Tt History Made Today

Well huge congratulations to Micky D, today he re wrote TT history, he equalled his uncle Joey's 26 wins in the Supersport race, then today in the supertwin race he blitzed it, on the start line there were a few raised eyebrows as he rocked up with the machine on slicks, he was the only rider to run slick tyres, he did the warm up lap so knew what he could run tyre wise, and straight from the off he was on it, compulsory pit stop after lap 1, and again he was straight on it again, he won the race by 22 seconds, ever since watching him at his first ever MGP I knew then I was watching someone special, under the guidance of his late father Robert he learned his craft quick and in style, Robert shown Michael how to mark his braking points at fast sections by painting white strips on posts. A lot of people think he was riding wild in the early years that is absolute tosh, you can't ride wild at the TT or MGP, if you did it wouldn't end well, no he is super quick and smooth, yes he runs the edges and more but he has the skills to do that in a controlled way, even John McGuiness who has followed Michael says he is super smooth and controlled, high praise indeed. I can foresee Michael easily making that magical 30 TT wins next year, and that will be some outstanding achievement. Had it not been for the visor incident in the Superbike race he was set to take that win as well as he was in the lead by some margin. The photo is courtesy of Irish Road Racing.

 

We have seen the Honda RCV213 in action at the TT, the same was true when Joey was provided with Arron Slights works engine for the TT, I remember watching the Honda mechanics on a machine taking off a lot of Titanium bolts and swapping them for stainless, the machine was deemed far to light for the course as it handled awful with all that extra power to weight, it wouldn't be possible to race a Moto GP bike around the course, as that amount of speed could only be attained on 3 sections, it would mean rolling off the throttle a lot more than currently, it would be nice for a fast parade lap for a spectator point of view, even the carbon brakes would not work as they should due to a lack of heat, so much would need changing including the suspension. what is interesting is that the current Superstock machines are only clocking 2 to 3 MPH slower than a full superbike spec machine, and the Stocker costs less than 25% of the Superbike, even with the TT course roads improvements it is still a bumpy old ride. I love all motor sports, Moto GP currently has some incredible talent, Pedro Acosta etc etc, but given MM will be PBs team mate next season and JM going to Aprilia with maybe the No 1 plate I suspect fireworks at most rounds. World Superbikes as well, TR on the BMW I predict he will take in to AB and JR will be there in the thick of it once he gets to grips with the Yamaha. For me personally the S100 is as good as it gets, I love those narrow stone lined walls and open countryside. Imagine today asking any Government, can we close a 373/4 mile section of public road so we can go racing at speeds of over 200mph, and divert all the traffic on alternative routes so people can get to and from work, deliveries, emergency vehicles to peoples houses for medical reasons, or the fire services, a lot of logistics come into play, I suspect the answer be a no. At least we can enjoy what we have for now whatever we support. Ride safe all from an ageing Rocker.

 

I meant Michael Rutter's RCV213V-S that he owns, he was gifted it by Faye Ho when he was going out with her, Michael has used it at the TT. Faye is now engaged to BSB series director Stuart Higgs. The mechanic that prepared the RCV213V for him lives nearby, he is also a Ducati mechanic in BSB. The service kits for the RCV213V are eye watering in price and not a straightforward fit.

 

MD now on 29 wins, what a great race week he had, it should have been 30 but for the visor issue, can't wait for next years TT, DV had a great week as well with 2 wins, and Dean well he did fantastic, a new bike and team for him, and wow did he impress, he has certainly got to grips with the mountain section now, and thankfully no serious injuries to any of the competitors.

 

Dave Molyneux, the most successful sidecar driver in the history of the Isle of Man TT, announced his retirement from racing after gaining a podium.

 

On the theme of Road Racing please see the attached media release for the S100, there is a full entry for solo and sidecar classes, including the top TT riders, hope the weather holds good as I foresee new records being set. The sidecar races will be a ding dong between Reeves and Birchall that's for sure, I hope no repeat of the Cross Four Ways a few years back happens and it is all fast clean racing, well at least it will be from Ben Birchall I have no doubt about that. Gathering all my kit together slowly for the trip and looking forward to it again. Ride safe all from an ageing Rocker.

 

If anyone is attending the S100 next week you may be interested in this ride out. I am slowly getting everything together for the races, I expect there will be very close racing, looking forward to Dean Harrison, Michael Dunlop, Davy Todd, Nathan Harrison Etc battling it out at the sharp end, so to will the sidecar racing.

 

Forgot to add that you can get the race programme via the S100 club facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/S100RoadRaces

 

Hi Dawsy, I'll put a post on soon, sorry not o have kept up with the updates.

 

Apologies for the late post here is the update. Well the first night Monday saw fantastic conditions, newcomers sighting laps and out came a red flag, 3 riders involved, 2 riders injured and taken to hospital, 1 discharged after treatment with ankle injuries, 2nd rider stabilised after surgery and later transferred to mainland hospital in Liverpool, a further lap completed for the newcomers practice as is mandatory. then came the solos and sidecars, unfortunately the evening schedule was cancelled due to Noble's Hospital having capacity problems (the Hospital had a lot of Covid cases). Tuesday evening saw mixed conditions that left the roads, after a sighting lap a number of riders withdrew due to the conditions, the Senior Race went ahead at a reduced distance, Jamie Coward got a flyer leading lap 1, Michael Dunlop hot on his rear wheel with Davey Todd 3rd, heavy rain came in and the race was red flagged due to Aaron Hogan having crashed, he was sent to hospital for a check up, but thankfully he was ok. Tyres changed to wets on machines and the Super Twins set an amazing pace, by lap 3 Jamie Coward and Rob Hodson set faster laps then the pole sitter Rob who took victory. Wednesday was the most torrential rain I have ever seen in the IOM, going through Glenn Helen was horrible, as heavy mist combined with the rain was not good, as evening came the races were cancelled, at Cross Four Ways the road was literally looking like a river. Thursday saw dry and sunny conditions and what a cracking full days racing it was. The solo championship race went down to the wire, watching from Stadium Bend on the last lap Davey Todd was just ahead of Michael Dunlop, and I could not believe what I saw next, Michael braked so late he went right up on the inside of Davey at Castletown Corner, the spectators went wild, Michael and Davey both ran wide but Davey took the flag. Michael took the win in the earlier Supersport race, the Lightweight race was another great race, along with a number of other races. The final race saw the sidecar championship, this was cut to 6 laps from the original 8, Ben Birchall and Kevin Rousseau set a cracking pace and broke the lap record, as did DT. The race saw a red flag, one rider injured (not serious) and taken to hospital, a marshal was treated at the scene for an injury by the machines flying debris. Given the dreadful weather early on in the week the S100 Club did exceptionally well as usual. Another great event especially after last years tragic events.. Ride safe all from an ageing Rocker.

 

S100 Sidecar Practice from Iron Gate.

 

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Wednesdays weather at the Isle Of Man, it was an unrestricted road.

 

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