Unsafe racetracks in America

it has to be turn 14 at firebird main.

a wall right in your face as you enter the turn, then as you roll on the throttle coming out of the turn, concrete walls on the left and the right, and surface is composed of concrete, oil soaked concrete, dragster burnout area and, oh, what's that? the metal cover for the electrical box right in the middle of the racing surface!

of course all the "back section" turns behind the bleachers would dump you into a chain link fence and/or the grandstands if you over cooked the corner. Good thing they were pretty slow corners, mostly.

i raced there when I didn't know any better.

 

I think Mercedez Benz of Houston or MSRH or whatever it's called is unsafe. I know I'm probably alone on this but I think it is worse than Oak Hill Raceway was. I used to hear how bad OHR was but at least it didn't have a wall to hit or a fence and then a BUILDING.

 

I remeber going to some of the Endurance races they had at Memphis back in the 90's...

Watching those Valvoline GSXR 1100's power wheelie from the S-turn through the parking lot, past the hay bales into the last corner before the drag stip straight was inspiring...LOL

I never got to ride that track though.. Not bad for spectating

 

Not a problem anymore, but turn one at Nashville, caused it's share of crashes. The transition from speedway banking onto the turn one aprin in 5th or 6th gear, while leaned over, really sucked.

 

Sounds like you ran the "new" turn one.

The old one was a 180 degree turn, lined with a steel guard rail.
Hay bales protected the guard rail from damage caused by sliding bikes.

 

Sounds like the turn one I knew. You had to stay wide on the entry & ignore the guardrails.

 

Firebird Main is menacing, not necessarily dangerous. I don't think anyone has died racing a motorcycle there (at least since '98 or so). Altho I remember someone losing a leg to the Armco years ago (halfway down the front straight).

Ontario Motor Speedway, on the other hand, claimed at least two lives in its short history. And you could just about do a lap there with your eyes closed, there was so much runoff.

 

I never raced Rockingham in the rain, but I heard that when it was wet the banking was the only place a Morini 3-1/2 could spin the rear tire outside of a hockey rink.

 

Mosport turn 2
Pocono
Calabogie has a few spots but that track is too much fun

 

Anybody here ever race Bridghampton? I'm told the wind blown sand could make traction "unpredictable"

 

I heard the deer were no picnic either. I only went there once, before my cornerworking days. The weekend didn't go well.

 

Did for few years, was my home track. It was not really bad track, just fast. I did get blown by wind and crash once but no injury.

 

What track has the most serious injuries and/or deaths caused by a rider impacting a fixed object or impacting a bike that has bounced off a fixed object?

 

Oh man that turn is AWESOME!!!!

 

Usually, if the rider is killed by a bike it's either being ridden by another rider or a bike that lands on top of them, not bouncing off something. I'd say the former is most common.

 

Which track is that again?

numbers?

 

i freaking love racing at mosport. t2 is frighteningly fast and scary fun.

 

I pit in the turn 4 area with some people that have been racing there longer than I have, and I've heard them talk about a bike or two making it all the way over the second fence. As for it being dangerous to be a spectator in that section, in my opinion it would be one in a million that someone would get hit by a bike there.

The only reason someone would be by the fence is if they're watching, and if they weren't the sound of a crash would probably make them turn around. I was standing two feet from where that green Kawi pictured ended up and it wasn't scary at all, once the bike hits that point it's not flying very fast.

Turn 2 is scary though.

 

I remember way back in 93 at pocono for cycle jam if you blew the chicane coming off the banking they had a row of hay bales to stop you from going straight and back onto the banking and into traffic. As in a solid line of hay bales...your choice was to choose to lay the bike down and hit the hay bales or just ride straight into the hay bales...luckily enough people like kurt hall bitched and they made a couple of small openings in the hay bales...seeing those fusa bikes on the banking was unreal...