The Last Few Days Of TT

Well it’s nearly over. 2 weeks of fantastic racing and sight seeing on the most beautiful island (my opinion) in the Irish Sea.

An unexpected bonus was a joy flight over the island.  Yep, that’s me, just like riding a sidecar.

Once it was off the ground it was easy.

 

Now to get this thing down.  The white spot to the right is a big plane waiting for me. SCARY, not really as the shoulder belongs to the proper pilot. 

Friday is the final race, 6 laps of the circuit, 226.5 miles at an average speed of 130 miles per hour. The riders leave the start line at 10 second intervals so even the rider who is last off the line has an even chance of winning. The race has to be run in either total wet or dry conditions due to the tyres used, so when it rained on one small section of the course, the race was postponed for a few hours.  We were in our position at 7am, but we were still not the first ones there.  Bradden Bridge is a very popular viewing spot with great food and amenities in the church hall.

Front row seats. You would pay hundreds of dollars for this at the GP races. Here, a few pounds admission to the church ladies and a few pounds to park behind the church, off the street. Our money, about $20.00 for a day at the races. There are plenty of places absolutely free but here no one minds paying for the use of the amenities and the GREAT food available. 

Janice’s feet, my hat shadow, the track. The race line is half way to the painted medium strip.

The church ladies and healthy food.

How’s this for roughing it at the races. This is what makes this spot so popular. Very civilised.

Where else in the world would one sit for 10 hours to see a racer go past 6 times?  You have to be there to experience the anticipation when the first rider starts.  EVERYBODY is on the edge of their seats listening to the commentary on their radios or over the PA system.  A rider may make up a place 30 miles away yet people all round the track will either cheer or ooooh, depending upon who they are supporting.

The TT festival finishes with a race meeting at Castletown on the 4 mile Billown circut. A mass start of 40 riders and very fast close racing for 8 laps. Nice and close to the action.

Catch the ferry to Liverpool Monday afternoon.  SAD.  However, we have booked for 2013. Still so much to see and do.  Maybe 3 weeks in 2 years time.

Next stop?????????

A Few Slow Days At The Races

Part of our holiday this time was to enter in the vintage bike rally that runs in conjunction with the TT festival.  It is run over the 3 days in between race days and is a nice way to meet different people and see the country side at a slow pace.

Sunday was to start from Kirk Michael with a ride to Peel.  The start was shown on TV with Olga being shown a few times. The ride was steep, slow and up roads that even some of the locals didn’t know about. Remember the IOM is only 13 miles wide and 30 long. 

 

Tuesday was to Ramsey to participate in the Ramsey Sprint Festival with prime parking, then a ride around the north of the island.  The sidecars had an alternative route as 1 lane was a bit narrow.

This is a two way road. 

Thursday was a  low key ride to Castletown for the rally presentation tea and awards. This ride took in the South of the island. Spectacular scenery.

Olga wins a TT trophy. Longest distance ridden to rally. 1650 miles.

Janice wants one. 

All is good in paradise.

Race Time

The last few days has been taken up with practice, sight seeing and finally the first day of racing. The weather has been dry but grey for the last few days however on Thursday the sun was out.  Peel, on the west coast was the place to be.

Friday was as sunny, so after a bit of a get together with all the other Australians here, it was the day to go as far north as possible.

We took photos as we rode along the course.

 

Yes, this house is right on the race course.

The Point of Ayre.

 

Today, Saturday is the first race day, so where better to be than on the start line, courtesy of pit passes given to us for the day. A case of having an IOM mate who knows the right people. We spent all day in the pit area soaking up the atmosphere and rider spotting (groupie). Unlike the Bathurst V8 circus where it would cost a squillion dollars to get this close to the action, here it costs nothing.  Just walk in. It is amazing the amount of time these racers give to their fans.

That is the start line.

The essentials of a good day at the races.

There were more bikes.

PERFECT.

Purple Helmets and a day in the sun.

One of the hardest things to do on the IOM is to decide what to do and where to watch the racing from. For the last 2 visits here we have been told that to watch the Purple Helmets is a must. Skill, precision riding and funny to make you cry.

Monday race day at Cronk Y Voddy. Sun burn day but bloody cold.  

We were on the fence at 8am for an 11.30am race start and we weren’t the first ones there.

The bikes pass us at about 180 mph (300kph).

You have to be there to appreciate how good these riders are.

Blue day and the Irish Sea in the background. This is the parking spot for Cronk Y Voddy. When clear, you are looking at Scotland.

ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE.