As an avid motorcycle racing enthusiast it is hard to contain my excitement as we once again we find ourselves on the eve of the Isle of Man TT races. A fortnight of arguably the greatest races in the world with a large majority of the greatest riders in the world. I’d be very surprised to find a motorcyclist who hasn’t heard of the famous (infamous) IOMTT, however if you happen to be such a person or perhaps have an interest in motorcycling but have yet to discover the IOMTT races, the video below does a pretty damn good job of letting you know what all the fuss is about (make sure to watch it through to the end for some quality on-board John McGuinness footage):
Epic, am I right?
The action starts in just over a day from now and runs from 24th May 2014 through to the 6th June 2014. I’ve thrown the qualifying and race schedules below for the sake of convenience. Please note that all times below are listed in Manx time (British Summer Time [BST]). You can click here to check the time on the island at any stage.
| QUALIFIERS | |
|---|---|
| Saturday 24th May | |
| 18:20 hrs – 18:45 hrs | Solo Newcomers’ speed controlled lap |
| 18:35 hrs – 19:00 hrs | Sidecar Newcomers’ speed controlled lap |
| 18:50 hrs – 19:50 hrs | Lightweight TT / Newcomers (all solo classes) |
| 19:55 hrs – 20:50 hrs | Sidecar |
| – | – |
| Monday 26th May | |
| 18:20 hrs – 19:55 hrs | Superbike/Superstock/Supersport/Newcomers (except Lightweight) |
| 20:00 hrs – 20:50 hrs | Sidecars |
| – | – |
| Tuesday 27th May | |
| 18:20 hrs – 19:05 hrs | Superbike/Superstock/Supersport/Newcomers (except Lightweight) |
| 19:10 hrs – 19:55 hrs | Supersport/Lightweight/Newcomers (all Solo classes) |
| 20:00 hrs – 20:50 hrs | Sidecars |
| – | – |
| Wednesday 28th May | |
| 18:20 hrs – 19:55 hrs | Superbike/Superstock/Supersport/Newcomers (except Lightweight) |
| 20:00 hrs – 20:50 hrs | Sidecars |
| – | – |
| Thursday 29th May | |
| 18:20 hrs – 19:10 hrs | Sidecars19:15 hrs |
| 19:55 hrs | Supersport/Lightweight/Newcomers (all Solo classes) |
| 20:00 hrs – 20:50 hrs | Superbike/Superstock/Supersport/Newcomers (except Lightweight) |
| – | – |
| Friday 30th May | |
| 18:20 hrs – 19:10 hrs | Sidecars |
| 19:15 hrs – 19:50 hrs | Supersport/Lightweight/Newcomers (all Solo classes) |
| 19:55 hrs – 20:25 hrs | Superbike/Superstock/Supersport/Newcomers (except Lightweight) |
| 20:30 hrs – 20:50 hrs | TT Zero Challenge |
| – | – |
| Saturday 31st May | |
| 16:40 hrs – 17:40 hrs | Supersport/Lightweight |
| 17:45 hrs – 18:30 hrs | TT Zero Challenge |
| – | – |
| Monday 2nd June | |
| 12:30 hrs – 13:00 hrs | Sidecars |
| 16:00 hrs – 16:30 hrs | TT Zero Challenge |
| – | – |
| Wednesday 4th June | |
| 15:50 hrs – 16:15 hrs | Senior TT |
| 16:20 hrs – 16:45 hrs | Lightweight |
The race schedule is listed below – the official Isle of Man TT website warns that this schedule is “subject to confirmation and may be changed at very short notice”, so I’ll do my best to update this with any alterations they make.
| RACE SCHEDULE | |
|---|---|
| Saturday 31st May | |
| 11:00 hrs | Superbike TT Race 6 laps |
| 14:00 hrs | Sidecar TT Race 1 3 laps |
| – | – |
| Monday 2nd June | |
| 10:45 hrs | Supersport TT Race 1 4 laps |
| 14:00 hrs | Superstock TT Race 4 laps |
| – | – |
| Wednesday 4th June | |
| 10:45 hrs | TT Zero Challenge 1 lap |
| 12:00 hrs | TT Supersport Race 2 4 laps |
| 14:30 hrs | TT Sidecar Race 2 3 laps |
| – | – |
| Friday 6th June | |
| 10:15 hrs | Lightweight TT Race 3 laps |
| 13:00 hrs | Senior TT Race 6 laps |
It’s an exciting year to watch the Manx TT. Will Michael Dunlop take a cabinet full of trophies home again this year? Will John McGuinness steal the show by matching Mike Hailwood’s record of 7 Senior TT victories? Will the aerodynamics of Cameron Donald’s new beard give him the edge he needs to bring Superbike class glory to us in Australia? So many questions, and many more to be answered over the course of the next fortnight as racing enthusiasts make their annual pilgrimage to Snaefell.
Our Local Jockey, Cameron Donald