Charade Circuit, Motorsport racing track in Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
Charade Circuit is a motorsport race track in Saint-Genès-Champanelle, laid out on the slopes of the Puy de Grave Noire, an extinct volcano. The current permanent circuit measures 3.975 km and reuses the southern part of the original 8.055 km mountain course, with a link road joining the Manson corner area to Champeaux. Its asphalt curves through grass and volcanic hillside, bordered by gravel runoff and concrete barriers; a low white wall at one bend carries the inscription "PUY DE DOME CONSEIL GENERAL".
The original 8-kilometer track opened in 1958 and hosted four Formula One French Grand Prix races before being shortened and reconfigured in 1989. This change transformed how the circuit functioned as a racing venue.
The circuit is named after the hamlet of Charade, linked to the Thèdes hill by a purpose-built road when the track was laid out in 1957. It also carries the name Circuit Louis Rosier, after the Clermont-Ferrand driver who identified the route around the volcanoes. Historic motorsport events are still held on the shortened layout.
The circuit sits on the slopes of the Puy de Grave Noire, with the pit buildings and permanent garages on the mountain flank and the track winding around the volcano. The original 8.055 km road circuit is still open as public roadway, so parts of the old layout can be driven outside race days. The site is fully enclosed since 2000, and access to the paddock depends on the event.
The original 8.055 km circuit is still a public road: the descent to Gravenoire and part of the climb were never rebuilt as track and can be driven by anyone. The white wall at the curve carries the inscription "PUY DE DOME CONSEIL GENERAL", the department that has owned the circuit since 2012.
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