Page 128 - Paddock Life Issue 13 ADRENALINE

There is nothing on Earth quite like the Isle of Man TT races. No other motorcycle race is held on such a challenging track as the 37- mile plus Mountain Course with its seemingly never-ending series of bends, bumps, jumps, stone walls, manhole covers and telegraph poles. The skill, bravery and concentration levels required are immense, with speeds approaching 200 MPH with average lap speeds of over 130 MPH, and while difficult to learn and even harder to come first, the rewards for winning on the world famous course are like no other.
“Mad Sunday” is were you go for a proper injection of pure adrenaline if you want to drive a motorbike on public roads at excessive speeds with not a lot to stop you from ‘slipping into the scenery’ bar a few hay bales. In between the practice and race weeks the Sunday is open for the public to ride (and ride they do) the actual TT circuit the professionals will take to on Monday. It is traditionally a time for that little bit of extra exuberance, which creates problems when people run out of skill, then run out of road.
Historically, The Isle of Man TT was traditionally run in a time trial format on public roads which were closed for racing by the provision of an Act of Tynwald, the Manx parliament. The race consists of one week practice sessions and one week of racing. The history and tradition of “Mad Sunday” was perhaps started by racing competitors in the early 1920’s for spectators to tour the Snaefell Mountain Course on motorcycles during the Isle of Man TT an informal and unofficial sanctioned event held on the Sunday between ‘Practice” and ‘Race week’.
The first Isle of Man TT race was held on the Tuesday 28th of May 1907 and named the Auto-
Cycle Tourist Trophy over 100 laps of the St John’s short course of 15 miles 1’470 yards for road legal “Touring” motorcycles with exhaust silencers, saddles, pedals and mudguards.
In 1911 the IOMTT transferred to the much longer Snaefell Mountain Course of 37.40 miles, its current length is 37.73 miles. The race programme developed from a single race with two classes for the 1907 TT, expanding in 1911 to two individual races for the 350cc Junior TT and the Blue Riband event the 500cc Senior TT race.
Due to the First World War it stopped from 1915 to 1919 resuming in 1920 with an additional 250cc lightweight TT in 1922 followed by the famous and madly insane sidecar TT in 1923. Racing
was halted yet again for the Second World War between 1940 and 1945, restarting with The Manx GP in 1946 and the Tourist Trophy in 1947 which now included an expanded format including the new Clubman’s TT races.
Following safety concerns in the 70’s with the Snaefell Mountain Course and “inadequate start money” for competitors, a boycott occurred by many of the leading competitors, manufactures and sporting federations.
With 270 deaths recorded since 1910 ( three this year alone ) it is stilled billed as the most dangerous motorsport event in the world, or as Sports Illustrated writer Franz Lidz called the spectacle “38 miles of Terror”...... a test of nerves and speed that may be sports most dangerous event.
128