Xmas Motor Sports Park

Xmas Motor Sports Park is a motocross track in Christmas, Michigan, a small Upper Peninsula town on the Lake Superior shore. Yes, Christmas is the real town name, and the address alone makes the place memorable. It is also one of the only major motorsports properties in the entire U.P., and the riding makes it worth the trip.

The one-mile sandy loam track sits half a mile from Lake Superior, close enough that the big lake moderates the riding weather in a way inland tracks never get. The property sits at the edge of the Hiawatha National Forest and a short drive from Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, some of the most distinctive recreation country in the Midwest.

The riding is defined by high-flying jumps, grueling whoops, and features that change from visit to visit. The layout works with the natural U.P. terrain instead of fighting it, and the sand-and-loam mix holds tacky lines through long sessions.

The U.P. motorcycle community is small. Most Michigan riders never haul across the Mackinac Bridge to ride U.P. dirt, and the ones who do tend to come back. For Upper Peninsula motocross, this is the track.

Christmas sits in Alger County on M-28 near the Lake Superior shore, about 45 minutes east of Marquette and 10 minutes west of Munising, and the surrounding U.P. tourism corridor pulls visiting families through the area all summer. Check xmasmotorsportspark.com for the current schedule.