It has been requested that a summary of the TrackChaser track counting guidelines be published on my website, and to include as many examples and explanations as possible to foster understanding. On this page I will attempt to do that, with the intent of editing the page whenever it is determined that an addition will help clarify questions that arise. The original guidelines were first published in 1997 and have been modified several times.
What follows below applies only to the TrackChaser group with the original intent being to allow comparisons between us to be somewhat equitable. We do not believe there is a "right way" or a "wrong way" to count race tracks, just an "our way." We invite anyone that wants to use our system either as members of our group or on their own to please do so. We equally respect anyone who chooses a different way to count the race tracks they visit. All we ask is that they respect ours as well. It's just a niche hobby within a hobby, all for fun, and all for the betterment and increased enjoyment of the sport of auto racing. Enjoy the journey.
For those not that interested in the history, evolution, and minutia of the guidelines, here's the short version. To count a track in TrackChasers, you need to see adults competing in wheel-to-wheel auto racing.
Here's a summary of the long version with examples, notes, and historical references for clarity purposes.
TRACKS
Both permanent and temporary tracks are countable as long as the person sees adult wheel-to-wheel auto racing held on them. Examples of temporary track locations include airports, public streets, indoor arenas, fields, frozen lakes, fairgrounds, etc.
Tracks are divided into three types: 1) Ovals (all turns in one direction), 2) Road Courses (both right and left turns), and 3) Figure-8 (any shaped track with an at-grade intersection).
An oval track can be a traditional oval or a tri-oval. An oval with a slight chicane (sometimes referred to as "kidney shaped") is still considered an oval.
EXAMPLE: MOTHAR MOUNTAIN SPEEDWAY, QLD
Tracks are divided into four surfaces: 1) Dirt or Natural (dirt, clay, shale, grass, gravel, etc.), 2) Paved or Man Made (asphalt, concrete, tarmac, wood, metal, etc.), 3) Mixed (portions of the course both paved and dirt surfaces), and 4) Ice (frozen bodies of water or frozen land that is not an existing track).
Snow or ice tracks formed over an existing paved or dirt track are not counted as an additional track.
EXAMPLE: Any winter enduro on a snow covered existing track is not an additional track to the surface beneath.
Tracks that change from a paved or manmade surface and a dirt surface or vice versa can be counted ONCE for each surface.
EXAMPLE: ALBANY SARATOGA SPEEDWAY, NY. Went from paved to dirt to paved to dirt to paved to dirt but only counts once for each surface.
Changes between different types of pavement (asphalt, concrete, etc.) or other manmade materials (wood, metal, etc.), or different types of dirt (dirt, clay, shale, grass, gravel, etc.) surfaces only count once.
EXAMPLE: DOVER DOWNS SPEEDWAY, DE (asphalt & concrete)
EXAMPLE:
NORFOLK SCOPE ARENA (concrete & metal)
Multiple tracks of the same type, located at the same facility, are countable separately under the following conditions:
Connected ovals (inner or intermediate ovals) or figure eights are separately countable only if they exist and are active at the same time.
EXAMPLE: Bridgeport Speedway, NJ
PERSONAL NOTE: This is a change from the original wording that said the tracks only had to "exist" at the same time. Until 2003 the tracks had to "exist" at the same time to be separately countable. The meaning of "exist" was being stretched to near ridiculous proportions blurring the lines between two different tracks which counted separately and the same track just enlarged or shortened which were not counted separately, and Will White proposed the change to add "and are active at the same time" to the wording. The proposal passed and took effect in 2004. This has turned into the biggest boondoggle for group record keeping because what at first appeared to tighten up on abuse of the original intent has had unforeseen consequences. Tracks counted before 2004 became uncountable after that, and that has caused some hard feelings. To mitigate those hard feelings and help with ease of accounting and understanding, a ruling was made to allow any track previously granted to continue to count, while no longer granting multiple tracks of the same type at a facility unless they were both active in the same year. Personally, I wish we could just go back to the orignal wording for continuity's sake due to the confusion and hard feelings the change has caused.
EXAMPLE: KOSCIUSKO COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS / WARSAW SPEEDWAY, IN. Built a 1/6 mile track inside the old 1/4 track in 2016. The two share the same frontstretch thus making them connected. The 1/4 mile is still there, but not active since 1990. Since both tracks never ran during the same year, it is considered to be one track that has been shortened, where if the addition of the small track had happened between 1990 and 2003 it would have counted as two tracks.
In addition, the original guidelines did not allow for counting of a figure-8 track if it shared all four turns with an oval. That was changed in February of 2001 when a proposal made by Allan Brown to count the oval and figure-8 as separate tracks, even when they shared all four turns, passed and was applied retroactively to all previously attended tracks.
EXAMPLE: RIVERHEAD RACEWAY, NY
Disconnected permanant ovals or figure eights (located on separate areas of the facility with no overlap) are separately countable whether or not they exist at the same time.
All temporary tracks of the same type are only separately countable if they physically exist and are active at the same time, even if they are located on different parts of the property with no overlap with the following exception, tracks located inside different buildings/halls/rooms (separated by walls) on the same property can be counted separately.
EXAMPLE: BLACK ROCK SPEEDWAY, FROZEN ROAD COURSE, NY. For a couple of winters, Black Rock hosted winter races for the CNYIRA/FLIR ice racing groups. One year they set up a track in the pits, and on the oval and infield the next, but because the tracks were temporary at the same facility, it was only considered one track even though the courses did not overlap.
EXAMPLE: NATIONAL EXPOSITION CENTRE, ENG. The NEC in Birmingham is the classic example of indoor tracks, as races have been reported in Halls 4, 5, 10, 11 & 12.
For the road circuit track type, due to the many different track configurations possible at one facility, only two interconnected tracks can be counted. The two variants must have at least three turns and one straightaway of difference.
This is a change from the original guideline which allowed for only one interconnected road course to be counted. A change was proposed by Roland Vanden Eynde in 2014 to allow for a second variant per facility to equate the road course type to the other two (oval & F8) types. The proposal passed.
This change was originally intended to apply only to tracks visited after the proposal passed. To be consistent with the earlier change to the F8 track counting and for ease of understanding and accounting, it is now being applied retroactively.
Tracks that have been enlarged, shortened, turned, reshaped, or rebuilt are not counted as a separate track from the original version.
NOTE: Early on, before the internet allowed for searching for photos of new or unknown tracks, some tracks were granted that should not technically have counted as a separate track.
EXAMPLE: LEE TRI OVAL & LEE USA SPEEDWAY, NH. Should not have been considered two separate tracks but were in year one.
Another slight change was proposed by Bruce Eckel and passed in 2003 regarding a clarification between inner ovals and apron tracks. Any track that is composed entirely of the apron of another track (ie: no part of it is physically separated at any point) can not be counted as a second track even if a class is supposed to race only on the apron.
EXAMPLE: LAKE ERIE SPEEDWAY, PA.
Tracks run in a multiple oval configuration (one lap consists of two or more complete ovals) cannot be counted as a third track in addition to the track or tracks that comprise it.
EXAMPLES: Flagpole or Barber Pole races, Double O race.
NOTE: For Double O races, a Will White ruling allowed for counting EITHER one, but not both, tracks of a single Double O race as a track.
EXAMPLE: Sandia Speedway, NM had Double O style racing. The cars ran alternating laps around the main oval and the inner oval. Anyone seeing the race could count one of those ovals as a track for that race, not both, and not as a third track if they had already seen both ovals separately.
Any racing event in which the shape of the course is not predetermined, and/or may change from lap to lap, can not be used to count a track of any type.
EXAMPLE: Hound and Hare type races.
Typically point to point events such as drag races, hill climbs, mud bogs, solos; or rallies and North American style autocross and rallycross courses do not count because they don't meet the criteria for wheel-to-wheel racing.
CARS
Any car or truck type class that allows adult drivers is countable. There needn't necessarily be adults racing in a particular race in order to count the track, they just cannot be restricted from entering. Anyone 18 years of age and older is considered an adult.
NOTE: A UTV (SxS) is considered a type of car because the driver sits inside and it has a steering wheel, while an ATV is grouped with the motorcycles because the rider straddles it and steers with handle bars.
Small cars (aka scale cars) such as micro stocks, mini cup cars, champ karts winged outlaw karts, NASKarts, half midgets, quarter midgets, etc. count, but flat or caged flat go-karts do not count.
NOTE: Half midgets and quarter midgets count, but must meet the requirement of allowing adult drivers. Sometimes half midgets are age restricted. Quarter midgets are almost always age restricted but there are exceptions. Examples of those types of exceptions would include handlers' races, parents' races, mom races, dad races, graduate races, alumni races, celebrity races, veterans' races, etc.
Examples of vehicles not considered cars or trucks include motorcycles, quads (ATVs), boats, tractors, lawn mowers, snowmobiles, concession rides, bicycles, any vehicle remotely controlled, etc.
RACES
To count a track you must see actual wheel-to-wheel racing competition. Time trials are not countable, even if multiple or all racers are on track simultaneously, or even if the "feature" race winner is determined by elapsed time and not first to the finish or most laps. Practice does not count. Visiting a track on off days does not count.
Any racing event that is limited to fewer than three simultaneous starters does not count. Note that a race with only two starters would count as long as it is not LIMITED to two. Also note that any event where racers in a class start at various intervals would count if the results are determinned by the actual order of finish (wheel-to-wheel racing), but would not count if the finishing times are adjusted to determine the results (racing against the clock).
Vintage or historic racing counts if the races are run with no speed limit.
Any event where the outcome is determined solely by the last remaining competitor(s), with no regard to longest distance traveled or fastest time is not countable.
EXAMPLE: Potomac Speedway, MD. Demolition Derby in the Round.
NON-TRACKCHASER TRACKS
A provision on the current (this) website hosting the TrackChaser Group statistics has been made for the addition of "Non-Countable" tracks to be added to an individual's track pages if desired. These tracks do not count in any of the statistical tallies but display on the individual's track page. The catagories for the Non-TC tracks are:
Tracks with non-countable classes or formats
Non TrackChaser tracks
Voluntarily deleted tracks
Rained out or cancelled while at track
Visited on non race day or defunct tracks
RACES & BASES (BASEBALL BALLPARK COUNTING)
TrackChasers has adopted the Minor Trips guidelines for counting ballparks. Must see major league, affiliated or independent minor league, or collegiate summer league level baseball. Note: Not college or professional level softball.
DUAL CITIZENSHIP (ICE HOCKEY RINK COUNTING)
TrackChasers has adopted the Roaming the Rinks guidelines for counting ice hockey rinks. Must see major league, minor league, junior (T3 and above), or college.