Welcome Phil - glad to have ya, and hopefully the info you've read thus far helps. If you want to take your racing experience to a whole other level of fun, you're more than welcome to race with us and others on the Zone. Team
SLO are pretty big fans of racing, so feel free to look us up.
Here's another tip: If you're having difficulty running a track or improving your lap times, some tracks at SLO_Jumper's
site have replays you can watch and learn from. If you can't find what you need, you can either ask someone to make a replay for you (if possible - some tracks can't produce adequate replays) or you can come online with one of us and make use of what we call "riding with". At the start of the game, simply hit the letter "K" unitl you're looking at the truck (you have to use Chase Far view) of the person who's providing the demonstration, then sit back and watch the show. It's a great way to learning little nuances about running a track, and what lines work best.
I'll add one more thing. If it all possible, try learning to race using manual gears (under Options, click Game, then uncheck Auto). It affords you much more control through corners, as well as a 10 to 15 percent (approx) performance boost in acceleration and speed.
Again, welcome aboard, and if you need any more help or info...well, you're already at the right place.