Best way to get a Track Layout?

[Mikey]

Hey, soon when i relese my newest track i will be doin a replica of my local track, it has a basic Disp.
But i am struggling to make each corner the same width and the straights the right length and make everything good. Is thier a easy way to get a layout is like PS or somthing or dose it just taje time?

[gordy]

get a satellite shot from google earth, then trace it and set the outline as shadows.pgm

[Mikey]

ok that sounds pretty easy thanks gord

[Garasaki]

Do you know how to use the Pen tool?

My new favorite way to lay out a track is use the pen tool to create a "centerline" then stroke it with a brush that's white (play with the size of the brush to get a track width you like), then stroke it with a brush that's black, only slightly smaller. You'll end up with 2 white lines that define your track. Adjust the opacity of this layer (and set it to "screen) to make the white lines appear as small continuous humps of dirt along the edges of the track.

The absolute beauty of this method is using the pen tool to make the track layout. This allows you to make every straight and every corner seemlessly flow together, and allows you to get away from "straight straights and 90/180 degree corners". In fact it results in a very natural and realistic track path.

Double bonus, you can save the path, then recall it and tweak it really easily.

Notice in this pic, the way the track is outlined, to demonstrate what I'm talkin about