i used shift+w and the ship was much easier to handle so i win the race without any problems,....

i thught F2 and shift+w is nearly the same,.. but when i now think about it is surely not the same. the autopilot makes it harder to handle. but if i only start the cruise engines it is very easy.

so guysdon't think i'm so stupid but that wasn't very intelligent from me *lol*



... with the words of the vulcans
live long and prosper

M-A-V-T-O-O

Ppl who can t win the race, should replay the tutorial or read the manual that they don t have.

alof of ppl are thinking that F2 are cruise engines, while F2 is auto pilot.

I won the race with a freighter so ...

What tutorial? and the manual is on the disc in .pdf

Yeah, wow, I didn't know it was so hard.

I screwed up the first time when he turned hostile, I thought I was supposed to fight, not keep going.

The second time was fine though. I just engaged cruise engines and stuck to the inside corner of every ring (the right side if a right-turn was coming, or the left for a left turn).

make sure you switch to mouse flight. I don't know about using GO TO, it seems like you're wasting valuable manuever time.

Just free-flight it and stick to the inside corners. The guy you're racing against is a moron and takes all the corners wide and does all sorts of crazy stuff