# 3D printing a route map with the Best Lap preset > a recorded lap or route printed as a raised red ridge over a solid track A lap worth keeping, frozen in relief. This preset is the 3D-print build of the route map: a recorded track drawn as a bold red line that prints as a *raised ridge* standing proud of a wide, solid track body, all on a solid backplate. It ships preloaded with the Monza high-speed oval - a flying lap captured as relief - so you can see the styling immediately, then you replace the line with your own recorded route. A circuit, a marathon, a half, a favorite training loop: the route is the hero, raised above everything else. Because the route is the raised hero, this build is all Solid bodies and the Cut outline - no Score lines. A Score (line-mode) layer is a single centerline with no width, so it has nothing to extrude into relief; the route here is given real width so it prints as a continuous ridge you can feel. Export a 3MF to get the red line, the dark track, and the backplate pre-stacked in color, or an STL to print the whole relief in one filament and let the height of the route line carry the design. ## What you need ### 3D printing (recommended) - Any FDM printer; PLA or PETG in red (the route), a dark color (the track), and a backplate color - Slicer that accepts 3MF (Bambu Studio, PrusaSlicer, OrcaSlicer); an AMS/MMU or a manual filament swap to get the red line on a dark track - Your GPX file if printing a real route: export it from Strava, Garmin Connect, COROS, the race/timing site, or your watch ("Export GPX") ### Laser cutting (alternative) - 3 mm [Baltic birch](https://yxecreations.com/collections/laser-grade-plywood) or dark acrylic for the track, red acrylic for the route line - Laser cutter, glue or [3M tape](https://yxecreations.com/collections/3m-tape) ## Step 1 - Start from the preset Open [the Best Lap preset](/map-designer?preset=running-route-map-3d). It loads on the Autodromo Nazionale Monza at zoom 14.4 with the racing line already drawn in red over the dark track, framed as a circle. Make it yours: use **Add layer → Route** and upload your `.gpx`, then delete or hide the sample Racing line layer. Re-search the map location to your route and frame it. - Frame the *route*, not the whole city: zoom until the line fills the middle 60–70% of the frame. - Loops and circuits look great centered; point-to-point routes read best running diagonally corner to corner. - Keep the route a clean, continuous line - that continuity is what lets it print as one unbroken ridge. ## Step 2 - Tune the layers Three layer groups, all Solid bodies that stack into relief: - **Racing line** - your route (a Route layer), red (`#E10600`) at width 5. This prints as the **raised ridge** standing proud of the track - the boldest, tallest mark on the piece. Thicken to 6–7 for long or zoomed-out routes so the ridge stays solid; recolor to a race's branding. - **Track** - Solid mode, dark grey (`#1A1A1A`), the raceway feature at width 12. A wide solid band the route ridge sits on top of. For a running or cycling route, this is the road/path the route follows - widen or narrow it to taste. - **Backplate** - solid base body, `#8d949e` grey. The floor everything stacks on; it sets the print's overall thickness. Shift toward black for a sportier, higher-contrast look. ## Step 3 - Export - **3D printing:** export the **3MF** for the multicolor stack - red route ridge, dark track, grey backplate pre-stacked and colored - or an **STL** for a single-filament relief print. - **Small-polygon cleanup** on so stray fragments don't leave unprintable specks. - **Hanger hole** at export if it will hang from cord or lace. - **Laser (alternative):** per-layer SVGs - the route as a cut/inlay line, the track and backplate as cut bases. ## 3D Printing ### 3D printing 1. Export the **3MF** and open it in your slicer - the red route, dark track, and grey backplate arrive pre-stacked with their colors. The route sits at the top of the stack as a raised ridge. 2. **Multicolor:** assign red to the route, dark grey to the track, grey to the backplate. With an AMS this prints automatically; without one, insert a **filament swap** to red at the layer height where the raised route ridge begins. 3. **Single-color STL:** print the whole relief in one filament - the route still reads as the raised ridge by height alone. Swap to red partway up to color just the route without an AMS. 4. Print **flat on the bed, no supports** - the backplate is the base and the track and route rise from it. 5. **Layer height:** 0.2 mm. Give the route ridge a clear 0.6–1.2 mm of raised height above the track so it stands out and feels tactile. 6. **Scale / minimum size:** keep it **150–200 mm+** so the width-5 route ridge prints as a solid, continuous line. Below ~120 mm a thin route can break up - thicken it to 7 before exporting if you must go smaller. 7. Pop it off the bed - the whole piece is one solid print, no assembly. ## Laser Cutting & Engraving ### Layered build (alternative) 1. Cut the backplate from grey or dark 3 mm ply or acrylic, and the track band from a dark sheet. 2. Cut the route line from red acrylic at width 6–7 and glue it on top following the track beneath - [3M tape](https://yxecreations.com/collections/3m-tape) 467/468 makes a clean bond. 3. Note that Score (line) layers don't apply - the route here is a solid raised line, the same relief the 3D print produces. ## Make it yours - Finisher's gift: upload a marathon GPX and print the route as a raised ridge, with the race name and time added before export. - Print the route ridge taller for a dramatic, sculptural relief, or lower for a subtle embossed line. - Multi-route piece: add several GPX files as separate Route layers in different filament colors - a whole training block in one print. - Relay or team: each leg in a different color ridge on the same course. - Real circuits: keep the raceway track and swap in any famous lap - Spa, Suzuka, Le Mans. - Shift the backplate to black for a sportier, higher-contrast print. - Add a hanger hole and print at ornament scale for a desk trophy or keepsake. --- Open the tool: https://www.mylasertools.com/learn/guides/running-route-map-3d Read online: https://www.mylasertools.com/learn/guides/running-route-map-3d