What is Tartan track?

Tartan Track is a trademarked all-weather synthetic track surfacing made of polyurethane used for track and field competitions, manufactured by 3M. It lets athletes compete in bad weather without serious performance loss and improves their results over other surfaces. It also provides a more consistent surface for competition even under optimum weather. Such tracks have become the standard for most elite competitions.

Because the "Tartan" brand name was the first and was widely successful in its time, the name Tartan has been used as a genericized trademark for description of an all-weather running track.