Mont-Tremblant, Racing Circuit

Circuit Mont-Tremblant, historically known as St-Jovite and affectionately as Le Circuit, is a classic road course set in the Laurentian Mountains of Quebec, roughly 130 km north of Montreal beside the Mont-Tremblant ski resort. It was conceived by local hotelier and racing enthusiast Leo Samson to extend the area's tourism beyond the winter ski season, and it opened on 3 August 1964 as a 1.56-mile layout before being extended the following year to its full 2.65-mile Grand Prix configuration. Carved into the rolling, tree-lined hillside, the circuit follows the natural terrain through fast sweeping bends and dramatic elevation changes, most famously the crest known as The Hump on the back straight, which launched cars into the air and drew comparisons to the Nurburgring. In its heyday it climbed to the top of motorsport, hosting the Can-Am series from its inaugural 1966 race, USAC Indy Car double-headers in 1967 and 1968, and the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix in 1968 and 1970. The narrow, bumpy and remote nature of the track eventually cost it its international events, and it slipped into obscurity through the 1980s and 1990s. In 2000 it was bought by Montreal businessman Lawrence Stroll, who commissioned Alan Wilson to modernise it to FIA standards while preserving its character, widening the course, taming The Hump, adding an optional chicane at Turn One and building a separate south course with its own pit lane. Reopened in 2002, it briefly drew the Grand-Am 6 Hours and a 2007 Champ Car race, but has since settled into a celebrated home for historic racing, including Spring, Summer and Fall Classics and the Sommet des Legendes.