Behind the scenes at the Isle of Man TT races

I've been collecting various 'behind the scenes' IOM TT images over the past few months and have finally had the time to put a post together. Featuring several well known faces - plus some not so well known, the images provide a look at the famous TT races form a different perspective. Racing was done on a shoestring budget and many local garages and stable blocks were transformed into both privateer and works garages for the duration of the TT races.

Geoff Tanner

MV Agusta three cylinder at Manx GP

Fantastic video of the awesome sounding MV Agusta three cylinder Grand Prix machine filmed at Hilberry on the Isle of Man - as ridden by Giacomo Agostini between 1966 and 1973... Turn up the volume!

Blue NSU racer

Norton International - Norwegian style

My lovely Norwegian friend Wenche (pronounced Ven-ka) trying the '37 Norton Inter for size.

Frank Chatokhine - British Motorcycle Specialist

Lansdowne Historic Grand Prix - Brands Hatch

Brilliant footage from Mike Russel racing a Manx Norton at Brands Hatch in the hotly-contested Lansdowne British Historic Grand Prix. This film provides a genuine rider's eye view of vintage bike racing..

Goodwood Revival 2011

Some shots of this year's Goodwood Revival event. There are very few other events that feature so many impressive bikes, cars and aeroplanes. The scramblers parade at the end of the day was a real treat.

The whole event is a celebration of vintage motor racing that took place before 1966 at the West Sussex track.

The Worlds Fastest Velocette

Ever wondered what the worlds fastest Velocette looked like? Well wonder no more- Stuart Hooper with his single-cylinder streamliner 750cc Velo can reach in excess of 150mph. Here he is warming up and pulling away at Lake Gairdener in 2009. For more info browse his excellent www.worldsfastestvelocette.com site.

Biker's Classic at Spa Francorchamps

Spa Francorchamps with a Manx Norton. Is there a better combination for a weekend of track riding?  The annual Biker's Classic is definitely an event to put in the calendar for next year if you've never been before. The track itself is simply wonderful. Consisting of 4.35 miles of fast, wide tarmac draped over the rolling hills of the Ardenne Forest, Spa is steeped in history and to this day is the home of the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix and the Spa 24 Hours.

No longer used for international bike events, the track once hosted thousands and thousands of bike fans  keen to watch the likes of GP stars Phil Hill, Mike Hailwood and Giacomo Agostini.

The Bikers Classic event is made up out of three sections. For most mere mortals it is a three day track day for classic sports and racing bikes. On Saturday night a four hour endurance race takes place for 1970s & 80s Superbikes. Also, throughout the weekend, the GP class provides spectators the opportunity to witness past heroes take to the track on some of the most valuable and rarest machinery ever made.

This year we made a base with several members of the Norton Owners Club, all aboard either 350 or 500 Manx Nortons and all keen to sample the delights and challenges Spa has to offer.

Due to the long straights and fast downhill sections TT gearing was the order of the day, although a windy uphill access road made the journey up to the new F1 pit lane holding area a lesson in clutch and traffic management!

We were running Avon Roadrider race tyres which once warm provide tonnes of grip and having raced with them at Pembrey in the rain, feel confident in their grip levels. They are very pressure sensitive though- 27/28 psi measured cold seemed to feel best.

The Manx I was riding is owned my mechanic and uses a '54 frame and '59 350 engine, it's the one in the pictures with an unpainted short circuit tank. Originally delivered to Sweden the machine was sourced from Ireland. I'd like to think it's possible that it raced at Spa before at some point during it's journey to Dublin...? Who knows. The machine ran well, albeit requiring slight fettling between track sessions. At one point we noticed a crack in the alloy primary chain guard. Following a quick dig around in the van we found an old VW Beetle exhaust mount that just happened to be the perfect length to act as a replacement support. On it went and there it stayed all weekend!

Overall I completed about 25 laps of the circuit and with a little rain on Friday, some much faster than others. The scenery at Spa is beautiful and although concentrating on the job in hand, the famous forest backdrop makes for exhilarating riding. Roaring down the old start/finish straight up against the wall into Eau Rouge, will stay with me for a quite few years yet!

The long van journey was very much worth it and the weekend wouldn't have been possible without my trusty mechanic. So a final thank you goes out to him and for the support of the rest of the NOC for one of the best biking weekends. EVER.

The video below features two laps taken on-board the 350 Manx, apologies for the poor sound quality..

VIDEO: Russell Wright - Vincent Black Lighting Land Speed Record

Brilliant period film clearly produced by Avon tyres surrounding Russell Wright's attempt at breaking several motorcycle land speed records.

Norton Domi-Racer on Ebay

I spotted this interesting looking '59 framed Domi-Racer on Ebay this evening, how many have you seen painted green? Yours for £5,500.

The fibreglass tank would have to go! Some tasty parts though.

The owner states that the '53 motor comes with high compression, large valves and an alloy barrel. There is also a belt primary drive conversion and a close ratio 3rd gear.

Cadwell Park Trackday with Patracking

Before next week's BHR race at Cadwell Park I decided to get take the opportunity to gain a day of valuable track time by hiring an immaculately prepared Honda CBR600RR track bike from Patracking, a UK track bike hire company run and owned by Patrick Tomkinson.

Without having to worry about keeping the engine running or over revving the engine and bending a valve, riding the Honda allowed me to concentrate on learning the track properly. Modern day 600cc sports bikes need to be kept on the boil to extract the full performance but they can still surprise a novice.

I was soon up to speed quickly learning to trust the seemingly endless grip and impressive turn of speed. My thanks goes to Patrick for providing a bike very last minute. For more information visit Patracking.

VIDEO: Becoming a club racer with Bob McIntyre

Excellent period footage including some early on-bike shots featuring Bob McIntyre and Joe Potts.

First time out: Norton Manx 350

Based around a 1954 chassis and a later '59 350cc engine, the Manx is in near standard form apart from the modern silencer helping it pass strict noise regulations at many smaller race tracks.

The bike will run at Cadwell Park next week in a non-competitive track day in preparation for the Biker's Classic event at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium on July 1st.

With help from Andy Savage the machine now runs very well and should provide a keen novice rider with a few thrills around the hopefully sunny Lincolnshire 'mini-Nurburgring'. If all goes well this season, a possible belt primary drive and 5/6 speed conversion could be on the cards for next year.

As it's my first time riding the Manx in (relative) anger I have also booked some valuable tuition provided by Club MSV at Cadwell to help me with racing lines and to spot any areas of my riding showing room for improvement.

The full report from Cadwell will follow.