Like many cyclists, the first time Chris Hoy walked into the centre of a banked velodrome to try out track racing, he was a little overawed. Hoy now stands alone, a national hero, as the only man who has won three gold medals on two wheels in a single Olympic games, but countless other cyclists have felt the same as he did after five minutes whirling round the bankings: “There was a sudden acceleration, a burst of speed, and I was hooked. There was nothing else I wanted to do.

“The first time I walked into the middle of the Meadowbank velodrome in Edinburgh, when I was just a kid riding for the Dunedin CC, I was a bit intimidated. You come out into the arena, and the bankings are big and high; it looked scary. The first couple of laps I was gripping the bars so hard you could see my knuckles. Then I felt the adrenalin and I forgot my fears in about five minutes.”

Hoy is an enthusiastic proponent of his sport: “It’s exhilarating as you fly down the bankings. You stay out of the bad weather and it’s safe as there is no traffic. The races are quick, so if you ride a track league you can get in five or six events in an evening, which means you learn quickly, and there are several categories, so it’s accessible for pretty much any age.”

Unlike many other branches of cycling, track is a social activity. “You do your race, then you come into the centre and you can discuss it with team mates, friends, rivals, your coach … That’s how it is at all levels.

“It’s not like going to a road race or mountain bike race where you might head off into the country for a few hours: it’s all self-contained so you can bring your family along and they can see everything happen.”

As Hoy sees it, increasing the number of track cyclists boils down to one issue: access. There are only three covered velodromes in the country, and Scotland’s premier facility, Meadowbank, is under threat of demolition.

“The only difficulty is finding somewhere to go, but that should improve as they build more tracks. The first time you fly down off the banking, the sensation of speed is so great, you just feel you have to do it again. I’ve never known anyone go on a velodrome for a try-out and not come off with a big smile on their face.”

• Heroes, Villains and Velodromes: Chris Hoy and Britain’s Track Cycling Revolution is out now (HarperSport, £15.99)

Race to the nearest velodrome

There are three covered velodromes in the UK: Manchester, Newport south Wales and Calshot activities centre, near Southampton. All three tracks run their own racing leagues and training sessions year-round.

It is possible to turn up and have a go at a beginners’ session but accreditation – in which the coaches make sure you are safe to ride – is required for advanced training sessions and track league.

There are also a number of outdoor tracks around the country, usually with shallower banking and larger dimensions, making them more suitable for novices and younger children. The best known are Meadowbank in Edinburgh, Palmer Park in Reading, Halesowen and Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, Welwyn Garden City and London’s Herne Hill. Being outdoors, activities may be affected by wet weather. Winter activities are usually limited, but most have summer track leagues and training sessions from spring to autumn.

The British Cycling website (britishcycling.org.uk) has a full list of facilities and contacts.

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