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Wednesday Race Day from Keppel Gate by Tony Goldsmith

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We were treated to the best conditions of the 2015 Isle of Man TT for Wednesday’s racing. With that in mind, I decided to head for the hills and to Keppel Gate/Kate’s Cottage. Around three miles from the finish of the lap, Keppel Gate marks the point the riders start to descend from the mountain section.

As I’ve already mentioned the conditions were great with very little wind and warm sunshine. With the perfect conditions came the photographers worse nightmare, heat haze. I will therefore use that excuse for any pictures that look a little soft.

Above: The hard working volunteer marshalls at Kate’s Cottage, without them there would be no racing.

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Racing

IOMTT: SES TT Zero Race Results

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It might be the shortest event during the TT fortnight, but the TT Zero packs the more technology and development than the other TT races combined. Every year, the electric race bikes make leaps of progress in their pace, and for 2015 the unofficial mark to beat was the 120 mph barrier.

Team Mugen seemed close to that mark during the practice sessions, with John McGuinness posting a timed 118 mph lap. With Bruce Anstey already a race winner from the Superbike TT, and McPint always looking good on the Shinden race bike, the duo was heavily favored to win.

This year’s TT Zero also sees the return of Brammo to the Isle of Man, disguised as the Victory Racing team.

Victory was originally slotted to have Lee Johnston and William Dunlop as its riders, but Dunlop’s crash during the Superstock race meant his TT racing was over for this year. Luckily, his Tyco BMW teammate, Guy Martin, was available and keen to ride the electrics, and thus substituted for the injured Dunlop.

Other entries include Saroléa and Saietta, as well as the university teams from Brunel, Kingston, and Nottingham.

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Bikes

Up-Close with the Victory Electric IOMTT Race Bike

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In less than 24 hours, the TT Zero race will be underway at the 2015 Isle of Man TT, which means that riders Lee Johnson and Guy Martin (who is substituting for the injured William Dunlop) will be putting the Victory Motorcycles electric race bike through its paces on the 37.773-mile Mountain Course.

If Victory’s entry looks familiar, it should, as it’s based off the Brammo Empulse RR. Brammo has made some improvements to the machine for Victory though, namely a reworked motor, new battery pack, and aerodynamic touches.

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Racing

IOMTT: Guy Martin Will Race Victory’s Electric Bike

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In a surprise move last night at the 2015 Isle of Man TT, Guy Martin climbed aboard the Victory Motorcycles electric bike that will race in Wednesday’s SES TT Zero race.

The move came about after Martin’s teammate, William Dunlop, who was also set to race for Victory in the TT Zero, crashed at Laurel Bank during the Superstock practice session yesterday, breaking his ribs in the process. As such, Dunlop will not compete in the rest of the TT races.

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Bikes

Details on the Victory’s Electric Race Bike for the IOMTT

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News that Victory Motorcycles will be racing at the 2015 Isle of Man TT, in the TT Zero event no less, is still taking time to process. It’s a big deal for the Manx road race, and an even bigger deal to the American brand.

If you have been following the electric motorcycle scene, Victory’s race bike should look familiar, as its based off the Brammo Empulse RR.

Exactly what changes Victory will have at the Isle of Man have been a mystery, but our sources have given us some insight into the progress Brammo has made in its extended off-season.

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Racing

Lee Johnston Talks Electrics & The IOMTT with Victory

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Victory Motorcycles will be at the 2015 Isle of Man TT, and while that brand name is certainly a shocking one, no matter what class the American motorcycle manufacturer enters, and the fact that it will be in the electric TT Zero race at least makes for a good use of the word “shocking” in a punny sort of way.

Jokes aside, it’s a big announcement for the IOMTT, electric racing, and Victory Motorcycles itself. The evolved Brammo Empulse RR race bike that Victory will be using is certainly a well-sorted race machine, capable of giving Mugen a run for its money — not mention,William Dunlop and Lee Johnston are certainly some of the top riders around the Manx road course.

Testing with Brammo Victory at what looks like Thunderhill Raceway, Lee Johnston gives his first thoughts on riding an electric race bike, and what competing in the TT Zero class will be like at the 2015 Isle of Man TT.

We will be excited to see what Victory can accomplish this year at the TT. Hopefully this is what reignites the interest in electric motorcycle racing, and electric motorcycles in general.

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Racing

Victory Entering an Electric Race Bike at Isle of Man TT

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It looks like we were only partially correct in our news that Brammo would be returning to the Isle of Man TT, as the brand’s sister company, Victory Motorcycles, will in fact be racing an electric entry — one that looks like a rebadged Brammo Empulse RR — in the TT Zero event at the historic road race.

According to its press release, Victory Motorcycles will field a two-rider team, comprised of William Dunlop and Lee Johnston (a photo of “General Lee” testing a Brammo superbike is what initially sparked this news).

While Victory is calling its racing platform a “Victory electric race prototype motorcycle” the chassis and fairings give way to a shape we recognize as the Brammo Empulse RR electric superbike.

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Bikes

Mugen Shinden Yon (神電 四) Electric Superbike Debuts

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Racing again in the TT Zero event at the 2015 Isle of Man TT, Team Mugen will defend its results from 2014 on-board the Mugen Shinden Yon.

The fourth iteration of the Japanese electric superbike, riders John McGuinness and Bruce Anstey should have potent weapons to tackle the Mountain Course with, come a few months’ time.

The main contender for the top podium spot, the Mugen Shinden Yon shows some modest changes from the Shinden San. The tailsection is clearly different in shape, as are the body panels on the front of the machine. We suspect, however, that the significant changes are beneath the skin.

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IOMTT: The Bungalow with Richard Mushet

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Before heading up to the Bungalow for today’s races, the weather looked fairly promising with only cloud cover, and no ominous darker clouds threatening rain.

Once I’d arrived it was a different story, with the low clouds covering the tram stop at the top of Snaefell – the island’s highest peak at over 2,000ft – threatening to roll down towards the circuit.

Thankfully it held off long enough to complete the TT Zero and second Supersport races, but had enveloped the surrounding area before the second sidecar race and some practice sessions could run.

The Bungalow is one of the highest points on the course, as the riders exit the Verandah and continue on their way towards Kate’s Cottage. If you watched last year’s TT highlights you’ll recognise it as the point where Michael Dunlop’s CBR600RR made a damn good attempt to throw him off, leaving rubber on the road and forcing him to take a much wider line through the corner than usual.

Usually the backdrop to any image at the Bungalow is a lush, green hillside, but today it was mainly the low, rolling clouds. This makes the camera try to expose the whiteness of the clouds, leaving the bikes underexposed if you don’t work around it.

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IOMTT: SES TT Zero Race Results

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An event we’ve been eagerly waiting for, the 2014 SES TT Zero electric race was billed as a battle for the #1 spot between the Mugen riders, John McGuinness and Bruce Anstey, and battle between everyone else for the third and final podium position. And that is exactly what the 2014 Isle of Man TT fans got.

First to leave Glencrutchery Road, and the first to return, John McGuinness took his 21st IOMTT race win while on the Mugen Shinden San. The first time that the Mugen team has won the electric solo race at the IOMTT, McGuinness’s lap also officially broke the outright record for an electric motorcycle at the Isle of Man TT, with a 117.366 mph lap.

To put that lap time in perspective, rally driver Mark Higgins managed only a 116.470 mph lap during the Subaru exhibition lap, which immediately followed the TT Zero race; that time also bests Ryan Farquhar’s best Lightweight TT flying lap of 116.840 mph from practice.

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Bikes

Up-Close with the 2014 Mugen Shinden San (神電 参)

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The TT Zero event for the 2014 Isle of Man TT is about to kick-off in about an hour, so we thought we’d show the electric superbike that everyone in the paddock is talking about, the Mugen Shinden San. The third iteration of the machine from Mugen, this year the Japanese tuning brand has two riders, John McGuinness and Bruce Anstey.

With Bruce Anstey on fire this TT fortnight, and McGuinness off his pace in the previous sessions with a wrist injury (and sitting out today’s Supersport TT race), it seems like anything can happen before the starter’s flag drops.

Assuming the two-rider format remains, Mugen has said to Asphalt & Rubber that both riders will likely run the same electronic maps during the race, which should rest the race’s results squarely on the riders. In order to do this, Mugen must feel confident with its energy management and overall racing package.

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