Road Racing
Road racing takes place on tarmac, either on closed public streets, or on a purpose-built race track. Due to safety concern and insurance purposes, most road racing is now done on purpose-built tracks, which are race tracks that are designed to resemble road courses, complete with irregular shapes, turns and curves.
Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier category of road racing. Grand prix motorcycles are prototype machines that are not based on any production motorcycle.
Superbike racing is a category of road racing with modified production motorcycles with four stroke engines of 800cc to 12cc for twins and 750cc to 1000 cc for four cylinder machines. The motorcycles are required to maintain the same profile as their road going counterparts with the overall appearance corresponding to that of the bike seen on public roads.
Supersport racing also involves modified production motorcycles, requiring a four-stroke engine of 400 -600cc for four-cylinder bikes and 600-750 for twins. Supersport regulations are much tighter than superbikes.
Endurance racing is a category of road racing meant to test the durability of the equipment and the endurance of riders. Teams are formed where riders cover a large distance in a single event while they are allowed to change riders during the race. Their goal is to cover a set amount of laps as quickly as possible or to cover as much distance as possible over a preset amount of time.
Sidecar racing is a category of road racing where a platform is attached to the bike; the passenger and rider work together to make the machine perform.
Motocross Racing
Motocross racing is off road, closed circuit racing, in which circuits are constructed on a variety of non-tarmac surfaces like sand, mud or grass, with natural or artificial elevation changes. Some circuits have added jumps on which bikes can become airborne. Motocross races begin with all riders alongside each other, propelling into the first corner in ?destruction derby? fashion. In many cases, riders are eliminated quite quickly as they wreck during the first turn!
Supercorss is indoor motocross, conducted in stadiums and open arenas, notable for its numerous jumps.
Supermoto is a racing category that is a cross between road-racing and motocross. The bikes are motocross types with road-racing tires. The track is a blend of road and dirt courses.
Enduro and Cross-country
Enduro is a form of off road racing focused on the endurance of the competitors, often taking place through forestry. The race is divided into stages, each with a target time to complete, with penalties for being early or late; therefore, the goal is to be exactly on time. There are a variety of tests and terrains during a typical 3 to 4 hour event.
Hare scramble is an off-road event taking place on a course through wooded and rugged terrain. The overall winner is the one who maintains the highest speed throughout the event.
Cross-country rally races are larger events that take place over many days, travelling hundreds of miles across primarily open off-road terrain.
Track Racing
Track racing involves teams or individuals, racing around an oval track. There are various types of tracks with different surface types.
Indoor races are conducted on concrete floors with coke syrup sprayed on them for traction, or on dirt that has been moistened and hard packed or left loose. Motorcycles race on an oval track or over a single jump with a left turn, called a TT track. Short track and TT events are usually held outdoors. Short tracks are usually less than ? a mile in length; TT tracks are various lengths, but all contain at least one right turn and at least one jump.
Speedway racing is on a flat, oval track, usually of dirt or loosely packed shale, where racers use the surface to slide their bikes sideways into the bends using the rear wheel to scrub-off speed while providing the drive to power the bike forward and around the bend.
Grass track is often referred to as long track, often on grass and even feature elevation changes. Ice racing is conducted on an ice track where bikes race counter-clockwise around oval tracks between 260 and 425 meters in length.
There are many other sub-categories of motorcycle racing. Each style has certain equipment requirements. The sport can be quite expensive, requiring the replacement of parts and maintenance on your motorcycle to keep it in top shape for competing.
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