Racing types

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• Motocross

  Motocross is the most popular form of amateur motorcycle racing in the United States, and with classes for machines from 50cc to more than 450cc, and riders age 4 to 50-plus, it's a sport for the whole family. Motocross races are run over natural- and man-made terrain courses with hills, jumps and tight turns, typically with two races — or motos — in each class. A combined score from each moto is calculated to determine the overall placing. Recognized as one of the most strenuous sports in the world, it is also one of the most fun. Each year, the best amateurs in the country compete for a spot in the prestigious AMA Youth and Amateur National Championships at the Loretta Lynn Ranch in Tennessee. Just about every pro motocrosser in the United States passed through the Loretta Lynn Ranch on the way to the big time.

• Enduro

  Enduros are one of the oldest forms of motorcycle competition. Run on a challenging route that includes wooded and desert terrain, more difficult "test" sections are typically connected with roads, fire roads or easy two-track trail. Enduros can vary greatly across the country, but one thing is certain everywhere: They are one of the most enjoyable, thrilling and fulfilling forms of motorsports competition. Small rows of riders — generally three to five a row — are flagged off in one-minute intervals. These riders may be in your class, but they are more likely not. Your race is against the clock. Aided by a route sheet that includes mileage, turn and time information, you follow a marked course. Scores are collected at checkpoints along the way. Once all riders have finished, scores are compiled and class results are posted. In general, there are two types of scoring methods for enduros. Traditional enduros penalize riders for arriving early or late to a check. However, only the very best riders are at risk of going too fast — called "burning a check" — in most sections. Most riders only have to watch their speed during the road or easy trail transfer sections. Start-control enduros only penalize riders for arriving late to a check. At start-control enduros, riders do not have to gauge their speed during transfer sections and can arrive early. Then they wait at the check until it's time for their row to begin the next section. The discipline’s top riders compete in the AMA Racing Rekluse National Enduro Championship Series.

• Dirt Track

  One of the most traditional forms of motorcycle competition in the U.S., dirt-track racing grew from the age when riders would compete on county fair horse tracks groomed to deliver a hard-packed surface. Riders compete in four different types of events: oval short-track, half-mile and mile tracks, and TT courses, which feature at least one right turn and a jump. Dirt-track bikes include both traditional dirt-trackers (sometimes called "framers" because of their custom-built frames) and DTX bikes, which are converted motocross or off-road motorcycles. Due to the few modifications required off the showroom — generally, wheels, tires and suspension — DTX bikes have become extremely popular in the last decade. Each summer, the AMA sanctions the Dirt Track Grand Championships and presents the AMA Racing Dirt Track Horizon Award to the most promising rider on the verge of a professional racing career.

• Hare Scrambles

  Hare scrambles are woods races. Unlike an enduro, all riders in a single class start on the same row, and the event is an all-out race to the finish. They are conducted on long, marked-loop courses through woods or desert and over rugged natural terrain. The racers keep doing laps on the course until the leader either completes a pre-determined number of laps or has raced for a pre-determined amount of time, usually 2 hours. Competitive riders not only need to be fast, but also physically fit enough to maintain a race pace for hours. Hare scrambles can include tight woods, big hills and field sections. Although similar, in general they are more open than a typical enduro. The AMA West and East Region Hare Scrambles Championship Series have grown to be some of the top off-road racing series in the country.

• Roadracing

  Roadrace events, run on paved closed-course circuits across the country, are where you'll find the latest generation of sportbikes being stretched to the limit. Although the top classes circulate the courses at enormous speeds, there are also classes for riders on less-powerful machines. The annual AMA Racing Roadrace Grand Championships, held each summer at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, draw top club-level riders from across the country. The best goes home with the AMA Racing Roadrace Horizon Award.

• Hillclimb

  Hillclimbs are essentially one-person drag races up the face of a challenging hill, with each rider allowed at least two attempts to conquer the hill. The winner is the rider who climbs the hill the quickest or, if no one reaches the top, makes it the farthest. Some hills are speed hills, where most riders make it to the top and speed determines the winner. Other hills are super-challenging distance hills, where few riders might crest the summit and the length a rider makes it up the hill determines where he or she places. The best amateur riders in the country compete every year in the AMA Racing Hillclimb Grand Championships.

• Ice Racing

  When nobody else is riding, some motorcyclists go racing. Ice racing looks like an oval dirt-track race, except it's run on ice. Racers modify a variety of machines to run on frozen lakes and ponds using off-road tires, often studded with hundreds of sheet-metal screws. The best compete at the AMA Racing Ice Race Grand Championships every winter.

• Trials

  Observed trials put no premium on speed whatsoever. The winner is simply the most skilled, graceful and (sometimes) luckiest rider on a particular course. Observed trials competitors must negotiate individual sections of extremely difficult terrain without putting their feet down. Penalty points are assessed for mistakes, and the rider with the lowest overall score at the end of the day wins. Some sections are so difficult, it's hard to imagine a mountain goat traversing them, much less a rider on two wheels. The top rung of the sport in the United States is the AMA/NATC National Observed Trials Championships.

• Hare & Hound

  Hare & hound races are often referred to as desert races because of their popularity in the Southwest. Riders race over a natural terrain course at least 40 miles long and pass through a series of checkpoints. But unlike an enduro, hare & hound races are similar to hare scrambles events in that they are an all-out race featuring a mass start. The top tier of the sport is the AMA Racing Kenda National Hare & Hound Championship Series.

• Arenacross

  Motocross racing goes indoors in Arenacross, with tight courses set up inside arenas and other venues across the country. The tighter indoor tracks tend to put a premium on technique and finesse, as well as fitness. The AMA Racing Arenacross Championship Series crowns champions in a number of skill- and age-based classes, including Pro-Am classes.

• Supermoto

  In supermoto, racers typically ride modified motocross bikes fitted with road-race-type tires. They race on courses that are part asphalt and part dirt, often with jumps and other motocross-type obstacles. Supermoto draws racers from many disciplines and puts a premium on all-around skill on a motorcycle.

• Endurocross

  Endurocross is one of the wildest sports on two wheels. It takes the race format of motocross and combines it with the challenging obstacles of an enduro, all packed into the tight confines of a fan-friendly stadium setting. Riders have to race over rock beds, through water crossings, over tractor tires and across telephone poles.

• Drag Racing

  If top speed and massive acceleration are what you crave, drag racing should satisfy your appetite. It's all about getting down a paved quarter-mile track fastest, whether you're racing the clock or another competitor lined up alongside. Classes are divided by engine displacement and the level of performance modifications allowed.

• Land Speed Racing

  Land-speed trials are all about going faster than anyone has gone before, typically on miles-long courses over perfectly level terrain like the Bonneville Salt Flats. Classes are determined by engine displacement, modification levels and various degrees of streamlining, and encompass everything from small-displacement racers to high-powered, custom-built streamliners made for the sole purpose of topping 300 mph.

• Speedway

  Using lightweight, single-gear bikes built solely for this type of competition, racers battle handlebar-to-handlebar on ultra-short oval dirt tracks typically a quarter-mile in length or less. Races typically last four laps, putting a premium on good starts, and the ability to slide the rear of the bike all around the oval.