More insaniTTy: monkey men!

Imagine being the monkey in the sidecar.... He can't even lean out all the way on left turns in case the driver gets too close to a wall or something!

I remember reading these guys are at full throttle for something like 90+% of the lap.

200 MPH, dodging trees and stone walls.

Photo: Tony Goldsmith

Isle of Man TT defies comprehension, explanation and physics.   Every year we are left speechless at how riders are willing to hurl themselves between trees, stone walls and houses at speeds which your mind tells you are impossible with little apparent regard for their own mortality.

It's terrifyingly awesome.

We ride on a BMW S1000 RR during practice with possible Top Gear replacement host/Wolverine stand in, Guy Martin.  Duke Video's description claims 200 mph.

No further comments needed.

Crazier than the Isle of Man TT: Irish Road Racing

Imagine the Isle of Man TT but with everyone starting together.   Can't?  Have a look a these videos.

Guy Martin Southern 100 by Alan McKibbin/Flickr

The Isle of Man TT is generally regarded as the peak of motorsport insanity,  riders hurling themselves at 200 mph between trees and stone walls.  But for as crazy as that is, it still essentially a time trial.

Irish National Road Racing is  wheel to wheel combat on narrow country roads, often lined with sidewalks or barbed wire.   It is beyond insane and perpetually on the cusp of being banned.   An almost unknown sport outside of its relatively small fan base, amateur racers with  a complete disdain for runoff area and safety barriers have gathered for years in places like Skerries, Tandragee, Killalane, to race on narrow roads and over big jumps.

"Road racing's dangerous, yeah but it shouldn't be stopped" said Carl Fogarty" if you don't want to do it, don't do it"

Guy Martin  has no time for race tracks "It's all tire walls and safety barriers, I'm not interested,  I like a bit of danger"

Now that's understatement.

TT never gets old

Like classic DTM, the Isle of Man TT never, ever gets old.

When I see those on-boards at 175 mph threading the needle between stone walls, one question always comes to mind: does it not hurt as hell riding 38 mile laps sitting on your giant balls?

Requires more than two balls...

There is a line in Stephen Mitchell's documentary about the Carrera Panamericana :

"Those races had a Hemingway-esque quality that not only defied danger but almost seemed to welcome it"

I think Hemingway would have liked the TT.

The 2012 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy runs from May 26 through June 8.

TTs in 3D now!

Cheap TT jokes aside, I want for someone to arrange a double feature in New York of this, TT3D: Closer to the Edge and the Nürburgring 3D movie, is that too much to ask? They should show the ring movie first though because the TT makes the green hell look positively tame!
( thanks Amadeus for the link)

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TT's in 3D!

At ease fellas, the 2010 TT going on this week, is being filmed in 3D for what will be an awesome theatrical and DVD release, what were you thinking?

Plenty more more goodies for this year's edition, all onboard cameras are now HD and those glorious ultra slow motion shots will be back. A works BMW bike is also running, the first official manufacturer present at the TT for ages.

The Isle of Man TT makes WRC drivers look like accountants. With the top riders lapping at an average...average, speeds of 130 mph(210km/h), the TT is clearly something even beyond even that famous quotation about motor racing, bullfighting and mountain climbing.

As good an excuse as any to watch the clip we put together last year, when Valentino Rossi and Giacomo Agostini paid a visit to the TT, again don't you think?




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