Calabogie Motorsports Park CW
Calabogie Motorsports Park is a racing complex containing a 5.05-km (3.14-mi) racetrack, with nice elevation changes and surrounded by pine trees, built at the outskirts of Canada's capital, Ottawa. There are 20 turns in the track, and its largest straight segment measures 2000 feet. The road course's design by Alan Wilson managed to capture the experience of driving high-performance racing cars and motorcycles through the woodlands, with a variable landscape that changes with every season of the year. Winters in Ottawa are severe, with chili temperatures lower than -10 degrees Celsius and lots of snow covering the land. There is no ice racing in Calabogie, as it takes place at the nearby Capital City Speedway.
Calabogie's racetrack starts and ends in the middle of its southernmost straight segment and goes downhill from the very first turn, all the way through two left-hand sweepers and a right-hand one. Then comes the fastest straight run of the track, another downhill slope of 2000 feet that ends suddenly in a brake-pad-eating combination of tight left-handers, Mulligans, and Big Rock. Drivers continue going down from there until midway between Candy Mountain and Temptation. The remaining stretch is an exhilarating driving experience through tight corners and sweepers to the left and right, most of them blocking the view from the driver's perspective because of the terrain's ups and downs.
The clockwise configuration at Calabogie Motorsports Park flows through Canada's longest road course circuit, delivering 5.050 kilometers (3.138 miles) of Alan Wilson-designed challenges across 20 turns carved through Ontario's rolling countryside 4 kilometers east of Calabogie community in Greater Madawaska township. Running clockwise emphasizes the circuit's dramatic elevation changes and 2,000-foot front straight that ranks among North America's longest continuous acceleration zones. The 40-foot consistent track width provides multiple racing lines through technical sections that have earned Calabogie its reputation as the preferred destination for North American motorsport enthusiasts since opening in fall 2006, with the clockwise flow optimizing the circuit's combination of high-speed commitment corners and precise technical complexes.
Operating in the clockwise direction showcases Calabogie's world-class facility design that integrates natural terrain features rather than bulldozing flat racing surfaces. The 20-turn layout challenges drivers with blind crests, off-camber exits, and compression zones where suspension setup becomes critical for maintaining speed. Eastern Ontario's four-season climate creates dramatically different track characteristics across the year—summer sessions see asphalt temperatures exceeding 45°C while winter testing events can operate in near-freezing conditions, though the facility's primary season runs May through October. The clockwise configuration serves as the standard layout for establishing lap records and hosting competitive events, including NASCAR Canada series races, with the full circuit offering three separate configuration options: the 5.050-kilometer Pro Circuit, 2.810-kilometer East Stadium Circuit, and 2.200-kilometer West Circuit. Calabogie's clockwise flow has established itself as the definitive Canadian road racing experience, combining circuit length with technical variety that separates it from shorter domestic facilities.
