25th August 2018 - Ballasholague Farm, Isle of Man
Kms today 38
Kms to date 9941
Betty produced another of her monster breakfasts although it wasn't as big as yesterdays.
She showed us the best way to get to Hillberry to our grandstand and we got there early. We had a great view up the road to Brandish corner and could see the bikes coming down the hill flat out until they snicked down a gear to take Hillberry very fast and off under the trees to Signpost Corner. Although we had prime position and a seat, the ordinary punters could view the racing over a wall just beside us.
There was a mixed practice session before the Classic Senior race started. The main interest was if McGuiness could still be competitive given his leg injury. We needn't have worried because he stretched the field and won by over a minute taking Hillberry flat out on the quick Paton.
Maria Costello on a similar machine kept him honest until she retired. Second was Jamie Coward on a Manx Norton and third Lee Johnston on a Honda 4, which sounded great. Next was an amazingly fast Royal Enfield.
In the interval we had a demo lap by McGuiness on Mike Hailwood's 1978 winning Sports Motorcycles Ducati, a 40th anniversary of that amazing comeback. Bruce Anstey also did a demo lap on a Honda RCV213 (worth $250k). He was not racing as he had not yet recovered from cancer, but he was still quick.
There were more mixed practice laps and then the Classic Lightweight race began. The bikes were mainly Yamaha and Honda two-strokes and this made a pleasant change from the droning four-strokes of the Senior. I never thought I would say this about the crackle of a two-stroke exhaust. The bikes took Hillberry just as fast as the Senior. Lee Johnston from NI won from Adam McLean and Ian Lougher. David Johnston from Adelaide only just managed to qualify and soon broke down.
So that was our first full race day. The fields were sparse at times but a lap does take 20 minutes so that is understandable and many bikes retired. The quick men were conspicuous as they came past, which is how I remember the TT from the 1970's. But to be truthful, there was a lack of exotica on the track, which was a surprise. The Patons were not original and had modern engine parts in them. We rode back to Betty's and managed to get into the Glen Mona pub for dinner even though it was fully booked. I managed to beat Alan at pool and Gin Rummy so a good end to the day!
Kms to date 9941
Betty produced another of her monster breakfasts although it wasn't as big as yesterdays.
She showed us the best way to get to Hillberry to our grandstand and we got there early. We had a great view up the road to Brandish corner and could see the bikes coming down the hill flat out until they snicked down a gear to take Hillberry very fast and off under the trees to Signpost Corner. Although we had prime position and a seat, the ordinary punters could view the racing over a wall just beside us.
They like to get close to the action on the Isle of Man
There was a mixed practice session before the Classic Senior race started. The main interest was if McGuiness could still be competitive given his leg injury. We needn't have worried because he stretched the field and won by over a minute taking Hillberry flat out on the quick Paton.
John McGuiness took out the Senior Classic TT on a Paton
Conor Cummins rode an ex-GP Yamaha YZR500 two stroke
In the interval we had a demo lap by McGuiness on Mike Hailwood's 1978 winning Sports Motorcycles Ducati, a 40th anniversary of that amazing comeback. Bruce Anstey also did a demo lap on a Honda RCV213 (worth $250k). He was not racing as he had not yet recovered from cancer, but he was still quick.
John McGuiness on Mike Hailwood's 1978 Ducati
There were more mixed practice laps and then the Classic Lightweight race began. The bikes were mainly Yamaha and Honda two-strokes and this made a pleasant change from the droning four-strokes of the Senior. I never thought I would say this about the crackle of a two-stroke exhaust. The bikes took Hillberry just as fast as the Senior. Lee Johnston from NI won from Adam McLean and Ian Lougher. David Johnston from Adelaide only just managed to qualify and soon broke down.
So that was our first full race day. The fields were sparse at times but a lap does take 20 minutes so that is understandable and many bikes retired. The quick men were conspicuous as they came past, which is how I remember the TT from the 1970's. But to be truthful, there was a lack of exotica on the track, which was a surprise. The Patons were not original and had modern engine parts in them. We rode back to Betty's and managed to get into the Glen Mona pub for dinner even though it was fully booked. I managed to beat Alan at pool and Gin Rummy so a good end to the day!
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