1980 in sports - Sport Calendar of the major events of the ...

www.noeticoptions.com for the full post and history.
Context -
The S&P 500 increased 0.2% on Thursday, closing at another record high and touching the 3500 level for the first time in the process. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.6%) and Russell 2000 (+0.3%) performed slightly better, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.3% after setting an all-time high earlier in the session.
Financial stocks were among today's biggest winners, benefiting from some curve-steepening activity after Fed Chair Powell outlined a shift towards an average inflation target. Under the new framework, the Fed would allow PCE inflation to run moderately beyond 2.0% over time to make up for years when it ran below 2.0%.
From a sector perspective, the S&P 500 financials sector finished atop the standings with a 1.7% gain, followed by real estate (+1.4%), health care (+0.8%), and consumer staples (+0.6%). The communication services (-1.3%), consumer discretionary (-0.7%), and materials (-0.2%) sectors were the lone holdouts.
Other positive factors today included reports that Microsoft (MSFT 226.58, +5.43, +2.5%) and Walmart (WMT 136.63, +5.93, +4.5%) are teaming up to possibly acquire TikTok US, and Abbott Labs (ABT 111.29, +8.10, +7.9%) receiving emergency use authorization from the FDA for its $5.00, 15-minute COVID-19 antigen test.
Mega-cap growth stocks had a relatively weak outing today after an incredibly strong performance yesterday. Microsoft was an exception, of course, and so was Tesla (TSLA 2238.75, +85.58, +4.0%).
As an aside, Senate Majority Leader McConnell (R-KY) reportedly said stimulus talks remained at a stalemate, which may have been a contributing factor in the market's brief dip into negative territory around 1 p.m. ET. The market, however, swiftly rebounded into positive territory.
Recapping the moves in the Treasury market, the 2-yr yield finished flat at 0.16%, while the 10-yr yield increased six basis points to 0.75% as investors sold longer-dated bonds following Fed Chair Powell's speech. The U.S. Dollar Index was little changed at 93.03. WTI crude futures declined 0.8%, or $0.36, to $43.03/bbl.
Looking ahead, investors will receive the Personal Income and Spending report for July, the final Univ. of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment for August, and Wholesale Inventories for July on Friday.
Index Summary -
S&P 500 +0.22%; Nasdaq -0.35%;
DOW +0.57%; Russell 2000 +0.24%
VIX: 24.47 1.2,( +5.16%)
Sector Summary -
The three highest sectors for today were :
Financials +1.69%; Real Estate +1.34%; Health Care +0.79%;
The three lowest sectors for today were :
Communication Services -1.21%; Consumer Discretionary -0.54%; Materials -0.27%;
Commodities -
Gold - 1933.8,( +0.06%); Crude - 42.93,( -0.26%)
Today’s Option Activity Fast Facts -
CBOE Put/Call Ratio - 0.38
Highest Multiple Over Daily Average - ABT with 20 x the ADV of 11682. There were 202270 calls and 31703 puts.
Ticker with Most Contracts - MSFT with 1382856 contracts traded today with an AVD of 443297. There were 1172637 calls and 210219 puts.
Largest Put / Call Ratio - KNX with a 4.61 P/C ratio. There were 9063 puts and 1966 calls.
Largest Call / Put Ratio - STM with a 98.36 C/P ratio. There were 57247 calls and 582 puts.
\Stocks must be >$6, Highest Multiple must have >1k ADV, Largest ratios must have an option volume >10k*
Recap -
AMD 83.74 -2.28,( -2.65%)
SE 153.15 -5.85,( -3.68%)
STM 29.87 -1.04,( -3.36%)
LL 24.91 -1.97,( -7.33%)
You can find yesterday's post here.
MOMENTUM UNUSUAL OPTION ACTIVITY -
First Momentum Stock Pick -
Ticker : WMT 136.63 +5.93,(+4.54%) Earnings : 2020-11-17
Name : Walmart, Inc.
Industry : Food Retail, Sector : Retail Trade
Special Considerations : 52WkHigh
Option Information -
Today’s Option Volume: 979838, OptionOI: 774808
Multiple of ADV: 7, ADV: 148909
Total Calls: 880876, Total Puts: 98962
Calls at Ask: 44.5%, Calls at Bid: 36.2%
Puts at Ask: 22.4%, Puts at Bid: 31.9%
C/P Ratio: 8.9
Notable Strikes :
AUG 28 '20 132.0 C had 15301.0 VLM and 4824 OI.
AUG 28 '20 133.0 C had 26576.0 VLM and 0 OI.
SEP 04 '20 133.0 C had 11184 VLM and 0 OI.
News :
2020-08-27 14:29:43 - Microsoft and Walmart acquiring TikTok would give the companies 'riches of data' to compete with top rival Amazon, analysts say (MSFT, WMT, AMZN)
Microsoft and Walmart teamed up on a bid to acquire a portion of TikTok, Walmart confirmed to Business Insider. If the bid is successful, analysts say acquiring TikTok would give the companies "riches of data" to take on their mutual biggest rival, Amazon. The Trump administration originally set a Sept. 15 deadline for TikTok to find a buyer, which has since been extended, but some reports suggest a decision could come much sooner.
Potential Sympathy Stocks for WMT
TGT, COST, DG, M
My Impression :
WMT has made waves with the addition WalMart Plus to provide competition with AMZN. It appears investors are betting on MSFT winning the bid for TikTok to further drive the price higher. This is a sound company with solid options flow today. I will have my shares from when it was first mentioned.
Second Momentum Stock Pick -
Ticker : DKS 53 -0.99,( -1.83%) Earnings : 2020-11-17
Name : Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc.
Industry : Specialty Stores, Sector : Retail Trade
Special Considerations :
52WkHigh
Option Information -
Today’s Option Volume: 35987, OptionOI: 114219
Multiple of ADV: 4, ADV: 9469
Total Calls: 25928, Total Puts: 10059
Calls at Ask: 51.8%, Calls at Bid: 33.2%
Puts at Ask: 48.2%, Puts at Bid: 28.6%
C/P Ratio: 2.6
Notable Strikes :
SEP 11 '20 53.0 C had 5599.0 VLM and 125 OI.
SEP 18 '20 60.0 C had 4112.0 VLM and 3076 OI.
News :
No News for today.
Potential Sympathy Stocks for DKS
HIBB, BGFV, SPWH, WMT
My Impression :
Dicks had excellent earnings and the thought is that people will continue to increase their outdoor activities now that the Corona Virus epidemic appears to be winding down. I’d like the C/P ratio to be a bit higher on this stock, but DKS is a solid company with a look.
CLASSIC UNUSUAL OPTION ACTIVITY -
First Classic UOA Stock Pick -
Ticker : BYND 132.18 +6.66,(+5.31%), Earnings : 2020-11-02
Name : Beyond Meat, Inc.
Sector : Consumer Non-Durables, Industry : Food: Major Diversified
Option Information :
2020-09-18 155.0 C - 2,837 @ 4.00 were traded at 11:01 as a SWEEP Spot Price: 137.87
2020-09-18 155.0 C - 502 @ 3.50 were traded at 09:37 as a SWEEP Spot Price: 135.09
News :
2020-08-27 09:00 - Beyond Meat is launching a direct-to-consumer business as plant-based 'meat' sales soar amid the pandemic
Beyond Meat is going direct-to-consumer, launching an e-commerce site in a bid to make its products accessible to more people. Beyond Meat is hoping to cash in on increasing demand for plant-based "meat" products, which has skyrocketed amid the pandemic.
Potential Sympathy Stocks for BYND
NOMD, PBH-CT, PRBZF, SOUPQ
Second Classic UOA Stock Pick -
Ticker : NCLH 16.65 +0.93,(+5.92%), Earnings : 2020-11-05
Name : Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd.
Sector : Consumer Services, Industry : Hotels/Resorts/Cruiselines
Option Information :
2020-09-18 20.0 C - 2,470 @ 0.49 were traded at 09:32 as a SWEEP Spot Price: 16.62
2020-09-18 20.0 C - 2,470 @ 0.49 were traded at 09:32 as a SWEEP Spot Price: 16.62
News :
No news.
Potential Sympathy Stocks for NCLH
CCL, RCL, CUK, CKH
Upcoming Events for Next Trading Day -
Here you can find a full list of tomorrow's events with explanations.
Thanks for reading.
DISCLAIMER – These are my observations that I have made at the end of each day and trades that I am considering placing or watching. I am not responsible for your financial losses if you follow any of these trades. As always, do your due diligence.
Company Summary : WMT
Walmart, Inc. engages in retail and wholesale business. The Company offers an assortment of merchandise and services at everyday low prices. It operates through the following business segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. The Walmart U.S. segment operates as a merchandiser of consumer products, operating under the Walmart, Wal-Mart, and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands, as well as walmart.com and other eCommerce brands. The Walmart International segment manages supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, and cash & carry outside of the United States. The Sam's Club segment comprises membership-only warehouse clubs and samsclubs.com. The company was founded by Samuel Moore Walton and James Lawrence Walton in 1945 and is headquartered in Bentonville, AR.
Company Summary : DKS
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. engages in the retail of extensive assortment of authentic sports equipment, apparel, footwear, and accessories through a blend of associates, in-store services, and unique specialty shop-in-shops. The company was founded by Richard T. Stack in 1948 and is headquartered in Coraopolis, PA.
Company Summary : BYND
Beyond Meat, Inc. engages in the provision of plant-based meats. Its products include ready-to-cook meat under the brands The Beyond Burger and Beyond Sausage; and frozen meat namely Beyond Chicken Strips and Beyond Beef Crumbles. The company was founded by Ethan Walden Brown and Brent Taylor in 2009 and is headquartered in El Segundo, CA.
Company Summary : NCLH
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. engages in cruise business. It provides cruise experiences for travelers with itineraries in North America, Mediterranean, Baltic, Central America, Bermuda and Caribbean. It also offers an entirely inter-island itinerary in Hawaii. Its brands include Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruses. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Miami, FL.

morning coffee

Watch NFR Live Stream 2020 Texas Rodeo Onlin

[10/16/2019] Wednesday's Off Topic Free Talk Thread

The Meld II (19): Path-finder.

10/16	10/17	10/18	10/19	10/20	10/21	10/22
73°, Rain	65°, Clouds	73°, Clear	86°, Clear	87°, Clear	81°, Rain	74°, Clouds

The Meld II (19): Path-finder.
As the sun began sinking, Nahrl realised he had underestimated badly. On the other side of the basin the City seeming far closer than it actually was. The fault in review proving the madly towering scale of the splintered ruined towers, combined with far taller trees deeper along on this side as well. Both factors combining to deeply confuse his normally accurate sense of distance via bamboozling the measure of relative scales. There being a paradigm shift over here. Though occasional forced backtracking didn’t help them reach their destination quickly either. As if on cue he heard another approaching Drone.
‘To cover.’ Nahrl signalled.
With deep reluctance, but necessary haste, the party hustling off the animal track. Each member - carefully - merging among the grown denser, stranger undergrowth. Ideally disappearing under the eaves of only passive large rubbery leaved plants. Avoiding contact with the increasingly prolific and problematic hanging vines and other menaces. Some of the trailing plants, lately waxing in numbers, moved in alarming ways. More carnivore, it guessed ancient science altered, plantimal forms. Judging on variations of feature and colour several species. A few deceptively beautiful, scenting richly attractive as well, probably luring occasional victims that way.
Perhaps it cautiously looking upward rather than down tripped Gryll. The Rogue emitting a sharp wordless electronic burst of surprise whilst plummeting from sight. Their Korvax friend vanishing into a previously unseen drop, trailing a scatter of netted plant growth with him, a profusion once matted across the gap possibly only accidentally concealing the now exposed void.
That event, in part, glanced under the optics of Efor, as rear guard, the Gek cursing out, ‘Gryll!’ over comms., whilst the Sentinel drew nearer. The machine floating down the natural path they had lately taken, only the Drone, red lens flaring, arriving upon them from the opposite direction. Akin to the Pentacle Minus One, the Sentinels currently also forced to patrol natural conduits, else, unlike the friends, they zoomed along high above the canopy. Efor easily understanding, given the hanging banes and so on, why some wise animals had created safer trails via habitual movements. Although the animals also ventured off trail to forage on occasion most doing so tentatively with great care. Nature a good teacher.
They had all witnessed what happened to startled bolting animals rushing wildly off their own paths in panic. At this end of the jungle, the vines oft catching unlucky ones. Some manner of thorn injected neurotoxin suspected. Anyway, the deaths jerky, quick and loathsome. Presently the more usual in many woods semi clear space between the canopy and the undergrowth full with those tangling jungle style spilling liana like vines. Some of which, (confusingly far from all), retaining the aforementioned animalistic predatory qualities.
Meanwhile, back in the perilous moment, the Drone gliding forward, drifting effortlessly upon a sophisticated anti gravity drive. The thing only pausing to smoothly pivot in mid air as if sniffing, though clearly attracted by the previous sound of Gryll’s fall. It then followed on with a slower virtually stalking level of creeping advance, shifting cautiously almost as if nervous while still buzzing ever closer orientated to the hole and via loose grouping the concealed party too. All the hiding above ground companions growing more tense and still. Thoughts of Gryll’s fate deferred momentarily by their own requirement to stay unnoticed.
The Drone ultimately halting a little shy. The mechanical mind computing its best reactive options whilst listening for further discordant noises via sharp microphones. It wisely hesitant to advance deeper off the trail into the often lethal undergrowth beyond. Though the friends unsure how deadly the vines might be to a machine, perhaps it merely didn’t want forced to wound or destroy to break loose. That being one advantage here - for the Pentacle Minus One - the Drones seeming to know, and to avoid, deep jungle complications. Thus the friends as long as they stayed hidden and remained still might yet be safe. Although the sound of Gryll’s fall a bit of ill luck.
Grim games of retreat or hide and seek presently too familiar. The area, nearest they guessed to the City limits, had ways suspiciously hiving with mechanised patrols. It as if the Sentinels intent upon keeping people out, else people or other unknowns cut off and imprisoned within. Many times Drones or Quads had forced the friends to stealthily backtrack and skirt around seeking a better gap in the defence only to be moved on again, primarily using those safer crisscrossing animal trails. Thus it would go until Nahrl, in deep frustration, would get a little bolder and chance them to slip around some judged narrow chink in another defensive ring. The cordon proving many layered, though really it was less geometric than a simple ring in action due to the random forest pathways. Nahrl oft fearing they would get caught in the middle of this dangerously monitored zone, exposed and attacked from all accessible directions with no sane escape off trail. Using a jetpack under the canopy a virtual suicide via vine. Even if the thorns did not penetrate shields, the tangling would immobilise and delay making anyone snared easy Sentinel targets.
Luckily the Forest - for all its exotic menaces - especially towards Efor -, or so he still claimed, also provided ample cover on the slightly safer fringes of the well judged animal trails at least in selected spots. Machine noises by the Drones and Quads usually giving their approach away reasonably clearly in advance. The party however, in their traverse, forced to move slowly, constantly listening with their suit microphones turned up, or their ears straining. Whilst despite precautions a few too close calls kept everyone stressed. Yet, so far, they had remained undetected with the exception of one previous mishap: The event when Efor shot the shrieking initially hidden ground dwelling tentacle sprouting hunched plantimal thing that had ambushed him, no pun intended. That encounter precipitating an especially tense rout. The group fleeing - alerted - Drone attention down various tracks. The unholy hooting shrieks of the weird plant animal mix when it fought and died easily rallying Sentinel attention and ire.
Despite the one aberration, simply stealthily retreating or taking to concealment for a time often proved good enough, whilst that lone chase occurred before they entered the main body of this apparent Sentinel cordon. It also happening before they got surrounded by especially dense masses of the troublesome hanging vines. As they neared the City outskirts matters ranging from bad to worse in multiple ways. If the SmugglerGek flew directly into the heart of the City they probably had no idea just how lucky they had been in avoiding a jungle trek. Although Nahrl, as ever, did a diligent Scouting job as a master of the path-finding craft, including being a Fox expert at avoiding rather than finding trouble. As Sentinel encounters waxed frequent, rather than sporadic, it getting harder work.
Therefore they had toiled in increasing despair - anything but directly - towards their desire the sun steadily sinking, that blessed orb’s kindly presence waning early, its light diffused, horribly barred, by the barrier of the jungles intimidating growth. In a way the shade aiding their cover from angry machines, but it hardly boosted their morale. Meanwhile, the currently menacing Drone scanned a local berry heavy thorn bush with suspiciously luscious looking fleshy yellow fruit. Then seemingly content, began to float away. Efor felt he was sweating Gek stink inside his helmet, despite temperature controlling. To him the cursed unnatural predatory flora bad enough without machines congregating as well. Yet since he donned his helmet and turned his suit olfactory sensors off, the traverse had become more tolerable on one level at least. It a hard price for him to pay though - as a Gek: Not scenting his environment directly with his own nostrils that made him feel somewhat sense blind. Though he found himself naturally increasingly relying upon optical and sonic input instead.
The sweaty weary Gek cursing inwardly, yearning to get away from the freakish claustrophobic living domain. The Damn Drone too typically taking its time about moving on, it only going a few Gek paces distance before pausing again, to scan some other relatively mundane object in the vicinity. Efor often wondering precisely what the machines scanned for, though maybe it something less obvious than it appeared. Perhaps it sought signs of material instabilities in the structure of reality: Fluxes in the quantum foam or other esoteric hokum well beyond his level of general science learning - well mostly - ignoring his occult days.
Whatever the machine obsession, it left Efor desirous of screaming. Could such routines be programmed in, to deliberately test the nerve of any trespassers they hunted? A big part of him wanted to end his tense vigil by leaping up from his crouched cover to shoot the cursed thing down without mercy. He envisioned that action several times over, it seeming a grand Gek fantasy. Sadly although decisive martial action might appear the quick solution to move along unmolested, more probably it very much not so. Rash action only summoning more of the damned things, beginning a grim too standard escalation of hunting reinforcement.
Truly, it would not surprise him if Drones did loiter - simply to act as tempting targets - offering themselves up as disposable bait. Coming under fire being a fine way to pinpoint and reveal hostiles to their wider conglomerate. If they did play such selfless games, it actually rather cunning for spawning bots.
Given how it usually played out, Efor knew staying concealed the best option of all, yet every time they were trapped he struggled to retain his necessary immobility. The Gek now appreciating how much he lacked the Foxes - at need - almost meditative levels of deep inner and outer stillness. Their patience in particular when hiding and stalking both impressing and sometimes frustrating the spawn out of him. By comparison, staying perfectly still, for him as a Gek, often a battle of fraying willpower over natural fidgety inclinations. Worse, he personally also felt a betraying inner part of him yearned to give all their positions away in a deliberate devilish manner. A mad impulse perhaps of the former CultGek tempting him. How he hated that horrid being - he had fled away from - so long ago. Evil thoughts from that SurvivorGek still ironically making him itch to do dire things. Yet such simply his unhappy - once broken - mind being converse, when he dwelt too much upon haunting old matters best left to wither and die.
Occasionally remembrance of an ill history can spawn with your better nature. Mocking the hard won successes, claiming there actually no hope and no escape from the Gek you used to be. As his Seniors had oft lectured: The pyramidal tiers of the Cult is all! Beyond such advancement only a soul devouring darkness. You fed the Darks, or the Darks fed upon you! That was the devil’s compact. Once in the Cult, always a Cultist… The Dark Taint - not a matter easily expelled - it seeped in deep to meld firmly with your being. Forbidden knowledge rooting in your cells as if some malignant cancerous mutating blight or roguish, (off kinder remit), invasive nanotech machines.
How do you escape from yourself after you have become what you become? Of course, some of that a lie designed to help keep New Initiates bound to their New Masters, yet a shadow of truth in there too. The taint did stain you, you were never quite free of it or the same Gek you were before initiation.
‘Bah!’ He complained inwardly turning away from the old - too familiar - horror of his shadowed history. Turning instead to immediate concerns about the lone Sentinel and Gryll. Was Gryll alright? He must have fallen down a sink hole, perhaps dropping into a deep cave system or even an old Warren living space or tunnel, it being Hellespae after all. Unlike any other world he had traversed, this one a labyrinth of ancient and modern underground - manufactured workings - not just natural tunnels and caves though there remained plenty of those as well. In some ways, more occurring underground these days - in places - than happened above on the surface. Especially since the return of the Sentinels, the Hellespae Underdarks hiving with banished Tusk and Fox souls, although that not, he realised, the most auspicious way to consider it.
Some of his nasty thoughts probably seeded by memories of the Forest Stink yet wounding his equilibrium. At least Gryll smart enough to remain quiet after his accident. Efor positive the silence just Gryll being sensible, not say the effect of him falling down some unholy ruinous abyss to lie broken. Bah! Gryll had a jetpack and active shields too. No mere fall would easily end the rare Traveller Korvax.
Nonetheless, Efor itched to rush over to the hole to investigate the unexpected happening, even as a potential underground escape from the testing jungle trek. Yet he dared not move whilst the Drone yet lurked so close listening. Again he had to resist that urge to pop up and shoot it. It coming to his mind that if he destroyed the spawning thing they could all jump into the hole to hide from any deeper attention that action might draw. Yet he knew drawing that added attention - stupid - and leaping into an abyss might lead to other issues even if it presently seemed attractive. It proving a harsh wait indeed, when Nahrl lobbed a well aimed stone that had the Drone move off to investigate that sound. Now why didn’t I think of that low tech solution, Efor thought, then realising probably because it was low tech. Bah! You could get too dependent upon machines. When it finally out of range, Efor gave out a great sigh of relief and sprang into physical action. The movement an intense Joy, Joy. Yet he was careful enough to mind his own footing lest he tumble beyond some vegetative edge in an undignified and worse overly loud crashing manner.
It was only belatedly that the Gek judged himself a fool. After all, he could have silently linked into Gryll at any time to ascertain his friends present status including during his hiding vigil. There being no need to rest in ignorant trepidation. Yet in the moments of concealment, thoughts of communication with others had abandoned him. Maybe a good thing, as sometimes it better to stay alert rather than be too distracted by a back and forth babble. Although he had kept up a busy inner monologue in his head with himself that somehow less bothersome distracting.
‘Gryll fell into something.’ Efor nonetheless broadcast by comms., to the others first.
‘Heard him drop.’ Nahrl sent back, soon moving over with Jhasq ranging behind him on one flank, something lethal tactical about that deployment not to mention hunting sinister. In the jungle the Foxes seemed to wax predatory. The way they stalked sending a natural thrill of alarm to the Gek almost activating a prey flight or fight instinct. Yet it was just Nahrl and Jhasq - his friends - he let the cowardly impulse go.
‘You alright down there.’ Nahrl sent, doing the obvious, before Efor framed and transmitted his own planned query. That being what he got for distracting thoughts of Fox Predators hunting him through the undergrowth.
‘Fine.’ Gryll replied lightly as if surprised at anybody even being concerned.
‘So what have you found down there?’ Efor sent turning his torch on to peer into a narrow round shaft that ran perfectly straight. The lengthy hole although well overgrown in places by normal creeping weeds - denoting possible antiquity - had all the signs of a once well cut Terrain Manipulator type escape tunnel. The sort of thing wanderers had a habit of excavating as short cuts to the surface when stuck deep underground. Though Efor mused it could also as easily be an old - no thrills - air shaft of some manner. Somehow it didn’t strike him as a sensible purposeful entrance. There being no ladder or even cut semi hidden hand and foot holes nothing of that aiding civil engineered nature visible anyway.
‘A Fox Warren area, of a sort, although…’ Gryll trailed off for a time. ‘…something else too.’ The Rogue added with a very different - far more serious - not to add mysterious tone.
From above Efor could make out hints of his friends torch light flickering around below though it didn‘t really help him to see much more, not even when combined with some steadier plant based bioluminescence also present. Yet peering down as if through a long non magnifying telescope he did glimpse hints of a blocky overgrown shape directly below that instinctively disturbed him slightly, though he could not immediately appreciate why at that distance. He didn’t dwell too much on it though, partly because, of late, so very much disturbing him. Being half freaked out seemed his present mode of the moment. Strange what you can get used to, including a constant ambiance of terror.
‘Coming down.’ Efor stated before leaping in cushioning his fall via short taps of his jetpack. The Gek veering off slightly from the protruding object directly below. Although he landed a little awkwardly to one side of the block, Efor felt instantly safer with all the primary jungle growth now a good distance above, better yet with mostly a fine deep stone barrier between him and it. Truly Joy, Joy.
Without a word Nahrl then Jhasq also slipped down to join their colleagues also using a little jet power to avoid colliding with the central object and to land well enough.
‘Does it run our way.’ Nahrl asked immediately, whilst looking around, his mind still set firmly on the journey ahead.
Efor judging even their Scout happy to potentially get away from among the trees, in his case to avoid the increasingly troublesome Sentinel patrols now taxing even his stealthy guidance. Actually Nahrl had long been looking for ways underground ever since they entered the hanging vine jungle style part of the Forest biome, without luck in that side quest until now. The only hollows previously observed being some too obvious animal style - dug out - burrows that Nahrl considered best avoided, a choice Efor firmly agreed with not liking the idea of what might lurk in those locations. Something about those holes, maybe another smell, also giving him the creeps. It probably amusing Nahrl now though that Gryll - by sheer mishap - had perhaps found what he could not, despite all his scouting craft. Although that they had striven to avoid straying off the animal trails, (as much as possible), probably ill helping with locating underworld entrances.
Efor took in the new area. It was a largish, mostly open, space ignoring the elevated central block. Certainly the Pentacle Minus One not crowding it, but it was not vastly huge either. The shaft actually at the apex of a smaller perfect but compact dome shaped void that then widened via a hard edged circumference into a broader flat ceiling. Directly under the shaft and dome now, he looked at it better, in dimensions a suspiciously alter like slab of dark heavily carved stone. The stonework rather overgrown with hardy opportunistic weeds even inside the shaded hollow. Yet glimpses between that unruly growth that also colonised patches upon the wider mud caked stone floor did hint at elaborate - Fox - skill level carvings. Unfortunately, the object itself and the shapes half glimpsed of the things carved in relief soon presented as less Foxy and suggesting nothing pleasant.
‘An old Gek Blood Cult Shrine.’ Gryll stated firmly - but plainly - as if that fact no big deal, whilst playing his torch over the offending weed encased sacrificial alter block. Not, thank The Stars, active Elder Tech, just regular old inert stone - as far as I can tell. No creepy emissions here whatsoever, beyond the natural reactions it causes via association in any dark lore wise mind, or simply any vivid imagination.’ He added.
‘Filthy work.’ Nahrl barked out via a sending. ‘I hate that any of my people were involved in crafting such abominable things.’
The Fox glared at the weed choked alter stone as if its presence alone deeply offended.
‘Grimly, even quite recently Tusks often used enslaved Fox Masons to carve out their unholy Tributes and Shrines to the Dark Dreamer. Can you imagine it? Being forced to do such vile labours knowing your own people likely to be tortured, sacrificed and devoured there - body, mind and soul - at least according to the worst dark myths.’
Nahrl looking like he wanted to spit, or maybe to blast the old relic into chips and dust.
‘I didn’t credit our Father Geskhan promoted such worship - in his time - yet I guess such as this, (as some off world scholars might say), is simply evidence of the old Imperial Blood Cult.’ Jhasq noted.
Gryll shook his head ever so slightly almost below easy biological perception in that sometimes understated Korvax way. ‘I calculate not so deeply official.’
‘Why not?’ Nahrl asked.
‘Many little things don‘t fit. I fear you might be surprised too how the corruption of such darkling worship can spread, even into the most unlikely of places, among the most improbable of folk.’
‘An earlier Tusk corruption than the advent of the Dreamer.’ Nahrl ventured.
‘Perhaps.’ Gryll replied but he did not sound too convinced by that idea either. ‘You know there are even it believed Korvax that secretly worship the Darks and not just Rogue Korvax. Once deemed Lawful Convergent folk too, some at first innocently simply doing research but going a bit too deep in their studies. Some vile doctrines can infect even the cool headed - akin to a contagion - acting as if a disease of the mind. All it takes is to get too close to the same and to exhibit a little weakness of character.’
That idea made Nahrl shudder inside and feel slightly depressed too. Why did evil always seem so pervasive and strong? Corruption so rife? He glared at the stone again with its leafy semi hidden, best not described, hints of dire images of Elder Horrors from Beyond any sane Beyond. Meanwhile, Gryll gave a little start and gazed away for a moment. They could all too easily guess at the cause of that abiding twitch, it becoming too familiar to the entire party.
Surely Gryll was not hinting that…, Nahrl thought, soon finding one fresh idea offended him deeper than the Alter itself - so deep - he could barely bring himself to name it even in the seclusion of his own head.
For a time Gryll seemed distracted. Perhaps his thoughts drawn away by that distant pulse that only he felt.
A little reluctantly but unable to resist Nahrl asked. ‘So what - exactly - is so unofficial about it?’
‘For a start it lacks certain expected hints of the Grand Imperial scale also richness of finish. Plus it is clearly well out of the City proper, hidden away here.’ Gryll noted in full scholar mode.
‘So? The Cults like to lurk on the fringes. That is nothing new, or it could be a minor split.’ Efor injected.
‘In this age you are correct. After all in these more reasonable times sentient sacrifices are judged by most both crimes and moral abominations. Yet during the height of the Gek Empire it was, you might say, a State run franchise, probably even here on Geskhan’s world to some degree. Not practices occurring in hidden places during clandestine gatherings. Although the Cults certainly always retained some secret - sacred inner sanctums - that few ever witness, those even rarer sites well distinctive in their own right. Such housing impressive collections of weird Elder Tech objects and / or a lot of questionable texts.’
‘Is the shaft here ritual then, given its - obvious - orientation with the alter? A tunnel cut out to the sky and all that rests - far beyond it - to those worshippers.’ Jhasq asked.
‘Well spotted. Very possibly, good Fox, you have a fine scholarly mind. Moreover, I suspect it a flue of sorts for the unleashing of unholy smoke. Burned offerings occurring here, not just blood spilling. See here,’ Gryll pointed with his torch, ‘to me that a well contained fire pit though obviously long lost to use.’
‘As if gutting people not creepy enough they had to cook parts of them too.’ Nahrl noted.
‘Very probably whilst they were yet alive to view and smell it. It adds to the terror, the spectacle and the drama.’ Efor stated angrily. ‘I know of a few particularly nasty rituals that veer in that horrid direction. You might say an unspeakable sort of barbeque.’ The Gek possibly grotesquely half joked.
Nahrl felt a bit sick at the concept especially having seen some Dreamer Cult Shrines. Sadly the one at Bhathag’s Fort destined to be only one of many he would later help to uncover, digging for survivors after the bombarding Wrath of the Sentinels.
‘Hateful - so unnatural - so cursed wrong.’ Jhasq complained.
‘Hating the Cults, when you know them, a too easy habit.’ Efor agreed. ‘Let’s not linger here overlong. Is there an underground way onward from this place? A path that might better suit us than the Forest above?’
‘Possibly. As easily noted four equidistant exits depart from this room, each facing a cardinal point, though how far any of those go… That one in our general direction.’ Gryll noted pointing again with his torch. ‘Still that immediate directionality might mean little enough any distance beyond it. This place - given what it is - may have been concealed I will bet by cunning twists and turns beyond.’
‘Give me a moment to scout a little ahead, to see if any of these paths are worth using.’ Nahrl sent. ‘If our luck holds access might be found from here into a main Causeway or some other direct underground route straight into the City Centre. Such a substantial site should historically be well serviced by many such routes. That being why I was so keen to find us a way down. This place despite its former usage a fortuitous find Gryll. You bring us good fortune.’
‘I spawning hope so.’ Efor sent back. ‘I really don’t want to go back up there again, especially in the deeps of night, it gloomy and grim enough in daylight. Anyway, those Sentinels getting too much. We are tempting fate keeping pushing into those patrols. Sooner or later they are going to detect and surround us.’
Perhaps complaining about the gloomy Forest an ironic statement given their current location, yet to the Gek the old Shrine despite its former infamy, (in closer examination), seemed dead. The power of the site - if it ever had any beyond wishful thinking and mundane social manipulation - spent - long ages ago. Its ancient evil kindly banished and buried under healthier intruding growth. The weeds here alone, including a few glowing bulbs shining cheerily bioluminescent almost banishing the shadows of former menaces entirely. Though none of the light makers that brighter traditional Warren lightweed, the glowing flowers still seemed to have turned the place picturesque enough, verging on charming at least through a less tainted lens. You simply had to ignore its old purpose and not look too closely at the semi-hidden carvings. Though the far walls remained shadowy enough, those walls never meant to be well lit. Never dedicated to Light and Life always to Darkness and Death. Nonetheless, defiant life bearing its own light had reclaimed and in that small wonder Efor found cheering glimmers of hope - a rare - good omen indeed.
Still whilst Nahrl departed to do - what he always did - hunting a generally safe way onward - they poked around the Shrine with a certain difficult to restrain morbid curiosity. Though none of them brave enough - not even Gryll - to get up close with the alter stone itself. They all let that arcane object be, not even moving some of those screening plants aside to better view the abominations rendered so skilfully possibly by Fox hands below. Maybe if they did not have more pressing issues Gryll would have taken pains to record it all, as an interesting Blood Cult archaeological find, but compared to the grander moment of the guessed mega archaeology of the City proper beyond, this place seemed an insignificant distraction not worth much effort.
Efor nonetheless found himself scraping away some dirt with his boot at a spot where he had expected to find something more obvious. Then in the end he pulled out his Multi-tool and reducing its power output significantly used a Terrain Manipulator function to clear a layer of earth and plant growth away. It was the slow deposit of ages, soil and so on washed down perhaps from above sprouting seeds too. Not so deep that soil, just a skim really, the MT simply making a quicker, cleaner operation of removing that covering from the patch obsessing him. Rightly enough it cleared a bigger capping stone to the rest of the pattern tiled floor. Yet a block Efor suspected might be less substantive than it looked plus weighted and balanced for easy opening in some manner. Foxes with stone cunning engineers, Efor seen many of their works in action.
Soon he was pressing and prodding around but having scant success at finding a hidden unlocking mechanism. Jhasq however noting his failing work intervened, the Fox seeming to know the exact spot and quickly had the stone door swinging down upon concealed hinges. Though it stuck part way until forced by Efor. The Gek’s violent stomp causing something to give way so that the whole stone block dropped but also tilted at an angle one hinge at the very least broken. There was a little billow of dry dust when the lowest corner’s edge struck down hard accompanied by unsettling snapping crunches.
Jhasq inhaled sharply then coughed out a bark in disgust at the sight revealed, whilst waving offensive particles away given their now visible source. Gryll just nodded as if expecting nothing less, Efor registering little emotion too being yet hidden behind his almost First Spawn style helmet. Perhaps in all the excitement forgetting to take it off or yet still wary of Forest stinks.
Apparently the Gek using his grasp of Blood Cult lore and architecture to uncover the Shrine’s Ossuary a ritual depository of sacrificial bones. They all gathered around to shine their torches down upon the ancient victims to get a better look. Thankfully, there was little in the way of a bad smell as often accompanied tall tales of such finds. Here the surviving bones including many broken chips, all dry and dusty rather than wet and rancid. Among them a few recognisable skulls, some still sporting long distinctive Tusks. Kneeling down to look closer, Efor noted a few of the fragments had charring upon them but far from all. Some also seemed to have wicked tooth marks as if hungrily gnawed upon many such broken open and hollow edged as if the marrow greedily sucked from within.
Had some critters found there way in to feast on the dead? Efor doubted it but ran his torch around the circumference of the pit to be certain, it all seemed lined with unbroken well worked stone.
‘Surprisingly early Tusk cannibalism taken to new depths of - self - abusive horror.’ Jhasq stated.
Efor and Gryll let that go. They both had other thoughts, but if choosing to believe the crimes here committed by Ancient Tusks made dealing with the site easier for Jhasq neither of them saw much point in shattering her delusion. Sometimes a lie arguably better than a truth, when the truth only wounds. In this instance correcting didn’t seem to matter, the crimes - as the owners of the bones - all ancient history.
Sometimes the abused become the abuser. Though given the age of this place Efor not sure which party started any cycle, maybe it would never be known with any clarity. Besides, this specific Cult could be statistically some rarity rather than evidence of a deep trend or any broader movement. Too often singular finds causing wild fancies about an entire society or culture, whilst they might only pertain to a twisted tiny subset of the same. This was Gek Blood Cult work though - from its form - even more so than modern Dreamer Shrines. The Dreamer Shrines had many commonalities with Gek Blood Cults, as Efor better knew them, but they also had their own peculiar kinks that set them distinctively apart. As if the Dreamer Cultists only acting out a faith in part copied from older forms as mere inspirational points of reference. Perhaps the Dreamer once robbing occult lore from Shadow Library files then warping those ideas to his own equally grim cultural desires and purposes.
This site to Efor purer worship of a Dark or Darks, well if you can ever dare to call such actions pure.
‘Come away from it Jhasq.’ Gryll sent as he moved back. ‘Some matters - too deeply studied - can only disturb a soul’s grip upon their better self. You need not go there, recording such evil is not your business. You are a healer, not an Archivist of Cults of the Outer Darkness.’
Jhasq considered that and nodded backing away as Gryll suggested to join him at the far end of the room against one wall.
‘So many.’ She whispered aloud.
‘Such places can be active for a long time thus accumulating a horde of victims even if the killing rituals are rare enough and say calendar based.’ Gryll stated.
‘I’ll never understand these insane arcane wastes of life.’ She confessed
‘Which is a good thing.’ Efor sent joining them. ‘It is a pity the stone broke. Yet I have filled the mass grave in.’ He added holstering his multi-tool after clicking it off the create function. It was amazing what nanotech could do. Some tool functions even making mass out of seeming thin air, although actually it was always about complex processes of elemental compression, decompression, transport and conversion.
After the Geks comment none of them spoke for a time. Not even after Gryll gave another tiny start and habitually turned searching for his ghostly signal. What was it about it? The Rogue mused. Somehow it felt almost familiar, akin to some data deleted but whose void left a distinctive hole in an internal memory space. Why did he feel that pulse fitted as if a key into a gap within his digital mind and soul. The more he thought about it the more it bothered him deeply, again it felt oddly personal and somehow no one else’s business not even his friends. He did not really want to discuss that particular aspect of the experience with anyone else, even though earlier when he had spoken of the pulse in general that had made him feel a little better.
Gryll knew he now felt less isolated in his escalating plight. It was no joke to any Korvax though to feel yourself malfunctioning even due to an external influence. What if the systems of his Casing failed altogether? He would be lost into the keeping of the Atlas and then the Convergence at least such his supposition of belief.
With Nahrl likely gone awhile, they settled in to wait. In truth, they were all a little tired, well maybe not Gryll - not physically anyway - though maybe emotionally he was worn down enough by that periodic pulse through his systems. Soon the Rogue standing with his back to one wall, whilst the others sat sprawled on the floor nearby all far away from the alter. Efor considering eating something but realised he had no present appetite. The Gek did happily take his helmet off though eventually stowing it away in his backpack. First he sniffed at the air hesitantly though, it proving fine only a little musty with but a hint of the malignant jungle scent down here. In fact, the more local weeds predominantly smelling fresh to him - clean - natural - normal. Again, Efor thought of that simple joyous life intruding into this space as a benison. He felt a little bad about clearing some of it away when harvesting the ground to expose the cap stone of the Ossuary. Yet he let it go, done being done and no open pit in evidence had surprised him. Besides, he filled the grave in with untainted freshly generated earth and that might soon enough be re-colonised by seeds and spores. There being some innocent enough fungi down here too. At least one type of which scented edible raw. Yet he was not of a mind to gather either opting to let it be.
They waited in a companionable enough silence, each lost in their own contemplations. None wanting to burden the others with some of their occasionally darker chains of thought. Although overall Efor brightened a little, with the Ossuary buried and if you ignored the alter this place as good a rest stop as they might hope for. No horrid vines down here. Ideally no carnivorous plants at all - at least he hoped so.
When Nahrl appeared he just looked them over and gestured for them to follow. They complied falling into the same single file order of march as before. The immediate way proved as serpentine and tricky as Gryll had hinted. The Rogue also knew his Blood Cults and was perhaps growing well familiar with Fox Warrens as well. Without doubt to casual intruders coming the other way there were ways that would have been easily missed and slants that would naturally deflect. Yet such not designed to hide from the opposite direction. Still there were several side ways Nahrl ignored. Efor wondering if he had explored any of those paths during his initial scouting or if Fox signs, invisible to the Gek, had guided him invariable down the main direction he wanted to go.
At times Nahrl's ability to navigate underworld spaces seeming to verge on the uncanny. Yet Efor positive it was just deep cultural awareness, experience and mundane training. Also now having already scouted this way - it was all mapped in his head - so he moved with even greater surety. For a while no stalking involved the party making good progress at a steady verging on vigorous walking pace. Though all things must come to an end, thus as Nahrl reached the confines of the area he had already scouted he slowed and grew more cautious again. Occasionally having his colleagues wait whilst he checked out a questionable junction or passage. At one point even delineating the confines of an ancient pit trap. Some age old Warren defence against ignorant intruders. Nahrl claiming it a later edition than the working of the passageway itself, though he was positive the whole area long since abandoned to active occupation.
They did find some small signs of life long departed. Some stone urns, a bowl some flint arrowheads and other less definable things that Efor did not recognise but where clearly worked items perhaps once part of something larger rotted away. For example a spill of some stone discs too big to be practical coinage. There was even some lightweed in places overgrowing from its once well sited tracks in the walls. At times due to wild proliferation almost too bright to easily gaze upon. Rather strange to be dazzled by light in deep tunnels.
Disappointingly though the ways, some natural looking others very much Fox architecture, still rather meandering. Occasionally an old route walled off some possibly deliberately, others looking more akin to effects of ancient earth movements. Nahrl seemed intent, whenever possible, upon leading them ever downward. Did all the main Causeways rest at great depths? Before now that a possible fact Efor had not really considered, but now going on previous experience it might prove true. Even Bhargle, thinking back, lay deep enough.

[Table] r/formula1 – I'm an F1 Engineer/Strategist, Ask Me Anything... (pt 3)

Source
Previous post here.

Questions	Answers
Dear Randy, I would like to ask what is your opinion concerning driver's influence on development of the car. And are there any big differences between the driver's feedbacks? Which driver was the best one you have been working with during those 5 years, concerning the feedback? Thanks in advance for your answer.	Driver feedback has a big influence on the development of the car, after all, if the driver can't exploit upgrades/developments/the car then you won't see any laptime gains - nobody else is in the car and so this feedback is vital. However, it is part of a multitude of tools, experience, analysis, etc. that we have, so you can't underestimate the other contributors to development also.
	All of the drivers I have worked with have been quite different in terms of their feedback, I don't think I can pick a best one as they all have great qualities, Fernando seemed to instantly know what was wrong/where to improve, Lando is very open and easy to talk to, etc.
Hi Randy!! I wanted to ask you how hard is predict the degradation and overall performance of this generation Pirelli tyres. Also, are you excited for the new rules? I was also wondering how international the McLaren team really is in terms of staff. Thank you!!!	I would say it's not super difficult in the current generation of tyres to predict degradation and overall performance - this is done by our tyre experts and the strategy team together. Things change, however, through the weekend and sometimes you have to be very much into the empirical data to spot shifts in behaviour because of this.
	I am excited for the new rules - change keeps us on our toes and presents opportunities. Even though I thought single-shot qualifying was a bad idea before we implemented it, it presented an opportunity to really adapt your strategy in qualifying to take advantage - as an example of these opportunities.
	The team is really quite international, thinking about the people I work with on a regular basis, most are from the UK, but they also include Italian, Japanese, French, Spanish and German as nationalities.
Can we get McLaren's Tooned back? Next year with Lando and Dan Ric would be fun!	I've already asked a few times. I love Tooned!
Very broad question, but what are your thoughts on simracing and how seriously some team/people take it?	I think simracing is a great thing, especially with the relative ease of access (cost and location issues) compared to typical motorsport. There is some mounting evidence of a correlation between simracing and physical racing talent as well.
	I'm impressed by how seriously some people take it and how good they are - I think it can also be quite addictive - there's a guy in our team Oli who plays pretty much all the time, we think by next week he'll be able to complete a full lap of one of the easier circuits.
Is AI (by which I mean applied neural networks) making inroads into how strategy calls are made in F1? It seems like it could be super useful for analysing how and when the tyres are going to degrade.	It is. I am a strong proponent of machine learning and artificial intelligence and we are getting some good benefits in this area. I can't say more.
How often do you pick a strategy that is not the fastest (by the models), but is counter to the other team(s) that you are trying to beat that race?	If you are referring to the "free air" quickest strategy - i.e. if I was racing alone, how many pitstops should I do and what tyre sequence should I use then we will almost always not use that strategy.
	That strategy would be quickest if you have no other interactions with other cars, which is rare for any car in an F1 race - as you have interactions from battling/overtakes, lapping, etc. but it is not the best strategy (and potentially not the quickest) when interactions with other cars are present.
	Depending on the types of interactions there will be a force that acts on the "baseline" strategy mentioned above, the propensity to drop into traffic, for example, may push a stop lap later to avoid getting stuck or battling, etc. But all of these will need to be weighed up to come up with an "optimum" strategy.
Ok, so one thing bothered me for a while now. In many races we see sudden safety cars or double yellows. More often than not, the commentators turn this into a "everyone has to decide real quickly what to do now" situation. Do you really decide just then whether or not to pit a car? If yes, why? I imagine you could easily run multiple real-time simulations that tell you at every given moment with a high precision whether pitting is beneficial or not. Is that not possible or is it just the commentators playing up the situation?	Really both things are correct. We try and simulate and analyse what to do in the future, even as humans, every second of the race we'll be thinking what we would do if there were a safety car, probing each other in the strategy team to test our strategies and so on, so in a way we are trying to be prepared before the safety car is deployed, if it is.
	However, safety cars can be quite disruptive, depending on who has crashed or what has caused it, etc. your simulations and prior analysis may no longer be useful because the race state has changed too much. In this case you operate from first principles and (hopefully) a deep understanding of the key factors in the race that would sway decisions one way or another.
	Safety car decisions are also very game theoretic which can make things more difficult as you typically won't know your competitors' decisions until some time after the safety car is deployed, reducing your time down even further.
Hey Randy! I am a big F1 fan and am very interested in what is one thing you hate about being F1? Could be anything just curious since I am not planning to do anything related with F1 (want to become a coder) but want to know something you dislike about being/doing/involved in F1. Also I know that you already answered something like this but are you going to miss the Carlos/Lando memelord group? Also what are you expecting Riccardo to bring in the meme side. I like to focus on the silly things about F1 hehe.	I think the one thing I do dislike about F1 is that more people can't be involved in it. I'm so fortunate to work with our young, extremely talented and proactive graduates, intern students and placement students but my role means I am also responsible for turning away swathes of talent as we have such a limited number of roles.
	It's not fair that we are turning away people who are far more talented and would have far more positive impact than, for example, myself and it can be quite upsetting. However, as the sport continues to grow and prosper I'm sure there will be many more opportunities coming up.
	I will miss the Carlos/Lando pairing just as I miss the Stoffel/Fernando pairing and many of the others. I have been fortunate enough to work with some extremely talented and friendly drivers so in a way you miss every one and every pairing. On the other hand I'm sure it will be just as great, in a different way with Ricciardo - I'm looking forward to some bonza Aussie slang and pulling out the "Chopper does the weather" video each year!
hello. as a 16 year old student doing a levels what would u say helped u the most in terms of getting to the position u are in now? im intestered very much in working in f1 when i grow up and im looking to do mechanical engineering in uni. thank you	I would say that Maths, Further Maths and Physics helped and will help the most - especially in preparing you for engineering at university also.
	If you have other subjects to choose as well, then I can also put in a word for doing what you enjoy as well as what you 'need'.
^{the below is a reply to the above}
Thanks for replying. Would you mind telling me what uni you went to aswell? Loads of choices to pick from and im unsure	I went to the University of Oxford. There's a very large mix of colleges and universities represented here and thinking about recent graduate hires we have talented people from UCL, University of Bath, University of Southampton, Cambridge University, University of Newcastle and many more.
Are there any members of the traveling team that have a business / not engineer background? Would love to work in F1, but being an economist does not help. Right?	Being an economist is not common and I don't know of anyone who is travelling who is an economist by background. But for reference I did Engineering, Economics & Management with a fair amount of Economics and Econometrics. It's not impossible, but as long as you're smart, motivated and can pick up the engineering knowledge you have a shot.
Hi Randy, many thanks for taking the time to answer questions. I’ve snuck two questions into my post. How many people would typically work on strategy within an F1 team and would many of these be based in Brackley during race weekends? Are there any roles in your strategy team that are targeted at or suited to actuaries / risk modellers / mathematical modellers/ statisticians rather than engineers?	Around 3 to 6 would typical for a strategy team and normally teams will have 1 of the team trackside, the rest back at HQ. For clarity, none of our strategists should be working at Brackley (Mercedes) - if they are we will be having some difficult conversations!
	I would say that strategy does lend itself to those backgrounds (I'm a part qualified actuary - I rejoined F1 before I finished my last few exams), as much as it does to engineering backgrounds (or maths, or stats, or physics, etc. etc.).
Just wanted to say I really appreciate you answering so many questions. What race of the (original) 2020 calendar did you most look forward to? And what is your approach when determining a strategy for a new F1 track, such as Zandvoort?	Both Vietnam and Netherlands GPs were very much up there, because of being new to the calendar. This always adds some extra challenge and can lead to more mixed performances compared to the baseline pace of each cadriver.
	You tend to rely a lot on Friday data where you are more pressured than usual to learn as much as you possibly can as you've not run their before. There's also a fair amount of prediction and forecasting before you ever leave (as you have to pick tyres, etc.) and a lot more scenario analysis than normal (and there's a lot normally too). Most teams will have the tracks in their simulators and offline simulations weeks, if not months before the actual event as well.
What exactly does a CS do in F1? Asking for a friend	I think many roles could be applicable, but most teams will have fairly substantial Software Engineering departments, as well as lots of modelling and computation activities in Vehicle Science and CFD - all of these may be quite well suited.
Hi Randy. Are there routes to get into motorsport and F1 without the usual maths/engineering route; asking as someone who loves the though of F1 but was shit at DT and intends to study politics?	Based on some of the stories I had read before working in F1 it had seemed that a degree in politics may have been the way of surviving the 'Piranha Club' - however, that is not the case, thankfully.
	It will depend on the kind of role, without gaining engineering knowledge or scientific knowledge you'd struggle to work in the core technical or operational areas but we have a finance department, planning department, HR department, etc. and there may be roles in those other areas that are more suitable.
I’m currently at uni studying Mech Eng to hopefully work in F1 some day, and applied for a summer placement at McLaren this year. Of course that’s been cancelled now, and I’m gutted, but am still hoping to be doing an undergraduate placement year in the 21/22 academic year. Ideally, a summer placement this summer would have been a way for me to get my foot in the door and add some much needed experience to my CV, but what would be your advice now, to make myself as appealing a candidate as possible in the decreasing amount of time I have until the application?	Try and find something else, that you enjoy and that is relevant if possible - go fix up an old car, do some formula student, learn a programming language, etc.
	Nobody is as gutted as me that Covid is meaning we won't get to work with some very talented summer interns this year.
Hi, I'll go right to the point, I'm from Colombia and finishing my last year of Mechanical Engineer, I've worked as a Mechanic for 2 years and understand quite good vehicle dynamics, I'm good in mathematics and I like to code on python and Matlab, and I keep improving my English. Do you think I have an opportunity as an intern in any racing team? Data analytics, vehicle dynamics something, I just want to get in haha, cheers.	Don't rule yourself out. Many of us never thought we'd get our dream jobs in F1, many of us never thought we were smart or able enough and many of us probably feel like that even once we're in - especially for me, seeing all of the young talent applying for jobs each year. Perseverance is key - you're doing the right things.
	"No. Try not. Do or do not. There is no try." - Yoda
Hi Randy, thanks for the AMA! When do the drivers get the last word for a chosen strategy? Is it only in the race, is it before too, given they know the tracks? How the strategy team work alongside all the valuable input from the guys behind the wheels, so you could as a team be always certain about a given strategy? How much drivers and strategists disagree about something? Best of luck in July, I will be rooting for you guys. EDIT: Grammar.	Nearly always the strategy is decided by the strategy team, I can't really remember occasions where the driver or someone else has chosen the strategy. That doesn't mean that the drivers don't have input, before the weekend when we nominate tyres, during the weekend with feedback and during the race over the radio - but we let the experts in each area make decisions and so the strategy is driven by the strategy team.
	There are sometimes disagreements, for example, we may think a 1 stop strategy is possible and the driver may think its not, like with all things we'll discuss it rationally and then decide what to do. Sometimes the driver is correct and the 1 stop is too slow to make it work and sometimes we are correct and the 1 stop is the right choice. We try and have the right expertise, skill and feedback coming into the strategy group such that we are correct most of the time (otherwise what is the point of having a strategy group).
	Thank you!
This is probably way too late. Do you require a chemist/physicist, my credentials includes but not limited to growing up on Bruce McLaren road. How do you handle inter Strategy-team disputes when/if there is a split between differing choices of strategies. What would you consider to be your go to technique to settle these/bring the team back together after maybe choosing a strategy that it becomes quite clear later on that it was not the optimal choice?	Well done on having parents who chose to live on Bruce McLaren road - they're welcome to get in touch 😀 .
	I'm assuming you mean disputes inside the strategy team at McLaren (intra? My Ancient Greek is a bit rusty.)?
	I think we are fortunate to have very few disputes whatsoever (thinking about any kind of disagreement) - the team atmosphere is really great and we are all just quite honest with each other and open - if one of the team tells me that I made a mistake, or could have done something better then that's probably some of the most useful/trusted feedback I will ever get to get better. It's kind of a nice feeling knowing that you have to do everything really well, because some of the best people in your field work with you and will call you up if not - so you are constantly improving.
	Sometimes we will disagree on stuff, there's a lot of data but a lot of things become subjective, as its a case of weighting some factors over other and the weightings can't always be determined. We may disagree sometimes on (mostly non-strategy) stuff and tend to just work out which underlying assumptions/beliefs/knowledge are different and align if we need to.
	I think strategically we have very few disagreements - I can't really remember any. If one of the guys told me something could be better, I'd go away and try and work out how to improve it/avoid making the same mistake/ask them to help me fix or improve it, etc. so any disagreements we do have don't really linger.
Thanks for doing this AMA! Since most F1 teams are based in and around the UK, how often do teams hire Canadians/Americans for intern level or full-time engineering roles? P.S I am currently a Canadian software engineering student in Montreal working towards a career in F1 someday.	I would say it's fairly rare, but I think a lot of that will be based on volume of applications, we get a lot and from memory they are largely non-US/Canadian.
	For some internships and placements we require the right to work in the UK which may also be more difficult for Americans/Canadians to achieve - unfortunately this is because we are quite limited in what we can do in this space.
	For other roles, including full-time roles it shouldn't be a detriment to your application - especially not if you are able to address it as well in your cover letter.
F1 never stops, obviously, but are there any cities or circuits that you especially enjoy visiting because of the facilities or culture, rather than the racing?	In terms of cities, it's so hard to pick just one, we are fortunate enough to travel to some amazing places.
	I have to say that Melbourne (Australia), Suzuka (Japan) and Austin (United States) have to definitely be up there though! But there are so many others that are up there too.
Is Hamilton really that good or is it the car? Would he be as good if he was in, say, a McLaren?	I think the evidence stacks up to say that Hamilton really is that good. I imagine he would be as able in a McLaren, but we have to admit that our car isn't yet as quick as his car - but don't worry we're working on it and going in the right direction!
How many have strategies are developed for every race?	We will easily simulate millions of races, if not billions of races for each race. Unfortunately the number of permutations of races possible far exceeds this number, so we have to employ some smart methods to make each simulation more useful than it would be if we just tried to simulate everything.
[deleted]	Thank you for the concern - but although I'm giving my own views this is being done in conjunction with our Marketing and Communications teams - so there is no risk of me being fired (for this).
I have heard the radios from Sainz at Brazil 2019 and i know he didn't pit during the SC because he didn't have a delta behind, but i still don't understand one thing about the strategy followed that race. My question is, what led you to put Lando on the hards and Carlos on the mediums? Were you aiming to do a 2-stopper with Carlos originally and changed your mind after the Safety Car "shortened" the race? Or did you believe he was better and keeping the tyres alive?	There are reasons, but I'm afraid these lips have to be sealed on this one.
Is there like a kill switch for the car that the team can use to shut off the car	Yes there is, you may hear race engineers telling their drivers to go from "P2 to P1 or P0" and that is effectively what is happening (turning the car off). This procedure is drilled into every driver and race engineer as its very important for safety too.
	We can't turn it off remotely as we're not allowed to communicate from the pits to the car (otherwise we'd probably be making all kinds of changes all the time).
How many Gigs of data are generated after a race? Does it vary a lot per race? (provided no failure of some sort)	It can vary but we're roughly talking between 100 and 200 gigabytes of car data, and lots of other types of data such that its probably 1 to 2 terabytes of total data per weekend.
How faster cars could go if they had track specific gear ratios like they used to have?	With the current generation of cars and powerunits - it's not a huge amount (I can't give numbers). Locking down ratios was and is a great cost-saving measure with little noticeable impact for fans or spectators.
Having worked with the likes of Jenson and Fernando, how much did their feedback work into your calls? Is jenson really brilliantly nice as he comes across?	Jenson was my favourite driver growing up, so it was a privilege to work with him - he's a really nice guy.
	Their feedback is really important - often (and Jenson would attest to this) we would disagree on how many stops there would be but never would you not value the feedback or use it (even if you decided other things were more important).
^{the below question has been split into four, enumerated}
Thank you for doing an AMA. I have a couple of question for you: 1. did Lando win the bet with the wallpaper	Thanks (but not sure we'll win the 2020 season - I hope we do). He did. This bet required no skill and only a lack of shame.
2. Right now am applying for Mech. Eng. programs in SA (KAUST) US and UK and I hope to work in F1 or Formula E one day, do teams prefer degrees from one country to the other.	No, we don't prefer any country but for some roles there is a requirement to have the right to work in the UK.
3. How many possible strategies do you come up with before the race weekend, do you have one for every grid possibility, temp, tyre setup etc. or is it more simpler?	Millions if not closer to billions. We simulate a lot of different variables including many that you mention. As the weekend progresses the set of permutations shrinks, as it does with each passing lap in the race.
4. as Alonso's former strategist do you see him coming back to F1 for 2021 and to which team? I hope you can answer my questions, and win the 2020 season.	I'm not sure - I hope he does because a talent like his belongs in F1 and I hope he doesn't (I'd rather not race against him).
Hi Randy, thanks for taking the time to come on here. One of my biggest interests in the sport (aside from the racing) is the commercial side of it. Specifically sponsorships but also the negotiations behind them and just the general business of the sport. What college degrees would be most useful to enter the commercial side of a team, and how often would such positions open? What kind of positions would someone be aiming for to enter an entry level role? I'm about to enter college next year and need to finalise my course choices now, and am hoping for some insights on how to break into that world...thanks again!	I think anything focusing on the business side could be helpful (e.g. economics) but I think you also have some freedom to do something you enjoy. My impression is that relevant experience will be more useful than degree choice.
What was the biggest mistake you've done and what were you able to do to correct it? Or in other words how do you deal with mistakes during the race in order to get everything back in order?	I've made many, many mistakes and will make many, many more - but they don't tend to stand out as we hope that we make a mistake, learn from it, change processes and procedures and analysis and move on. I guess one of the biggest changes to how we worked came after Germany 2018, where we, like many teams, made the wrong choice for tyres in the changeable conditions - we learnt a lot from that event. I've experienced lots of poor luck and bad results from races, but I try and separate mistakes from what we can't control.
	I think we're very good at not looking at 'sunk cost' now, once you've made a mistake, or something has gone wrong or against you, it doesn't really matter any more until after the event is over when you can analyse it and improve - there's no point expending any energy or thoughts on it in the race, you have to move on to the next thing and you shouldn't try and recover the mistake - it's happened, let it go and work out what to do from where you are.
How hard it is to become an F1 engineestrategist? How much time you took to to become one?	I would say it's difficult to get "your foot in the door" and unfortunately things have gotten so much more competitive over time that it can really take a long, sustained effort to put yourself in a good position.
	I ended up waiting a few years for the "dream job" offer in F1 after my placement and to be honest I thought I would never receive that offer.
	Perseverance is really important - it is so much more competitive to get in today than it was when I did - but that doesn't make it impossible.
Did Lando keep the screensaver or did you get to keep your £250?	Lando has no shame (and may have forgotten how to change the screensaver) and won that particular bet.
Is there a limit set by the F.I.A. as to how many people can work for a Formula 1 team? And if so, what is the limit?	So there is no limit in terms of the total number of employees, although as the Financial Regulations come into force and we are subject to a budget cap there will be a natural "soft limit" from that.
	We are currently limited to 60 operational personnel for nearly the entirety of the race weekend at the track - designed to stop teams spending too much money flying too many people all around the world.
There must be so many people travelling from race to race - what's the atmosphere like around the paddock on the weekend for someone working it? Does it feel like an F1 'community' or do you all generally keep within your teams?	It does feel like an F1 community. People move around teams fairly frequently so I think most people will know someone or have worked with someone at the majority of other teams. You also get to know your counterparts fairly easily.
	It's a great atmosphere, there's obviously an underlying feeling of competition and trying to beat your opponents, but there is also a mutual respect as well and most people are actually quite normal human beings (or very good likenesses at least) and quite fun to chat to.
Hi, thanks for doing an AMA! Are there any roles in F1 for someone with a pure economics degree? EEM at Oxford would’ve been great but they stopped offering the degree a few years ago. Thanks	Yeah - what a shame about EEM being discontinued - I thought it was a great course!
	There are suitable roles, most teams will have finance departments and areas that even cover financial planning, analysis and strategy. You would also be suitable for more typical roles if you were able to find a way to pick up the engineering side of things.
Hey Randy! I've been reading through all these questions and answers, they're all awesome. I also might be a bit late, sorry. I'm 16 and have dreamt(literally) of being a f1 aerodynamicist when I grow up! I have a knack for physics and calculus. What kind of degree do I try to pursue/study? I am absolutely bewildered by the amount of information out there. Is mechanical engineering the right place to study fluid dynamics, or engineering science? Thank you in advance! P. S. I live in New Zealand	It can vary between general engineering, mechanical engineering, aerodynamics, aeronautics and so on. I would suggest you find something you enjoy and also interrogate the course content to see how applicable it may be to your career desires before committing.
What do you think about Lance stroll? Do you rate him as an F1 Driver?	Lance's race pace has been fairly strong this last year, he has been close to Perez in that respect and Perez is no slouch in races.
	Lance's qualifying positions have made it hard for him to score more points - so that's an area that will clearly payback for him (in terms of points scored) if he can improve on it.
Hi Randy, hope you’re doing well over lockdown! I’m currently in my second year of Automotive Engineering and would love to work in motorsport when I graduate (as many of us do). Firstly I wanted to ask whether you felt academic achievement, work experience or who you know in the industry is the most important part of getting a role in F1? And secondly, if you were an engineering student again now what would you do to stand out (especially for someone wanting to work in race strategy)? Really appreciate you doing an AMA by the way, and good luck when the season starts!	I would hope that knowing someone no longer has an impact on getting a role in F1 - I certainly feel that it shouldn't.
	Both academic achievement and work experience can be useful - it's hard to rank them. Personally, I have always valued "intelligence" highly - but to me that includes things like book smarts, applied smarts, problem-solving, proactivity, etc.
	Thanks for the luck.
Hello! I am currently working for Honda Performance Development where we develop and build the Indycar Honda engine. I got in through an internship from my community college and I have been tearing down and inspecting the engines when they come back to us. I am young and have only taken little math classes so far because I want to become an engineer one day and work in F1. I just don’t know what kind of engineering I should try to get into. I’d love to become one of the engineers who push our engines to the limit at the track. People have told me mechanical engineering can quite basic just designing parts while electrical engineers deal with stuff like engine mapping. What should I do and pursue?	Awesome - sounds like a fun job!
	I don't think Mechanical Engineering will hold you back and at many colleges and universities you can specialise enough into the areas that are a little more related to Control Systems/Powerunits to help. I also don't think Electrical Engineering will hold you back either.
	From experience, most of our Control Systems engineers I have worked with have done either Mechanical or General Engineering, but not all have.
	I would pick what you enjoy and try and get some good and relevant experience and knowledge around that - for example, given you're already at HPD, can you offer to help out with some basic tasks in that area there?
Hi Randy, I know you’re an engineer. I’ve applied for a job in Marketing at McLaren (and other teams) multiple times over the years, and had no success. I live in Australia but I have a dual Australian-British citizenship so I can live and work legally in the UK. I think my skills are strong enough to justify an interview, but I always seem to get rejected. Is there a bias towards hiring people already in the UK? Is being in Australia hurting my chances of scoring a job somewhere like McLaren even if I’m willing to move?	I'm sorry but I'm not sure - I know in engineering we are careful not to be biased, but we have to sometimes consider the right to work in the UK. Perhaps you could try reaching out to HR to find out if there is any feedback?
why Vettel spin	Find me a driver who hasn't. I've never worked with Vettel, but have a lot of respect for him. Driving these cars is not easy and I imagine that driving them 0.1% faster than the other excellent drivers you're competing against (because that's what a tenth of laptime comes down to) puts you even closer to the line between a truly quick lap and disaster.
	PS: Why waste time say lot word when few word do trick?
Thank vou for this AMA. I am a PhD Student in engineering Physics. I would like to know where did you start your career as an engineestrategist? As a motorsport enthusiast I would like to be part of a motorsport team. Do you have suggestions from where to start looking?	I think answered elsewhere in this thread, so I won't repeat the comment here.
	Keep an eye on the McLaren careers website (and if you really want to work elsewhere - their websites too).
Thanks for all the info in your pervious questions. Do many strategist or engineers work their way through F3 and F2 to get to F1? Is it common/possible for someone to start out in engineering in like suspension design and then transition into strategy? I’m a going into my 3rd as undergard as a ME, does McLaren offer opportunities to pay for grad school and work on the team? What is the difference between the strategists who travel and ones who don’t travel? Do you or other strategists contribute to the design of the next year’s car? Thanks if you get a chance to respond. It’s really thoughtful of you to do this, and I think it reflect very highly on McLaren that you’re doing this! I joined Formula Student in college during my first year and started doing data analysis for my team. Because of my time so far in Formula Student, I picked up following F1. It has been possibly one of the best decisions I’ve made. I’m highly interested into going into F1 now as either an engineer or a strategist.	Hi - thank you for the kind words. I've enjoyed answering these questions! And great that you've picked up a passion for F1.
	In my experience, very few of the strategists I have worked with/invited to our team have been in F3 or F2 prior - that's not to say that that is a bad route and certainly I have met some very talented F3 and F2 engineers (including a strategist who has really impressed as well).
	The other route you mention, doing some other role at an F1 team and moving over is probably more frequent. We've generally tended to hire people we've worked with and there are plentiful volunteering/assisting opportunities to teammates in the F1 team.
	The Engineering Graduate Scheme (which I am biased about positively) is amazing in terms of talent (that's not bias, that's 100% honesty) and so we've actually taken most of our strategists from there as people finish their 2 year rotation period through the F1 business. I can not recommend the Engineering Graduate Scheme enough.
Can you give a funny or interesting story that happened to you and McLaren (about strategy) on a race weekend last year?	No really funny "strategy" stories from this year - at my first race (Australia 2013) I did jump off the pitwall in front of the safety car at least 2 times causing an emergency stop though - and I did get sent on to the track when it was live later that year...
	But an interesting story, after Germany I had a very long chat with Carlos in the airport. Initially he was happy with 5th, but we chatted and I explained how we could have got a podium (his first!) by making a different decision, because of how things played out, but that that would have been the wrong choice. It was a great conversation and I think Carlos came around to our way of thinking fairly quickly and sensibly. We sat there and said we just needed to carry on making decisions the right way and the podium would come, little did we know we wouldn't have to wait too long...
hi randy quick question are there any legal related jobs in f1 in specific for lawyers	Yes, most teams will have (small) legal departments.
What are some of the biggest challenges with data visualization that you face? I imagine you have to sift through a lot of telemetry data quickly for your work.	I think some of the biggest problems are having too much data and being able to drill down to the important stuff quickly and making information presentable to those not familiar with the data so it is easy to comprehend the conclusions/summary/analysis.
Hi Randy, Could you explain what Ferrari were doing last year with their fuel flow sensor? And how teams found out? And how sure we are they were doing that? And do you expect other teams to have developed DAS? Thx mate.	I'm afraid I don't know what Ferrari were doing, if anything. Teams conduct a lot of competitor analysis so we do often spot things that others are doing or may be doing that way.
	I don't, due to the ban and the complexity and time required to develop such a system but I don't know.
Hi Randy. I couldn't find this specific question. So would you guys love to see less durable tires. Or more obliged pit stops so that there would be more tire strategies possible?	As a strategist, I would love to see less durable tyres than we currently have - but I also understand that drivers want tyres they can push harder on and for longer (to battle each other) and there are a myriad of other factors that Pirelli are also dealing with to produce the "perfect" tyre.
	So yes, strategy-wise less durable and higher degradation tyres would, in my opinion, lead to better racing, but they could have negative effects on other things.
	I disagree heavily with constraints on strategy as I think they will make racing worse, so I disagree with obligated numbers of pitstops (I have just written another answer about that if you'd like more detail).
For the more “business” roles, do you guys hire people with MBAs or are people with just undergraduate degrees hired as well? (Eg. business strategy for the team, supply chain etc) Do you have an approximate of how many challenges would someone from Canada would have to overcome to get a job? (Or how much better would they have to be than someone from the UK)	I think there are probably not many MBAs based on my knowledge but that does not mean its not a good asset to have and that it won't help you.
	I think the right to work in the UK can be very helpful, otherwise it shouldn't help or hurt you.
Evening Randy, I’m actually an undergraduate physicist. I had applied for the race team internship for this summer. I was very sad to hear that it was cancelled. I was really hoping to get a better understanding of how you guys model the tires and decided on optimal strategies and lap times to find the shortest race time. Do you know of anyone who releases tire data publicly that I could have a look at when I eventually get bored this summer? Also I saw that placement over summer as the first stepping stone for a career in formula 1. I’ll be graduating next year so won’t have an opportunity to reapply. Do you have any advice for someone in my position, looking to get into the data analysis side of formula one without much prior knowledge. Thank you for your time.	I'm so gutted that Covid has scuppered our plans this year, I get to manage the summer placements and it's a highlight of each year of work.
	Pirelli do a great job of releasing tyre information each weekend to the press and on their website - I'd suggest you start there.
Do all of your plans get tossed if unexpected rain comes? Do you make strategy plans for rain happening at say lap 10, a different plan for if lap 15, etc? And how does rain potential affect amount of fuel you'll carry, if at all?	We don't toss our plans. We do plan for wet and changeable races, as well as all kinds of other scenarios too.
	Less fuel is used in the rain as you are going slower (and considerably so) but before you remove too much fuel you'll need to think about the certainty of rain during the race (when you decide hours before how much to fuel the car) and its intensity and duration...
^{the below is a reply to the above}
Thanks for the reply, I know you've had a lot asked. If you don't mind me asking, what's the strangest weather pattern/geological event/etc you've ever made a "no real chance of happening, but just in case" plan for?	I think the typhoons in Japan are always pretty special to follow, there have also been heatwaves and occasionally snow/ice.

CITI PRESTIGE CHANGES CONFIRMED

https://information.citi.com/prestige/intro

Here’s what’s changing on January 4, 2019

POINT-EARNING POTENTIAL

NEW! 5X ON RESTAURANTS
NEW! 5X ON AIR TRAVEL
NEW! 3X ON CRUISE LINES 3X ON HOTELS
2X ON ENTERTAINMENT (THROUGH 8/31/19)
1X ON ALL OTHER PURCHASES

EXPANDED $250 TRAVEL CREDIT for all eligible travel purchases, not just air travel

Relationship Bonus will be removed. If applicable, you will receive your final relationship bonus on your account anniversary.

Introducing on May 1, 2019

NEW CELL PHONE PROTECTION Assistance for damage or theft of a cellular phone when you pay your monthly cellular bill with your card.

Here’s what’s changing on September 1, 2019

Annual Fee will be increasing to $495, and $75 per authorized user, including cardmembers with a Citi Priority account. You will receive official notice of this change at a later date. This change will be effective at your account anniversary after September 1, 2019. If you maintain a Citigold or Citi Private Bank account, these annual fee and authorized user fee increases will not apply to your account. Complimentary 4th Night can be redeemed two times per calendar year. Bookings made prior to September 1, 2019 will not count toward your two redemptions for 2019.4 1X on Entertainment Starting on September 1, 2019, entertainment purchases will earn 1 ThankYou® Point per $1 spent instead of 2 points per $1. 25% More Value When You Redeem Points for Air Travel will no longer be available.

Continue to enjoy these great travel benefits

Global Entry or TSA Pre-check® Application Fee Credit Receive up to a $100 Statement Credit once every 5 years to cover your application fee for these programs. Priority Pass™ Select Lounge Membership Complimentary membership to Priority Pass Select, which provides access to over 1,000 airport lounges worldwide.

Fine print:
1Beginning 1/4/2019 Citi Prestige cardmembers will earn 5 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on purchases at airlines and travel agencies. 5 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on purchases at restaurants (including cafes, bars, lounges and fast food restaurants). 3 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on purchases at hotels. 3 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on purchases at cruise lines. 1 ThankYou Point for each $1 spent on other purchases.
If you became a Citi Prestige cardmember prior to 09/01/2018, you will continue to earn 2 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on select entertainment, including live entertainment, live theatrical productions, concerts, live sporting events, movie theaters, amusement parks (including zoos, aquariums, circuses and carnivals), tourist attractions (including museums, and art galleries), record stores, video rental stores and on-demand internet streaming media on purchases made through 08/31/2019. For purchases made on or after 09/01/2019, you will earn 1 ThankYou Point for each such purchase.
Certain Non-Qualifying Purchases.
Restaurants – You won’t earn 5 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on purchases at restaurants for purchases made at bakeries, caterers, restaurants/cafes inside certain department, grocery, discount and convenience stores, warehouse clubs, or hotels.
Entertainment – You won’t earn 2 ThankYou Points for each $1 spent on select entertainment (only available through 08/31/2019) at sporting camps, public and private golf courses, country clubs (including membership fees), stores that sell musical instruments, video game arcades, bowling alleys, stores that primarily sell video games/accessories, charitable organizations that provide live entertainment, bookstores, and sports complexes where you participate in the sport.
Only Purchases Earn Points. You'll earn Points for purchases using your Card Account, minus returns and refunds.
Balance transfers, cash advances, checks that access your Card Account, items returned for credit, unauthorized charges, interest and account fees, travelers checks, foreign currency purchases, money orders, wire transfers (and similar cash-like transactions), lottery tickets, gaming chips (and similar betting transactions) do not earn ThankYou Points.
Open and Current Card Account. You may earn ThankYou Points as long as your Card Account is open and current. If your Card Account is closed, you will not be able to earn and redeem ThankYou Points and you will lose any accumulated ThankYou Points that have not been transferred to your ThankYou Member Account (we will set up a ThankYou Member Account for you).
When You Will Receive Points. ThankYou Points earned from purchases post to your Card Account at the close of each billing cycle, and at that time we will transfer the ThankYou Points you earned to your ThankYou Member Account. (Bonus ThankYou Points may take one to two additional billing cycles to post to your Card Account). ThankYou Points are not eligible for redemption until they are transferred to your ThankYou Member Account.
ThankYou Rewards may be terminated with 30 days prior written notice. If ThankYou Rewards is terminated, you will have 90 days from ThankYou Rewards termination date to redeem all your accumulated ThankYou Points. The ThankYou Rewards program may be changed at any time. Rewards offered by ThankYou Rewards and the ThankYou Point levels required for specific rewards are subject to change without notice.
Please see the Citi ThankYou Rewards Terms and Conditions at thankyou.com/terms, or call us at 1-800-ThankYou (1-800-842-6596) to request a complete copy of the Terms and Conditions. The Terms and Conditions include redemption information on the Citi ThankYou Rewards Program.
2Beginning 1/4/2019 your Card Account is eligible to receive statement credits of up to $250 per calendar year for Travel Purchases made by the Primary cardmember or Authorized Users and which appear on your billing statement during that calendar year. Citi will automatically post available Travel Credit(s) after eligible Travel Purchases appear on your statement. Please allow one to two billing cycles after the qualifying purchase is charged to your Card Account for statement credit(s) to be posted to the account.
• Travel Purchases are defined as purchases made within the travel category, including purchases from airlines, hotels, car rental agencies, travel agencies/travel aggregators/tour operators, commuter transportation, ferries, commuter railways, subways, taxis/limousines/car services, passenger railways, cruise lines, bridge and road tolls, parking lots/garages, and bus lines.
• Cardmembers are responsible for payment of all charges on the Card Account regardless of eligibility for statement credit.
• The Travel Credit is intended only for personal travel, and not for business travel.
To be eligible for this Travel Credit, the enrolled Card Account must be open and current at the time of statement credit fulfillment.
3Each merchant – e.g., a retailer, business or any other place where you can make a purchase – is assigned a code that indicates the merchant's area of business. For example, restaurants are generally assigned a specific merchant code. We don't assign or have any control over merchant codes. Codes are chosen and assigned by a third party, who may change the codes from time to time. When you make a purchase at a merchant, we're provided the code for that merchant. If the code matches a category that gives you additional Points or is eligible for the Travel Credit – for example, if the merchant code tells us that you made a purchase at an airline, and you get additional Points for "airline" purchases – we'll give you the additional Points. Because we don't control what code a merchant is assigned, sometimes a purchase that you think fits a certain category may not earn additional Points. For example, a gift shop located within a hotel may not be assigned a "hotel" code, but rather a "retailer" code. This means that if you receive additional points for purchases at "hotels", you won't earn additional points for purchases at that gift shop, nor would these purchases qualify for a Travel Credit. Please see our FAQs at thankyou.com/help, or call the Citi Prestige Service Center at 1-877-288-2484 for more information about merchant codes and categories.
4Cardmembers will enjoy a complimentary fourth night with no black-out dates (“Fourth Night”), when booking at least four consecutive nights at any hotel only through Thankyou.com or by phone at 1-800-ThankYou (powered by Connexions) or the Citi Prestige Concierge (the “Citi Prestige Concierge” is Aspire Lifestyles) and subject to additional requirements stated below. Beginning 09/01/19, Citi Prestige Concierge will no longer be available for Fourth Night bookings and bookings must be made either online at ThankYou.com or by phone at 1-800-ThankYou in order to be eligible for the Fourth Night benefit. The amount due to you for the Fourth Night benefit will be based on the average nightly rate of your stay (excluding taxes and fees). When booked through the Citi Prestige Concierge, you will receive a statement credit for this amount within two billing cycles. When booked through Thankyou.com or 1-800-ThankYou, the complimentary night savings will be provided at the time of booking.
Beginning 09/01/2019, cardmembers will be eligible for no more than two complimentary Fourth Night benefits per Card Account per calendar year.
Booking through Thankyou.com
To receive your complimentary Fourth Night, you must 1) book a minimum of a four-consecutive-night hotel stay through thankyou.com and 2) pay for your complete stay with your Citi Prestige Card, a redemption of ThankYou Points, or a combination of ThankYou Points and your Citi Prestige Card. You must pre-pay for your reservation. As stated above, you will receive the complimentary night savings, based on the average nightly rate of your stay (excluding taxes and fees), at the time of your reservation.
• If booked through Thankyou.com, all reservations must be changed or cancelled through Thankyou.com or by calling 1-800-ThankYou.
Booking through the Citi Prestige Concierge (only available through 08/31/19).
To receive your complimentary Fourth night, you must: 1) book a minimum of a four-consecutive-night hotel stay through the designated Citi Prestige Concierge and 2) pay for your complete stay with your Citi Prestige Card.
When booking through the Citi Prestige Concierge, you may either pre-pay for your entire stay at the time of booking, when available, or you may pay at hotel checkout. The full cost of your entire stay must be charged to your Citi Prestige Card. After an eligible stay has been charged to your account, you will receive a statement credit for your complimentary night, within two billing cycles.
• If booked through Citi Prestige Concierge, all reservations must be changed or cancelled through the Citi Prestige® Concierge.
• If a reservation is cancelled after an applicable statement credit has been issued, the statement credit relative to the offer will be reversed.
• Citi and Mastercard reserve the right to reverse a statement credit at their discretion, including, and without limitation, due to any refunds, returns, disputes, adjustments or fraudulent card activity.
Eligibility Requirements
• Reservations must be made by the primary cardmember. Reservations must be in the primary cardmember’s name.
• Only one complimentary night is eligible per each stay. A stay is consecutive nights booked and stayed on one reservation and does not include back-to back stays. Back-to back stays are stays at the same hotel booked on two reservations (as an example, you book four nights at a hotel on one reservation for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and book another four nights on another reservation for Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. In this situation, you would only be eligible for one complimentary night for the eight night stay).
• Rates provided by Citi Prestige® Concierge and at Thankyou.com may vary.
• For group reservations, or other reservations consisting of multiple rooms, only one room will qualify for one complimentary night.
• Packaged rates, such as air and hotel, hotel and car rental do not qualify for this benefit.
• Hotel imposed fees and incidental guest charges are the Cardmember’s responsibility and are not included in the calculation of the Complimentary Fourth Night benefit.
• Through 08/31/19, reservations made through any party or channel other than online at Thankyou.com or Citi Prestige Concierge or by phone at 1-800-ThankYou are not eligible for the complimentary Fourth Night benefit.
• Beginning 09/01/19, reservations made through any party or channel other than online at Thankyou.com or by phone through 1-800-ThankYou are not eligible for the complimentary Fourth Night benefit.
•The complimentary Fourth Night benefit is intended only for personal use by the primary cardmember and not for business travel.

[State of the Subreddit] Rules, AMAs, Transparency, and Looking Forward to 2020.

Greetings

Welcome to the last State of the Subreddit in this decade! Well, barring any major developments. We wanted to take this opportunity to touch base with y'all and discuss some of the things we've been doing behind the scenes for the subreddit.

Moderation Team

We've not had the chance to formally introduce the moderators who've joined us since our last state of the subreddit. Please welcome PhazonJim, Coltons13, irJustineee, and Deadshot_Calamity who've recently joined us. TheSpookiestUser and hockeypeg13 have actually been here a while too, but hey, better late than never!

Comment Only Moderators

For the last year or so, we've maintained a program for members of the community who wish to help contribute to /Games in ways beyond submitting, commenting, or upvoting quality and relevant content.
We established this program because rule breaking comments often go unreported: if it doesn't get reported, we may not see it and it gets lost in the shuffle.
This is where Comment Only Mods (also COMs for short) come in. They proactively remove comments that are rule breaking that may slide under the radar for the rest of the moderator team. COMs, also affectionately called Mini-Mods, have been an immense help to the overall cleanliness and order of the subreddit.
We are always looking for more additions to the team. If you want to help contribute to the subreddit behind the scenes by removing rule breaking comments if you happen to come across one, please send us a modmail!
Also a special thanks to our current Mini-Mods: Spader623, EducatedHypothesis, SeyiDALegend, defeatinvictory, ownage516, NoDarg, and Smurfyx.

AMAs in /Games

Some of you may have noticed an uptick in AMAs in our subreddit. We attribute this to our publication of the guidelines back in June, available in the sidebar. In addition, we established a subreddit calendar on the sidebar for both the legacy and redesign versions of the subreddit and created a streamlined version of our AMA protocol for internal use to get AMAs ready more quickly. We'd love to hear feedback on this front!
Up to this point, all the AMAs have been from people reaching out to the subreddit and asking if they can do one. We've not asked anyone to come do an AMA on our subreddit but right now, we're exploring the idea of reaching out to potential candidates for AMAs ourselves, like studios, developers, or notable figures in the gaming industry. We hope to bring some interesting opportunities for AMAs to our subreddit for y'all! If all goes well, our first one will happen in November. Look forward to it!

Discussion Threads

Earlier this year, we worked on creating new daily discussion threads and tweaked them in response to feedback after an initial run. Now we have thematic discussions on Mondays, suggestions for games on Wednesdays, and free talk on Fridays, with a weeklong thread to discuss what you've been playing that refreshes every Sunday. How do you think we're doing with these threads? Could we be doing more with them or did you want to see something different? Let us know!

Transparency

Thanks to PhazonJim, we made a significant change to our removal workflow. We hope the new removal reasons give users a better understanding of why their submission was removed, as well as an opportunity to fix any issues. We've noticed an uptick in modmails pertaining to their removal, which we expected to happen. We do our best to respond to modmails in a timely manner.
We also want to discuss the Blizzard, Hearthstone, and Hong Kong situation. Some of you had questions in the megathread on why we handled it the way we did and we answered to the best of our ability. We created two megathreads since we recognized the importance of this event, that this issue has a significant impact on the gaming community, and it was something they wanted to discuss.
However, many of the posts concerning the situation were technically rule-breaking submissions and had to be removed. Given the circumstances, we created a space by establishing a megathread for those posts and potential discussion, updating it with new developments as they arose. Furthermore, the number of posts regarding the incident could potentially overwhelm the subreddit, which could stifle ongoing discussion. For example, Epic Games made a statement in response to the situation. If other companies did the same and we allowed each and every single one to post on our subreddit, it could crowd out other posts.
We may not always handle similar issues the same way moving forward. We'll treat them on a case-by-case basis and we'll use what we've learned from this past week in making decisions on how to best handle situations like these. If you have any further questions, please let us know! We'll do our best to answer them.

New Rules Rules Revamp

We don't actually have new rules. It's more of a revamp, in which we tweaked some rules, moved some around, and even merged some of them in an effort to consolidate and make our rules more sensible. We created a change log for review, in the section below.
This revamp is a response to users' feedback and our own assessment of the rules. We understand users sometimes had issues parsing the rules and we didn't intend for anyone to go through law school to participate in our subreddit. We hope the changes we made allow users to better understand what's allowed in our subreddit and what isn't.
You can review the new rules page in the link given. These rules will go into effect by Saturday evening (CDT), since we wanted to give time for feedback and make changes as needed.
On a related note, we do have a question about one of our rules concerning spoilers.

E-sport events results (such as The International, IEM, etc.) cannot be disclosed in the title within 24 hours of its conclusion.

Do y'all consider these a significant spoiler? Should we maintain the wording as is or remove it, allowing the results of e-sports events to be posted in the title immediately after their conclusion? Also, should we consider events like character reveals for Super Smash Bros. as a spoiler? We appreciate any and all feedback you give us!

Change Log

Last year, in November, we created a new rule for review threads. We changed the wording in allowed submissions to reflect this. Also, we’d like to note that we’ve started flairing review threads; we implemented this change due to a suggestion from one of our users, Making_Waves.
Rule 2: We’ve clarified that bigotry is not allowed, although this was always implied in the inflammatory language clause.
Rule 3: We’ve separated out the rule into two components, for further clarification on why the post was removed. As a result, when a post is removed for this rule, the comment left on the post will specify more clearly why the post was removed. Formerly, it was just “no off-topic or low-effort content or comments.” 3.1 now refers to off-topic content while 3.2 refers to low-effort content and now also contains what used to be 6.11, which dictated that self-posts with just a title, and little to no text were not allowed.
Rule 5: We’ve never endorsed piracy on this subreddit and we edited this rule to make it clearer that linking to, promoting, encouraging, or endorsing piracy is not allowed. We take action, ranging from a silent removal to a ban depending on the severity of the offense, on these comments and posts. For example, a vague comment like "It’s a Steam exclusive so you should go to the high seas!" is deemed an endorsement of piracy and would be removed, and direct links to pirated content are considered worthy of an immediate ban.
Rule 6.2: We’ve reformatted this rule so it’s not a dense block of text, making it easier to parse since it has several important components for title formatting. We’ve also added that titles must be in English and closed a loophole in the all-caps component. There’s a new explanation for what to do when an article doesn’t note something important in the title: users who want to submit with a new title highlighting this aspect can do so without getting pre-approval. We’ve also merged what used to be 6.13 into this rule, which discussed the length of titles.
Rule 7.1 and what used to be 7.3 were merged into 7.1, since they had similar reasoning behind those rules. The former 7.3 referred to questions with a specific, obtainable answer.
Rule 7.3 used to be Rule 7.4, which discusses the non-gaming related details of Games Industry Figures. A notable addition to this rule is as follows: “Direct accusations, litigation or other serious matters must have a demonstrable impact on the related game or company.”
Rule 7.4 deals with crowdfunding projects. We now require a direct link to the campaign page. This means no more linking to a trailer on YouTube (even one posted by the campaign itself) or to an article that discusses the fundraising project.
Rule 7.7 is the merged result of what used to be 7.8, 7.9, and 7.10. They all referred to the exchange of games in some way, making it more sense to combine them into one rule.
Rule 7.8 used to be 7.11 and 7.12: they were combined since they targeted similar posts.
Rule 8, which refers to self-promotion, has some significant changes that we’ll summarize here. We specifically disallow compensation for posting something to our subreddit. We also clarify that we usually don’t take comments into account when it comes to self-promotion, but we can if a user is circumventing the account history requirement.
Some rules had minor edits, for clarification, formatting, or closing loopholes: no changes that fundamentally change the rule itself. The following rules had minor edits: Rule 6.1, 6.5, 6.8, 6.10, 6.11, 6.12, 7.9, 7.10, and 7.11.
We’ve also rearranged some rules for sensibility. Rule 6.3 used to be 6.9: it outlines proper tagging in titles, so it makes sense to move it up next to Rule 6.2 which discusses title formatting. Also, some of the rules have changed in numbering, since we merged some of the rules.

Looking Forward

The end of this decade is fast approaching. That means we'll be hosting End of the Decade discussion threads, in which we discuss the consoles of this decade, how the gaming industry changed in the past ten years, the best game of the decade, and more! We're currently working on the schedule of these posts: expect them to start sometime in November. They'll replace our usual discussion threads in the process. If you have a topic you'd like to suggest, let us know!
Sometime before the end of the year, we'll hit 2 million subscribers, which is a monumental feat. We'll try to do something special when that time comes! For now, make your bets on when that'll be.
As always, thank you for being part of our community here at /games! We wouldn't be much of a community without y'all.

In the past, Gaming Regulation 22.120 banned all non-sporting event wagering. So you couldn’t bet on American Idol or the Oscars or the Heisman Trophy. But last January, the Casino Control Board ... 2020 Sports Schedule 2020 Sporting Events from PRIMESPORT Apart from the annual massive sporting events — like the Super Bowl, Kentucky Derby, Champions League final (etc.) — the 2020 sporting calendar is home to several other marquee events that have bettors the world over on high alert. 1995 in sports - Sport Calendar of the major events of the year 1995. The-Sports.org provides sports results and scores, statistics and betting help for sports including 149 soccer, rugby, tennis,motorsports, athletics, basketball, skiing, golf and many others. TV sports calendar listing live sport on UK TV, covering all terrestrial and paid channels, plus online streaming, with links to event betting odds markets ... Showprevious days sporting events Live Sports - Tue 20-10-2020 Shownext days sporting events. 17:55. FOOTBALL . Dynamo Kiev v Juventus. ... Betting Calendar - October 2020. Sun Mon Tue ...

No More Fans At Sporting Events?

There are certain myths that exist in sports betting. One of the most prominent is the fixed games or guaranteed lock promise. This myth exists because of the media and many people finding it ... Try watching this video on www.youtube.com, or enable JavaScript if it is disabled in your browser. Michigan Casinos can now legally accepts wagers on sports events. Michigan Casinos can now legally accepts wagers on sports events. ... Legal Sports Betting in Michigan Begins - Duration: 10:36 ... The NCAA is holding the tournament with no fans in attendance due to the outbreak of the coronavirus. The NBA may follow suit. So please wash your hands. Honey Shot: When Camera Zooms In On Hot Girls In The Stands At Sporting Events - Outnumbered ============== **Please Click Be...

1980 in sports - Sport Calendar of the major events of the ...

Unusual Option Activity for Aug-27-2020 - WMT, DKS, BYND (C), NCLH (C)

morning coffee

Watch NFR Live Stream 2020 Texas Rodeo Onlin

Watch NFR Live Stream 2020 Texas Rodeo Online

When is the National Finals Rodeo?

Where will the NFR Texas 2020 be held?

What TV Channel will the NFR be on?

How to watch NFR Live Stream 2020 Online

The Cowboys Channel

PRCA on The Cowboy Channel+ App

RFD-TV Now

Sling TV

2020 NFR Live Stream Using a VPN

Can I listen to NFR 2020 live stream on radio?

NFR Live Online on Social Media

How much are tickets to the NFR?

Everything You Need to Know About NFR

Main Performance

Contestants

Super Bowl of Rodeo

Miss Rodeo America

Wrangler NFR Preshow

Cowboy Christmas

Standings

NFR Prize Money

Wrangler NFR World Champions

Final Words

[10/16/2019] Wednesday's Off Topic Free Talk Thread

/LonghornNation Daily Off Topic Free Talk Thread

Today: 10/16/2019

Current Austin Weather: 73° and Rain

Seven Day Forecast:

Your go-to place to talk about whatever you want. From the dumb shit aggies do on a near daily basis, to the latest whatever happening wherever. What ya got?

Recent Longhorn Tweets

Here's A Look At Todays Longhorn Sporting Event(s):

Trending on Reddit

/All

/CFB

/LonghornNation