Circuit Carole

The Circuit Carole is at Tremblay-en-France in the Seine-Saint-Denis department, about twenty minutes from Paris. It opened on 1 December 1979 and carries the name of Carole Le Fol, an 18-year-old who died in a motorcycle accident on 23 September 1977. Since 1 January 2012 the Federation Francaise de Motocyclisme (FFM) has run the operation, taking over from the Seine-Saint-Denis departmental council; the operator describes this as a public service concession. The course is 2,055 metres long and at least 9 metres wide. There is also a winding secondary loop of 1,050 metres reserved for motorcycles up to 500 cc four-stroke or 125 cc two-stroke. Access for motorcyclists is free on 26 weekends a year and paid the rest of the time; the operator lists one hour from 38 euros, three hours from 79 euros and an annual subscription from 990 euros. Rental bikes (Yamaha R3 and R7), gear hire and riding courses are available. Supermoto competitions up to Grand Prix level are a fixed part of the calendar. Riding is on asphalt, and our record lists the course as fast. On a compact lap of a little over two kilometres a lot depends on how settled the bike is in the quicker curves - if it goes vague there you correct constantly and lose time on the exit. Top of our cause list is a ride-height and sag balance that is off: the bike feels vague at speed, so set sag first, before you touch damping. Treat it as a starting point, not a safety promise.