My First Track

[MatthewC]

Hi all, having been here a while and looked at other tracks I decided to make my own. Although I don't have great software that others might use; I still enjoy making and designing tracks.

So, please be kind, and here is my first track (I might post a few more up later), it has been produced using the standard 'Paint' application, as I don't know any others!

This is the ARM Circuit (Amazing, Remarkable & Magnificent Circuit), the length is 3.1 miles.

Grey = Shorter track layout. Green = pit lane & paddock. Pink Arrow = direction of track

PS. I can never think of decent names, so please excuse the names.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

Firstly welcome to the My Tracks section, and you're more than welcome to post more of your work. Using Paint is fine, there are people on here who post scans even photographs of pencil and paper designs, and of course there are others with the time and patience to use other Graphic Software.

In terms of the design it's quite intricate, not a bad thing but when using paint it can throw out the scale.

For example in this case you've given a guestimate of 3.1 miles ... call it 5km. If you split the circuit up into 5 even sections you'll realise that the S/F straight is going to be fairly short, I'd guess at not much more than 450-500m. In itself that's workable but for my taste not with an hairpin at either end.

Just something to keep in mind, and I lok forward to seeing more soon.

[MatthewC]

Thanks for the advice ScotsBrutesFan.

This next one hasn't got a name, and I couldn't decide on a length for it, but I like this track.

My only trouble is after the 1st corner should I have the small straight into the 90-degree-ish corners (black), or should I have the left/right combination in grey? I personally prefer the small straight (in black).

It's a mix of straight-line speed with 2 long straights, and technical areas which is mainly after the 2nd straight upto the penultimate corner. I particularly like the last corner - looks like it could cause a few problems.

[Yannick]

Hello MatthewC, welcome to "My Tracks".

The blot shape of the ARM Circuit is quite nice. I like the fact that it's a road course that has elements of a US American street circuit in those two rectangular corners in the right half of the track design. What I don't like is the chicane in Turn 3, but as a series organizer, I could always opt for the grey bypass of the area.
The chicane at the bottom of the design looks a little out of place since it surely is not necessary to slow down cars in this place and it's clearly not there for overtaking either. So I'd just bypass this one as well.
The biggest problem of that track is that the pitlane exit leads onto the racing line.

That was not a problem at all with your Track #2. The pitlane of that one is a real beauty. You have asked about the section of Turns 2 and 3. Here is what I think: the rectangular version is very much like the section of Bahrain/Sakhir when that track enters the infield. I prefer the corner shape of the grey outline in your design, but I would bend it to the place where the black line of Turn 2 and 3 is located, because that allows for more paddock space.
The section to the right, from Turn 4 up to Turn 8 is very Hermann Tilke with its several kinks in what could also be a slightly bent straight. And the Eagle's nose of Turn 10 is absolutely not to my liking in this place on the circuit. Maybe you could just switch it around and attach it onto the end of the kinked straight in place of Turn 7 and then have a multiple radius right-hand corner leading out onto the next section that leads to the penultimate chicane.

I hope you like my suggestions for an edit. I don't have quite enough time at the time to draw one up by myself so this short message will have to do it. I hope my description of what I had in mind is understandable.
Again welcome to the board!

[bio]

Hi, Matthew and welcome here.

Two worthy designs, quality level entry to My Tracks, for sure!

While I second basically everything SBF and Yannick has mentioned, here's another thing I find useful to add: track length. I strongly think that without a track legth a track cannot be fairly judged. The value of an exit corner from a curve or a straight, for example, greatly depends on how long the preceeding section was - something we ca't know without at least an approximate track length.

Anyway, let your designs come, looking forward to seeing them!

And don't care about the software, Paint is just fine - as long as one doesn't let the Curve tool's capabilities decide the curves' layouts

bio

[MatthewC]

Hi guys thanks for all the advice and comments I've received - very much appreciated, I've now converted to Sketchup 7, and just about got the jist of it.

This is the Autobahn Stadium. Length: 3.8 miles. Clockwise direction, with plenty of run-off areas.

[shambles]

Absolutely fantastic.

[LuiggiSpeed]

Ok now were talking, I like your 3rd track the best, whether it was paint or SKTCHup the track itself it's decent, I'd like to see you drawing since you certainly have ability to come with nice sets, as a suggestion, try avoiding sharp points, from a racer stand point, that would be practically a stop point, killing the flow of the race.

Keep it up and welcome!!!

[Purist]

I like that third one. One of my designs has some similar elements. It also looks like you took some cues from the old Surfers Paradise Int'l Raceway (not to be confused with the current street circuit on the Gold Coast).