El Capitan (Spanish translation of The Captain.) is a circuit which is featured, in normal and reverse directions, in Gran Turismo 4, Tourist Trophy and Gran Turismo PSP. The circuit, which is set in the Yosemite National Park, United States, also contains the Cathedral Rocks rally and hybrid circuits within its boundaries.
The circuit is predominantly high speed in design, but features areas that can easily upset the car. There are numerous combined corners and severe undulations throughout. The most complex part of the circuit is the turn 6-7 hill, which can cause the car to behave in unusual ways if not navigated properly.
The circuit holds the El Capitan 200 Miles. The best way to win the MINOLTA Toyota 88C-V Race Car '89 which is a popular car for other endurance races.
This Track is also in Gran Turismo 5 as a Hidden Track.
El Capitan (Green) superimposed onto other Yosemite tracks.
Layout & Sectors[]
Sector 1[]
Accelerate away from the start and go into turn 1 at full throttle. Lift off the throttle mid-corner and prepare to brake for turn 2. Turn 2 is a long, slow hairpin that wraps around. Using the left post of the bridge, brake hard after clearing turn 1 and control your throttle through turn 2 to avoid understeer. The corner apex is very late, so save of slamming down on the throttle until you are near the corner exit.
A series of chicanes with a sand trap follow afterwards. Take a straight line exit out of turn 2, heading towards turn 3. Go around at full throttle. Move to the left side of the track in preparation for combined turns 4 and 5. Brake before the yellow sign on the right side of the road, controlling your braking carefully to ensure you slow up before entering. Be careful when tackling this chicane so you won't lose grip, especially near the kerbstones where there are some traces of excess sand on the track.
Staying beside the apex kerbstones of turn 5, accelerate towards the inside of turn 6 in a straight line. Avoid hitting the kerbstones itself, as this will disturb the behavior of the car. Move from the inside of turn 6 to the outside before the tunnel. Be careful as this is all done an incline that can cause understeer if not handled properly.
Sector 2[]
You'll enter the second sector at the tunnel. Use it to accelerate until you've cleared it. Turns 6 and 7 are located on a steep incline followed by a steep decline. The car can behave erratically on this hill, so care should be taken in order to avoid errors. You can go full throttle when climbing up turn 6, but once you've reached the hill's top, reduce speed to prevent your car from jumping and entering the sand trap below or spinning out of control due to the lack of downforce. Turn 7 is blind due to the crest of the hill; control your speed to avoid overshooting.
Turn 8 is a banked left hand turn. Enter at full throttle, lifting off gradually to ensure you stay on the inside kerbstones. A short, descending straight is up next, followed by the tight hairpin that is turn 9. Brake at about mid-way down the straight. Optimize your cornering by taking an out-in-in line and accelerate towards the combined turns 10-11. If you need to, lift off a bit to avoid understeer, ensuring that you do not release your steering.
Turn 12 comes before a tight bridge. Lift off slightly before entry and coast around the corner, heading towards the outside wall of the bridge.
Sector 3[]
Turn 13 is a blind left. Brake before the end of the bridge, and be as close as possible with the kerbstones to maintain quickest time possible at the turn. There is room to run wide, so don't be afraid to apply full throttle early. This leads into turn 14, a blind hairpin that continues into turn 15. Be careful as your car will understeer when entering this section from a point of speed. Brake using the kerbstones on the left side of the track as your cue, and maintain your throttle and steering through both corners. Once cleared, accelerate and enter the following turn 16 at full speed.
The final complex of the circuit is turns 17-19. This is difficult set of corners, as there is a severe undulation change that can easily cause the car to understeer. Slow yourself down adequately through turn 17, and head towards the inside of turn 18. Ride over the hill, avoiding understeer. Control your throttle through turn 19, applying full throttle at the corner apex. After the chicane, it's the final stretch which a slight kink before the pit-lane entry.
Events[]
GT4[]
Beginner Events[]
- 4WD Challenge (reverse); 2 Laps - Race 4
- MR Challenge; 2 Laps - Race 5
Professional Events[]
- Tuning Car Grand Prix (reverse); 3 Laps - Race 4
- Gran Turismo World Championship; 11 Laps - Race 5
Extreme Events[]
- Dream Car Championship (reverse); 4 Laps - Race 9
- Polyphony Digital Cup (reverse); 6 Laps - Race 8
- Formula GT World Championship; 64 Laps - Race 13
European Events[]
- British GT Series; 3 Laps - Race 3
Japanese Events[]
- Japanese 80's Festival; 3 Laps - Race 1
American Events[]
- All American Championship (reverse); 4 Laps - Race 4
- Hot Rod Competition; 3 Laps - Race 3
One Make Races[]
- Lotus Classics; 2 Laps - Race 3
- Spitfire Cup; 2 Laps - Race 1
- Tourist Trophy; 2 Laps - Race 1
- SL Challenge; 4 Laps - Race 3
- Vette! Vette! Vette!; 4 Laps - Race 5
- Saleen S7 Club; 4 Laps - Race 2
- NR-A RX-8 Cup; 2 Laps - Race 4
- Club "Z"; 3 Laps - Race 3
- Club "M" (reverse); 2 Laps - Race 1
- Clio Trophy (reverse); 4 Laps - Race 5
- Camaro Meeting (reverse); 3 Laps - Race 2
Endurance Events[]
- El Capitan 200 Miles; 66 Laps
Trivia[]
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The early design for El Capitan, found in the "Prius Trial" demo for Gran Turismo 4 Prologue.
In the "Prius Trial" demo of Gran Turismo 4 Prologue, an unfinshed El Captitan can be found, featuring a more difficult and narrower early layout. It's missing some textures, and some elements from the final version, but it is able to be accessed.