heat championship racing series

pedal to the metal

Welcome to the race!

Our Championship Racing Series is a organized way to play the board game Heat: Pedal to the Medal.
The goal is to some what mimic official F1 league structure, while having a ton of fun with good friends!

Seasons consist of multiple Grand Prix Events. Drivers racing in these events accumulate points after each race based off their performance.

Scroll down to view the Drivers Stats, Circuits and to fine Rules on how to play and how the league works!

League Standings

2026 Season

- Drivers
+ Wins
- Dustin
- Heath
- Mike J
- Alex
- Colin
- Kevin
- Zach
- Gillis
- Brooke
- Beau
- Charly
- Saxxon
- Haaken
- Magnus
- Jasmine
- Mikeal
- Ramie
- Chelsea
- Brandi
- Tony
- Lisa

circuits

usa

Inspired by Riverside International Raceway in California.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Rookie
Corners: 4
Laps: 2

italy

Italy track is a love letter to Autodromo Nazionale Monza

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Speedway
Corners: 3
Laps: 2

France

Inspired by the Reims-Gueux circuit.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Moderate
Corners: 5
Laps: 2

great britain

The Great Britain track is a clear homage to Silverstone Circuit.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Expert
Corners: 5
Laps: 2

japan

A tribute to the Suzuka International Racing Course.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Hazardous
Corners: 5
Laps: 2
Conditions: Chicanes - Flooded Spaces

mexico

Inspired by the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Expert
Corners: 5
Laps: 2
Conditions: Chicanes

spain

A nod to the Montjuïc Circuit in Barcelona.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Expert
Corners: 11
Laps: 1
Conditions: Chicanes - Tunnels

Netherlands

The Netherlands track is a tribute to Circuit Zandvoort.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Endurance
Corners: 5
Laps: 3
Conditions: Chicanes - Tunnels

South Africa

A nod to the Prince George Circuit (East London) & Kyalami.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Expert
Corners: 7
Laps: 2
Conditions: Gravel

germany

Inspired by hockenheimring & Nürburgring Südschleife.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Medium
Corners: 6
Laps: 2
Conditions: Sliding, Downforce, Chicanes

monte carlo

Inspired by Monaco Grand Prix 1955

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: High
Corners: 8
Laps: 2
Conditions: Chicanes

Nurburgring-Nordschleife

Inspired by the real track in germany.

Layout & Statistics

Difficulty: Insanity
Corners: 18
Laps: 2
Conditions: Flooded Spaces, Gravel, Chicanes, Sliding, Downforce

Before every Heat, Weather and Road Condition Tokens are revealed. These modify engine baseline parameters and alter track rules:

Sun / Clear: Standard baseline rules.
Rain: Overall engine cooling is reduced by 1 across all gears.
Heavy Rain: Reduced overall cooling, plus Flooded Sectors (marked with blue borders) where boosting requires an additional Heat card.
Slippery (Ice/Oil): Downshifting more than 1 gear at a time instantly triggers a spin-out risk.
Strong Winds: Alters Slipstream values (+3 bonus spaces or 0 depending on headwind direction).
Fog / Low Visibility: Adhesion (Tire) upgrades cannot be used to bypass corner speed limits.
Deep Puddles: Entering puddle zones forces an immediate downshift or an immediate Heat cost to maintain velocity.

Tunnel Vision

Single-Lane Restriction: Tunnels narrow to a single lane. Overtaking or ending movement on an occupied space is strictly prohibited.
No Slipstreaming: Confined airflow disables all drafting bonuses inside tunnels.
Zero Cooling: Ambient heat prevents free cooling in low gears while under the mountain.
Hard Walls: Spinning out inside a tunnel incurs double penalties (extra Heat/damage cards).

Rocky Road & Off Road Terrain

The Jump (Airborne Ramps): Ramps require a mandatory minimum speed to clear. Failing to hit the target speed forces an immediate Heat Card into your hand from bottoming out.
Corrugated Roads: Violent washboard vibrations force any driver ending their turn on these spaces to discard 1 card from their hand.
Side-Slip Arrows: Forces the car 1 extra space toward the outside wall of a corner, potentially pushing you past the speed limit into a spin-out.
Debris Fields: Landing on loose debris forces an immediate Stress Card into your hand.

Chicanes (Technical Corner Sequences)

Condensed Speed Limits: A chicane consists of two corner lines placed very close together (often separated by only 1–3 spaces).
The "Double Hazard" Risk: Passing through the first corner line at an unsafe speed forces an immediate check for Heat/spin-out. If you are moving fast enough to clear both corner lines in a single move, you must evaluate your speed against both corner limits independently during that single turn.
Gear Lock: Because the distance between the apexes is so short, drivers rarely have room to accelerate. If you enter the first bend in a high gear, you will almost certainly exceed the limit of the second bend unless you use Brake Upgrades or dump significant Heat.

Rather than keeping a static build, your race car dynamically evolves throughout the season based on the standard & advanced upgrades you draft.

Race Deck: Maximum of 3 upgrade cards active per race.
The Garage (Reserve): Maximum of 6 upgrade cards stored.
Total Capacity: A player can never own more than 9 upgrade cards in total (3 active + 5 in reserve).

The Draft(First Race)

Perform a reverse draft (the player last on the starting grid chooses first).
Each player picks 1 card for their deck. The rest are discarded.
Race 2: Repeat the process. Players draft their 2nd card.
Race 3: Repeat the process. Players draft their 3rd card. Race decks are now full (3 cards)

Advanced Management (Races 2 and onwards)
At the start of each race, after revealing the track, weather, and road conditions, execute these two steps in order:

Step 1: The Market Draft & Scrap (Optional)
Generate the market. Following the reverse draft order, each player chooses ONE option:
1. "Store": Take a card from the market and put it in their Garage (only if they have free space: 0 or 1 card in reserve).
2. "Swap (Trade)": Take a card from the market and permanently discard one of their current cards (from their deck or reserve) to stay within the 5-card total limit. The discarded card goes back to the game box.
3. "Pass": Keep their current car setup as it is.
Step 2: Mechanical Pit Adjustments (Optional)
- Right before shuffling the deck to start the race, a player can make a swap from their Garage to their Race Deck.
- They can take up to 3 upgrade cards from their Garage (reserve) and swap it with upgrade cards in their race deck.
- The other upgrade cards in the deck must remain the same as the previous race. This forces players to deal with past choices while allowing minor tweaks for the weather.

The "Balanced Market Formula":
To prevent the market from being flooded with Advanced cards, the market setup changes depending on the player count:

1 Player: 3 Normal Upgrades + 1 Advanced Upgrade (4 cards total)
2 Players: 3 Normal Upgrades + 2 Advanced Upgrades (5 cards total)
3 Players: 3 Normal Upgrades + 3 Advanced Upgrades (6 cards total)
4 Players: 4 Normal Upgrades + 3 Advanced Upgrades (7 cards total)
5 Players: 5 Normal Upgrades + 3 Advanced Upgrades (8 cards total)
6 Players: 6 Normal Upgrades + 3 Advanced Upgrades (9 cards total)

Note: Sponsorship cards are still distributed normally after Step 2 based on starting grid positions.

Sponsorship cards provide one-time tactical advantages during a Heat without clogging up your deck in the long run. Sponsorship cards are awarded prior to the race based on Weather setup, qualifying position, or special event conditions.

Playing a Sponsor Card:During your turn, you may play a Sponsorship card from your hand to gain its printed benefit (such as free Heat clearing, emergency movement, or extra card draws). Single-Use per Race:Once played, a Sponsorship card is removed from your deck for the remainder of the Heat. It does not re-enter your hand or discard pile until the next event setup.

Download Rule Book