When the UEE brought in Bengal Class Carriers to remove the settlers by force, the races came to an abrupt halt. For a short time. It was realized very soon after the terraforming crews came to Stanton, that those who are isolated by distance, from what people like to call “Civilization”, will gladly bet the money they can’t spend anywhere else.
Thus, the Stanton Loop was reborn.
It was Crusader Industries, who first gave The Loop, some slight status, when in 2915, CEO Kelly Caplan, first heard rumors of the long distance race around the Stanton system, and decided that it would be the perfect test for a prototype cargo ship Crusader Industries was working on. The idea was that a long distance race would prove the dependability and durability of the new ship.
Due to some shrewd marketing, representatives from most of the large cargo hauling companies were in Stanton, to watch the race. Unfortunately, due to a then uncharted magnetic anomaly in the Aaron Halo, The Crusader Industries ship didn’t win the race, having been deviated several degrees off course. The resulting error put the ship several light hours off course when they came out of Quantum, and she just couldn’t make the time up.
The next year, MicroTech announced that they were teaming up with Crusader Industries for the race, and providing specialized software for the navigation interface of the Crusader crew’s Mobiglas’.
It didn’t take long for all four Megacorps to realize the value of having a major ship race in their own backyard. Once cargo classes were created, various outlaw factions saw it as an opportunity to pillage new tech from ArcCorp, MicroTech and Crusader. Hurston Dynamics immediately offered free race day rentals to all race teams, of their latest ship’s weapons. The Hurston family was smart enough to understand that free weapons when used, would most likely end up being bought, and as more hauling companies were sponsoring race teams, the dividends of offering a few freebies, could be massive.[/text_block]
Along with the extended course, new rules were added. All ships were allowed to make pit stops as, and when needed, including refueling by support craft. In order to make the race more interesting, and better in line with the types of ships that were racing, all ships would start off from Stanton, fully loaded with cargo, and were required to make stops in each system, to unload and load specific cargo at predetermined “Depots”. The cargo type and amount was predetermined each year by the Race Committee.
The 2920 race was won by the ship sponsored by the Nassau Trading Company, which caused more than a little controversy, since NTC was one of the founding members of the Race Committee. After a Committee conference, which NTC was not allowed to attend, it was decided that the NTC sponsored team had not broken any rules, and had been shrewd enough to stay off the main shipping lines in Osiris, where their competitors had been waylaid by an armada of the Chi-Ken Clan. Of the 30 ships that started the race, only nine had finished. The rest were destroyed, boarded, or disabled.[/text_block]
This new course was the same as the earlier, but instead of ending at Stanton after Terra, ships would now jump on to Magnus, Ellis, Nexus, Hades, Nemo, Fora, Banshee, Garron, Idris, Rhetor, Crowshaw, Sol, Davien, Kilian, then back through Ellis, and Magnus, ending again at Stanton.
This course was chosen because official CargOlympics tryouts required a minimum of 20 separate and distinct cargo stops, in order to qualify.
By this time, the Stanton Loop had become very well known as the race for cargo haulers, and large cargo companies. Earth demanded that if Terra was part of the course, Sol had to be included as well. The Imperial Senate went so far as to threaten a Naval Blockade, if Sol wasn’t included. Thus Sol became part of the Official Stanton Loop course. It was quietly pointed out in the Terran Spectrum Casts, that if the course was changed so that the jump from Crowshaw went to Ferron, Sol could be easily removed from the course. This knowledge made more than a few, quite happy.[/text_block]
The final class is the Disco Lando Memorial Rally, and consists solely of Starfarers. No one knows what the origin of the race name is, or where it came from. Some have rumored that it was the name of a hapless galactic hitchhiker, who accidentally poisoned himself after winning a “pork-n-beans” eating competition, then was unable to remove his helmet after EVAing to his ship.
Whatever the true origin, the DLMR race was set up due to the unique nature of the Starfarer. Being able to carry both hard and liquid cargo, with the ability to scoop, it was felt that cargo stops along the course should be set up to take advantage of the ship’s unique abilities.[/text_block]
As the course takes the racers through unreported areas of space, the race is considered “guns free”, meaning that ships weapons are armed, powered up, and ready for use at any time. Some competitors in the past, have resorted to “testing” their guns on racers they were following. While officially frowned upon, there are no rules against “removing” the competition.
Support craft are allowed for the 3R’s (Rearm, Refuel and Repair), but support craft cannot be used as any type of escort. All race crews are on their own, for defense of their ship and cargo.
The first ship to land at the finish, with the correct cargo aboard, wins! Race Officials are at each Depot along the race, to ensure no racers skip a scheduled stop. The Officials will not tell you if you are loading or unloading incorrect cargo. That is why you have a Load Master aboard.
Downloadable Rulebook will be available Soon.™[/text_block]
These positions include:
- Captain – Head of the Crew
- Pilot – Responsible for all ship maneuvers
- Co-Pilot – Relieves the Pilot when required
- Engineer – Handles power, shields, and shipboard replacements
- Astrogator – Plots the ship’s course per Captain’s input
- Gunners – For defense of the ship if attacked
- Load Master – Responsible for cargo management
- Support Personnel – Mans the support craft and is responsible for the 3R’s (Rearm, Refuel, Repair)
The above are required positions, but more than one position can be handled by a single person.
All crew, and their positions must be declared to the Race Committee prior to the start of the race. Support Personnel may not help race crews in any capacity other than the 3R’s, and may not be aboard any race craft while it is actively racing.[/text_block]