The best autodromes in Russia

Mankind never sat on the spot. When the foot migration was bored, the wheel was invented, the first vehicles appeared. When they were tired of living on one continent, people learned how to build boats and swim across the ocean.

When it seemed a little pedestrian and waterways, humanity began to build airplanes. As history of earthlings shows, they were always attracted by speed, unknown and spirit of rivalry. No one is surprised that as soon as the first cars appeared on the streets of the cities, there were organized racing competitions.

History of racing

Autodromes of Russia became one of the links in the long chain of racing, the first of which occurred in 1894 in France, although the official date of birth of motorsport is 1904

Thanks to the first auto racing, gasoline engines drove out steam engines, and the ridiculous present speed of 45 km / h at that time was considered the ultimate. By 1950, there was a separate branch in the automotive industry, when the famous firms along with the serial cars produced racing cars.

Sports cars changed not only their appearance from year to year, but also the amount of horsepower under the hood, the width and quality of the tires. "Golden" time is considered the period from 1950 to 1960, when the tracks were less equipped than today, the drivers did not have seat belts, and the number of accidents at the competitions was a record.

In Russia, the first car race took place in 1900 on the "highway" Petersburg-Luga, and in 1912 the first sports car "Russo-Balt C 2430" took 9th place in the international races in Monte Carlo and received a prize for the fact that he drove without breakdowns from The northern capital to the competition site.

Even at the time of the formation of Soviet power, this sport was not abandoned. This suggests that the love of speed in people in the blood. Today, the motor racing tracks in Russia are built taking into account the standards of racing "Formula-1".

Autodrome in Volokolamsk

Since the first races, not only the traditions of awarding winners have developed, but a system has been developed for building race tracks, among them:

• Oval - the most common. Their length ranges from 200 to 4000 m and more. They are characterized by asphalt or shingles.
• Ring tracks are one of the most difficult, since they have multiple steep turns.
• For speed arrivals, short straight lines of 400 m are built.

Today, motor racing in Russia are becoming known at the international level. The track, built near Volokolamsk, has a length of 4070 m and 15 turns. It is designed by the famous architect Hermann Tilke, on account of which half of the motor-racing tracks in the world. It can be safely attributed to the category "1T". Construction took place thanks to businessman Teregulov Rustem, who not only sponsored him, but he is also an amateur driver.

In total, private investors spent 4 million dollars on the construction of the Moscow Raceway, but the new route can accept cars of any category - from motorcycles to trucks. If you carry out some modernization and build at a distance of the "outstretched hand" of the hotel for the accommodation of athletes and fans, this route can host the Grand Prix. This is Russia's first autodrome of this level. The opening of the track took place in July 2012, after which it tested the riders of the company "Renault", then passed the Superbike tournament and even the world championship on racing cars "Gran Turismo". For such a "young" race this is a great start in a career.

For today it is the biggest autodrome. Russia is unlikely to stop at this.

The Smolensk Ring

The route near Smolensk was originally built for the conduct of domestic competitions and training of riders. Her also designed by Hermann Tilke. The length of the Smolensk Ring is 3357 m with 17 steep turns. The track is located 80 km from Smolensk near the town of Dorogobuzh.

Opened in 2010, it was the first to receive accreditation and a license in the International Auto Federation. Other autodromes of Russia were honored with this honor later.

This route is distinguished not only by high-quality design, but also by infrastructure. Nearby are the hotel and the hostel, hosting guests during the competitions. Although the Smolensk Ring was built for Russian racers, it has been part of the European Truck Racing Championship for 3 consecutive years .

This once again shows that the motor racing tracks of Russia are built according to world standards and fully comply with them.

Autodrome near Nizhny Novgorod

Just 22 km from the city is located the NRing route, designed by architect Mikhail Gorbachev in collaboration with RaceTrack Design Bureau.

A distinctive feature of this autodrome is the presence of numerous configurations. So, here is:

• Oval track;
• Version for motorcycle races;
• Carting;
• A strip in 805 m for competitions on drag racing.

This racetrack is the best band in the country for sprint races. The track is used for All-Russian championships and competitions for the Russian Cup in motorcycle races. Also on it compete the participants of the NLS series for domestic cars.

This is the only track in Russia, where the stands for the fans are made indoor, but the minus is the lack of boxes for cars and a building for the management of the race. In the plans of the owners of the autodrome to change this, but for now each team puts its tent and equips the service areas.

The Kazan Autodrome

Another track, created by the German Tilke project, can be visited only 1 km from Kazan. All the autodromes of Russia (photo shows it), designed by the bureau of this master, it is easy to modernize. So it happened with the route KazanRing, all 3476 m with 10 turns of which were designed for track-days.

The modernization carried out by the owners in the form of construction of boxes, a complex in which management of races, administrative buildings and VIP-halls were located, brought this circuit to the level of the best tracks, according to the riders themselves.

Autodrome built in a former career, so the difference in elevation levels of the road reaches up to 30 m. The existing types of turns can bring it to the international level, if the modernization work will be continued. To do this, increase the number of boxes and equip the pit-building.

The stands of the Kazan autodrome are the slopes of the quarry, where you can see the whole route from any point. Since the place is located in close proximity to the city, participants and guests of the competitions can stay at local hotels.

Autodrome near St. Petersburg

It is unlikely that this route can be considered an appropriate quality, since, with its length of 3,073 m and 11 turns, there are no interesting differences in altitude, and the condition of the drainage system is far from ideal. After each rain, the safety zones of the motorway are flooded with water, which does not dry out for a long time.

Most of this route is suitable for local auto racing and track-days. Infrastructure is not developed, but if there are competitions, athletes and guests are "saved" by the fact that the circuit is 5 km from the ring road to St. Petersburg.

In addition to a sufficiently long start line, this track does not have something that could interest investors and race organizers in its use.

The Moscow Ring

Not all motor racing tracks in Russia are licensed by the FIA. For example, the route "Moscow Ring", originally equipped at the former airfield in Myachkovo, it is not. It is located 20 km from the capital, and the first races here started in 2002, for which part of the runways were used.

In 2005, the circuit was moved to a new location, the road was completely redesigned, the administrative buildings, the boxes were built and the stands were equipped. The route was 3275 m long with 17 turns. The investor and owner of the track was Shota Abhazava, designed by Eldar Marchenko, a Russian architect.

The "Moscow Ring" accepts only national teams, there are also track-days, amateur racers and test drives.

Autodrome on the ice

For drivers who do not have enough adrenaline and are tired of driving on ordinary roads, the organizers of extreme races offer to visit the best motor-racing tracks on ice in Russia.

Indeed, for this purpose, many rafts of Siberia are trying to organize similar races, but the city administration does not issue permits for such dangerous events.

Among the icy autodromes operating annually, it is possible to mark the highway "Industrial zone", equipped near Yekaterinburg. Organizers of ice "skating" with each new season improve the track, making it more interesting, faster and more difficult. Limits their imagination only the size of the technical pond on which the races pass.

Another regular ice track is located on Lake Baltym near the recreation base Lesnaya Skazka. It works daily from 11.00 to 23.00. The water area of the lake allows you to equip immediately 2 full tracks, equipped with signs, illuminators and snow barriers.

"Forest Fairy Tale" welcomes all guests, offering a rest in a bar, a sauna, pavilions with barbecues and cozy rooms.

Automobile and motorcycle club

The Autodrome of the FSO of Russia, located not far from the town of Staraya Kupavna, was opened in 2008 with the aim of holding both professional competitions and sports and entertainment events.

In the club at the racetrack, they teach driving and organize sports teams to promote motor sport.