Motorcycle Racing Forum

So far I have only done three.

Here is my order

#1 Roebling Road, GA. It's very flowing and only has one straight. A lot of fun, pretty fast and it goes right.

#2 Moroso, FL. It has tons of grip everywhere and it's fun to ride. Just don't hit any trees or go swimming in the canal and you'll be fine.

#3 Homestead, FL (it sucks for bikes). Way too slippery. Too many straights(4 of them) Not a flowing track at all. It's a stop &  go track.

Will find out about NFMP soon.  ;D

VIR

Daytona

Road A

Roebling - great layout, but the surface sucks.  It needs to be repaved

VIR

Pocono FUSA

Mid-Ohio

Ooops forgot the why:

VIR- Because unless you are spectating it has no draw backs. Great people! Good food! Great period!

Pocono FUSA- It's fast and has a banked turn, but extremely dangerous. Helps that I'm 20 minutes fromit too.

Mid-Ohio- Great place and techinical, staff could use work. Alos found a pizza place nearby with awesome wings!

Well only been on a few myself the next two years are going to be my traveling years.

1st Hallet tight track but does allow some hp to shine but handling is curcial
2nd MotorSports Ranch gets high marks for nothing to hit in run off areas but losses to Hallet because I can not feel comfortable on all the off camber turns (they are all off camber)
3rd Oak Hill all about handling and perfect lines I guess it would be the Nelson Ledges of the south. Track is seeing some repaving this year and does not have soil problems that plague the sledeges.
3b No Problem Raceway haven't run it yet but inspected it track looks interesting/technical and will reward the leader as passing will be very difficult.
4th Texas World Speedway fun to get the HP out and really rip then have to deal with real turns.
5th Denton Kart way YSR track very tight track with a straight that allows some relaxation but not much haven't ridden it yet but looks like about most fun you can have on a bike.
6th Daytona HP means too much and turn1 walls  just make me overbrake
7th Texas Motorspeedway absolute bottom the track maangement doesn't care about bikes and configuration is all  180 degree turns with one chincanish turn that has zero room for error to armco.

loudon--i know, safety and all of that, but i love the lay out and i like rough sufaces.  it's a really fun place to go.  

summit point--it's fast, has a great rhythm and it's now paved!!!

pocono's north course--when the pavement wasn't as bad as it was earlier this year.  fun, challenging, fast, but no racing and the surface is getting bad.

summit point jefferson curcuit--fun place, easy to learn.  i ran it backwards, so a lot of decreasing radius corners.  under a minute a lap, but it's a fun place, you can drag knee everywhere.  just watch the white lines, and don't race around it, there's no real run-off.

vir's north course--i can't get a rhythm there.  great place, but i hate the lay out (yes i know i'm one of like 3 people in the world who'd say that)

pocono east--it's 20 minutes from my house as well, i can't say much else about it.

VIR - it's the only one I've been to, and I'm only about an hour away.

Next year, I'll be going to Slippery, I mean Summit Point.  (that's what I hear)

 8)
1st:   Laguna Seca (corkscrew and Andretti hairpin are awesome)  
2nd:  VIR North (VIR is an east coast version of Seca in my opinion)  Track and facilities are top notch.  
3rd:  Summit Main.

Have only ridden two east coast tracks so far.  Will try others in the spring.  Sears Point and Willow Springs are good too.

Quoteloudon--i know, safety and all of that, but i love the lay out and i like rough sufaces.  it's a really fun place to go.  

Get a USCRA license and try the "other" Loudon
http://www.lrrsracing.com/other_loudon.htm

Gotta tell yeah, those boulders are freaking me out.  :o

Putnam Park (cept for T-10) because it has got such a GREAT surface.

Road American, the place is just so damn fast.

Blackhawk since it is so smooth....NOT!  I sure wish they'd put some money into that place!!

Loudon!!

Because it's the only track i've run at and it's only 20 minutes from my house!!  ;)

must say
1. Oak Hill you need to think the whole way around good elevation changes

2. or maybe 1. Motor Sport ranch same reasons as Oak Hill but with a great surface and wide.

3. no problems good track great surface on flat land

4. tws

I have not ridden on Hallet.

I have raced cars on Roebling Road,  and Road A.  but never bikes.

ps 2-14-03 have done Hallet twice now in the cw dirction is now #3 ccW #4  that still leaves Oak Hill and Motorsport ranch tied for #1 that is motor sport ranch ccw, cw is down there with Hallet (there is a joint that you cross just as the track goes off camber )

Roebling, cause its the only place I have been.

1. VIR, best facilities, best traction, smooth surface, and technical!

2. Roebling, very fast, love fast tracks, only drawback is the surface, they have to come off some money and re-pave that place, too many patches!
It would be an awesome track on just a re-pave!

This probably obvious by now but, NFMP is my favorite track now. :)  

ROAD AMERICA,
  Best track in america, hence the name

1. VIR - because it is technical, great surface, great layout, and what an awesome facility, only 2 hours from home

2. CMP - Good layout, Great surface, Fun to run on, only 2 hours from home.

3. Roebling Road - FAST, needs repaving very badly. only 3.5 hours from home

4. Road Atlanta  - ? I havn't raced there since they changed gravity cavity.

5. Daytona - FAST,  but kinda boring. Flying down the backstraight looking at seagulls and $hit ;D

My ranking:

1 - Road America: Mostly because of one turn- the carousel. To me, the carousel makes all other turns feel boring.

2 - Daytona: Just the feeling of being there is awesome, regardless of how many times my bike has broken there or that I fractured my elbow by crashing going up the banking.

3 - Gingerman: tricky and fun. Flows kind of odd, but it definetly separates the good from the bad.

4 - Brainerd: It's a love hate thing. Going wide open in 6th through turn one is just way too nuts not to include.

Upper Mid-West is the best:

1. Road America - fast and begs you to go faster, especially turn 5 and at the kink.

2. Daytona - just for history.  The track really is not that challenging.  HP and weight are everything.

3. Grattan Raceway (Michigan) - challenging (off-chamber turns, bowl, esses, "jump", elevation changes)

4. Mid-America Motorplex - challenging (double apexes, esses, positive chamber everywhere), but the surface needed repair at the entrance to several corners. It's also flat, which makes it easy to see the entire course from a spectators pov.

5. Gingerman Raceway - want to learn how to take a double apex turns with some off-chamber elevation changes, this is the place.  lots of fun

6. Blackhawk Farms - lots of shifting and turning, surface was awful.  Hopefully this year, with the new surface, it will give my top choices a run.

Do they have to be tracks where CCS races?

Here are the ones I've been on:

#1 is Arroyo Seco in NM.  Great track (no walls, tons o' run-out room, really safe), great people, great organization.  Run by riders for riders.  Race season with them is a blast.

#2 Firebird East in PHX.  Closer to home so friends & family can watch the racing.

#3 Sandia Motorsports Park in NM.  A bit small, not too twisty, more fun for the bigger bikes.  But they run races in the summer.  Nice folks that run that organization.

#4 Phoenix Int. Raceway main track.  Only rode there once on my first newbie track day.  Would like to go back one day now that I'm more experienced.

Hope to get experience on more tracks as I progress in racing.

Road America. Awsome facility and awsome track!

Gateway. Yes Gateway. Just don't look at the concrete. Fun track. Your almost allways turning.

uhh,....
1. any track that allows my sorry butt to make a lap !!!

and

2. any track my sad sack can enter ???

3. which ever track that lets me bring my slow excuse for a bike on...



oh, i dream of riding Laguna !!!

it'll happen.... (must think positive, must think....)

i cant complain, sept Road-A kick my but twice, and Daytona, and MAM, tho i liked MAM, not that i didnt like Daytona, but MAM was slippery....

Have only been on four tracks.  Of those four, my order would be

1)  VIR
2)  Las Vegas GP Speedway
3)  Roebling
4)  CMP

1) Gateway- Turn one is too much fun, and you're close enough to a real city to get good steak and lobster and afterward hit a decent nightclub.

2) Road America- Would have been #1 except for the kink

3) Gingerman- Safe and technical

Let's see...I have now ridden Homestead and Jennings.  That means here's my list:

1.  Daytona - It's Daytona, what more do you need to know?  And it's a lifelong dream of mine to race there!

2.  Homestead - Horsepower friendly, and I've got more power than skills...lol.

3.   Jennings GP - What a great layout and it's very safe and technical.

4.  How the Hell should I know?

1.  Gingerman, as Dorn said it seperates the good from the bad.  Bring all the HP you want to Gingerman and it will only get in your way.  Safe and smooth with alot of grip.

2.  Grattan,fun and safe.

3.  Mid-America, nice layout but needs the cold patches fixed.

4.  Road-America, it's all about the HP.

5.  Gateway, walls, walls, walls, God help anyone that races there.

[Putnam Park]
     (+) great track/fun layout, close to Indianapolis, able to see most of the track from the stands
     (-) really strict hours of operation, P.A. system, last turn has that concrete wall

[Road America]
     (+) professional level facility, fast, fun
     (-) all that fencing and concrete for the car guys, patches in the corners, can be scary as hell!, expensive

[Daytona]
     (+) it's Daytona, great second function as vacation spot, very fast, banking
     (-) concrete walls, some B/S rules, shadows on the banking at the end of the race day, expensive

[Heartland Park]
     (+) very fun layout, good spectating, next to Topeka
     (-) track surface, crack sealer, dragstrip slippery when wet/hot, a couple walls to avoid

[Brainerd]
     (+) turn one, fast, large facility, passing opportunities, spectating on top of the tower
     (-) track surface, some facilities need improvement, concrete wall at exit of last turn

[Blackhawk Farms]
     (+) fun track, close to Rockford/Beloit, able to spectate from almost anywhere inside track
     (-) multiple safety issues and track surface which should be fixed before we race there again so they won't count as a (-), facilities need update

[Gratten]
     (+) challenging track, unique roller coaster design, spectating
     (-) somewhat remote location, some facilities, track surface in parts

[Gateway]
     (+) Location, paved paddock, somewhat fun
     (-) walls!, bogus chicane, you smell something?

[Mid America Motorplex]
     (+) nice track, fun, spectating, close to Council Bluffs
     (-) gravel roads, hot as hell in summer, concessions were limited

QuoteMy ranking:

1 - Road America: Mostly because of one turn- the carousel. To me, the carousel makes all other turns feel boring.

I notice that you didn't mention turn 5. ;D  You really do need help in the kink, Edgar.  Perhaps if you pull up your panties...

Daytona.  Stupidist thing I ever did in my life.  Want more!  Only been there once.  Maybe I'll get over the place eventually, and it will seem boring, but right now, it's my version of when Al Unser Jr. said, "You just don't know what Indy means."

Gateway.  Too scary, so don't think about it.  I've been hospitalised there.  I've won there.  Afternoon sun in your eyes in the last turn as you charge into the shadow of the grandstand, half out of control from the pavement change onto the bank.  Tunnel vision down the front straight, all colors that surround bleed into one...  Turn 2 is my favorite in racing.  You can practically drag the frame in 2 if you try hard enough.  Separates the men from the panty-wearing forigners.  Gateway is a good place to wear holes in your lowers.  Outstanding local staff and the coolest race director ever.  Beautiful sunrises over the mountian of garbage.  Needs some shower stalls.

Grattan/Hallett.  Same place.  Blind, jumps, tight,  off camber, demanding, poor pavement, great people, beautiful scenery.  Light and sliding, scared $#itless!  Over the hill apex at 4 is sublime sex.  If heaven is either of these tracks, I hope I make it through the gates.

Blackhawk.  It's home.  Best safety crew in the buisness.  Probably much better this year with new pavement and fewer trees.  I've had some epic battles here.  A real rider's track.

Road America.  Great fun.  Silly fast.  Are you good on the brakes?  If not, stay home.  The Kink is a worldwide racing legend. Separates the men from the panty wearing forigners.  Too damn expensive, like Daytona.

Gingerman.  I'm getting better there.  Very hard track to ride well.  Devious and deceptive, but each turn is a victory if you get it perfect.  I could race there every day for a year and still feel like I could learn it better.  Very safe runoff.

MAM.  How can any track that destroys tires so fast also be so slippery?  Brand new pavement sucks monkey private parts.  Don't you just love 6 inch wide racing lines in a sea of patch?  Good thing the facility is brand new, because I'd hate to see it in 5 years.  One more hour from Chicago, and I could be in Vegas, baby!  Naturally, as bad as the place sucks, we have to go there twice this year!

QuoteBlackhawk since it is so smooth....NOT!  I sure wish they'd put some money into that place!!

You've got to keep up with current events...

It's completely ground down and repaved!

My favorite track...  And I've been to a lot, I think...

Sears Point, or is it called Infeon Raceway now...

Never have I been on such an intimidating track where elevation and camber changes occur in, through, and around corners.  Makes other places seem pretty tame.

Laguna's just neat...  That's it.  It has a certain rhythm to it...like Blackhawk.

And Mid-Ohio's surface is cr@p.

My favorite track is Sugo where as a wild card I destroyed and rather humiliated many a world superbike regulars. One time I passed Troy Corser on the outside going into the dreaded chicane the track is famous for.  :)

no.no.no.no...

You belong on the MotoGP thread.... ;D

Quoteno.no.no.no...

You belong on the MotoGP thread.... ;D

nah uh.... no I don't. I was telling the truth. I really did do that at Sugo. :)

I passed Wes Cooley on the outside of the long sweeper at Grattan in the rain... ;D

Favorite tracks:

Las Vegas Classic Road Course - repaved recently, amazing grip, smooth, nice layout, lots of slow and medium corners, nice and wide.

Streets of Willow - if the surface was more consistent it would be #1.  Tight, two fast parts, the bowl rules.  

Buttonwillow - the pavement totally sucks, but i love the layout.  The two blind corners are a total rush.  Turn 2 is a challenge that even the fast experts have trouble with.    The sweeper (turn 7--8??)  is a gut check.   May be comparable to turns 8-9 at the Big Track at Willow Springs, but I have not been on that track, so i don't know.

Phoenix Intl. - actually really fun, except for the "bus stop" where you go from the infield to the NASCAR track.   Kinda short.   Nice facilities, of course.

Tracks I suspect are real fun, but I have not yet raced there:

-  California Speedway

- Arizona Motorsports Park - track day 3/22!!!

I've noticed that no-one has picked Firebird East as their Fav.

Yeah...me too

I wonder where Barber is going to rank once people get on it?

Putnam- lots of traction, a little bit of everything.

VIR- Roller coaster, smooth. Technical, makes Grattan vanilla

Heartland Park- First win, Counter clockways, awsome chicane

Brainerd- Turn one thru T2 WFO needs to be experienced

Road America- big, wide track, Kettle Bottoms rule. No off camber.

MAM- still learning. Flat but has about everything else

Road Atlanta- "name" track, you like down hill off camber

BHF- point and shoot, got brakes? good to learn shifting, throttle

Gingerman- Fun little track

Grattan- been there once, need to go back

Beaver Run- new smooth, simple short track, long drive

Laguna Seca- spectator. Bay area is awsome

Pikes Peak- Bowl, elevation sucks

Gateway- Love the infield. Transition to front straight not worth it

Quotenah uh.... no I don't. I was telling the truth. I really did do that at Sugo. :)

 ;D       ;D       ;D       ;D         ;D       ;D      ;D      ;D       ;D       ;D      ;D     ;D

no words !!!

nah uh ........ im cryin !!!
LMAO !!!

Of the tracks that I have been too:

1) Road America:  Great Faciilites, beautiful track and the carousel...

2) Hallett:  Been there twice, once in each direction.  This track is just plain fun.  I like counter-clockwise the best.  How could you not like a track that has a corner called 'the B i t c h'.

3) Tie
Grattan: The bowl, the elevation changes, going for a swim if your not careful.
Gingerman:  Very technical, nothing to hit.

5) Blackhawk:  Now that it is paved.

6) Gateway:  I like a track that is flowing and not point and shoot.  T2 and the carousel are a blast.  The homemade chicane sucks and I lost a championship there.

7) Heartland Park:  Fun layout, but crappy surface, no food service, and no camping.

Tracks that I still want to race on:
1) Barber
2) Putnam
3) Brainerd
4) Daytona
5) MAM

VIR, very technical, 3 different sections, really require skill and learning to get really fast there.

Summit, fast and flowing, great places for passing, although the straight is a little too long for my liking, they should have start/finish at pit out.

Daytona, I fell in love after one weekend. It is intimidating when you get in the track for the first time through the tunnel, and you go really really really slow because you don't know where or what you are supposed to be doing. But after a few races, you get the grove, and you will feel like no where else. Something about making a long turn while you bike is not going any faster... and drafting is very cool too. It is fun and exhilarating. I can go to any track and just ride, at daytona, I get a thrill

QuoteI wonder where Barber is going to rank once people get on it?

I've met Mr Barber on several occasions, and the civil engineer on the project is a racer that I know.  

I think it will be like flying to Europe to a high class world championship type track.  I need to go...

another of the few from the pacific region.... (well I'm slow, fat and old so take thes with a grain of salt)....
    Thunderhill - variety of fast and tight, blind and sweeping, incredible!!!!
    Buttonwillow - slower tech. track but fun, fun, fun...
    Fontana (ama course) everything except the front straight, even T-1 is neat but the straight seems long and akward.
    Streets of Willow - very fun little track, challenging except T-4 (that $uck$)
    Las Vegas Classic course another fun little track the back sweep into T-7 is sick....
    Willow springs raceway all about how big your nuts are, fast, fast, fast.......

I haven't ridden too many tracks...

Grattan - the most fun of the tracks I've ridden.  Keeps you busy.  I like the twisty-ness, the elevation changes, and the fact that it's very technical.  It's a challenge to figure it out and nail down two good laps in a row.

BHF - fun, more fun than I expected it to be.  But simple.  Nothing too technical or too challenging.  The hardest part about the track was learning to ignore the bumps and just RIDE it.  

RA - kinda boring.  Go straight and really fast... BRAKE!!!... take a 90-degree corner... and go straight and really fast again... BRAKE!!!... repeat.  Sure, the kink is really f-in hairy.  But the track reminds me too much of going out and blasting backroads here in IL.

That's it.  I've *driven* some other tracks back when I did a few driving schools with my Omni GLH... IRP and Waterford Hills in MI.  Both fun in a car... IRP would get boring on a bike I think.  Waterford might be ok... but it's also been a few years since I've been there so I don't remember it all too well.

Tracks I want to ride:  
Gateway - it seems you either love it or hate it.  
Mid-Ohio - if anything, just to say I've ridden where the AMA guys do
BIR - I have GOT to try that 6th gear WOT turn 1
Laguna - any explanation needed?
Daytona - see Mid-Ohio

1) Road Atlanta- It's  a real confidence inspiring track.  It's one of the easier tracks to go fast.
2) Laguna Seca- It's Laguna!  A world class facility with outstanding pavement.  Would be my number one but I lowsided in Four and still don't know why.
3) VIR- Super sweet track.  Beautiful pavement (have not been there since they straightened out the uphill scetion).  Super technical and hard to go real fast.  Have yet to figure out how to go fast on the downhill section.  Raced a 6 hour endurance there that is near to my heart!
4) Buttonwillow-  Great rhythm track.  Some small sweet elevation changes and some sections that really seperate the men from the boys.  Would rank higher but don't dig the last flat righthander with the pavement transitions in the middle of it.

Honorable Mentions:

5)  Carolina-  Neat layout but I could never go very fast there.  The tight turns really fouled me up.
6) Putnam-  Great track.  First track where I was actually competitive.  Wish they wern't so strict on camping and hangin out.
7) Gateway-  I won a race there as a novice (my only one) so it has a pretty special place in my heart.
8)  Summit Point-  Great track since they repaved it.  Gives us non-regulars a chance.  Great rhythm sections.  Would be higher but the facilites leave a lot to be desired.  Was my first race in July of 98.
9)  Las Vegas-  Has some really fun sections.  Great traction and the bumps and transisitons aren't to nerve racking.

Tracks not too fond of:

10) Both Phoenix tracks
11) Both Willow tracks.  The big track is fun but you have to have super large balls to go fast!  The little track needs new pavement.
12)  Memphis and Indy (I don't think anybody runs there anymore)-  Too many holes and I dread drag strip tracks.
13)  Atlanta Motor Speedway-  Kind of fun now that I look back but real rough and lots of jumps!
14)  Talladega-  I have wrecked more times there than anywhere.  I don't know why.  I prefer the bigger flowing tracks.

I try and ride one new track every season.  This year I am planning on Pahrump.  

1. Moroso
2. Homestead
3. Jennings GP

or maybe:

1. Homestead
2. Jennings GP
3. Moroso

Maybe:

1.Jennings GP
2. Moroso
3. Homestead

I just can't make my mind up? ;D

HD