It's That Time Of Year Again

I got sent an email the other day. The composer of the script is wrong about several aspects of road racing so I'll take it that author knows nothing or is covered by the catchall of being an American. I've left the preamble as it does introduce a cracking bit of film.

Incredible Isle of Man TT Video

This is an Isle of Man camera video done really well. It lasts about five minutes. Keep in mind that this is the last true motorcycle road race in the world. Each lap is 37.75 miles long with over 200 turns. And the record for a single lap is over 130 MPH. There are straight sections where the bikes hit over 200 MPH. It Is hard to imagine such riding speeds but they do it every year at the end of May and
have been doing so since 1907. There have been over 240 rider fatalities in the history of the event but it is bigger than ever today. Two riders were killed during the 2012 events.

The helmet cam video over the last minute or so of the clip is absolutely breathtaking.

This event makes car racers look like a bunch of wussies. Even Sir Jackie Stewart is amazed by what he is seeing in the video. BTW, former Formula One World Champion John Surtees won this event before he switched from motorcycles to race cars

Sorry about the music

Best viewed in HD



Crashes

Everyone who doesn't really follow motorsport watches the crashes. Because of the proximity of walls and telegraph poles crashes on the TT tend not to be that funny.

I can't show a bit of film of the most publicised one of 2010 as I can only find that as a compilation of other crashes.
Pictures

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Guy Martin pretty much slid through that and spent very little time in hospital.

Connor Cummin's 2010 crash.

This wasn't on film for a good period of time. I think that lots thought he was going to die. Smashed arm, dislocated leg, back broken in 5 places and no doubt several peripheral wounds. Connor is now back racing.



Possibly the saddest accident because although he is trying to make light of things you can see he has realised he can't race anymore. Milky Quayle is now the riders representative at the TT. In the film below he explains how desperately he misses the racing.



Modesty

After the unprecedented feat of winning all 5 TT races in 2010 Ian Hutchinson reacted to reports that he could be the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year with a quizzical look and the response that the bloke at the bottom of his street didn't even know what he does for a living.

Closer To The Edge.

2010 film. I think it focuses on Guy martin a bit too much but if you have never watched TT footage it should be a revelation. Enjoy.

It's not got a lot to do with plastic tents so I guess I should understand no one commenting on this.

Today was the supersports race they are 600cc bikes and don't have the same brutish power as the larger bikes. Still more than enough for us mere mortals. You have a unique motorsports moment, or rather minutes rather than moment. The bikes are held on full throttle for minutes at a time with no variation in engine pitch bar that increase where the bikes go off the full diameter of the tyres onto the sides so the revs rise. Bar that a monotone 16,000 RPM for minutes at a time.

In 2002 my wife,2 yr old daughter and i drove to liverpool,put a 24hr ticket on the car,paid £20 return as foot passengers and caught the night ferry to Douglas. We left about midnight and arrived around 5 or 6 in the morning,the weather was awful,cold,constant drizzle and the prospects of watching any of the Senior race seemed remote.
But by some miracle at 11 o'clock it was glorious,sunny,hot,no breeze and after an hours delay the racing started. We stood at the bottom of Bray Hill,the superbikes fly past at about 180mph and bottom out the suspension before doing wheelies over a couple of crests. At the time Dave Jeffries was the man to beat,he held the lap record of about 125mph average and seemed pretty much unbeatable around the island. When Dave went past us his speed was phenominal,much faster than anyone else and it was no surprise he won the senior that year. alas Dave died on the island a year or two later.
After watching the races we wandered over to Nobles park and spent the rest of the afternoon there before heading to Douglas prom, watching 5 and 6yr old kids race minimotos around a little race track.
We caught the ferry back to liverpool about 5pm after an unforgettable day. If your into motorbikes,you have to watch go to the Isle of Man TT once in your life.

I can't remember what year it was but a group of us rode to Scarborough to watch some road racing. Again Dave Jeffries was there scratching around the narrowest twistiest little road circuit you can imagine. I don't know if it's still going but it was great entertainment.

sunflowergs wrote:
I can't remember what year it was but a group of us rode to Scarborough to watch some road racing. Again Dave Jeffries was there scratching around the narrowest twistiest little road circuit you can imagine. I don't know if it's still going but it was great entertainment.

Oliver's Mount, I remember watching a stage of the RAC Rally there in 1976

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From the above it looks like it is still operating

Thats the one Jake, i couldn't remember the name of the event,great racing watched at close quarters,well worth going. One place i have never managed to get to is Ireland to watch some off the road racing there. If you watch the northwest 200 or skerries on youtube,they are even more scary than the isle of man. A lot of the TT riders use them as training races for the OIM.