Editing Race track

{{short description|Facility built for racing of animals, vehicles, or athletes}}
{{Redirect|Racecourse}}
{{other uses}}
{{More citations needed|date=October 2023}}
[[File:Killarney Race Track in Tableview Cape Town.jpg|thumbnail|An aerial view of the [[Killarney Race Track|Killarney]] motorsport race track in Cape Town, South Africa]]
[[File:BTCC Brands06 PaddockHill.jpg|thumb|right|Touring Car race at [[Brands Hatch]] circuit]]
A '''race track''' ('''racetrack''', '''racing track''' or '''racing circuit''') is a facility built for [[racing]] of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. [[horse racing]] or [[greyhound racing]]). A race track also may feature [[grandstand]]s or concourses. Race tracks are also used in the study of [[animal locomotion]].

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, India, Australia, Hong Kong, and the United Arab Emirates. Race tracks built for bicycles are known as ''[[velodrome]]s''. ''Circuit'' is a common alternate term for race track, given the circuit configuration of most race tracks, allowing races to occur over several laps. Some race tracks may also be known as ''speedways'', or ''raceways''.

A ''race course'', as opposed to a ''racecourse'', is a nonpermanent track for sports, particularly [[road running]], [[water sports]], [[road racing]], or [[rallying]]. Many sports usually held on race tracks also can occur on temporary tracks, such as the [[Monaco Grand Prix|Monaco]] and [[Singapore Grand Prix|Singapore]] Grands Prix in [[Formula One]].

[[File:Racecourse In Chester3.jpg|thumb|A typical racecourse]]

==History==
Some evidence remains of racetracks being developed in several ancient civilizations. The most developed ancient race tracks were the [[hippodrome]]s of the [[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greeks]] and the circuses (''circi'') of the [[Roman Empire]]. Both of these structures were designed for horse and [[chariot]] racing. The stadium of the [[Circus Maximus]] in [[Ancient Rome]] could hold 200,000 spectators.

Racing facilities existed during the [[Middle Ages]], and records exist  of a public racecourse being opened at [[Newmarket Racecourse|Newmarket]], in London, in 1174. In 1780, the [[Earl of Derby]] created a horse-racing course on his estate at Epsom; the [[Epsom Derby|English Derby]] continues to be held there today. Racecourses in the British Isles are based on grass, known as turf tracks. In the United States, the race tracks are soil.

[[File:1911boardtrackracing.jpg|thumb|right|Motorcycles racing on a highly banked board track in 1911]]
With the advent of the automobile in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, race tracks were designed to suit the nature of powered machines. The earliest tracks were modified horse-racing courses. Racing automobiles in such facilities began in September 1896, at [[Narragansett Park (1867–1924)|Narragansett Park]] in [[Cranston, Rhode Island]]. The [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway]] was opened in August 1909.

Beginning in the early 1900s, motorcycle races were run on high, banked, wooden race tracks called [[board track racing|board tracks]]. During the 1920s, many of the races on the [[American Automobile Association|AAA]] Championship circuit were run on such board tracks.
Modern racetracks are designed with spectator safety being paramount, following incidents of spectator and [[track marshal]]s fatalities. These often involve run-off areas, barriers, and high fencing.

==Sports==

[[File:Vbjkhsdfwkueyew0076.JPG|thumb|[[Autódromo José Carlos Pace]] Racetrack showing safety fencing]]
[[File:Ice Racing.jpg|thumb|right|Motorcycle ice racing]]
[[Image:In Car Micheal Fitzgerald Cork Racing.jpg|thumb|right|View of a race track from a race car at Wakefield Park, Australia]]
Racetracks are used for:

===Animal sports===

* [[Camel racing]]
* [[Greyhound racing]]
* [[Harness racing]]
* [[Horse racing]]

===Human sports===
* [[Bobsleigh]]
* [[Cycle sport]]
* [[Skeleton (sport)]]
* [[Track and field]]

===Motor sports===
* [[Auto racing]]
* [[Drag racing]]
* [[Kart racing]]
* [[Motorcycle racing]]
* [[Stock car racing]]
* [[Track racing]] (motorcycles)
* [[Truck racing]]
* [[Drift racing]]

==Configurations==
[[File:Hongkongjockeyclub.jpg|thumb|Horseracing track, [[Happy Valley Racecourse]] in Hong Kong, showing grandstands]]

Some racetracks offer little in the way of permanent infrastructure other than the track; others incorporate spectator facilities such as [[grandstand]]s, hospitality or facilities for competitors, such as pit lanes and garages, paddocks and stables. Several racetracks are incorporated into larger venues or complexes, incorporating golf courses, museums, hotels, and conference centres. Some racetracks are small enough to be contained indoors, for sports such as [[motocross]], [[track cycling]], and [[sport of athletics|athletics]].

Many racetracks are multi-use, allowing different types of sport on the same track, or incorporating many tracks in one venue. Commonly, [[running track]]s are incorporated within general use or [[soccer]] stadiums, either permanently visible or covered by stands or pitches.

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]]. The [[Le Mans]] road race venue is centred on a smaller permanent circuit within its complex.

[[File:vallelunga.race.circuit.in.italy.arp.jpg|left|thumb|The [[ACI Vallelunga Circuit|ACI Vallelunga]] car racing track near Rome, Italy, a typical meandering layout with [[run-off area]]s]]

==Surfaces==
[[File:Stadion Haunstetten.jpg|thumb|right|Stadion Haunstetten, a sand track]]

Surfaces include:

* [[Running track|All-weather running track]] (Tartan) (athletics)
* [[Artificial turf]] (electric radio controlled off-road racing)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.neobuggy.net/2014/12/01/2015-ifmar-yatabe-worlds-astrogate/ |title=2015 IFMAR Yatabe Worlds: Astrogate |access-date=29 December 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304040845/http://www.neobuggy.net/2014/12/01/2015-ifmar-yatabe-worlds-astrogate/ |archive-date=4 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.efra.ws/fileadmin/news/2014/12/Result%20postal%20vote%20November%20Electric%20IFMAR2014&Datechange%20%281%29.pdf |title=Subject: Electric Section Postal Vote Result & Electric date change |date=14 December 2014 |website=International Federation Of Model Auto Racing |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150218063550/http://news.efra.ws/fileadmin/news/2014/12/Result%20postal%20vote%20November%20Electric%20IFMAR2014%26Datechange%20%281%29.pdf |archive-date=2015-02-18}}</ref>
* Asphalt/[[Asphalt concrete|tarmac]] (motorsports, athletics, cycling)
* Carpet (electric radio controlled racing)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ifmar.org/pdf/rules/ifmar_wc_electric_track_2014.pdf |title=IFMAR Electric Track Racing and Technical Rules |date=2014 |website=[[IFMAR]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140822091429/http://www.ifmar.org/pdf/rules/ifmar_wc_electric_track_2014.pdf |archive-date=2014-08-22 |quote=The track surface for 1/12th Class is recommended to be indoors on standardised needle carpet.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.roarracing.com/downloads/2013_ROAR_Rule_Book.pdf |title=ROAR Rulebook |date=2013 |website=ROAR Racing |page=14 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150817060529/http://www.roarracing.com/downloads/2013_ROAR_Rule_Book.pdf |archive-date=2015-08-17}}</ref>
* [[Concrete]] (motorsports)
* Dirt (horses, greyhounds, automobiles, motorbikes (track racing), stock cars, radio controlled off-road racing, cycling)
* Grass (horses, amateur motorsports, [[cross country running]])
* Ice ([[speed skating rink|speed skating]]&nbsp;– when on dirt tracks, bobsleighs, speed skating, [[ice racing|ice motor racing]])
* Sand (horses, camels, greyhounds, [[rally raid]])
* Wood (cycling) ([[board track racing]]&nbsp;– now defunct)

==Motorsport==
{{redirect|Car track|other uses|Track car (disambiguation){{!}}Track car}}
Race tracks are primarily designed for [[road racing]] competition through speed, featuring defined start-finish lines or posts, and sometimes even a series of defined timing points that divide the track into time sectors. A racetrack for cars (i.e. a car track) is a closed circuit, instead of a [[street circuit]] utilizing temporarily closed public [[road]]s.

Race tracks can host individual or team sports. Racetracks can feature [[rolling start]]s, or fixed starts, with associated equipment (starting blocks, cages, wheel traps etc.) They invariably feature a [[pit lane]], and usually timing equipment.

===Track layout===
Some car tracks are of an [[oval]] shape, and can be banked, which allows almost universal spectator views or high speed racing (cycling, stock cars). A famous one is [[Nardò Ring|Nardò]] where high-speed manufacturer testing often takes place, and the [[Indianapolis Motor Speedway]]. Some oval tracks are variations on an oval shape, for practical reasons or to introduce varying difficulties such as [[Talladega Superspeedway|Talladega]] (a tri-oval). Most race tracks have meandering circuits with many curves, [[chicane]]s and changes in height, to allow for a challenge in skill to the competitors, notably [[motocross]] and [[touring car racing]] – these tend to predominate throughout most of the world, but especially in Europe.[[Image:Nardò ring.jpg|thumb|right|Photograph from space of [[Nardò Ring]] in Italy, it is {{convert|12.6|km|mi|abbr=}} long and is perfectly round&nbsp;– the image was taken from the [[International Space Station|ISS]] at an angle making it appear elliptical.]]

===Road circuits===
{{main|Street circuit}}
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 car racetracks are specifically configured in a long straight, namely [[drag racing]].

True road circuits are still in use, e.g. the [[Australian Grand Prix|Australian GP]] has been run in [[Adelaide Street Circuit|Adelaide]] and continues to be in [[Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit|Melbourne]] on regular city streets. The most famous of these are the [[Monaco Grand Prix|Monaco GP]], and the [[Circuit de la Sarthe]] circuit in [[Le Mans]], France. These are not permanent facilities built for racing (although parts of the Circuit de la Sarthe are purpose-built, and closed to the public).

===Converted airfields===
After [[World War II]], many wartime airfields, particularly in Great Britain, were left without further use.  This coincided with a post-war boom in motorsport, and many airfields were converted to race tracks, where the circuit layout usually combined parts of the runways and the surrounding perimeter taxiways.  The famous British track at [[Silverstone Circuit|Silverstone]] is a former 
[[Class A airfield]], as are [[Castle Combe Circuit|Castle Combe]] and [[Goodwood Circuit|Goodwood]]. The long runways were perfect for drag strips such as at [[Santa Pod Raceway]].  This type of track also appears on the popular motoring show ''[[Top Gear (2002 TV series)|Top Gear]]'', which is filmed at [[Dunsfold Aerodrome]], in Surrey, United kingdom

==See also==

* [[Animal locomotion]]
* [[Auto racing]]
* [[List of motor racing circuits by FIA grade]]
* [[List of horse racing venues]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
*[http://www.trackpedia.com/wiki/Main_Page trackpedia.com] Worldwide Motor Racing track wiki
*[http://theracingline.net/racingcircuits/racingcircuits/ racingcircuits.net] Worldwide Motor Racing track database
*[http://www.formula1.com/news/features/2008/7/8146.html When the going gets rough] – tyres and track surfaces
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090429122157/http://www.audiotrackguides.co.uk/ AudioTrackGuides.co.uk] Audio walkthroughs of motor racing circuits, for use with games.
*[http://trackreviewers.com/ Trackreviewers.com] Motorsport Track Reviews and Information

{{Infrastructure}}

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[[Category:Horse racing terminology]]
[[Category:Racing venues|*]]
[[Category:Sports venues by type]]