Roads to get your pegs down on? How about the Isle of Man?
5 years ago, I responded to a post on this very forum. A bunch of old pals had a vacancy on their annual pilgrimage to the Manx Grand Prix (now the Festival of Motorcycling). I got in a reply quicker than a cat hightails it out of Glenshee! I passed the interview and survived the cut after the first year. Since then, its become an annual event to watch the racing, talk bollox, drink pints of Okell's and malt whisky and laugh a lot. An awful lot. Hence the title of the thread, which is the punch line of one of Mick's (commis chef and nailer in chief of the Mountain Mile) true stories. I've cried laughing at some of Mick's stories ...
This year, the formula was the usual one: Chef Bob in charge of the grub with Mick to assist and the rest of us pitching in as bottle washers and servers and just as many laughs. The racing was as good but the weather and maybe other events seem to have put a bit of a downer on things? Popular spectating spots seemed to be a little less thronged and really bad weather put the mockers on the usual festival event at Jurby on the Sunday.
Anyway, I'll post a few pics and others who were on the trip will doubtless add a few also. Two, at least are on the forum. Oh, Mick's tale? The age range of the group is actually not very typical of bikers these days in that there are a couple of non geriatric members being nurtured carefully, but the rest of us are coffin dodgers. Mick attended a funeral in an unfamilar town (on his bike) and had to pull over and ask a local how he could get to the crem?
"Tha has to dee furst" says the chap. Dead pan!
I'll kick things off with a few pics taken at the Gooseneck. I'm always surprised at the variation in lines taken there. This guy is sizing up his line on the approach ...
<a href="https://ibb.co/mcY6Ze"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/i3Er0K/P1080599.jpg" alt="P1080599" border="0"></a>
This pair show why the Gooseneck is such a great viewing spot. The climb up from Ramsey is a challenge for the less experienced or bikes which are a bit short of oomph, so nip and tuck is common.
<a href="https://ibb.co/m9hVSz"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/cdiFue/P1080590.jpg" alt="P1080590" border="0"></a>
And this guy is taking the line used by most, but I've seen others way over to the right, pretty much in the gutter!
<a href="https://ibb.co/isBM0K"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/dbqs7z/P1080600.jpg" alt="P1080600" border="0"></a>
It was the anniversary of Mike Hailwood's comeback 1978 TT win on the Sports Motorcycles Ducati 900 and John McGuinness did a demo lap and waved to yours truly. Oh yes he did!
<a href="https://ibb.co/byRtEe"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/mGivSz/P1080622.jpg" alt="P1080622" border="0"></a>
5 years ago, I responded to a post on this very forum. A bunch of old pals had a vacancy on their annual pilgrimage to the Manx Grand Prix (now the Festival of Motorcycling). I got in a reply quicker than a cat hightails it out of Glenshee! I passed the interview and survived the cut after the first year. Since then, its become an annual event to watch the racing, talk bollox, drink pints of Okell's and malt whisky and laugh a lot. An awful lot. Hence the title of the thread, which is the punch line of one of Mick's (commis chef and nailer in chief of the Mountain Mile) true stories. I've cried laughing at some of Mick's stories ...
This year, the formula was the usual one: Chef Bob in charge of the grub with Mick to assist and the rest of us pitching in as bottle washers and servers and just as many laughs. The racing was as good but the weather and maybe other events seem to have put a bit of a downer on things? Popular spectating spots seemed to be a little less thronged and really bad weather put the mockers on the usual festival event at Jurby on the Sunday.
Anyway, I'll post a few pics and others who were on the trip will doubtless add a few also. Two, at least are on the forum. Oh, Mick's tale? The age range of the group is actually not very typical of bikers these days in that there are a couple of non geriatric members being nurtured carefully, but the rest of us are coffin dodgers. Mick attended a funeral in an unfamilar town (on his bike) and had to pull over and ask a local how he could get to the crem?
"Tha has to dee furst" says the chap. Dead pan!
I'll kick things off with a few pics taken at the Gooseneck. I'm always surprised at the variation in lines taken there. This guy is sizing up his line on the approach ...
<a href="https://ibb.co/mcY6Ze"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/i3Er0K/P1080599.jpg" alt="P1080599" border="0"></a>
This pair show why the Gooseneck is such a great viewing spot. The climb up from Ramsey is a challenge for the less experienced or bikes which are a bit short of oomph, so nip and tuck is common.
<a href="https://ibb.co/m9hVSz"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/cdiFue/P1080590.jpg" alt="P1080590" border="0"></a>
And this guy is taking the line used by most, but I've seen others way over to the right, pretty much in the gutter!
<a href="https://ibb.co/isBM0K"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/dbqs7z/P1080600.jpg" alt="P1080600" border="0"></a>
It was the anniversary of Mike Hailwood's comeback 1978 TT win on the Sports Motorcycles Ducati 900 and John McGuinness did a demo lap and waved to yours truly. Oh yes he did!
<a href="https://ibb.co/byRtEe"><img src="https://preview.ibb.co/mGivSz/P1080622.jpg" alt="P1080622" border="0"></a>