While little beats the feeling of getting your motorcycle out on the road when the notoriously fickle British weather improves, for many the only thing that’s even better is hitting the track for the ultimate two-wheel adrenaline rush.
Of course, riding a motorcycle on a track day isn’t all about reaching eye-watering speeds, it’s a chance to really understand your machine’s capabilities in a safe, controlled environment.
In fact, doing this should be seen as an opportunity to make you a better, more skilled and more patient rider on the road.
Small though the British isles might be in terms of size, it is nonetheless rich in racing heritage so there is a plethora of brilliant circuits dotted about the country that’ll really let you stretch your motorcycle’s legs… or, more accurately, your motorcycle’s throttle.
Some are even world famous, so for those who want the bragging rights of saying you hit the same apex, clipped the same kerb and powered down the same straight as the likes of Barry Sheene, Shane Byrne and Ron Haslam, here is Vertu Motorcycle’s ultimate UK motorcycle track day circuit guide
Brands Hatch
Location: West Kingsdown, Kent
Proximity: 28-miles from London (55mins)
Circuit Length: 2.433-miles (Grand Prix), 1.208-miles (Indy)
It might cede the ‘home of British motorsport’ title to Silverstone, but for many Brands Hatch will always be considered the UK’s foremost racing circuit.
Brands Hatch comprises two layouts – the short 1.2-mile Indy configuration and the 2.43-mile Grand Prix version – both of which benefit from the venue’s international standard facilities.
Each has its charms but while you’ll definitely get plenty of laps in on the Indy circuit, the Grand Prix layout – if you get the chance – is the more exhilarating experience.
Both share the same first portion of the lap, which includes the stomach-sinking plunge into Paddock Hill Bend, before climbing to the Druids hairpin. Indeed, undulations are a theme of Brands Hatch throughout, especially on the Grand Prix layout with its long descent towards Hawthorne.
There aren’t many slow corners – or left-handers - so be mindful of frosty brakes and a cool tyre side when you do need them, but for a high-speed, rollercoaster experience, Brands Hatch takes some beating.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Paddock Hill Bend (or Hawthorne’s)
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Paddock Hill Bend
Croft
Location: Dalton-on-Tees, North Yorkshire
Proximity: 4-miles from Darlington (5mins)
Circuit Length: 2.127-miles
A former airfield, Croft is therefore a flat circuit – albeit with some bumpy stretches – that combines eye-widening fast swaps with technical slow sections.
In fact, there are a lot of corners and a lot of variety, so Croft is a real test of riding skill.
The fast double right-hand Sunny In, Sunny Out complex will have you going fast and on the edge of the tyre, while it is preceded by the devilishly satisfying Jim Clark Esses flip-flop.
After such a fast approach, the tricky Complex at the end of the lap will seem alien, but it’s a good chance to practice patience, especially around the extraordinarily tight final hairpin that’ll have your foot pawing to the ground to steady yourself.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Jim Clark Esses
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Sunny In, Sunny Out
Cadwell Park
Location: Louth, Lincolnshire
Proximity: 26-miles from Lincoln (45mins)
Circuit Length: 2.19-miles
For many, Cadwell Park is the ultimate motorcycle racing circuit, and if it’s not that, it’s arguably the most challenging.
It’s different to most other venues in the UK for the way it caters specifically for two-wheels because the layout is not conducive to racing cars. You’ll notice this straight away by how slender the track is compared to anywhere else.
Like all the best circuits, Cadwell Park marries fast with technical, the high-speed sections comprising the first half of the lap, a throttle-pinned challenge made all the more exhilarating by the steep inclines and declines.
For those in the know, Cadwell Park’s most iconic moment is ‘The Mountain’, a sharp rise and crest that is guaranteed to see you popping a ‘wheelie’. Professional racers are known to take off entirely and get some air, but don’t expect to be allowed to attempt that on a track day!
The lap ends with a tricky walled section, giving Cadwell Park a street circuit flavour – in fact, it is about as close as a mini-TT circuit as you’ll get in the UK, maybe even the world.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Coppice into Charlie’s
The Corner That Deserves Respect: The Mountain
Donington Park
Location: Castle Donington, Leicestershire
Proximity: 18-miles from Nottingham (35mins)
Circuit Length: 2.498-miles (Grand Prix), 1.957-miles (National)
It was the home of MotoGP for many years and WorldSBK still visits annually, so that should tell you a lot about Donington Park’s quality as a track day venue.
Not only is it one of the best organised circuits with lots of facilities and wide-open spaces in case things do go wrong on track, the layout itself is an excellent pairing for two-wheel action.
The long, steep plunge into Craner Curves is alone enough for the admission fee but the rest of the track offers up a lovely rhythm to really get your money’s worth.
There are two layouts, but the shorter National configuration with its deceptively fast final chicane is just as good value as the longer loop.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Craner Curves
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Old Hairpin
Oulton Park
Location: Little Budworth, Cheshire
Proximity: 33-miles from Manchester (50mins)
Circuit Length: 2.692-miles (International), 2.26-miles (Island), 1.66-miles (Fosters)
If Cadwell Park presents a little too much of a challenge, Oulton Park makes an excellent alternative option.
There are plenty of corners on the edge – especially Old Hall and Cascades – while Island Bend (if the layout allows) may look like an easy left-hander but it’s quick and gives you little room for error.
Again, like Cadwell Park, Oulton Park has hints of TT in its layout, especially the latter portion of the track, which races uphill at Knickerbrook and into the woods at Clay Hill.
It’s a very characterful circuit and sampling it will make you realise why every BSB race held there is so fast, furious and close.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Cascades
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Druids
Mallory Park
Location: Kirkby Mallory, Leicestershire
Proximity: 10-miles from Leicester (30mins)
Circuit Length: 1.35-miles
Originally used for grass tracking, it helps explain why Mallory Park looks like a simple oval on paper.
In reality, Mallory Park is a super small venue, with BSB riders achieving sub-one minute laps when it was on the calendar even when hairpins and chicanes added.
There aren’t many technical moments on track but the ones that are there – Edwina’s Chicane, Shaw’s Hairpin and Devil’s Elbow – will require plenty of attention and consideration.
Mallory Park looks like it would be easy to master, but sometimes the simplest layouts are the hardest to get right.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Gerard’s Bend
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Devil’s Elbow
Snetterton 300
Location: Thetford, Norfolk
Proximity: 21-miles from Norwich (35mins)
Circuit Length: 2.969-miles
While some consider the decision to extend Snetterton’s layout with a new infield section robbed it of its erstwhile high-speed glory, mercifully the revision left the old layout well alone too.
That means firm favourites like the Bombhole – a fast, cambered right-hander that plunges right at the apex – and the wide, flat Revit straight remain intact for have-a-go-racers.
A former airfield, Snetterton is therefore largely flat, but while the fast sections are punctuated by slow chicanes – one at the end of the Revit straight and coming onto the home straight – they are a test of sheer skill and timing.
As for the extended infield, it doesn’t add much to the lap, other than giving you a breather before returning to the thrilling former section.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Bombhole
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Riches
Silverstone
Location: Silverstone, Northamptonshire
Proximity: 20-miles from Northampton (30mins)
Circuit Length: 3.66-miles (GP), 1.851-miles (International), 1.640-miles (National), 1.080-miles (Stowe)
As the home of F1 and MotoGP, there is no higher quality race circuit facility in the UK than Silverstone.
In fact, few can come close to Silverstone’s historical significance, so if treading the same Tarmac as legends features high on your bucket list, there really is no better location.
It’s wide and its flat, but that means Silverstone allows you to hit some scintillating speeds in relative safety.
You may not get the chance to try the full circuit, but if you do, the eye-popping Copse, Maggotts and Becketts sequence ranks among the most exhilarating stretches you could ever experience on two wheels.
Even the short National configuration combines some of motorcycle racing’s finest bends, while there is plenty of high-speed action – so much so that’ll you cover a lot of distance but still complete a lot of laps.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Maggotts and Becketts
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Maggotts (GP and National layout)
Knockhill
Location: Fife, Dunfermline
Proximity: 27-miles from Edinburgh (45mins)
Circuit Length: 1.27-miles
The only premier racing circuit in Scotland, Knockhill ranks as one of the most enjoyable UK track venues.
At 1.2-miles, it’s certainly short, but it packs a lot of undulations in a small area, not least the sharp drop out through the first corner and into Duffer’s Dip.
For a true test of skill, however, the blind, kerb-heavy chicane at the peak of the circuit is a test of nerve. The cambered final corner chicane will put you and your brakes on the limit as you figure out the best line – wide entry, tight out, or tight entry, wide out.
Suffice to say, the corner sucks you in and has caught out the very best, so give it some respect.
The Best Corner on the Circuit: Duffer’s Dip
The Corner That Deserves Respect: Taylor’s Hairpin
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