From full fibre to full throttle - How KCOM’s helping Martin take pole position

If there's one thing you need when you're careering around some of the world's top race circuits, it's not horsepower or the latest slick tyres - in the world of sim racing it's the best broadband latency and ping.

For 74-year-old Driffield motor sport enthusiast Martin Bailey, it's an essential tool that allows him to take on competitors often half his age online, from all over the world and from the comfort of his dining room.

"I just love the buzz when the adrenaline's flowing. It's a thorough aerobic workout and really physically demanding with the force feedback through the steering wheel. Plus it's a lot more fun than gym work! As we age if we don't use it we lose it, and this also keeps my brain firing on all cylinders and reflexes as sharp as they ever were. Racing simulated cars requires the same sharpness and reflexes as the real cars demand.

"I love the social aspect too. I chat with the other racers worldwide - even while racing too!" I also do live stewarding and post-race incident analysis; it's a serious business you know!"

Although Martin played early racing simulators such as Colin McCrea Rally, a 90s Xbox classic that many gaming veterans will remember fondly, it wasn't until Covid struck that he delved fully into the world of competitive online racing.

By then, the technology had moved on beyond anything 90s gamers would have imagined.

Now with powerful PCs, with immersive VR headsets creating photorealistic worlds and full-racing car rigs that recreate everything from steering wheel shudder to banking and breaking - the modern sim racing experience is even better than the real thing, ultra-realistic laser scanned tracks where even rainwater runs and puddles exactly as it does on the real tracks.

Soon, the grandfather of five was roaring around virtual tracks around the world from Buenos Aires to Hockenheim and taking a whole host of chequered flags in the process.

Last season, in his RCV - or Racers of a Certain Vintage - league he took the championship winning nine out of ten races, recording nine fastest laps and earning nine pole positions, racing Mini JCWs, which mirrors the real world Mini JCW championship.

But, as in the real world of motorsport, technology is a key component of Martin's success. For without KCOM's full fibre broadband providing the reliable, ultrafast connectivity that enables his racing Sim to receive the data needed to create his online world, he'd be left languishing in the pits, trailing in the competition's wake.

When KCOM expanded its award-wining network to Martin's street, it was able to deliver the online experience that had been lacking under his previous provider's copper network.

"It's been a game changer," he says. "Since I've been connected, I've had no issues at all. As a rule, anybody doing this sort of thing needs low latency and low ping meaning there's

no delay - every micro-second makes a difference and reliable connection vital.

"This has never missed a beat. There's nothing worse than spending several days practicing for a championship race, qualifying well in a race, on the grid ready to go, and the copper line glitches and find yourself kicked off the server - race over!

"Not having to repeatedly check and reboot my connection before every race is bliss, now i don't think about it, it just works.

"A second huge benefit is time it takes to upload my races to my YouTube channel. I had to use reduced quality and even then it was taking up to three hours. Now thanks to KCOM I can use full 4k videos with stunning quality and it takes a few minutes, finally I can fully develop my channel."

Having a friendly, locally based contact centre, just down the road where he could speak to a regular contact to organise connection, was also a major benefit for Martin.

"The service has been fantastic from the start," he says. *It's great to be able to pick up the phone and speak to someone who knows who you are and is enthusiastic about what you want.

"It's got a great local feel to it."

And with KCOM providing the service connectivity to keep Martin on track, there's no signs of this retired racer slowing down any time soon.

To check out Martin's YouTube channel visit https://www.youtube.com/@martinbailey4076

To find out what KCOM's full fibre broadband can do for you visit www.kcom.com