Statisticals 'n' stuff

This is the last entry in the blog. For those of you that like to know how far, how much, etc, this will be right up your street. If not, get on with your life!

TOTAL MILEAGE: 793.1 miles – equivalent to 21 laps of the TT course

TOTAL FUEL USED: 74.88 litres

TOTAL FUEL COST: £105.55

AVERAGE MPG: 46.25

COST OF ACCOMODATION: £280.00

COST OF FERRY: £226.00

FOOD COSTS: £65.00 approx.

FOOD BREAKDOWN: 2 x fish ‘n’ chips

                                        2 x pizza

                                        3 x burger (1 with chips)

                                        1 x Chinese curry and boiled rice

                                        2 x chicken legs (1 drumstick)

                                        1 x pork chop

                                        Untold rashers of bacon

                                        Numerous eggs, fried, poached (1 half, hard boiled)

                                        8-10 x fried sausages

                                        A dozen slices of toast, approx.

                                        4 x slices of bread and butter

                                        2 x bowls of cinnamon cereal

                                        7 x mugs of tea

                                        2 x mugs of coffee

                                        1 x cooked tomato                         

                                        2 x portions of mushrooms

                                        1 x portion of beans

                                        1 x portion of mushy peas                           

                                        1 x pot of curry sauce

                                        4 x mars bars

                                        1 x large pack of crisps

                                        7  x co-op own brand kit-kats

                                        5 x 500ml bottles of Lucozade energy drink

                                        2 x pints of Manx ale

                                        2.5 x tumblers of Pims (including fruit)

                                        3/4 x glasses of orange juice                                        

                                        A few polo mints

TOTAL COST OF THE TRIP: £675 approx.

A big thank you to all my sponsors;

Suzuki motorcycles

BKS leathers

Shoei helmets

Total fuels

IOM Steampacket (LOL!)

BUT SERIOUSLY FOLKS,

A BIG, BIG THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO MADE THE TRIP A THOROUGHLY ENJOYABLE ONE……………..YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I hope it’s been enjoyable and/or informative……..at least one of those ;-)

Watch out for the 2012, Reservoir Hogs Tour blog, coming to you direct from the UK and Eire, courtesy of Vodafone mobile.

Cheers

Ride, drive, walk safe.

Neill

                                                               

Farewell Fair Isle

Saturday was to be my last day. I was up with the lark, maybe just before and got ready to leave. The final few bits were packed and I made my way out, as quietly as possible, with the luggage, to the bike. I closed the door on my ‘home’ for the past week and fired up the Bandit. It was another lovely morning, sunny if a little chilly. I’ve got used to chilly since I’ve been on the island. Can be scorching in the sun one minute, freezing in the shade when a cloud arrives. Bizarre.

Once again, the mountain road was both open and empty. Just the way I like it. I could take or leave the other part of the circuit, with its speed limits up and down all the time, plus it’s two way but the mountain is fantastic. I’m not sure it would be anywhere near as exhilarating as it is, were it two way nor, from my recollections of 1982, when there are a lot of other bikes around. Needless to say, John McGuiness could probably learn a thing or two on how to hussle a fully loaded Bandit over the mountain. 3 figure speeds were, once again, attained. Having returned to more sensible speeds, I thought the bike felt a bit strange. It was difficult to tell, maybe just the extra weight. I thought no more of it.

I arrived at the port in Douglas in good time. Just about 6am for the 6:15 time stipulated on the ticket. Well, as it turned out, I was too early. Steampacket don’t have the capability to deal with more than one sailing at a time. Lord knows how long they have been doing this but to say it is a shambles wouldn’t be overstating things. ‘We’re still loading the 7am ferry’, I was told, ‘can you come back in 20 minutes?’  I was directed round to the front of the terminal building to wait with other 8:45 sailing punters. At 6:15 I  joined an already growing queue at the check in booths. As we sat there, sun on our backs, I watched, as over the top of the hill, south of Douglas there gradually appeared a rainbow. It wasn’t long before it was a beautiful full arch, beautiful maybe but could only mean one thing. Would we be lucky enough to be boarded before the inevitable happened?

When the booth opened for check in, there was chaos. No control by anyone, just two people sitting either side of it, watching the ensuing mayhem. Some people were walking up to the window, some trying to weave their bikes to the window. In their wisdom (I jest of course), Steampacket had lined the bikes up to the right hand side of the booth. This meant, a pretty free run for the left most lane, whilst 5,6 maybe more were all trying to converge from the right. I managed to manoeuvre to the left hand lane and proceeded quite quickly thereafter. By now you would think that Steampacket would have some proper place to wait but no, we were shepherded in what was basically a couple of bays used for parking big lorry trailers. It was at this point that beauty turned to beast and the rains came. The dilemma, when just wearing leathers and your waterproofs are packed away, is whether you bother going through unpacking and struggling into the waterproofs or just sit it out. I chose the latter, despite is raining quite hard. I figured I had 3½ hours to dry on the boat.

Finally we were boarded and I found my way to my reserved seat. This would seem to be a waste of £3, as not many seats actually had a reserved sticker on then, yet they all filled up. Presumably those punters got one for nowt!  I dosed for most of the journey, the early start catching up with me. I’d had in my mind I might stop off in Manchester on the way back and visit the Harley exhibition at the Museum of Science & Industry. I’d discussed this with my aunt’s hubby Roger on the way up. Whilst on the boat though, I decided I’d make the trip home, thus giving me Sunday free to get some shopping, etc. A text was duly despatched to Roger’s mobile.

We arrived at Heysham about 12:35, though by the time we’d actually been spewed out onto the dockside it was probably 12:50. The bike was feeling strange again and on hitting the M6 I was starting to wonder if I had picked up a puncture. I pulled off at the next services and found the air hose. Rule 1, when attempting to operate a garage air hose, ensure you have put on one’s spectacles, so one can actually see what the bloody hell you’re doing. After 5 minutes of squinting at a dirty gauge, I decided to put on my specs. Now, I could see the gauge, just about but more importantly I could see the instructions on the machine which said press the start button!!  DOH!  No wonder five minutes of attempted inflation hadn’t made a jot of difference. The pressure showing, was about 20psi. It should be 42. I must have a slow puncture. I re-inflated and checked the tyre, as best I could. I found nothing. I carried on my journey, the bike feeling better right away.

I had enough fuel to get me through Birmingham, so I pushed on, eventually pulling in at Corley. I fuelled up, had a quick drink/biscuit and prepared for the off. A quick text to Cath told her I’d be home in 2½  hours. The tyre felt OK but I thought I’d just check the pressure again. This time I remembered my specs and they straight away showed me that I would have to pay 50p for 5 minutes air. Stuff that, I continued on my way.

I made good time until the approach to the QE2 bridge. The queues there were 4 or 5 miles on the approach. I gingerly weaved between the cars. Not easy when the lanes are reduced size and your panniers stick out further than your mirrors, the usual gauge of if you can get through a gap or not. It was during this period that the bike began to feel strange again. Was it just the low speed, heavy weight combination again or that the tyre had lost pressure? Time would tell, I was now just 20 minutes from home.

I arrived home, dead on time, to an empty flat and a stack of junk mail. Oh well, I unpacked my stuff. The phone rang, it was Roger. They hadn’t got my text, the second time that had happened and were getting worried as I hadn’t arrived and they hadn’t heard from me. Roger was cool about it, I think but I got a telling off from my aunt Linda. Fair play I guess. On hanging up I decided to call Cath. Half expecting her son Alex to answer and say she was on her way up, instead she answered and sounded surprised I was actually home!! It wasn’t long though before we were re-united ;-).

Fuel stats:

Fuel: 16.70 litres

Cost: £23.70

Cost per litre: £141.9

Miles: 165.2

MPG: 44.97

Additional mileage to home: 142.9 miles

Estimated fuel usage: 14.44 litres

Estimated cost @ £1.34.9: £19.48

And that, as they say, IS THAT!

P.S. When I arrived back I left the bike on the side stand. This would ensure that there was weight on the rear tyre, so if punctured it should go flat. I didn’t check it Sunday and didn’t ride to work Monday. I checked Monday evening. Sure enough there is a nail in the tyre. Strange though, there was still 40psi in it. Not sure in that case what the situation is or why it felt so strange on that last leg home.

Wet, Wet, Wet (Wishing I was lucky) Friday

Been a bit hectic the last couple of days, hence the delayed update to the blog.

Yes, on Friday I was certainly wishing I had been lucky with the weather. A promising start soon clouded over. My tummy filled with another cooked brekkie and having said my goodbye to Eric, whom I probably wouldn’t see again before I left, I decided to stay local and  watch from the park a little way down from the bus station. Candy said I could go to her mum’s place to watch and join their b-b-q if I liked. I left the invitation open. It was much appreciated but I was a little hesitant at encroaching on a family occasion.

Can you believe it, Senior TT day is a bank holiday in IOM. I can’t imagine anywhere else where they would give people a day off, just for a bike race. Excellent! Anyway, I got my stuff together and walked the five minutes or so to the park. I found a spot on the fence near a couple with two young kids from Aberdeen. They had a radio, which I’ve discovered is a must to get the full enjoyment out of the occasion, so I was sorted. The programme was supposed to be (as of Thursday), Yamaha parade, Senior TT, Subaru lap and Centenary celebration lap. The commentary from the Grandstand in Douglas was winding up to the parade starting, in glorious sunshine, whilst at Ramsey we were staring up at some ominous black clouds. Within minutes, the rain started. I popped out my brolly (99p and still not totally broken!) and waited for the shower to pass. Needless to say, the parade lap was postponed, even though just 15 or so miles away over the mountain, it was brilliant sunshine. It became quite chilly where I was but at least the rain had stopped. I decided to go back and put some more clothes on and get my waterproof jacket. This was, least I thought, where the now detached spike on my brolly would come into its own.   I stuck the spike in the ground and popped my rucksack underneath, in case it rained again. Well of course it did. I got back to the digs and put on my two thin jumpers. I already had the fleecy one on, so that went back on over the top. Whilst this was taking place it decided to pour again. Waterproof jacket on I headed back to the park, only to find the wind had got underneath the brolly tipping it over and leaving my rucksack, with camera inside, to get soaked. Thanks must go to the Scottish couple (not those with the kids, they’d gone) who stood by and watched my stuff getting wet.

Wasn’t long before the rain started again and they postponed the race till 15:30. In the meantime The Yamaha parade lap took place, the Subaru lap and the celebration lap, all on drying roads. The sun had finally decided to show its face. By this time I’d left the park and was wondering where I should watch the race from. I knew Candy’s mum lived on a fast part of the circuit but I figured I’d not get anywhere to stand on a slower part of the course at this late juncture. And so, I made my way round there.

When I arrived, the ‘party’ was in full swing. Once again I was made to feel welcome by everyone. That really helps when undertaking a trip like this on your own, so I thank them for that. It wasn’t long before the racing got underway. I’d positioned my Gopro just on the edge of the driveway and started it as they began leaving the grandstand. Less than 10 minutes later we were all hanging over the garden wall watching McGuinness flash past, no more than 6 feet away. I’m guessing they are travelling at about 130mph at that point. It’s quite exhilarating I must say and you feel a strong blast of air as they whizz by. My camera shutter was going ten to the dozen to try and capture them. It was a perfect end to an up and down (weather wise) racing week. The race finally took place in perfect weather conditions and John McGuinness took his 17^th TT victory. Guy Martin pushed hard for another rostrum in second and Bruce Anstey grabbed the final step of the podium.

Racing over, thoughts turned to food and the b-b-q was lit. It seemed to take forever to get anything cooked on it, by which time the sun had long since gone behind the trees and the chill had set in again. In the end as the food came off the barbie, it was transferred to the oven indoors. I had to keep an eye on the time as I still had my packing to do and was anxious about not getting away too late but also about just yaffling down some food and then doing a runner. I didn’t eat a lot, couple of pieces of chicken, a pork chop and a burger in a bap but that was all I needed after the breakfast I’d had. In fact that was the case most days. I was usually too full to eat lunch!

My ferry was at 8:45 Saturday. For reasons known only to the Steampacket company, you have to check in at 6:15. That meant I’d probably need to leave about 5:30 to allow for holdups/diversions, which in turn meant getting up about 4:45. So, I said my goodbyes to Candy, Matty, Casey and the rest of the clan and made my way back to the digs. Packing, bar the last minute items was completed by 23:30 and I snuggled down under Casey’s duvet one last time. There would barely be time to nod off before I was getting up again.

And so to my last day on the island………..

Cold Thursday

Today was the rerun day, after Wednesday had been washed out. The sky when I woke up was clear and blue and the sun was shining.  Racing was due to start at 12:15 but with this glorious start, they would have been better starting at 9am.

I finished off last night with a pizza at the Trawlerman. It’s become my regular haunt for food, there not being that much choice in Ramsey, truth be told. Unluckily for me there seemed to be a rush on pizzas just as I arrived, so I waited 25 minutes or so for it to arrive at table. When it did, it was deep pan, not thin crust. Apparently they had run out of thins but nobody thought to tell me. The lady serving it to me assured me it would be just as tasty and even asked me when I’d finished. It wasn’t bad, I said, shame about the wait. And to be fair, it wasn’t bad, better than the one I had in the Italian restaurant on Sunday.

My meals so far, I can tell you’re all dying to know, have consisted of;

Friday - Chilli burger – normal beef burger with onions and then a red chilli paste spread on the bap.

Saturday – Cod and chips and mushy peas at the Trawlerman.

Sunday – pepperoni/salami pizza, with red chilli sauce at the Italian restaurant.

Monday – takeaway chicken curry and boiled rice from the Chinese.

Tuesday – another burger, plus chips from the Trawlerman.  

Wednesday – meat supreme pizza, again at the Trawlerman.

Thursday is a toss up between the Chinese again or some more fish and chips at the Trawlerman, though I may try take away this time round.

Anyway, to the day’s action. Not sure what time I set out but headed up over the mountain again. There didn’t seem to be too many bikes going through (you can hear them on the road), so we’d thought the road might be closed. It wasn’t. This time it was dry and having already got one ‘lap’ under my belt in the wet, I was more confident I knew where the road went this time. The road was busier than yesterday, though not overly so. I took it steady up to the Gooseneck, little choice as there are cones out but then gassed it out of there and powered up the hill. I wasn’t counting, more gloating, as I passed quite a number of ‘scratchers’ on their crotch rockets. On the straights or round the bends, didn’t matter, I was taking them and this with a fully loaded topbox on the back! Needless to say it was great fun and all over far too quickly. You have to concentrate on the road rather than anything else but on the straights I was able to glance at the speedo. It’s digital and was showing 3 figures. King of the Mountain ;-)

I parked up same place as yesterday and followed pretty much the same routine. An amble round taking a few photos, then sat in the sun by the race office, star gazing. There were quite a few, Keith Amor, Steve Plater, Steve Parish, Andrew Pitt but none probably as humungously huge as Mick Doohan. This bloke is a flaming legend. I mentioned him yesterday. This time though I was up close and personal, not just watching him across the road. So up close, I was able to take his photo and then shake him by the hand. I shall never wash that right hand again. DOH! Already have! Another legend was Phil Read. He’d already walked past by the time I realised who the old bloke  with scruffy grey hair and wearing a red Yamaha jacket was. It was actually his cap that gave it away. He used to have a distinctive helmet design and the cap was the same design. I suppose I actually do him a disservice. He is probably an even bigger legend than Doohan, as he actually won 8 world titles AND 8 TTs. I suppose it is just that he packed up before I started riding, that I don’t hold him in such regard. Clearly I’m wrong to do that. Almost forgot, Giacomo Agostini presented the Supersport trophy. Another legend and thoroughly good looking dude, even at 63!

Finally, I made my way to the grandstand. If  the racing is called off, ticket holders can use them the following day, assuming that is not already a scheduled race day, so I was back in my seat at the top of the stand. By this time though, the sun had gone and cloud was the order of the day. They weren’t rain bearing though, so the Supersport race got underway as scheduled. 4 laps and a victory for Gary Johnson, his first TT victory. By now it was getting quite chilly. My hands were freezing but I had my fleecy jumper on and my neck warmer, so the rest of me wasn’t too bad. The sidecar race was next, followed by a Superbike practice, in preparation for tomorrow’s Senior race. Then there was another flying lap by the Subaru, not as fast as Monday and lastly TT Zero, the electric bike race. Those bikes can shift, you’d be surprised. Michael Rutter won that, his second TT victory and was just 0.4 of a mph off the magic 100mph lap mark and the £10k that goes with it. Small consolation but he clocked the fastest speed through the Sulby straight speed trap, at 149.6 mph. YES!, on a battery powered machine!!

The presentations over, I was glad to be able to head back to the bike and start the journey home. By now my leathers were fully zipped up but I was quite chilled through. It wasn’t any warmer on the ride back. I took the coast rode as usual but it was closed at one point due to an accident and I had to take to a country lane to find my way back into Ramsey. Back in town I headed straight for the petrol station. I’ll probably be local tomorrow, so the bike is now fuelled ready for the trip home Saturday morning.

Fuel stats:

Fuel: 15.51 litres

Cost: £22.02

Cost per litre: £1.41.9

Mileage: 158.1

MPG: 44.6

Not surprising it’s down on the previous, given my blasts over the mountain. Still respectable though for a 1250cc engine.

Don’t forget to check out my pics, today’s will soon be uploaded.

And so to Senior TT race day….

Grey, Wet, Wednesday

Today was my day to watch the races from the main grandstand in Douglas. Unusually it wasn’t the sound of bikes heading for the mountain that woke me but the sound of rain. The downpour was obviously putting them off.

Candy did me a nice cooked brekkie of bacon, sausage, mushrooms, beans and poached eggs (that’s for you Cath), before I togged up in my waterproofs to take the drive over to Ramsey.

I set out and was surprised to see the mountain road was open, though indicating fog at the top, so I was finally going to get my chance to ride this part of the course. And what a chance. By this time the rain had stopped but the roads were empty. As I set off up the mountain, I passed one bike through the Waterworks. Out of the Gooseneck I powered up the hill, past a couple of cars, cranked it over through Guthrie’s and away I went. Incidentally, Cath had suggested I put a map on the blog page so people would know where I was talking about on the circuit. This I have done, so those who get the email blog entry, you’ll have to visit the blog page to see this. You’ll also, need to do that to view my pics, that I have finally managed, at great pain, to load up to flickr. Today’s will soon join the rest.

As I said the roads were empty. From Guthrie’s and all the way over the mountain to Creg Ny Baa, I probably only passed another 3 or 4 cars. With no other bikes hassling me I was able to pick my line through the bends and wobble my way slowly round the corners. It’s all very well being able to go fast, I got up to about 90mph on one stretch (no speed limit remember) but when you don’t really know how tight the corners are, you just have to err on the side of caution, else risk joining the sheep down the hillside. Even for me, those 8 or so miles, were over far too quickly. There is a certain buzz you get from riding on closed roads and I really enjoyed it. Had it been dry, all the crotch rocket nutters would have been out and no doubt spoilt the experience.

Anyway, I arrived in Douglas and parked up in a free bike park in Nobles Park. Just a short walk later and you are behind the grandstand. By this time the sun was out and it was quite warm. The news was though, that the Supersport race, scheduled for 10:45, had been put back one hour. I wandered about the paddock for a bit. There was Phil McCallen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillip_McCallen ) an 11 times TT winner and up until last year, the man who held the record for most wins in TT week (4). I took his photo and shook his hand.  After my wander I sat on a seat by the race office, taking in the sun and the sights. Whilst I sat there, John McGuinness entered the office, then Michael Rutter and Martin Jessop were talking at the foot of the stairs, a few feet away. Steve Parrish wandered past, then Hector Neil and then, the ITV4 film crew decided that was where Craig Doyle was going to do a piece to camera. I’m sure I won’t be in shot though. There was an elderly lady next to me, who was keen to get a picture of Craigy but he was up and down, reciting his lines, so she couldn’t get a photo of him. Eventually though, he stopped right by us and a couple of young women had their photos taken with him. I suggested gran do the same. Craig duly obliged, giving her a big hug and I took the photo for her. One happy gran!

Before the race, there was to be a parade lap by some road racing stars and a test rider for Motor Cycle News(?). This is a regular feature now, where GP or Superbike stars, who don’t have such big cajones, come to do one lap on a standard road bike. Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo have done it recently. Don’t get me wrong, they are fantastic riders, Rossi probably the best ever but even they admire the TT regulars after having done a parade lap. Maybe it’s not the size of the balls but the shape!!

Today there was Ian Hutchinson, who set the new record for winning all 5 solo races last year, complete with metal cage on his left leg, following his accident in the 2010 World Supersport race at Silverstone. Then, Josh Brookes, the Aussie competing in British Superbikes; Cal Crutchlow, former World Supersport champion, now in MotoGP; Mick Doohan, an Aussie legend, 6 times 500cc/MotoGP World champion and Nicky Hayden, an American MotoGP rider and World champion. So quite a line-up. Oh, and the MCN bloke!

The parade lap was quite slow, Doohan and Hayden waving rather than riding, whilst Brookes and Crutchlow were swapping places over the mountain, so the Supersport race was delayed once again. With all this delay, the weather started to close in and we had a few spots of rain. Sufficient for me to put up my new 99p brolly. 3^rd time up the material came away from one of the struts. I guess that’s why it is 99p. Mind you, a similar thing happened to one from M&S, so no point in paying more.     

Though the road was dry at the start/finish, there were clearly going to be some damp/wet patches around the circuit. The bikes were brought to the line but even with the 1 minute board out, some of the riders were reluctant to get on their bikes. McGuinness was suggesting they should delay the start even more and/or put out the sidecars for their race. As it was, Nicky Hayden flagged them off on time. A lap and a bit later, almost exactly as Monday’s race, they red flagged it. Thankfully, this time it was just a precaution (I think) as it was starting to rain round the circuit and not because of a fatal crash.

Shortly after and with the rain coming down more steadily, the decision was taken to abandon the racing for the day. The hope being that the weather will be better tomorrow. I believe my grandstand ticket will be valid for tomorrow too, so I’ll get another chance to ride over the mountain. I might take the Gopro this time.

Back in Ramsey, the rain has now stopped and there’s some blue sky showing. Oh well! Till tomorrow.

Day 5 - Grey Tuesday

Bit of a lie in today. No racing and plans really depend on the weather, which as it stands is dull, grey and wet. Raining quite hard but supposed to brighten up later.

Today is Ramsey Sprint day, down on the prom. To be honest I’m not really that fussed. I don’t really want to spend the whole week doing bikey things, when there is so much more to see. I’m thinking then, that I might just get the tram up to Laxey and check out the wheel. I’ve never been there before, though I’ve seen it from the road a couple of times this week. I could ride up there but I’m in Douglas for the races tomorrow so don’t really want to risk getting my gear wet today.

Just as I walked out the back gate, the rain started. Just a quick shower. Long enough for  me to get my new brolly out and put straight away again. £10 got me a return to Laxey. The trams consist of two cars. The second was open sided, I avoided that. The first had all heavily varnished wood panelling and cast iron, reversible seats. The trams are over 100 years old. I think I've seen something similar, maybe even made by the same company, in Majorca.

The trip to Laxey takes 45 minutes, through beautiful countryside and along the cliffs above the sea. Once at Laxey, you cross the road and walk up the hill towards the wheel. You can see it turning away through the trees. A big white structure with a massive, bright red wheel. If it looks impressive from a distance, up close it is even more so. It's four quid to get in, which I didn't think was bad. Besides the wheel, there is a walk up the valley around the mine workings and old, now fallen into disrepair, buildings.     

You can actually climb up the wheel structure, so on the top platform you are face to face with the top of the 72ft diameter wheel. The view from there is quite good too, both up and down the valley. Around the site are numerous sign boards, so you are never left in doubt as to what you are looking at. There is one bit of the mine you can still walk into, albeit just a few metres (70 or so) you need a hard hat to be safe and could probably do with a brolly too, as water drips down from the ceiling.

I give the Laxey Wheel a big thumbs up and would recommend it to anyone. a value for money visit.

After leaving the wheel I went down to the harbour. On the way, by the road, you pass another smaller wheel. This is on the site of where the rock from the mine was 'washed'. Basically where they broke it down into small pieces and separated the ore from the stone. The harbour is small, the seafront not much bigger, with one shop/cafe. I gave that a miss and headed back to the pub I'd just passed. It was a brew pub, which means they produce their own beer. I had a pint of their Bosun ale and a beef sandwich. Then it was time to walk back to the tram station and catch the return to Ramsey.

I timed it just right, a Ramsey tram was in the station. Only problem was, both carriages were open sided, so it was a tad chilly on the way back, to say the least.

Having finally managed to get some photos uploaded, albeit one at a time, I popped out for a burger and chips at the Trawlerman fish and chip restaurant. Then I popped into the Swan for my third pint of the holiday. Yesterday I'd had a Titanic but unfortunately it was off, so I ended up having Okells bitter. Not as nice. Just as I left the pub, the rains came again. Here's hoping it's dry for tomorrow.

And that was Day 5. 

Day 4, Black Monday

I finished off Sunday by going to the Italian restaurant in a little arcade down Parliament Street.  I had an Inferno pizza. Salami and pepperoni with chillies. Not your common old jalapeno though but a fiery red sauce. Can’t say it was the best pizza I’ve ever had but it filled a gap and options for eating out every night are rather limited in Ramsey. I washed it down with a bottle of Peroni Red, my first alcohol on the island.

Had decided I’d go up to watch at The Gooseneck today, so was up fairly early and had sausage sarnie for brekkie. Matty, he’s a star when it comes to the brekkies, did two rounds though, too much for me to manage in one sitting, so Candy wrapped the second up for my lunch.

I was early enough at the corner to get a decent viewpoint and right by the loudspeaker, so no problems with keeping tabs on the race commentary. It was a bit chilly but I was prepared, with fleecy jumper and neck warmer on. It was fairly bright though and I lay down to await the first race, the Supersport 600 race. The race was about a lap and a half old when it was red flagged. We later learnt that someone had died in a high speed accident. A rather unpleasant start to the day but one of those things you have to accept is possible if you come to race and spectate. There was a long delay before the race was rerun and the day’s schedule was altered as a result. Following that race, there was a sidecar practice session, a Subaru demonstration lap and then the electric bike practice. The Superstock race, originally planned for 15:15 was put back to 18:30, so I decided to head back into Ramsey and watch that from the square.

I hadn’t realised how sunny it had been during the day, until, that was, till I got home and saw my face in the mirror. Beetroot red cheeks and white panda eyes from my sunglasses. Nice!

I thought it was probably about time I tried some Manx ale, so when I went back out, I headed for The Swan pub. You can sit in the garden and get a couple of different views of the circuit, so you can imagine, it’s a popular spot. At the bar I got chatting to this bloke. I then noticed Matty sitting at a table with some people, one I recognised as his sister. As I walked over to him, the other guy walked to that table too. Turns out he’s a friend. We watched racing together from the pub and when the racing was over, they invited me back to their place for a B-B-Q. This didn’t seem very practical, given the time, so Chinese takeaway was ordered instead and back we went to the house of one girls mum, who was also at the pub.

The evening was quite unlike anything I’ve experienced. They were so hospitable to this stranger in their midst, but aside from their friendliness, I was shown round the house (part of), which includes a medieval styled dining room and the garage, where sit a tiny Honda 125 Dream racer and a 1917 Model T Speedster. I had seen the latter on the road on Sunday and now I was given the chance to sit on it, complete with goggles, furry hat and long elbow gloves! Quite amazing. I have some pictures of me on the car, if I can ever get them uploaded to flickr. Having sat down to watch the day’s highlights on ITV4, I bid them farewell but not before they invited me to a B-B-Q on Friday, Senior race day, at another of their houses, right on the course, just after May Hill. I’ve not made any other plans yet as to where I’ll watch from, so I may take them up on their offer, especially if it means free grub ;-)

Bedtime now, it’s already Tuesday. No plans yet made for tomorrow. I think the forecast is rain, so need to think carefully before going out on the bike.

That’s all for now.

Mad Sunday 2

Went out for another ride. Mountain road has been closed all day, so it was back on the coast road towards Douglas. I’d noticed on my first pass through a sign for The Gooseneck, It’s a very curvy and banked bend that signals the climb up over the mountain. A popular viewing spot. I decided to take a look and see what was what, how easy to get to, parking, facilities, etc. Down a narrow lane and over 2 cattle grids you arrive right at the corner. The lane actually comes out on the exit to the bend. It’s not huge but the viewing spot looks quite good. You can see the road for a few hundred yards before, so should be quite a good spot. I just need to decide what time to get up there. It was sunny when I got there and very pleasant, though I can imagine it gets a bit chilly when the weather isn’t so good. It is a bit exposed. There is a lovely view down to Ramsey and the sea from there too.

From there I carried on again into Douglas and parked up at the end of pit lane. I then had a walk up to the grandstand and the merchandising area. Behind the grandstand there was a big table with the TT trophies on display. They are massive things. It’s a wonder the riders can lift them after hanging onto a bike for nearly 2 hours! I wandered down into the paddock area. Some of the teams were fettling the bikes ready for tomorrow, other are clearly happy with their setup and were all shut up.

I headed back to the bike and setup the Gopro, facing backwards. The camera can film upside down if required, you have to change a setting. That way it is the right way up when played back. Initially I’d thought it would be upside down and changed the setting. Then as I tried to fix it in position, I decided it needed to be right way up. I forgot to change the setting though. No matter, coz when I got back I managed to delete the darned thing by accident, anyway.

The ride back to Ramsey was quicker than the first time round. There wasn’t so much traffic on the roads and I felt a little more confident having already done one ‘lap’. Confidence though, round this place can so easily be misplaced. I almost found out to my cost through a section called Glen Helen. There are a series of bends, nice and sweeping, nothing too taxing at the 60mph limit. I was getting into a nice rhythm, nobody in front, nobody behind, sweep, sweep, I went. However, on the outside of one of these bends is a pub or hotel or something, I’m not sure what. As I came round the bend, a Rover started to pull out from the car park. My initial reaction was to roll off and cover the brake but he hesitated and I thought he had seen me. A split second later, I realised he was still going to pull out. Now ABS is quite useful but there was no way I was going to be able to stop. My only course of action then, was to head for the kerb and pray I got to that point before he did. I’ll tell you now, I wasn’t convinced I would make it. I’m not sure if he did see me late on, or I was just lucky but I got to the gap and through without impact. A wake up call, that’s for sure….for both of us. I got back without further incident, the mountain road still closed, so I guess I'll just have to wait for that experience. 

Anyway, it’ll soon be time for tea, so I need to decide what to have. Not that there is much choice. Pizza, burger, fish, that’s about it.

I’m having a few problems uploading pics at the moment, not sure why but they will appear at some time or other. Keep checking.   

Mad, Mad Sunday! Newsflash.

I've been back about an hour and just popped out to check the sign. Mountain Road still closed. The masses are massing in the square for when it does open. Within 30 minutes it'll probbaly be closed again, as someone throws their precious off the side of the mountain! That's just the way it is ;-)

Day 3, Mad Sunday

A feature of this island during TT week seems to be, that rather than being awoken by birdsong at dawn, it's the sound of bikes, the early morning nutters heading through Parliament Square on their way up to the mountain. Thirty minutes later, it's the emergency services sirens!  3 days I've been on this island and every single day the mountain road has been closed due to one incident or another.

Today, traditionally called Mad Sunday, is the same as Mad Friday, Saturday, etc. Early morning wakeup by bikes and sirens.

My plan was/is to get out and do a few laps of the circuit, with the camera on board. I have two positions for it on the bike and one on my helmet. Best laid plans and all.

After a hearty cooked brekkie and chat with 80 years young Eric, I donned leathers and set off. Just over the road is a petrol station. I fuelled up and set out on the coast road to Douglas, the mountain road, yes you guessed it, closed once again.

Arriving in the Glencrutchery Road, I stopped at the pits and started the camera. I won't bore you with the details of every corner but TV just doesn't do justice to how steep Bray Hill is. The racers go down there at about 170mph!! Since my last time here, 29 years back, lots has changed. The liberal attitude to speed has changed and you are forever going up and down between 30 and 60mph zones. Still doesn't stop the odd tw*t overtaking approaching blind corners though, even at a relatively slow 50.

There is one part of the course, just after Sulby Bridge, a 50 mph zone, that is so bumpy, even at that speed, you are bouncing around in the seat. Multiply that 3 fold and it's a wonder any of the riders or bikes ever makes it around one lap, let alone 6!

I arrived back in Ramsey about 40 minutes after leaving Douglas. That's about 20ish miles, so I'm not breaking any records. I can now appreciate why Simon & Vivien, my US66 chums, took as long as they did when they came over last year. As I said, a lot has changed since I was here in '82. And they will be pleased, if not a little surprised to hear, that a Road King passed me at one point!!!

Back in the digs, I'm offloading the video and having a comfort break. Soon I'll take a walk over to see the electronic sign that indicates whether the mountain road is open or not. Hopefully I'll get in the rest of the lap and the video to prove it. 

Fuel stats:

Mileage: 152.3

Fuel: 13.95 ltrs

Cost/ltr: £1.41.9

Total: £19.80

MPG: 49.63

Day 2, Superbike Race Day

Woke early, too early since I’d only got to bed at midnight. At which time there was only Casey, the youngest daughter in the house. Matty apparently came in at 1:30, locking the ‘never locked’ back door and with it, Candy outside. I’d been awoken by the second guest arriving from Belfast, an overnight ferry.

Having done the morning stuff I  went down to breakfast. Matty introduced me to Eric. Now it has to be said I was not expecting Eric to look as he did, that is, an old gent somewhere, I would guess, in his eighties! Shortly afterwards Candy appeared and introduced herself. Now it has to be said I was not expecting Candy to look as she did either, that is, a small Liz Hurley lookalike. She hails from South Africa and it was quite funny when her and Eric, broad Irish accent, were in conversation. Finally, Casey made an appearance at the breakfast table, grabbing some cereal before heading off to her job at the Snaefell Hotel, atop the mountain.

Breakfast over (two toasted bacon sarnies) and some conversation with Eric about Geoff Duke (google if you don’t know) and riders of his era, I packed my rucky and decided I’d walk up to the Ramsey hairpin. I’d popped out before brekkie to buy a race programme and contrary to what I’d thought, there was viewing inside the hairpin itself. It’s no more than 15 minutes on foot, mere seconds on a superbike! On the way out I was introduced to Jocelyn, the eldest daughter. Only granny left to meet now! I was the second person at the hairpin. I chatted with the chap there, who turned out to be an ex racer himself, having completed the Manx Grand Prix one year. Gradually the space started to fill up, so I grabbed a spot and set up the Gopro.

It wasn’t long (well actually it was quite) before the race was off. Some old guy next to me had a radio and what I imagine was an internet Thai bride. Probably 50 years his junior, she was very attentive. So was I but to the radio!! He claimed to know John McGuinness, so wanted/thought he would win. I was firmly in the Guy Martin camp, a) coz he’s a top, down to earth geezer, chief and b) because he’s riding a Suzuki, like me.  In the end, McGuiness did win it, Martin stopped round the course whilst second, though about 20 seconds down. No champagne for Guy then but TT win number 16 for JM. After the superbikes, there’s an hour or so and then it’s the first sidecar race. Only three laps instead of the superbikes’ six but there’s a smaller field and they are about 2/3 minutes per lap slower, so there’s not the constant action you get with the solos, who once again hit 131mph for a lap, about 17m15s. Klaus Klaffenblock, the Austrian, won his third successive sidecar TT, having done the double in 2010.

I wandered back down to town after the racing and offloaded my snaps. Then I went out for an early tea, fish and chips with mushy peas and a pot of tea. I’d left it late to eat last night, gone 9pm, and the chilli burger wasn’t nearly as satisfying. Finally, I took a stroll over the river and down on to the prom. I believe there is some sprint racing taking place tomorrow but I plan on joining the nutters riding the circuit, with the Gopro in situ. They don’t call it Mad Sunday for nothing. First though I’ll have to fuel up.

TT Adventure Part Deux

Up at 6:30 to give me enough time to get myself and the bike ready before my leaving time of 7:30. Roger (my aunt’s husband) was up before me and kindly made me some tea and toast. Check in at Heysham had to be by 9:15 for some reason, even though sailing time wasn’t till 11:45. Not knowing what traffic I would hit, I was erring on the side of caution. As it turned out I was on the quayside at Heysham by 8:35, despite not having any audible guidance from the lady tomtom (she’s really got the hump with me) and the sun almost totally obscuring the screen.

Wasn’t I the lucky one though? The nice man at the check in decided he’d like to inspect my luggage. Now, had I been in a car that wouldn’t have been an issue.  But, the packing of the topbox and especially the panniers was so precise, that I even made diagrams of where everything was positioned to make sure my stuff all fits back in on the occasions I have them open. So precise that the nice gentlemen, Bob Sworth, I expect he was called, commented on it as he rummaged about, pulling stuff out. After rearranging the topbox again and managing to get it shut, he turned his attentions to the panniers. I persuaded him not to open both panniers, not only because they were both cable tied shut (just in case), but because I didn’t particularly want to have to spend the next 20 minutes getting may laptop, etc, all back in the proper positions. Instead he rummaged through my clothing and it only took me a few minutes to get that shut again! Meanwhile loads of other bikes are just driving past and joining the queue!  Not content with the luggage, he then wanted to pat me down. I did point out the folly in this, when my leathers contain masses of body armour but he had his box to tick, so felt away anyway.

Finally I was allowed on my way and joined the queue, for a long but sunny wait to board. The ferry was one of these high speed aluminium jobbies, the inside set up with lots of ‘fencing’ running the length of the car deck. The deal is, you park up alongside the fence and one of the crew ties the bike to it. It’s on side stand and in gear, so fairly secure. A piece of torn rag protects the paintwork from the rope. A low tech solution on a high tech vessel.

I had booked a seat in one of the reserved seating lounges, the Niarbyl. A chap directed me to the lounge and a little sticker with my name on it confirmed my seat, number 27. I was the first in there. The seat itself was very comfortable, well worth £3 but there was no storage space for helmet and jacket, so they were dumped on the floor by my feet. Later on I noticed two guys had two seats each. One for them, one for their gear. Something to remember for next time. As I said, only £3, so well worth doing for the extra comfort.

I caught up with a few zeds and by the time we left, at dead on 11:45, I was listening to my archos. 2 hours later, we were in Douglas.  On disembarkation, I once again found tomtom had been struck dumb. I could just about make out the directions on screen and headed down Douglas promenade, behind, before it tired, a horse drawn tram! With still no word from tomtom, I decided to pull over and see what was wrong. I probably didn’t need it to find my way to Ramsey but finding my digs might be different.  No joy, I could hear her through the internal speaker but that was it. I set off again, heading backwards up the mountain section only to find it shut at Creg Ny Baa. Now I don’t know if it’s always shut or if it’s now permanently one way in TT fortnight but I had to detour. Down single width roads in the beautiful countryside I went. Finally, I arrived at Laxey (and the famous wheel, though I saw 2?)  and joined the main road that leads into Ramsey. As I followed a local car, sedately along, it was quite interesting to see other bikes blatting past and in some quite ridiculous places. It’s not difficult to see why so many people get injured here.

Anyway, I arrived in Ramsey and with surprising ease, found the digs. Problem though, nobody in. However, as I walked round the back, Matty, the man of the house, came through the back gate. Pleasantries exchanged, he  showed me to my room. It belongs to one of their daughters, 15 or 16 and so is a bit girlie, with lots of stuffed animals but nonetheless a large and pleasant room. I quickly brought my stuff in, got changed out of my leathers and went out for a walk.

Now Ramsey, from what I’ve seen doesn’t have a lot going for it, apart from an old dilapidated pier but maybe there’s more I haven’t seen. Anyway, having done the tour I got some food from the Co-op and found somewhere to watch the impending practice sessions from.  I found myself on a patch of grass on Albert Square (No, me old cockney sparras, not that one) opposite the Ramsey bus station. It’s not especially grand but does afford a very good view as the bikes power out of Parliament Square. It’s quite amazing how quickly they get up to exceptional speed in such a short distance. Practice was delayed by an RTA on the course, the second of the day but the sun was still shining so I just laid out on the grass to wait.

Race and practice commentary is on Manx radio and just before the start, a chap over the road came out with a big sound system, so all the punters could listen. Very public spirited of him. Anyway we heard the bikes setting off from Douglas on the radio and then waited. About 12 minutes later, they are screaming past you. Quite phenomenal. 17/18 minutes after they set off, they are flying through the start and finish in Douglas again. That’s 129mph average speed for the 37 ¾ mile course. I had my camera with me and took loads of snaps, some of which you be able to see on the flickr link.

Practice finished about 9pm and I nipped out for something to eat before coming to write the blog. I’ve not seen a soul since Matty left about 3pm, so not sure what time breakfast will be. Racing starts about 11am but I want to up and in position fairly early. I’m hoping to be able to set up my Gopro and get some video rather than stills this time. We’ll see.

That’s all for now. Bit of a mega download I know. I’ll try and make it a bit snappier from now on.         

Part 1 Complete

Well, here I am in sunny, yes sunny, Manchester. Last minute hiccups meant I didn’t leave home until 10:15. Silly things, such as one of the rubber spacers on the rack going awol, allowing the topbox to wobble a bit and that nice lady on my tom-tom, deciding she didn’t want to talk to me. Some might say that’s a blessing but after about 75 miles I had to stop and put her straight. The silence was killing me. In truth, I also needed a drink and to rest my bum a bit, so I stopped off at Toddington services for five minutes. I’d been on the road for an hour and a half.

The journey was pretty uneventful really. Apart from the usual traffic hotspots, I was, in the main, able to keep up a fairly reasonable pace. I decided I’d probably stop to refuel with around 175 miles on the clock. As it was, I pulled in to the Hilton services on the M6 with 174.6 showing. Not bad eh?

Q: why in ripoff Britian do we get shafted by the petrol stations on the motorway. Unleaded retails here for £143.9 per litre. That’s 10p more than it was last night when I topped up. I recently went to France, in the car but don’t recall their motorway petrol stations being wildly more expensive than anywhere else. As I said, rip off Britain. Why do we stand for it?

From Hilton services, it’s a little more than 60 miles to my aunt’s place. I arrived sometime around 14:30, I think, but once again in silence. I think this time it was due to the volume having been turned down, accidentally of course but I couldn’t help thinking that I had stumbled across the real reason it’s called tomtom. I’ll not elaborate any more, else I’ll have all the women (all?) after my guts. Very un PC Neill!

Furnished with a sandwich and cuppa, we’ve spent a couple of hours catching up and discussing how long the second part of journey will take tomorrow. It’s only 65 miles or so but apparently Lancaster is a bitch to drive through, so I can expect it to take a little longer than I’d anticipated. My ferry is 11:45 (from Heysham) but I have to check in by 09:15. I’ll be leaving here, latest 07:30.

Right now though I’m sitting writing this and supping a can of cold Stella, with the smell of dinner wafting past my nose. Aaah, bisto!

Journey stats:

Left Chatham: 10:15

Arrived Manchester: 14:30

Total mileage: 241.1

Miles to fuel stop: 174.6

Litres: 14.28

MPG: 47.1

Cost per litre: £1.43.9

Refuelling Cost: £20.55

Here we go.

Finally, that day has arrived when I set off on my TT adventure. The bike is prep’d most of the packing done and now I’m just having a bacon roll for my brekkie, before I start the final countdown. My plan is to leave at 10am. I’m anticipating about a 5 hour journey to my aunt’s in Manchester. I need to stop for fuel en route, as the fuel tank only gives me a maximum 200 miles and door to door we are talking 235. I’m sure my bum will need a rest by then anyway and me a drink or snack. The weather is superb at the moment and sounds like it is set for the next day as well. I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed it stays that way for another week too. I daren’t look at the 10 day weather forecast, as I don’t want to be miserable on the run up. I can save that for when I’m there!

I’m not sure what the internet situation is going to be whilst I’m away. My aunt has broadband, so tonight I should be able to update you on the journey up, however, I don’t know about my digs, so there may not be any blog updates until I get back. Googling ‘free wifi on the IOM’ doesn’t exactly bring up a lot of options!

Anyway, the bacon has now gone and so soon shall I be.