Writing last September’s profile of motorcycle flat track racing renewed my long-dormant interest in TT racing, in which the typical oval track is tweaked into a sort of kidney shape that features at least one turn in each direction and a jump, but that opposite turn is typically rather subtle, almost vestigial. That got me thinking about track design; how much “enhancement” would a basic oval track need to provide real right and left turns? At first I considered something very close to the traditional dirt oval, scaling down one end of the oval and reversing it within the outer track, with 180-degree curves between the inner and outer half-ovals, creating a simple “C” shape. But there was one big problem: no runoff areas. On the inner track, bikes and riders sliding toward the outside of the turn could either slam into a wall or slide into the traffic on the opposite end of the course. I began to ask: how I could incorporate the whole gamut of turns — right and left, increasing and decreasing radii, wide sweepers, chicanes and tight hairpins — within a minimal length (1/2 mile or so) and the fewest number of turns? I wanted a “teaching track,” with well-defined, predictable turns that would be easy for student drivers to classify and study. That question blossomed over several months into a full-fledged circuit design exercise.
I can’t be the only one here who has attempted to sketch out his dream circuit.
The first design I sketched out was still not too far removed from a basic oval. I was quite happy with it until I identified a requirement I hadn’t considered: the aerial view of my dream circuit couldn’t look like a geoglyph of male genitalia. So it was back to the drawing board. I tweaked that design, while also deciding that it should be properly paved, not dirt, so I could run karts on it.
But this ended up being a pretty wide-open design for its size. The whole back of the track from 2A to the entrance to 5 had only minor bends and could generate some serious speed going right into a tight, 180-degree turn: not a good recipe for less experienced, less savvy drivers. I decided I should put in some sharper turns and keep the straights short, keeping driver mortality in check while allowing drivers without a surplus of horsepower to still explore the limits of their ride. And since I was paving the track, I should widen it to make it car friendly.
My third and final revision is what’s shown in the lede image. If you look at that design, all the curve sections have a constant radius, but some sections are strung together in the same direction so that the overall curve tights or widens. Those radii are precisely 90′, 120′ or 360′. The idea is that the track is easy to understand and assimilate: no hard-to-feel, optically confusing, off-camber, downhill spookies. Other than the front straight, which is slightly over a 10th mile, the rest of the lap is spent with the steering wheel going one way or the other. I envision this as a track more challenging than a simple oval, while still being able to be economically built on nearly any good-sized piece of rural property.
What about you? What sort of race course would you design, if you could?
What Would Your Fantasy Track Look Like?
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http://media.bizj.us/view/img/4055981/152234-1*750xx800-450-0-75.jpg
…possibly the best thing about South Carolina.
In all seriousness, though, it’s a 3-mile track that runs through woods and over a creek, with corner speeds over a whole range from 40mph to 120+. Plus the paddock is grass, there’s a kart track on site and gas station just outside the gate, and the concession stand makes an entirely acceptable cheeseburger.
I couldn’t design better if I tried for years. -
There would be a loop, just like a Hot Wheels/slot car track.
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and a ‘Sippi Hole’
http://cdn4.rollingcoal.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/f81.jpg-
Of course. Keep in mind that this is a paved track. One option would be to skim across it the way the crazy guys in Iceland drive across the water.
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Your perfect track actually reminds me of a simplified Snetterton.
http://www.btcc.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Snetterton1.jpg
It’s got it all, really, including Coram, the terrific downhill tightening radius right hander into Murrays.-
and the dick shape.
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Brundle/Grundle right?
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Mine would look like exactly like Laguna Seca, except much longer. It’s over too quickly on a fast bike. Or exactly like Miller Motorsports Park in SLC – it’s amazing fun with any capable vehicle.
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I’d go one of two ways. The first way would utilize all of my favorite turns on roads. The second way would basically try to make the track as difficult as possible. There would be decreasing radius and off-camber turns (including a combination of the two), dramatic elevation changes, copies of motorsports’ hardest turns, etc.
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Off-road/rally version of the Nurburgring, complete with jumps and standing water/mud. Only gets better in the snow! But it would be located in Maine, or somewhere close enough for me to go to at least once or twice a year.
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There are plenty of potential race courses out there already. My fantasy would be to see more of them used occasionally for organized events.
http://www.grandprixhistory.org/mille/map54_55_56_57.jpg-
I’m assuming that’s a 24 hour race for, say, an HMV Freeway – assuming the race consists of a single lap.
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Can I just have Sonoma? But seriously, elevation changes would be key for me. And some fast chicanes like at Sonoma. And a sweet garage like Sonoma.
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Sonoma is definitely fun and challenging – it’d be the ideal track for something Lotus 7ish.
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The 13 mile “test loop” from my childhood home in the foothills. It had it all.
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My dream track is a banked sharp tri-oval with enough branching infield courses to allow for at least a dozen layouts (see extremely basic MS Paint sketch), maybe even two short ones at the same time for track days (not pictured). And behind the pit buildings there’d be a big asphalt lot for autocross. And if you scale it right (2.7 mi long tri-oval) the finish straight would even be long enough for quarter mile drag races with a quarter mile straight runoff.
Elevation changes and tracks that are roughly 8-shaped to even out the
number of left and right corners are cool, too, but I just love the idea
of so many different layouts.-
I love it!
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Also I’ve just realized that I’ve reinvented a more complex version of Pocono Raceway without even knowing.
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And here’s revision B, now with an 8-shaped grand prix circuit and layouts allowing for two small ciruits at the same time. It did however get a little out of hand and I’m not quite sure how many layouts total there are this time.
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That’s awesome. I’d chip in three or four million dollars towards it.
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Actually it’s pretty terrible as far as layouts go. There aren’t nearly as many variations as the mess of track sections suggests. But I’m an idea guy, and the idea is great!
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One of my early-stage concepts used an over-and-under figure eight.
I decided it was a little too gonzo while being a little too repetitive.
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