Living on the west coast, we are pretty fortunate to have access to quite a few cool road race tracks up and down the I5. There is a good handful right in our backyard of Washington State a few in Oregon State and even one that is a city track and is all of 4 miles away. Yes that one kind of spoils us as Derrick himself has worked, drove there during lunch in his racecar, qualified for a race, and then drove back all in a matter of 45 minutes. I don’t care who you are that’s just bad ass.
As we were building some engines the other night, we got to thinking about all the cool tracks that we got to visit last year in 2017 and how many other cool ones we want to check out in 2018.
So, we decided to throw up my list of the top 5 tracks that I think every Mazda owner should drive in their lifetime. These tracks are not presented in any particular order, and we’ve only actually been to half of them. No right or wrong answers here but what follows is our list of 5 tracks we think you guys should all hit up. So strap in and let’s go racing.
We’ll start with the obvious here, and that’s the one that has our favorite manufacture in the title. Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. This track resides in the landscape of central California and has been around since the late 50’s. Known best for its infamous Corkscrew section this 11 turn race track is world famous, and you can’t play any racing video game or simulator without this track being one of the featured races. We haven’t done this one yet, but you better believe it’s on our bucket list. Fun fact, or perhaps sad fact, depending on how you look at it; Mazda will not be renewing its sponsorship this year with the world-famous race track. So that means starting in April that Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will simply be known as Laguna Seca.
Next up is Road America. This one is a big one. Spanning over 4 miles long this is one of the longest road race courses across the World. The long straight that crosses the start-finish lets you put the pedal to the medal. We’ve seen many of cars run out of gearing on this long straight. That coupled with the fact that you have to go uphill first to start will really but that full load on your engine, but man is it fun.
For my next pick, we chose Hallett Motor Racing Circuit. Reason for that is we found it to be one of the most challenging circuits that we’ve ever driven on. And by challenging we mean it eats brakes. Granted we were always in a car that was not particularly suited for this track, but we did always find this to be a tough course. It was always challenging to lay down a clean lap, but we learned a lot from having driven on this one. We recommend this one to anyone that wants to get some good experience and refine their skill.
This next one has some really cool history and an even cooler track surface. Opening up just a few years after the end of World War Sebring International Raceway is actually built on a converted airport. The track used to be what was called Hendricks Field and was an airbase used to train B-17 combat crews. What’s even cooler is that part of this track still uses some of the original airport runways and makes for the craziest ride over the last corner. Combining a mix of concrete and asphalt this track is sure to punish even the best of drivers.
Last but not least we decided to go with Circuit of the Americas mostly because of two reasons. One it brought back Formula 1 to the United States, and we think that is super important for the sport and will help grow its fan base in the USA. 2nd because the track is new, modern, and cutting edge. Having only opened in 2012 this track is still but a baby. But like most children with time and patience, this track will be one of the worlds greatest we feel like.
There you have it. Our short and sweet lists of 5 tracks in the USA that we think are worth visiting. Maybe we will see you at one of them this year? Maybe we can trade a little paint too if you are up to it. Let us know what you think of this list in the comments below or share some of your favorites with us.
5 Tracks every Mazda Owner Must Hit September 22nd, 2020CorkSport
6 Replies to “5 Tracks every Mazda Owner Must Hit”
I think Gratten Raceway, Gratten Michigan is a Top 5 Track. I raced there in a RX7 and have run track days in my RX8. This club track is like driving on a roller coaster. Each corner presents you with a different challenge. With the RX8, you can keep up and out brake “higher performance” cars. The only place you have to give way is on the start/finish straight where they will blow you away.
I would love to do Laguna Seca.
I have only had the pleasure of taking my Mazda 3 on https://canadiantiremotorsportpark.com/pages/mobil-1-grand-prix
at about 3/4 speed.. It was follow the pace car with over 100 Mazdas at Mazda sponsored mobil 1 GrandPrix.
Hello Vincent,
I’m glad you enjoyed Hallett! It is my home track, and I’m still learning new things about it 15 years later.
I, too, have driven on many tracks in the US, and as Hallett has taught me so much, I am quick to find the pace whenever I am somewhere new. Though I may be biased, Hallett is still the one I’m happy to come home to.
How in the world do you leave off Watkins Glen?
I am fortunate to have raced on all 5 tracks mentioned, most recently a couple weeks ago at Hallett. Hallett is deceptive in that the track changes camber pretty frequently, blind turns take a while to learn, and being short any small error is a lot of time wasted on a lap. The atmosphere is fun club as the Stephens family always makes everyone welcome. LS was a bucket list track for me and it was everything I expected and more…blind turns, elevation changes, etc. You think the corkscrew turn in is the challenge: it isn’t. The rest of the corkscrew and T6 are the real challenges. Sebring is cool for the history, but rough; RA is big fun with big speed and the downhill braking into 5 and the kink are challenging. COTA is an awesome facility, T1 is pretty spectacular along with the esses, multiple challenges on that track along with the carousel, and the slow turns (1, 11, 15, 20) are always unexpected the first time there. I see Grattan mentioned, it is a gem like Hallett in the diversity of the corners and blind approaches.
I think Gratten Raceway, Gratten Michigan is a Top 5 Track. I raced there in a RX7 and have run track days in my RX8. This club track is like driving on a roller coaster. Each corner presents you with a different challenge. With the RX8, you can keep up and out brake “higher performance” cars. The only place you have to give way is on the start/finish straight where they will blow you away.
I would love to do Laguna Seca.
I have only had the pleasure of taking my Mazda 3 on
https://canadiantiremotorsportpark.com/pages/mobil-1-grand-prix
at about 3/4 speed.. It was follow the pace car with over 100 Mazdas at Mazda sponsored mobil 1 GrandPrix.
Hello Vincent,
I’m glad you enjoyed Hallett! It is my home track, and I’m still learning new things about it 15 years later.
I, too, have driven on many tracks in the US, and as Hallett has taught me so much, I am quick to find the pace whenever I am somewhere new. Though I may be biased, Hallett is still the one I’m happy to come home to.
How in the world do you leave off Watkins Glen?
I am fortunate to have raced on all 5 tracks mentioned, most recently a couple weeks ago at Hallett. Hallett is deceptive in that the track changes camber pretty frequently, blind turns take a while to learn, and being short any small error is a lot of time wasted on a lap. The atmosphere is fun club as the Stephens family always makes everyone welcome. LS was a bucket list track for me and it was everything I expected and more…blind turns, elevation changes, etc. You think the corkscrew turn in is the challenge: it isn’t. The rest of the corkscrew and T6 are the real challenges. Sebring is cool for the history, but rough; RA is big fun with big speed and the downhill braking into 5 and the kink are challenging. COTA is an awesome facility, T1 is pretty spectacular along with the esses, multiple challenges on that track along with the carousel, and the slow turns (1, 11, 15, 20) are always unexpected the first time there. I see Grattan mentioned, it is a gem like Hallett in the diversity of the corners and blind approaches.
Lots of choices for tracks 🙂