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How to Make a Fast Lap at the Isle of Man TT

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The Isle of Man TT is 37.75 miles of asphalt through small villages and beautiful Manx countryside - the goal is to complete it in under 17 minutes, and at an average speed of over 135mph. Any mistake can be your last.

This is the most spectacular race track in the world. This is the Isle of Man TT Mountain Course.

Learning your way around the Isle of Man TT course is a mammoth task though. There is literally too much going on for your brain to comprehend it.

When riders talk about the course they piece together section by section. Where are the bumps? Where are the traffic lights? Where are the road signs? Where are the painted kerbs?

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Columns

IOMTT: Colin’s TT Blog – I’m Hooked & I’ll Be Back

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A world traveler on two-wheels, Asphalt & Rubber reader and good friend Colin Evans is attending his first Isle of Man TT this year. We asked him to share his perspective on the trip, as both someone new to the Isle of Man, but also as a veteran of the world and riding motorcycles. Our hope is that it will be an informative, yet different, perspective than your typical coverage of the IOMTT. Please enjoy! -Jensen

Sadly I had to leave before the end of the Isle of Man TT festival but, I admit it: I’m addicted and I’ll definitely be back. But why? It’s just a motorbike race and there are lots of motorbike races that don’t require booking bloody ferry tickets a bloody year in advance.

So what’s so special that brings people back time after time after time?

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Racing

Video: Ian Hutchinson Gives Michael Dunlop a Surprise

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The Isle of Man TT is a time trial event, meaning that riders are ultimately competing against the clock, not necessarily against the other riders on the course.

Usually when a rider has caught another rider on the course, it means one of them overcame an initial 10 second separation, and thus is considerably faster than the other.

The general protocol then is to let the faster rider through. This benefits the faster rider, who clearly has a superior pace to the slower rider. But, it also benefits the slower rider, who can get a tow from the faster rider, and benefit from their added confidence on the course.

As such, it’s rare to see riders get too close to each other on the Snaefell Mountain Course. Then again…this is motorcycle racing, and these are motorcycle racers…

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Columns

IOMTT: Colin’s TT Blog – Someone I Can Cheer For

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A world traveler on two-wheels, Asphalt & Rubber reader and good friend Colin Evans is attending his first Isle of Man TT this year. We asked him to share his perspective on the trip, as both someone new to the Isle of Man, but also as a veteran of the world and riding motorcycles. Our hope is that it will be an informative, yet different, perspective than your typical coverage of the IOMTT. Please enjoy! -Jensen

Everyone here it seems has their favorite rider, and it’s usually someone from their home towns across the UK and across the world; whether it be Morecambe, Ballymoney, Wellington, Bingley, or Grimsby.

But I could not find a team to cheer from my part of Nottinghamshire until this afternoon, when I found sidecar outfit driver and passenger brothers Ben and Tom Birchall – from Mansfield.

I didn’t ever live in Mansfield, but it’s the town next door where I went to school. The picture of them on the podium says it all; they are clearly instantly likable blokes who are pleased as punch with their victory – and they speak with the same accent as I do. All good enough for the fan club registration.

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Columns

IOMTT: Colin’s TT Blog – First Day of Racing

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A world traveler on two-wheels, Asphalt & Rubber reader and good friend Colin Evans is attending his first Isle of Man TT this year. We asked him to share his perspective on the trip, as both someone new to the Isle of Man, but also as a veteran of the world and riding motorcycles. Our hope is that it will be an informative, yet different, perspective than your typical coverage of the IOMTT. Please enjoy! -Jensen

Mad Sunday at the Isle of Man TT is usually a day with no races where everyone, and I mean everyone, gets to ride the course together. I got out ahead of the pack this morning to record a video of a clean ride around the course.

It’s the first time the course has actually been dry enough for me to enjoy it. It was also my fourth ride around, and I’m beginning to know my way.

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Columns

IOMTT: Colin’s TT Blog – All About The Course & The Crowd

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A world traveler on two-wheels, Asphalt & Rubber reader and good friend Colin Evans is attending his first Isle of Man TT this year. We asked him to share his perspective on the trip, as both someone new to the Isle of Man, but also as a veteran of the world and riding motorcycles. Our hope is that it will be an informative, yet different, perspective than your typical coverage of the IOMTT. Please enjoy! -Jensen

The Isle of Man TT is all about the Course and the Crowd, so I spent all of today learning about both.

I rode the course twice more and, with traffic lights, speed limits, fog, and rain, I just about beat the race winning time – from 1911.

The fog on the mountain was so thick the first time this morning before breakfast that the postman overtook me in his little red van. Well, he does have windscreen wipers, which my Shoei does not. That’s my defense, and I’m sticking to it.

My best time was 45 minutes for the 37.7 miles, and this evening Bruce Anstey just did it in less than 18 minutes. The more you get to see the details of the TT course, the more respect you have to afford these riders.

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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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Columns

Trackside Tuesday: A Manx Perspective on the Classic TT

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The dust has now settled on this year’s Classic TT. For those unfamiliar with the event, the Classic TT was born from the ashes of the old Manx Grand Prix. Run on the same Mountain Course as the TT, the Manx as it was affectionately known, featured racing on modern and classic machinery.

Originally created as the amateur rider’s TT,  TT legends such as Steve Hislop and Philip McCallen first cut their teeth at the Manx before moving on to the TT. Multiple World Superbike champion Carl Fogarty won at “The Manx” in the 1985.

As media interest in the old Manx Grand Prix format dwindled, the Manx government started looking at ways to improve its marketing appeal and increase visitor numbers.  Early proposals to cut the amount of modern classes were met with protests by some local fans, but a new format was eventually agreed and the Festival of Motorcycling was born.

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Racing

What A 117.366 MPH Electric Superbike Lap Looks Like

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Team Mugen was in force at the 2014 Isle of Man TT, putting in a 1-2 finish at the TT Zero event. To add to that double podium, John McGuinness took his Mugen Shinden San to a new Snaefell Mountain Course record for an electric motorcycle, dropping a 117.366 mph lap during the race…from a standing start.

Faster than both the Lightweight TT bikes and Subaru exhibition car that ran later that Wednesday, the public perception that electrics are slow certainly has to be challenged. The proof of that concept is in the pudding, and we have the entire record-breaking lap to prove it.

Take the next 20 minutes to watch McPint TIE-Fighter his way around the 37.773 mile road course (don’t pretend like you were going to do work on this fine summer day). It’s pretty astounding not only the outright speeds involved, but the rate of progression electrics have made in six year’s time.

As batteries become more power-dense, and thus the weight of these machines drop, the petrol-powered supersbikes will have some serious competition on their hands.

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Racing

IOMTT: PokerStars Senior TT Race Results

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The final race of the 2014 Isle of Man TT is upon us, the “blue ribbon” event as they call it on the Isle, we are of course talking about the Senior TT.

Six laps of high-octane racing, the smart money pick was of course on Michael Dunlop and his BMW S1000RR superbike — despite BMW having not been at the Isle of Man in decades, and Dunlop never having won a Senior before in his career.

With perfect weather on the Snaefell Mountain Course, TT fans were treated to a fine Senior TT, which was full of close racing.

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Video: Grant Wagstaff’s Pit Lane Fire from the Supersport TT

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Aside from the motorbikes lapping at 120+ mph around the Snaefell Mountain Course during Race 2 of the Supersport TT, there was a fair bit of drama at the Isle of Man TT pit lane, especially when a race bike caught on fire.

Coming in for his one pit stop, in between the second and third laps, Grant Wagstaff found himself subject to an unsuspected fireball, after a gas spill was ignited by his Yamaha R6’s hot exhaust pipes.

A terrifying sight, thankfully the incident was taken care of quickly by the fire brigade and everyone else involved.

The result was the pit lane being closed for about a minute, leaving the affected riders to have a time credit given to their official times. Last we heard, all involved will live to race another day, though Wagstaff was sent to Noble’s Hospital and treated for burns.

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