Isle of Man TT 2002

Preparation

In the beginning of 2001 I bought a Yamaha FZR 400 RR SP from Bob Pearson. It had previously been ridden at the TT, by Nick Jefferies and Dennis Gallagher rode it as a second bike on the Island in 2000. I initially used it for the Scottish Championship in 2001, but the more the season progressed, the more I thought about the bikes ability and what I wanted to achieve in the future. I had a feeling that road circuits might suit me better as it was difficult getting the SP bike with its long first gear, off the start line and my first corners were not perfect.

As part of the Barking Spider Team; consisting of Sponsor Gordon and Mechanic Neil, I let them know in July, that I wanted to compete in the 2002 TT races.

It was my goal to qualify and complete the race, as it takes at least 3 years to learn the course. It would be a major achievement if I could do this, not to mention the dream of my motorcycling career.

This was the beginning of a lot of preparation. It is not a race, which can be completed single handed, as you will read later. So at an early stage the team members were agreed as Neil, Gordon and Jenny (Neil’s wife).

The TT races are a type of endurance race, completely different to Short circuits:

  TT Mountain Circuit Short Circuits (average)
Length (miles) 37 3/4 ~1.5 - 2
Average Speed (400cc) ~96mph ~80mph
Top Speed (400cc) ~140mph ~110mph
Race Time ~110minutes ~10minutes
Surface Public Roads Purpose built race surface
Runoff NONE Gravel traps/grass

You have to qualify to be allowed to race, newcomers are allowed 90seconds extra but if they use this they must wear an orange top, to alert the more experienced riders that they may be slower.
It demands an extremely high degree of preparation for both rider and machine:
The machine has to be able to withstand the physical battering of the sometimes extremely rough/bumpy surface and the rider has to be in a condition to concentrate fully for the entire length of the race and be also to physically complete the race.

I firstly had to attain the level of International Race License; requiring a certain level of results in my races at different circuits to get the status of National Race License, to be held for 1 year. Then I had to pass a medical and sight test. Due to time constraints I only got my International License in January 2002. So the months up to this were a little nervous to say the least.

With the ferry booked and everything well on the way to preparation, we had to assume the application (sent in January) had been accepted, as the official answer is only given in April.

Ex European Supersport Champion and veteran of the TT; Howard Selby had agreed to strip and rebuild the motor in his spare time. We spent the winter checking the cycle parts, changing wheel bearings etc and getting the bodywork painted.

We also made a few modifications such as commissioning and using the original flatslide carbs (which give better response and top end) for this Herbie (King of Carbs) and drag racer worked wonders from some decidedly dodgy carb set up advice.

My brother’s colleague (Nick Dancer) had an FZR 400 RR SP sitting in his garage at home in Southampton and said I could use it as a spare bike, so I drove to Southampton with Rab and we picked it up in February.

Before the TT however we had 6 short circuit meetings to shake off the cobwebs and get the bike as well set up as possible. Although suspension and jetting is extremely difficult to set up for the island as there are so many different surfaces and altitude changes. For the suspension, Maxton were a great help.

The Acceptance came quite unexpectedly one day at the end of April and I instantly began to shake with nerves.

From then to our sailing date it felt like time just flew.

24/05/02
We left for Heysham early and arrived in good time. The crossing was NOT pleasant (force 8-9 gales meant there was nowhere to go without seeing hardened racers reduced to very green faced vomiting heaps).
It took over 41/2 hours to get over to Douglas in some of the worst conditions I have ever experienced at sea and we arrived over 1 hour late.
The plan was, I could just make it to signing on and scrutineering to allow me to get out in the first practice the following morning at 5:15am. So time was tight; I had to attend a meeting for newcomers, sign on, have the bike scrutineered and go on a newcomers tour of the course before being allowed out.
As it worked out we just didn’t have time and only managed to find the very last camping place in the paddock with a power hookup (through the mud which marooned so many heavily laden vans as they arrived from the ferry).
So all we managed was to set the trailer tent up and brave out the wind and rain that night.
To be perfectly honest I didn’t really fancy going out at 5:15 am in wind and rain, for my first ever practice…..on Pirelli Super Corsa Tyres (which are basically cut slicks anyway). It was a little too daunting.
So we had and early night.

25/05/02
It was also an early morning, because obviously some people were ready to go out and engines were being warmed up at 4am ready for scrutineering (in the dark and rain) I was glad I didn’t get out this morning.

At a more civilised hour we got up and unpacked the mobile garage, set it up (only for it nearly to be blown clean over the trailer tent). Several tie down straps and a tow rope later, the garage was stable…ish. (we would have to move it more than once in the next days due to high winds from changing directions).
However, with the bike out and the spare tyres and tools sorted out in the garage, I felt more settled and headed off to scrutineering. Once the bike has passed scrutineering it must remain In the Parc Ferme, if it is taken out, it must be re-scrutineered. This rule is strictly enforced, although fuel and tyres may be taken in to the area.

I attended the newcomers briefing, which basically informs of some very important points such as; pit lane entry/exit during practice for road positioning. There can be people leaving to go out to practice, people coming in and people on a flying lap, so it is very important to have a system to prevent collisions.

Then all the newcomers went on a “bus tour” with an experienced racer, to explain the various areas to be careful of on the circuit. Although this made my legs turn to jelly as he recounted where Mick Grant collided with a rider in Glen Helen resulting in the other rider dying. There were lighter notes on the tour though, such as the times where Ken Inwood (now Tyre Man) a few decades ago, went straight into the field at Sulby Bridge, only to rejoin after kicking the handlebars straight again..

After all this I spent the afternoon “relaxing” and waiting to go out on my first practice.

Evening practice was at 6:15pm and we were first out, together with the 600s and 125s.
I have never been so scared before in all my life, waiting the lifetime of 15minutes before being allowed out onto the road to line up for practice.
I didn’t know it at the time but Neil was the same.
I was going out for the first time on the greatest road racing circuit in the world……from a standing start with a full tank of petrol and cold tyres…..to head off down Bray Hill, over a blind summit at over 130mph……..No bloody wonder I was scared.

It’s amazing what adrenaline can do though.

As soon as I was set off (paired with a 600) my brain automatically switched onto RACE mode. I admit I did roll back the throttle a little going through the dip at the bottom of Bray Hill.

Everything was different to how I had imagined it:

I had seen several videos (over and over) to help me prepare. I had even been round and round the course in February to try to familiarise myself (and thought I had a rough idea where I was going)…..forget it!….at these speeds everything has to be re mapped in your brain.
I’l spare more adrenaline fired ranting which I could gladly give for each and every corner or jump or surface change.
After my first lap, I previously thought maybe I should come in and go over everything…..NO CHANCE…after 1 lap I just wanted MORE.
When I did come in after my 2 laps (which is all you can manage within practice time) I had a grin from ear to ear and I was buzzing.

To qualify for the race as a newcomer I had to complete the course within 25 minutes (average speed of almost 96mph). All those in my class who had raced at the TT before, had to qualify within 23min 30 secs.

My times for the first two laps were:

26mins 19 secs ave 86.01mph
25mins 29 secs ave 88.79mph

To think that I was 29 secs from qualifying on my second ever lap was very confindence inspiring to say the least.

I had no complaints about the suspension or Gearing, although we made some small changes. Reducing the compression damping slightly and going down a tooth on the back sprocket as the bike was close to revving out coming down the mountain.

[Following the death of Joey Dunlop, there was a lot of talk from the large motorcycle manufacturers and magazines that a sponsorship fund would be set up. Nothing ever happened.

As a Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) Member for 4 years I receive Emails of the latest news and one day during the winter a mail arrived, informing that MAG Sport would be initiating a Joey Dunlop Memorial Sponsorship Fund for TT riders.

The criteria were:
You had to be a member of MAG for at least 2 years.
It had to be your first TT
On the basis of this and your previous racing pedigree a winner would receive £500 as sponsorship.
As someone who holds great respect for Joey Dunlop and his achievements (both on and off the track) I applied.]

So imagine how excited I felt when I received a phone call from MAG Sports Manx representative Yvonne Brown to tell me that she would like to come down to the paddock and speak to me.

Yvonne and her husband Dave (ex Auto 66, Formula 400 Champion) came down to our muddy little area of the paddock and Yvonne told me that I had won. Waouw !!!
What an honour !!
This was the first ever sponsorship of its kind, in memory of a man I had the utmost respect for, and I had won it! I was so bloody honoured !
So we arranged for some MAG Sport logos on the side of the fairing and Yvonne prepared a press release. I must admit however, I felt the pressure was on a bit. I really wanted to qualify now I had something to live up to. Dave and Yvonne were great, we met them often during the week, went to the MAG meeting and they were a great help with some of the details which help a lot when you’re a first timer.

26/05/02
There was no practice on Sunday, this is tradition on the island. Neither is there racing.
We spent most of the day Checking the bike over. They say “if it can come loose or rattle off, it will at the TT” and more then once we have had to tighten even engine mounts.
It is imperative to safety that everything is checked and if it can be lockwired, it should be. It became a ritual after every practice to do the “strip and Check”

Later we went for a couple of laps in the van just to get a better idea of where things are and look at some areas where I was particularly…er…..slow. Course knowledge is so important. Actually being higher up in a van lets you see more, so it was a great help.

27/05/02
I have never had to do something so extreme…so early in the morning. Early morning practice consists of scrutineering at 4am and practice at 5:15am. God I was tired.

Practice went fine, although I found it difficult to keep my concentration for so long.

My times were only marginally faster, which got me a little concerned:

Lap 1 25mins 32 secs ave 88.68mph
Lap 2 25 mins 27 secs ave 88.95mph

There were some damp/wet patches at the back of the island though.

Evening Practice

Lap 1 24 mins 15 secs ave93.3mph
Lap 2 24 mins 04 secs ave 94.05mph

Conditions were good here, and I had bloody qualified……..I cut almost 1 ½ minutes off my am time.
This was cause for a celebration and I broke my no drink rule, so we could go out and have a wee drink that night.

28/05/02
No Practice
We did more laps of the course in the van and I studied the course book I had borrowed from Bob Pearson, which was really good to use as a guide. Again it helps a lot to reconnoitre the course in this way, focussing on areas which need it.

29/05/02
Good excuse for not going out in the morning practice…it was wet. Besides Ken Inwood had said that it was an inhuman time to practice….I agree. I’m not convinced I’m a morning person……

Evening practice saw the bike with fresh oil and a slight increase of 1mm on the rear spring.
The first lap was good, only a little dampness coming down the mountain, however as I came up onto the pit straight, I saw a big rain cloud. My instincts told me to pull in and only do one lap, but I felt I had to beat this little demon I have, which hates the wet, so I kept going. I could almost feel Neil’s thoughts burning into the back of my head “ Oh no…come in ….don’t go on in the rain” …
It was worse than I thought. Even before I got to Quarter bridge there was a huge downpour.
I was of course on the Super Corsas, which are just not cut out for this (even although we had extra cuts put in them earlier) they are not designed to shift as much water.
So my first wee slide was at Quarterbridge. The next was more substantial, coming through Union Mills the surface changed and there was a lot of standing water. Here I got quite a big slide even just cracking the throttle very gently. That was warning enough for me and I took it very easy for the rest of the lap. There was a lot of water all round the course.

Lap 1 23mins 56 secs ave 94.88mph (dry)
Lap 2 29mins 32 secs ave 76.63mph (wet)

30/05/02
Just went out for evening practice, although I still felt our extra little laps in the van were helping a lot.

The wind was quite strong along the straight to Ballacraine, so we went down to 43 teeth on the rear sprocket, this proved to be very wise and worked perfectly, giving just s little bit more top end. It did however sacrifice a little up the mountain mile.

Lap 1 24mins 04 secs ave 94.05mph
Lap 2 23mins 46 secs ave 95.24mph

Getting better…..

31/05/02
Did not go out for morning practice, only 8* 400’s did.

The day went again with bike checks and more driving round in the van.

Evening Practice
(Put the new tyres on to scrub them in for the race)
It was pretty much dry all the way round. Things just seemed to flow and this had been my goal for the day (to flow). OK it sounds a bit sissy, but it works.

Lap 1 23 mins 11 secs ave 97.64
Lap 2 22mins 36 secs ave 100.14mph

This was well above what I had expected. Not only had I qualified within the newcomers time, but I had done it almost 1 minute inside the standard time. AND I had done a 100mph lap of the TT course.

This did call for some celebration (I wasn’t racing for 2 days so we had a few beers)

01/06/02
This was our first real day off and we used it to our advantage by watching the F1 TT from Bungalow (on the Mountain). The racing was excellent and we managed to see our friends Andy Laidlow and Darren Dogdson get 10th in the Sidecar A race.

02/06/02 Mad Sunday
The morning went with bike preparation for the race. We gave the engine new oil and filter for the 3rd time.

Later on in the day, after the crowds of bikes had dwindled, we did another lap in the van to fresh up my course knowledge. It was strange to hear Jenny say that each time I went round in the van, she could hear the difference in my speeds and gears as I gained confidence in the track (I thought I was just being a nerd, telling them what I was doing at each corner, but it was actually very useful)

03/06/02 Race Day
Despite the usual party animals in the camping site down from the paddock, coming home from Bushys at 3am, I slept very well.
The weather was the only thing that kept me up as the rain battered down, dampening my enthusiasm, at the prospect of running a wet race. At 8am it was still raining.
As the weather however had been previously in practice week, it stopped raining and began to brighten up soon after.
We had the bike up to scrutineering by 8am. It had the Pirelli dry tyres on, but as the road was still very wet, we splashed out on a Metzeler Rensport wet tyre for the front. Just as a bit of insurance.

Neil and Gordon went up to check and fill the fuelling rig in the pit lane and Jenny and me went through the visor clean and drink procedure.

The nerves were beginning to build as we came down from the Parc Ferme.
We heard the race had been put back 30mins to let the course dry out a little more and let the cloud clear off the mountain.
By the time we were called up to warm the engines (45 mins before start) the road was drying out fast.So we left the Pirelli’s on the bike.

At 15 mins before start, we were as ready as we would be and we pushed up onto the road to line up. This must have been the longest 15 minutes of my life.

I was 31st to set off and seeing the other bikes take off, in front was such a sight, really making the adrenaline pump.
Before I Knew it I was off down Bray hill for the first time, hammering over the blind summit and down the dip at the bottom at over 120mph.

There were a lot of flags out at the marshal’s posts for damp areas under trees and where the wind had not dried the road. At these I decided to play safe and rolled off the throttle.
On the second lap these became less throughout the course as the conditions became even better, so I began to get faster.

I kept thinking to myself “remember the fuel stop” I couldn’t get much further than the end of the pit lane if I didn’t stop for fuel at the end of lap 2.

Coming into the STOP box, I had the routine in my head; brake to a stop, foot down and whenever the forks began to rise…GO..straight to my pit, which was only about 10m down.
The bike however cut out and despite the over energetic attempts of a marshall to push me, I got started and darted into the pit stop. The fuelling cleaning and watering took under 30 secs. Neil , Gordon and Jenny excelled themselves.

Then I was being pushed out by Gordon to rejoin the race, having caught time up on the guys who I had entered the pit with.

My Third lap seemed to be a bit ragged. I missed some apexes and found it difficult getting into a groove. It wasn’t bad, but it culminated at Graham Memorial corner, when I went in a little hot and decided to roll off the throttle. The slight richness of the carbs made the bike run on and I ran just wide enough to graze the banking.

I regard this as my warning from the course to give it full respect.

Coming down into Douglas again I had got my concentration back to 100% and had decided that smooth was the only way I was going to do this well. It was the way I had got faster in practice and sure enough in my 4th (final lap) I felt very smooth throughout.

The feeling coming across the line on that last lap was very, very intense. I had completed a TT race.

It seemed that I had the perfect amount of fuel to do it too. As I was coming back up the path to the pit, the bike went on to 3 cylinders as it began to run out of fuel.

At the presentation I received the finishers medal all who finish the race get. And I also got the medal for the best newcomer in my class. OK I was the only one, but with a 100.14 mph lap under my belt, I was in no doubt I had earned it.

Back next year?……………..YOU BET !

Duncan