classic tt / manx gp 2015 [part five]

the fairy bridge, it's a superstition to say hello to the fairies everytime you cross the famous landmark, a superstition that a lot of the racers, visitors and locals alike believe in, me included. bad luck is often put down to the mythical fairies being 'dissed' by people not saying hello. the bridge itself, the sign and the surrounding trees are festooned with flags, stickers, letters and offerings to the 'little people' it's a place to ask for the fairies to look after your loved ones and to pay respect for fallen friends.
   the last afternoon of our trip see's us down at the calf of man and the sound, a bunch of german visitors turn up on their classic machines, just brilliant, i mean, have you ever, ever seen a 'schuttoff' before? especially ridden by a bloke wearing a barry sheene replica helmet? that's what makes the classic tt so special, just those unexpected gems and laugh-out-loud moments, the big, brummie lads sitting on the bank at sulby, just so funny with that dry, west midland self-deprecating humour, the boys we shared our digs with, two goldstars, a 350 and a 500 and their mate on the rattiest triumph twenty-one in history, the great day at the jurby festival, [some twat making a nuisance of himself on the peaky blinder' all too soon we were waiting on the quayside at stupid 'o clock to catch the ferry back to reality. bikes safely stowed and secured, coffee and we were already making plans for next year.........

classic tt / manx gp 2015 [part four]

the isle of man isn't all about motorcycles, but there's no finer way of seeing this beautiful island.......................

don't shoot shotgun...

my oldest mucker turned up today, 'big' stevie marsh, i opened the door to be greeted with an up and over purdy shotgun,  pointed straight at my chest, 'oi fucker, you been promising me that wheel spacer for the dyna for the past month, what you saying?' kettle on and tea drunk, fired up the lathe and sorted said spacer, 'so steve, you hunting rabbit's or what? 'no mucker, got bigger things than rabbit's in my sight's, you know what i'm saying....'

money greedy - a.k.a tax generator machine.

heard the rumour that derbyshire police were using an un-marked 'builder's van' old, 02 plate, speed camera van as a tax generator, surely not? how could they stoop that low? really? surely they should be out catching robber's, mugger's, burgular's and anyone of a genuine threat to national security rather than parking up in a lay-by on the flat-stick straight out of pikehall heading towards buxton? unfortunately the rumours are true, as i appproached said van i had that little niggle that everything wasn't quite what it seemed, i rolled it off and clocked the toss-pot, love's his job too much, tax-man hunkered down waiting to sting me for a hundred quid and six points, as i passed the van, [seriously, unless you are as paranoid as me, you would have been done, old coffee cup's and newspaper's on the dash, a 'gb' sticker and mirrored windows, auction 'block' paint job and 'patined' bumpers, everything shouted genuine] i slowed enough to take the piss, forty-five-miles-per-hour and just happened to flick 'em the 'english archer's' as i passed, 'no officer, i was just flicking up my visor....' fuck 'em and their law's.... [not my picture, i'm not stupid enough to go back...]

classic tt / manx gp 2015 [part three]

this post isn't strictly in chronological order, first up, just a coupleof pictures from sulby bridge, the preceding straight is probably one of the fastest parts of the course, [home to the famous speed trap that clocks the outrageous speeds of the racers and the equally famous doctored road-sign that advises speed limit 189mph'] i'm no photographer, my pictures taken on a cheap digital camera, but i hope i have captured how close you actually are to the bikes, what they don't catch is the speed, the noise and the smell of the bikes as they brake at the latest possible moment before tipping into the almost ninety-degree right-left handers and accelerating away. the sight of micheal dunlop on the big f1 suzuki, both wheels locked up, fishtailing into that bend will live with me forever, awesome is a very overused word, it really should be reserved for moments like this......... much more genteel was one of the numerous vintage motorcycling club meet's held during the two week long 'festival of motorcycling' the stirring venue was the site of the ancient manx parliament, tynwald hill, over a thousand years old and still used today, the twelve foot high mound of four circles can be traced back to the norsemen who ruled the isle of man and left their indelible mark upon it. the setting is equally dramatic, the steep, wooded hill, 'slieau whallian' providing a dramatic background. a fantastic display of motorcycles to view, lunch eaten watching the continous stream of visitors and quaffing tea from a cardboard cup, perfect..........

hyper-retard.

like all modern motorcycles the hyper-retard is strangled by prohibitive emmision regulations, the manufacturers struggle to maximise performance, but, there is a trade off because the stupid governments decide that you are having too much fun for your own good, we should all be riding around in enviromentally friendly cars, not having fun on lary, dangerous motorcycles, so, catalyser's, [what's a catalyser? mention the 'c'word to the dog's and they are on a mission to kill furry, feline's] no, what we are talking about is a big, heavy, ugly box of bollock's that keep's your emmisions down to some anonymous, boring, fun-killing, brussels beurocrats idea of control, thank god that we still have a way around this prohibitive legislation. i ordered a leo-vinci cat eliminator as soon as i picked up my bike, swapped it out today, fuck me, the oem item is a big heavy unit! dropped it on the scales and it weighs in at seven kilo's! the l.v. de-cat is a fantastic piece of kit, weighs nothing, lovely welding, fitted up easily, the bike just sounds so much better, still running standard silencers, but, just more responsive, ordered a k+n filter and going to open up the standard air-box too, a rexxer tune and an hour on the dyno and i reckon we are somewhere near, fuck 'em and their law's.....