Relocated to Wisconsin

• Hello all. Like the title says I've just relocated to Wisconsin and looking for some information on the track riding scene. I'm in the Tomah/Sparta/La Crosse area. After some initial snooping I found 2 tracks within about 3.5 hrs, Blackhawk Farms and obviously Road America (Elkhart Lake to the old timers). Autobahn Country Club in Illinois is 5.5 hrs away and lastly there's Gingerman Raceway at 7 hrs and Gratten Raceway at 8.5 hrs, both in Michigan. Gateway Motorsports Park in Madison Illinois is 7hrs away, as is Raceway Park of the Midlands in Pacific Junction, Iowa. Anyone rode these tracks? Which trackday companies hold days here, and what kind of prices? Do the tracks themselves offer memberships, or is it basically trackdays only? Anything to know in particular about trackdays up this way? I have a k8 600 as my track bike, all stock components except for some EBC front rotors and pads, M4 slip-on exhaust and track plastics. At my pace that's all I need. Nothing is safety wired because it wasnt necessary with the two companies I rode with at my pace. I've ridden with Texas Motorcycle Academy at Harris Hill in San Marcos TX that's run by Craig Gleason (awesome guys). I've also ridden with RideSmart where I was recently promoted to level 2. Anyone familiar with either of these?
  I found a website, https://www.sportbiketrackguide.com/events-calendar/ , that seems like they can answer a lot of these questions and I'm going to scour it, but I've run across a lot of sites that are way out of date during previous searches so I'd figured I'd ask on the forums too.
  Thx for any help.

 

Don’t forget BIR (Brainerd) in Minnesota- I think CRA races there and they have track days and schools there.

 

Yup. BIR is probably 4-4.5 hrs from you.

 

Raceway Park Midlands just flooded a month ago. Track Addix (ducati omaha..) out of Omaha runs the track days there. You get tons of track time, its just two groups on sat for 30 min sessions and no groups on Sun. The facility itself is pretty bare, its not glamarous in the least.

I like Blackhawk, its got nice pits, trees, grass, etc, sorta like a park setting

 

It would be simpler to check the tracks website and see who had track days scheduled there.

 

Gateway isn’t worth the drive. I live 20 minutes away and I won’t ride there.

 

Welcome, I'm in Oshkosh and have been to most of the tracks in the area. You're probably going to become very friendly with BHF because it is by far the most accessible track in terms of price and availability.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but the track day scene has taken a shit the past year or two around here. There used to be multiple TD orgs doing RA and a ton of days at BHF. Now Road America is scarce and BHF is almost exclusively single weekdays.

If you have any other questions shoot me a PM. If you are lone wolfing it to the track you're welcome to join us if I'm at that event.

 

Lots of winter fun in the area too. Get a dirt bike and some ice tires.

 

SNOWMOBILE......for winter fun!

 

Just looked it up and Brainerd is 5 hrs away, so definitely doable. Track looks really fun, both the 2.5 and the 3.1 mile configurations. Anything thats further than about 3 hrs though I would prefer to try and make it a multiple day trip if I can.

 

Raceway Park Midlands looks like a fun track. And I like the breakdown with only 2 groups and lots of track time. I like the open day sundays even better with no groups. That's what I'm used to at Harris Hill.

 

BigT, I think you're right. Gotta get those schedules together so I can try and plan out my days.

MotoGP69 thanks for the heads up. Would really suck to drive 8hrs only to find a track in really bad condition.

 

BHF is on 3.5 hrs away so I'm gonna make that one. Brainerd, which I just found out about, is 5 hrs so I can make that no problem too.

I was also really hoping to make RA too. First thing I thought about when I found out this was where I was going.

Thanks for the invite. All my track buddies are down in Texas so I'd love to not be out there all alone. I normally camp in my trailer. Can you do that at the tracks up here?

 

I'm coming from TX by way of FL. Dont think me and ice are going to mix right away. Maybe in year 2

 

I'm not a big fan of Brainerd, it's definitely a balls track and the long course has to be the least technical track there is. BHF is fun, and has nice facilities, it's just in a shithole town so stay at the track. Road America is fucking awesome, get there if you can. Not sure how Autobahn is these days but that's a fun track too.

 

You dont like the 2.5 mile config? I thought it looked like it'd be a blast

 

If you were to get a mini, theres a couple cart tracks up in your neck of the woods that let minis practice. US Air(?) and road america. Theyre too far to work for me unfortunately so I cant tell you anything more about them.

 

While the two courses share a large chunk of their config they require different skill sets. The long course is definitely a balls track. T1 is taken at full throttle on every but liter bikes. T2 is a slightly roll off to set the front and back on the gas hard. While not technivally challenging the fastest line isnt always inherently obvious. Turns 4 - 5 - 6 are a great example of sacrificing speed in one corner to really gain it back elsewhere.

I run with CRA, the local race club and we are there quite a bit. I also CR/coach with ZARS which will be at Road America on memorial day, BHF in august, and we usually do BIR a couple times a year. Im pretty sure we have a double header on the short course at the end of June.

 

BIR and BHF are fun but RA is fantastic so definitely get there Asap. Its just so damn expensive that I can't afford to hit a lot of Trackdays there and race the full CCS season.

You can definitely camp in your trailer but another reason RA is expensive...you're supposed to get a $50-$75 camping pass. All the tracks have showers of varying quality.

 

The 2.5 is the generally the more popular course among racers, it is a great layout and tons of fun to race with plenty of passing opportunities. The place was repaved in 2013 and the surface is still in really great shape.

From reading posts for years from the guy you quoted - his main gripe with the big course is that turn 1/2 was not worth the risk to run fast (he ran a 600cc bike), which meant you could not compete for the front because the fast guys go full out. He is right though, the 3.1 is not very technical but it is a ton of fun. Even on the slower bikes (Lightweight and below) it is fun getting in large drafting battles.

Don't miss the June event combined with CCS - should be 150+ racers running the big track that weekend.