Although the first official motorcycle race took place in 1864, it is safe to say the first unofficial motorcycle race was before that by two individuals who were simply out on a ride. Can you imagine how dangerous yet exhilarating that experience was?

Motorcycle racing is one of the many different styles of motorcycle sports. There are two classifications of motorcycle racing that pretty much sums it up; road disciplines and off-road. Road discipline tracks include purpose-built tracks and temporary locations such as closed public roads and airport runways that are paved. A few global race tracks include Suzuka, Silverstone, and Monza. Off road tracks have more natural components like mud, snow, gravels, sand, etc. In certain parts of the world, surfaces that are not paved can attract off-road aspects during certain seasons. Therefore, if you are located in a Western country, off-roading may lean more towards recreational drives rather than being classified as off-roading.

The organization that governs motorcycle racing is known as the FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motorcyclism or International Motorcycling Federation). The four main categories: road racing, motocross, endure & cross country, and track racing are all FIM classified motorcycle races.
Endurance racing tests the durability of the equipment and the multiple riders’ endurance. There are different teams, each with several riders (during the race, drivers are allowed to switch on the motorcycle). Their goal is to beat a pre-determined time, on either a given distance of laps or to travel as much distance as they can before that time is up.

Motocross is broken down into supercross and supermoto. Supercross is motocross indoors. Supermoto is a mixed breed of road racing and motocross. Enduro is mainly off road motorcycling that test the endurance of the competitor. A cross country rally is much bigger than an enduro race; even the motorcycles are larger. It is a race that spans multiple days over hundreds of miles.

Track racing occurs around an oval track. Each track varies on surface types. There are many more types of motorcycle racing. So my question to you is if you own a motorcycle and enjoy a good old adrenaline rush, why haven’t you tried it?