- This article describes the use of a track for sport. For other uses, see Race track (disambiguation).
A race track (or 'racetrack' or 'racing track') is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals (eg. Types of racing Unassisted human racing Using only the Human body 's own Muscles Running: Cross country horse racing or greyhound racing), automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. This article is about the sport For other uses see Horserace (drinking game or Horse race (politics. Greyhound racing is the Sport of Racing Greyhounds The Dogs chase a lure (traditionally an artificial Hare or Rabbit MotorCycle is the title of a 1993 album by Rock band Daniel Amos, released on BAI Records. A sportsperson ( British and American English) or athlete (principally American English is any person who participates regularly in a Sport. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.
A racetrack is a permanent facility or building. Racecourse is an alternate term for a horse racing track, found in countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. This article is about the sport For other uses see Horserace (drinking game or Horse race (politics. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Race tracks built for bicycles are known as velodromes. A velodrome is an arena for Track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights Circuit is a common abbreviation for racetrack, given the usual circuitous configuration of most race tracks, allowing races to occur over several laps.
A race course, as opposed to a racecourse is a term for non-permanent tracks for sports, particularly road running, water sports, road racing or rallying. Road running is the sport of Running on a measured course over an established Road (as opposed to track and Cross country running) Road racing can be a term involving Road running, road bicycle races, or Automobile races Rallying is a form of motor competition that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars Many sports usually held on racetracks can also occur on temporary but purpose built tracks, such as the Monaco Grand Prix in Formula One. The Monaco Grand Prix (Grand Prix de Monaco is a Formula One race held each year on the Circuit de Monaco.
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History
There is some evidence of racetracks being developed in several ancient civilizations, but the most impressive ancient racetracks were certainly the hippodromes of the Ancient Greeks and the circuses of the Roman Empire. A Hippodrome (Gr from hippos, horse and dromos, race course was a course provided by the Greeks for Horse racing and Chariot racing The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial Both of these structures were designed for horse and chariot racing. The chariot is the earliest and simplest type of Carriage, used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples The stadium of the Circus Maximus in Rome, Italy, is an example that could hold 200,000 spectators. The Circus Maximus ( Latin for greatest circus, in Italian Circo Massimo) is an ancient Hippodrome and mass entertainment Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest
Racing facilities existed during the Middle Ages and there are records of a public racecourse being opened at Newmarket in London in 1174. In 1780 the Earl of Derby created a horse-racing course on his estate at Epsom; the English Derby continues to be held there today. Year 1780 ( MDCCLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Earl of Derby is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers 1st Earl of Derby under a creation of 1139 The Derby Stakes, known colloquially as The Derby or internationally as the Epsom Derby, is considered one of the most prestigious flat Thoroughbred horse races
With the advent of the automobile in the early 20th century, racetracks were designed to suit the nature of powered machines. The earliest tracks were modified horse racing courses, and racing automobiles in these facilities began in September, 1896, at Narragansett Park in Cranston, RI. Year 1896 ( MDCCCXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was opened in August of 1909. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, located in Speedway Indiana (an Enclave of Indianapolis) in the United States, is the home of the
During the 1920s, many of the races on the AAA Championship were on high banked wooden race tracks called board tracks. The AAA (usually read triple-A) formerly known as the American Automobile Association, is an American not-for-profit Automobile UniontownPennsylvaniaBoardTrack1916Constructionjpg|thumb|right|Construction of a board track in Uniontown Pennsylvania in 1916]] Board track, or motordrome,
Modern racetracks are designed with spectator safety paramount, following incidents of spectator and track marshals fatalities. Track marshals or in some countries known as a course worker, have a long history in Motor racing in running of racing events even at more amateur levels such as These often involve run off areas, barriers and high fencing.
Sports
Racetracks are used for:
Animal sports
Human sports
Motor sports
- motor racing
- motorcycle racing
- track racing (motorcycles)
- stock car racing
- drag racing
Surfaces
Surfaces include:
- Concrete (motorsport)
- Asphalt (motorsport, athletics)
- Grass (horses, amateur motorsport)
- Dirt (automobiles, motorbike (track racing), stock car, horses, greyhound)
- Sand (horse, camel, greyhound)
- Wood (cycling) (board track racing - now defunct)
- Ice (Ice racing - when on dirt tracks, Bobsleigh, speed skating)
Configurations
Some racetracks offer little in the way of permanent infrastructure bar the actual track, others incorporate spectator facilities such as grandstands, hospitality or facilities for competitors, such as pit lanes and garages, paddocks and stables. Hospitality refers to the relationship process between a Guest and a host and it also refers to the act or practice of being hospitable that is the reception and entertainment Several racetracks are incorporated into larger venues or complexes, incorporating golf courses, museums, hotels and conference centres. A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development open to the public which acquires conserves researches communicates and exhibits the A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging usually on a short-term basis Conference centre redirects here For the conference facility in Salt Lake City Utah that is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Some racetracks are small enough to be contained indoors, for sports such as motocross, cycling and athletics. Motocross is a form of Motorcycle sport or All-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed Off road circuits Cycling is the use of Bicycles or - less commonly - Unicycles Tricycles Quadricycles and other similar wheeled Human powered vehicles
Many racetracks are multi-use, allowing different types of sport on the same track, or incorporating many tracks in one venue. Commonly athletics tracks are incorporated within general use or soccer stadiums, either permanently visible or covered by stands/pitches. Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered
Many horse and motorsport tracks are configurable, allowing different routes or sections. Some venues contain smaller tracks inside larger ones, with access tunnels and bridges for spectators. Some racetracks incorporate a short course and a longer course which uses part of the shorter one, usually the main straight, such as Brands Hatch. Brands Hatch is a Motor racing circuit in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland it hosted 12 runnings of the The Le Mans road race venue is centred on a smaller permanent circuit within its complex. Le Mans (ləmɑ̃ in French) is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River.
Most racetracks are of an oval shape, often banked, which allows almost universal spectator views or high speed racing (cycling, stock cars), but are often criticised for lack of excitement. In geometry an oval or ovoid (from Latin ovum, 'egg' is any Curve resembling an egg or an Ellipse. Some tracks are variations on an oval shape, for practical reasons or to introduce varying difficulties. Many racetracks have meandering circuits with many curves, chicanes and changes in height, to allow for a challenge in skill to the competitors, notably motocross and touring car racing. A chicane is a sequence of tight serpentine curves (usually an S-shape curve or a bus stop in a roadway used in Motor racing and Motocross is a form of Motorcycle sport or All-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed Off road circuits Touring car racing is a general term for a number of distinct Auto racing competitions in heavily-modified street cars Flatter meandering motorsport courses are sometimes called 'road circuits', originating in the fact that the earliest road racing circuits were simply closed-off public roads. Some racetracks are specifically configured in a long straight, namely drag racing. Drag racing is a competition in which objects compete to be the first to cross a set finish mark usually from a dead stop and in a straight line Some races will be held only over the straight portion of a track (some horse racing and sprint athletics).
Racetracks are primarily designed for competition through speed, featuring defined start/finish lines/posts, and sometimes even defined timing points. Some sports merely measure endurance, or how long a competitor can race. Racetracks can host individual or team sports. Racetracks can feature rolling starts, or fixed starts, with associated equipment (starting blocks, cages, wheel traps etc. A rolling start is one of two modes of initiating or restarting an auto race the other mode is the Standing start. )
See also
- Auto racing
- List of auto racing tracks (UK: motor racing tracks)
- List of auto racing tracks in the United States
- List of horse racing venues
External links
- Racetrack Database Racetrack information and locations. Auto racing (also known as automobile racing, motor racing or car racing) is a Motorsport involving Racing Cars It This is a list of Auto racing tracks sorted by country Argentina Autódromo 9 de Julio, 9 de Julio, Buenos Aires This is a list of auto racing tracks in the United States. The number of turns and track length are based on the standard full courses for each track This is a list of Horse racing venues sorted by country In the United States they are usually called horse racing tracks and in most other English speaking countries they
- Trackpedia's guide to world automobile race tracks
- Motor Racing Circuits Database
- Race and PaddockbBomb Discussion
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