WHERE are your favourite places to watch racing from trackside? We’re getting the discussion started.

Listed below are all the active tracks car circuit racing tracks that The Race Torque scribe Mark Walker has visited, listed genuinely/scientifically east to west across Australia.

For fun, the Editor has jumped in with his impressions (if different) and an up-to-the minute update on the best spots to watch at The Bend Motorsport Park, Australia’s newest track.

What do you think? Jump on our Facebook and Twitter and let us know where you prefer to set up camp on race weekend.

Surfers Paradise Street Circuit

The beachside chicane is about as good as it gets in Australian motorsport. The cars are working their hardest, it’s damn quick, and you struggle to get closer to cars anywhere else. Sure, you can’t see the cars for very long, but it’s a short lap, and they come back by in no time.

Honourable mention to the first chicane, although it is harder to access properly unless you have a grandstand seat.

Lakeside Park

A lot of great vantage points, but I reckon the popular pick is Hungry Corner. You can see the cars for a reasonable portion of the lap, and Hungry really sorts out the proper racers in the field.

Queensland Raceway

QR’s sight lines are the best in the land. For sitting on the hill, the area between turns three and six probably holds a slight advantage, maybe. BYO shade.

Morgan Park Raceway

Perching on the bridge stairs on the inside of the circuit gives you the best view of the entire circuit, and certainly a top vantage point for one of the best corners on the track as the cars blast past under load by the control tower.

Carnell Raceway

Up on the main spectator hill on the main straight, complimented by a canteen supplied steak sandwich. Possibly the only spectator area on this list not to feature a line of defence (read: wall) between the race track and punterville.

Sydney Motorsport Park

A tough one. Either the left hand (eastern) end of the grand stand, or on the peak of the hill on the outside of the circuit, between turns two and three.

– The hill on the exit of the final corner is also good – you’re elevated above the cars and get a great view as they approach out of turn eight and into the final complex. It’s also the furthest part of the circuit away from the rubbish dump, and closest to the Arnott’s factory. – Ed.

Marulan driver Training Centre

It’s all good, even better if you’ve got an esky to sit on.

– Mark is right – Marulan is a ripper spectator track and one of the few remaining with a great, old-school Canteen that sells excellent food that you don’t need to mortgage your house for.

Wakefield Park Raceway

Not many options, but then again, not many bad options. The main spectator area on driver’s left as the cars go through the kink in the pit straight is probably the pick.

Mount Panorama Circuit

Not many bad seats in this house. Personally, I always watch the Top Ten shootout from the bank on the inside of The Chase; it used to be even better when the cars bashed the limiter with the old diff ratio before tipping it in. Top atmosphere, big screen accessible.

For race day, I don’t think you can go past McPhillamy Park, with a stroll over to the other side of the Castrol Tower, overlooking The Esses.

Symmons Plains Raceway

Another one of those circuits there aren’t too many bad seats. If you can pick on angle high up on the bank so you can see the John Bowe Straight and also the Hairpin, you are winning at life.

– Speaking of the hairpin, you wouldn’t watch a race there but it’s worth meandering down there for a look during practice or qualifying. It’s one of the most serious stops in the sport and you don’t get an idea of how banked and tight that corner is until you go and watch someone try and hustle a 1450kg Supercar around it. Sketchy. – Ed.

Townsville Street Circuit

Hrmmm, toughie. Probably somewhere near the penultimate corner/hairpin, or the outside of the sweeper leading into that area. The cars really rip past here close and fast – you know you are alive.

– The same could be said for turn one. Get yourself on the walkway on the outside of the circuit about 100m past the kink as you walk down towards the support paddock. On the fence, it’s you, about 1m of demarkation lane, a concrete fence and race cars doing 220kph brushing the wall. It’s epic, especially for a race start and the opening few laps. – Ed

Winton Motor Raceway

I think the pick of the turns here is the main spectator area exiting the Motorsport News Esses onto the old pit straight, adjacent to the canteen. A pretty ace section of race track, with a good view of most of the facility.

– Honorable mention for any point of the circuit around turns six and seven – that great change of direction after the long turn five sweeper. If only to see whom in the support category hits the kerb on the right-hander too hard and almost rolls. – Ed.

Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit

The one downside to the awesomeness of this place, is that the spectator areas tend to be a five iron away from the racing surface. To take in the most of the scenery, there are three picks: on the exit of the Southern Loop, with a view straight back up the pit straight; on the exit of Siberia with a view back across to the Southern Loop; on the exit of the final turn, looking back to Lukey Heights.

– You cant get there with a GA pass (or a corporate one, for that matter), but the inside of the circuit just before the hayshed is mighty. Bribe someone you know for a media pass and go take photos there, especially if you can do it with sufficiently quick open wheelers on track. It’s one of those corners that looks impossible to take flat – but occurs anyway. – Ed.

Sandown International Raceway

How can you go past the grandstand? The best place to watch a race start in the country, and ideal coverage when it rains. You know it will rain, it’s Sandown. Sure, the Rothmans Rise knoll has its merits, but it isn’t the grandstand.

– It’s also the Loudest place to watch a race start in Australia (which is a good thing) as the noise rolls and echoes round the cavernous stand. A Formula E race would almost sound exciting up there. Almost. – Ed.

Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit

I really shouldn’t give this secret away, because you can always find me here during the F1 race, without fail: after the exit of the fast turn 12-12 switchback, with a view down to the braking area at turn 13. Nowhere else on the track can you see the cars for that length of time, going fast, turning multiple corners.

Calder Park Raceway

Do they still have spectator events here? If so, get up on those now very large banks around the drag racing staging area.

The Bend Motorsport Park

Early days, of course, but the top of the five-story high tower is impressive and gives views of the entire circuit – both the long one and the longer one. Having said that, the hill on the inside of turns fifteen and sixteen could prove to be a handy spot to watch – the cars come up the back straight into turn fourteen, then sweep past into the deceptively quick double-apex 15/16 and then blaze downhill to the overtaking point 500m later. Lots of elevation and flow. – Ed

Adelaide Street Circuit

You can’t go past the Senna Chicane, it’s just great. End of debate.

– It is, and I’d suggest buying your tickets in that grandstand. But go walkies and watch a session from turn eight at some point. No cars should be able to go through there that quick and come out the other side which, I suppose, is why so many don’t.. – Ed.

Mallala Motorsport Park

On the top corner of the grandstand that is closest to turn two, you can see pretty much everything from there.

– We’d also vote for the spectator hill on the exit of turn five, the Northern Hairpin. Not only can you see the whole track, you’re bang on the best passing spot at the joint, and also can see across to the start line and turns one / two. – Editor

Hidden Valley Raceway

Simple: Shennanigans Hill, the Coopers Roll Bar, the Track Centre Bar, Monsoons Suite.

– It’s like Mitchell street (Darwin’s main tourist / nightclub strip) but with the bonus of a race track. – Ed.

Barbagallo Raceway

The new pit building on the inside of the track has stuffed the venue as far as punters are concerned. If you can get your way into corporate suite that sits on the outside apex of turn one, you can see the cars come past the pits, and also back up to turn four.

WORDS & IMAGES: Mark Walker