What's the best/most fun track for you & why ?

[codgyoleracer]

Ok Guys n Gals, whats your fav track to have a fang on & why ?, Is it the layout, the surface, the safety , the fact that youve done your best times there , or just because youve crashed the least there.............

[Mental Trousers]

Taupo cos it's the most technical track I've ridden. I like that. Manfield is a close 2nd cos it's more or a raw, balls out sort of track. Would be 1st equal if they'd resurface the place. Puke is rather dangerous and I broke my collar bone there, so it would be a lonely last place behind the South Island tracks (which I haven't ridden).

[Toast]

Manfeild for me (and preferably the extended version).

I like the combination of fast and slow corners that it offers, the heavy braking zones and I especially like the sweeper on to the front straight. The track offers a varied challenge and is just damn fun.

I've only ridden Manfeild, Puke and Taupo. I'll be adding Paeroa and Wanganui to my list soon, I hope. The South Island circuits look really cool, but I won't be getting down there for a while.

[HDTboy]

Taupo !

[Meekey_Mouse]

I've only ridden Taupo and Manfeild, lol. I hate Manfeild short track, like Manfeild long track (the sweeping left hander with the sweeping right onto pit straight is so much fun!)... but I gotta love my home track... Taupo!!! :love::2thumbsup

[Kiwifire72]

Being a Puke Local Boy will have to say Puke
Never ridden the track but have done many a lap of it in the Rescue car at race meetings and enjoyed every minute of it being chased and nearly caught by the Tranz Ams in our stock XR6 4 up with Doc and us 2 fireman in the back

[FROSTY]

EVERY track has a special "thing"about it so its hard to pick one favorite over the rest.
But for me for the pure buzz from the crowd its gotta be Pearoa
Theres nothing like 40000 people all within inches of ya

[jimbo600]

Can't go past Rimutaka Hill road

[roogazza]

Fondest memories are from all the Street Circuits. Don't know why , maybe just the narrow layout and the closeness of everything.
Gracefeild , probably the pick for me. Gaz. :doctor:

[scrivy]

I loved Gisborne street circuit!! Especially when the surface was melted and we ran at full opposite lock all day!! Wheelspinning in 6th gear at near 200kms was an absolute friggin blast!! Went through a whole rear tyre in one day!!! (Normally do 3-4 rounds on a rear tyre)

:niceone:

[sidecar bob]

I loved Gisborne street circuit!! Especially when the surface was melted and we ran at full opposite lock all day!! Wheelspinning in 6th gear at near 200kms was an absolute friggin blast!! Went through a whole rear tyre in one day!!! (Normally do 3-4 rounds on a rear tyre)

:niceone:

Clearly youre a fukin nut then arent you.
Where the hell do you find swingers that will put up with that shit?

[scrivy]

Well, you were watching from the sidelines that day..... Didn't stop you from jumping on the side Bob!!!!:whistle:

I always wondered about you.......... you're the only sidecar passenger I know of that takes pace notes!!!! (Not to help me with track direction etc., but to remind you of where the hot chicks in the crowd were!!!):shutup:

[roadracingoldfart]

Fondest memories are from all the Street Circuits. Don't know why , maybe just the narrow layout and the closeness of everything.
Gracefeild , probably the pick for me. Gaz. :doctor:

Yeah , i agree totally. Lyall Bay was horrid, Masterton was great too but Gracefield was the best there was. The corner onto the front straight was the best corner in the series for me.
Otherwise Manfeild is the guts for me as i like the camber on the old track section and i love the challenge of the long track. The big thing about Manfeild is the track view as a spectator , its unequalled.
Fuck im old .....:eek:
Paul.

[roadracingoldfart]

Well, you were watching from the sidelines that day..... Didn't stop you from jumping on the side Bob!!!!:whistle:

I always wondered about you.......... you're the only sidecar passenger I know of that takes pace notes!!!! (Not to help me with track direction etc., but to remind you of where the hot chicks in the crowd were!!!):shutup:


Did the bastard share his notes with you ????
Yeah i bet he didnt.

[Goblin]

I have to go with Taupo, only cos most of my racing has been there....but Paeroa was kinda special as my first street circuit. There's something about the atmosphere of street circuits. :love:

[k14]

I put in 2 votes, levels for road race and paeroa for street race. If we could vote on most disliked it would be taupo. Horrible and boring track as far as I'm concerned, too tight, no fast corners, heaps of bumps too. I'd also probably have puke up there too, its dangerous as hell but very fun and I seem to go ok there.

[The Tazman]

I've only done, Taupo old Taupo New full and Manfield short here and had a fanTAZtic time at them all. I have however been very fortunate to do Lyden Hill, Snetterton, Brands Indy, Cadwell park short and full and full GP silverstone back in the UK. Although they were a shed load more expensive!!!

Am looking forward to the two Suzuki track days later in the year.

Hence my vote any track on a good day :D

[Kflasher]

Manfield has good mix, have not tried Taupo yet...

[t3mp0r4ry nzr]

I like the speed of manfield and would love it even more if the surface was up to standard. i like taupo for its beaut surface and new facilities but passing is very hard on track 2 however the full track is very good in all respects. Its a very technical track and the location makes it accessible for all in the north island :niceone:

[scrivy]

Did the bastard share his notes with you ????
Yeah i bet he didnt.

NAH!! When it comes to poon, he keeps it to hand...............:confused::laugh:

[Sketchy_Racer]

I put in 2 votes, levels for road race and paeroa for street race. If we could vote on most disliked it would be taupo. Horrible and boring track as far as I'm concerned, too tight, no fast corners, heaps of bumps too. I'd also probably have puke up there too, its dangerous as hell but very fun and I seem to go ok there.

Sounds like you don't like corners mate :P taupo's full of em.. I love that track when its got decent grip!


I like the speed of manfield and would love it even more if the surface was up to standard. i like taupo for its beaut surface and new facilities but passing is very hard on track 2 however the full track is very good in all respects. Its a very technical track and the location makes it accessible for all in the north island :niceone:

Errrmm.. Taupo is a very easy track to make a pass on someone. More corners offer more passing oportunities, and if you screw up one corner at taupo, you stuff up the next and the next one.. so on. So if you don't make a mistake, but the person infront of you does, they just about give it to you.
Manfeild is easy peasy for passing when you've got a power advantage. all thos big ass straights must be a real goodie



My fac track would have to be manfeild long track. A good combination of straights, fast and slow corners. also a good vary of corner types with heavily banked corners and then flat corners on the new part.. i love it. shame i've only raced it once on a 150SS

[Sully60]

I think you've missed some of the best tracks from your list.
Shirrifs Road and Kaitoke Kart tracks, technical and challenging without the risks generated by high speeds and only the truly privledged amoungst us got to ride them!:2thumbsup

Still racing in front of heaps of people at Wanganui and Paeroa is a real buzz.
Trying to keep a motard going in the right direction with the front wheel a foot off the ground through the cemetary esses or braking going downhill into the bank left - right at Paeroa, mmmmgood oh yeah!

[Daffyd]

has gotta be Teretonga. Why? 'cos it's my local!

[Ivan]

Definatly Manfield,


As it my home track,

Then Taupo

Then Kaitoke

[Tim 39]

I'm one of the few that likes Teretonga the best, for some reason I realy like the flow of it. I like the south island tracks more than the north island ones (manfeild and pukie) because theyre smoother. I liked pukie better than manfeild.

[White trash]

I think you've missed some of the best tracks from your list.
Shirrifs Road and Kaitoke Kart tracks, technical and challenging without the risks generated by high speeds and only the truly privledged amoungst us got to ride them!:2thumbsup

Still racing in front of heaps of people at Wanganui and Paeroa is a real buzz.
Trying to keep a motard going in the right direction with the front wheel a foot off the ground through the cemetary esses or braking going downhill into the bank left - right at Paeroa, mmmmgood oh yeah!


...or having fellow competitors wanna punch you in the mouth after a race. Yeah those street circuits rock.....

[Kickaha]

Up unto the point I did a track day at Taupo I would have rated Levels the best (considering the type of bikes I ride) track,I think it's more techincal and harder to get right than any of the other permanent tracks, but Taupo flows together very nicely,Taupo is also a good small bike track much like Levels

On the Sidecar Pukekohe(as much as I think it's a shithole) is good just for the sheer speed of the place, but Ruapuna would top it for fun and workout

For outright wank factor it would have to be Wanganui with the crowds

Both Greymouth and Nelson also deserve a mention, short compared to the NI street circuits and run more like a club day so a bit more casual and fun than Wanagnui

I'll let you know about Paeroa next year :yes:

[scracha]

I hate taupo, mansfeild is so much better. Can I vote Cadwell Park though?

[Cleve]

Bring back BayPark!! No just kidding. Manfeild long track is pretty awesome and if the old section gets resurfaced soon it might just be better than Taupo long is now. (Why can't it get FIM permission to hold the Nat's there??!! Just embarrassing when we have these Aussies etc come over and "sorry mates you have to ride around just half of this track...")
Puke is fast so from that aspect it is fun (but only if the corners had A LOT more runoff so if you did come off at 180-200 k's plus you didn't hit armco ... OK old moan I know...)
Paeroa I did once a long time ago and when the kids grow up I may do more street circuits... a different kind of buzz.
Taupo full circuit though gets my vote and I hope it makes it as a round of the Nat's at some stage in the near future. Nice mix of fast and slow, straights and twisties ... and more corners than them all.
Sorry not done any S Is circuits but would love too, in particular Ruapuna. One day.

[Kickaha]

(Why can't it get FIM permission to hold the Nat's there??!! Just embarrassing when we have these Aussies etc come over and "sorry mates you have to ride around just half of this track...")


The only thing stopping having the Nationals there is no club wants to run it, be interesting when Hampton Downs is up and running going by the proposed track charges it wouldn't suprise me if they don't have a round there either

[MD]

I have fond memories of racing around Levels in the 410 production class because it was just so much fun on a bike. Way better than Ruapuna was back then.
The new Taupo reminds me of Levels, corners that seem to flow from one to the next. Whereas Manfield feels like they built the straights first then realised that they would have to add corners reluctantly, in order to get to the next straight.

People go on golfing holidays around the country to sample as many courses as possible. Imagine taking a holiday to ride every track in the country in quick sucession to compare them all. What a blast that would be.

[scracha]

(Why can't it get FIM permission to hold the Nat's there??!! Just embarrassing when we have these Aussies etc come over and "sorry mates you have to ride around just half of this track...")

Umm, could be the lack of run off and big barrier on the old half that I couldn't keep my eyes off. Don't think there's much they can do about that aside from purchasing the bit of land next to the track.

[Cleve]

Umm, could be the lack of run off and big barrier on the old half that I couldn't keep my eyes off. Don't think there's much they can do about that aside from purchasing the bit of land next to the track.

so what's Puke's excuse then??!!

[codgyoleracer]

My pick is Teretonga, personally i dont go that well there normally - however the combination of corners is unique & its clear to me that someone has thought long & hard about the layout. The only negatives is that the sand is a bit of a bike wrecker though if you run off the track & the final turn should be returned to the original designers drawing - which had a chicane leading onto the front straight - as the current 90deg left is not in keeping with the rest of the fantastic layout.

[Maarty]

Teratonga!
Fast, flowing and fun, wet or dry! and I have had a few lap records there!!!!
Very closely followed by levels. Best 'riders' circuit, most technical and the most rewarding when you get it right!
Worst, Pukekohe, what a boring track! although getting from the hairpin to the esses before castrol without backing off is kinda rewarding!
Ruapuna, infield is too slow, be more fun if it was faster there.
Manfeild, neat but too rough these days, the long circuit hairpin is the worst corner in the country, complete waste of time!
Baypark, rough and ready and great fun if you liked sand, broke my neck there though!
Lyall bay, Gracefield, Hamilton and Sydnham street circuits and Paeroa, no thanks
Wanganui was a blast on the chooky, using the bales as berms onto the start finish straight was entertaining.

[twinshock750]

Original Taupo was "okay"....better than not riding at all!

My own view is Taupo 2 is a good place to get hurt - either highside out of, tuck front into or or get T boned with all the poxy little turns (they don't rate as being called real "corners") because they have tried to fit so much in THe only worthwhile one is out the back after the left hand hairpin. Can't see why people like the place really. Yeah, the facilities are good, but I come to ride not try to pose in the pits... Plus the esses/chicanes are pox and the surface is breaking up already.

After far too many years I'm finally getting my head around Puke and it is fun, yeah, the armco slows me down a little in places as I err on caution, but going fast on fast corners is what it is about (as compared to dicking around on slow corners like Taupo)

Maarty, I was there when you broke your neck at Baypark - NC30 from memory, off the back straight (about 91 or 92?)...I didn't mind Baypark on my 125, though there was only one real corner and that was the sweeper. THe bit around the back from the exit of Honda to ONto the front straight is just SEX. PLus souther loop. Oh hell, all of it!

Paeroa/Wanganui/Whangarei street circuits, probably not again. Too much to hit, though 3rd gear wheelstands were fun!

Mallory Park: Gerards, what a Mind f..K! Worth it for that alone. Esses were okay, hairpins and bus stop poxy.

Phillip Island. I recommend that everyone saves their money and sometime ibn their life at least book a ride day there. BUt be warned, it is addictive and will make you realise that NZ tracks are mostly pretty slow and average to say the least. SOuthern loop is great too. Oh hell, it's all good

[scracha]

Yeah, the facilities are good, but I come to ride not try to pose in the pits...

What facilities? I don't remember being able to chill out on a couch and watch TV in their lounge nor did I spot a canteen or hot showers.



NZ tracks are mostly pretty slow and average to say the least. SOuthern loop is great too. Oh hell, it's all good
Oh and I forgot Le Mans. Looooverly. Fuggin nice ride from the St Malo ferry port too. At least the track's here are cheap. What's the Southern loop?

I've got high hopes for this new track at Hampton Downs though although phrases like "huge sealed run-off area" and the lack of run off at the end of the back straight (looks about 50m) are a bit worrying.

http://www.hamptondowns.com/Track.wse

[Kickaha]

Can't see why people like the place really.

I'd say because it takes a bit more thought to get a good lap in,it's harder to pass on and as such you can get away with less Hp than you need for Manfield and Puke


What's the Southern loop?

Turn 1 at Teretonga, one of the most awesome corners of any track in NZ and provides prime passing opportunities if you've got the balls

http://www.teretonga.org.nz/circuit.htm

[scrivy]

Turn 1 at Teretonga, one of the most awesome corners of any track in NZ and provides prime passing opportunities if you've got the balls

Is that the corner me and Chris Meads gave you'se fellas a shunt for going too slow?? :zzzz:
We two-point around the whole freakin corner. :yes::yes:

[gixerracer]

...or having fellow competitors wanna punch you in the mouth after a race. Yeah those street circuits rock.....

??????????????

[gixerracer]

Teratonga!
Fast, flowing and fun, wet or dry! and I have had a few lap records there!!!!
Very closely followed by levels. Best 'riders' circuit, most technical and the most rewarding when you get it right!
Worst, Pukekohe, what a boring track! although getting from the hairpin to the esses before castrol without backing off is kinda rewarding!
Ruapuna, infield is too slow, be more fun if it was faster there.
Manfeild, neat but too rough these days, the long circuit hairpin is the worst corner in the country, complete waste of time!
Baypark, rough and ready and great fun if you liked sand, broke my neck there though!
Lyall bay, Gracefield, Hamilton and Sydnham street circuits and Paeroa, no thanks
Wanganui was a blast on the chooky, using the bales as berms onto the start finish straight was entertaining.
Pukekohe is many things but boring it is not it may be on those little bucket racers maarty but u mant to try 310kph down the back straight and then wrestle a beast over the hill and try holding on to 200hp coming off the hill bracking the rear loose and weaving like a mad thing thats what a call a good time but its bloddy dangerous I reckon invercargill is the best they just need to move it 1200ks north and it rocks in the wet has more grip than manfeild in the dry, manfeild long track is cool but the old track is shit boring kucky im a check book racer with a fast bike this year so might go ok there this year:spanking:

[Kickaha]

Is that the corner me and Chris Meads gave you'se fellas a shunt for going too slow?? :zzzz:


Not us, I haven't ever raced against you there, you'll have to wait until the 2009 season for that



Pukekohe is many things but boring it is not

Nah he's right, it's boring, apart from the sheer speed of the place it has nothing going for it

[clmintie]

Just found this thread....

Ahhh, the memories.... The old Porirua for street and Levin for circuit, both on a Suzuki TM 125L with a GT380 front wheel/brakes. Man those were fun times. Kapiti M/C club days at Levin.... Gracefield was a bit long for the poor little 125.

[Toast]

What facilities? I don't remember being able to chill out on a couch and watch TV in their lounge nor did I spot a canteen or hot showers.


Oh and I forgot Le Mans. Looooverly. Fuggin nice ride from the St Malo ferry port too. At least the track's here are cheap. What's the Southern loop?

I've got high hopes for this new track at Hampton Downs though although phrases like "huge sealed run-off area" and the lack of run off at the end of the back straight (looks about 50m) are a bit worrying.

http://www.hamptondowns.com/Track.wse

My old man was talking to the owner/developer or something the other day during some car club thing...

he asked the guy about bike safety, and the fella seemed to reckon that they're gonna have air fences or some similar thing in dodgy places with little run off. Sounds good to me I just wanna get out there and have a go!