Apex Motocross (Worcester)

Opened in 1983 and running ever since, Apex Motocross right beside junction 6 of the M5 is one of the longest-established permanent practice facilities in the UK. Around 1500 metres, a loamy woodchip-and-soil base that shrugs off British weather remarkably well, and real elevation change in a compact space: ski jumps, a double explicitly for experts only, the well-known Apex step-up, fast straights, berms and bowl turns. A full-time track builder works on it year-round and a sprinkler system runs in summer. It opens Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 to 15:00 at GBP 40 for the day; the whole place privately costs GBP 750 for up to 15 riders, GBP 50 for each additional one. Pit bikes and automatics are not permitted, and riders are split by ability. Compact with elevation is harder work than it looks: there is barely a section where your legs genuinely rest. Ration the session instead of trying to win it. On technical ground the same thing shows up almost every time: the engine stalls in the tight sections. First on our cause list is a dragging clutch or a light flywheel - a flywheel weight, or a properly sorted clutch pack, removes the basis for it.