One of the last real races left as far as I'm concerned. It's pretty much the same race as when they started using the mountain course in 1911. Walls, fences, potholes, no runoff anywhere. Dangerous- sure. But all the riders know it, and its not like most of these guys are multi-millionaires like in MotoGP or other motorsports. In fact, all but the top few riders for the most part still work other jobs in the off season. They don't have to run it, they
want to. Which is what makes it so cool.
I was at the races for a day this year, happened to be the same day that Dereck Brien was killed. The videos, while insane looking, still fall far short of seeing these guys blaze by at 130 mph or better. I was at the bottom of Bray Hill for a few laps, just incredible.
The TT has come under fire for the number of fatalities again this year. 4 racers, and 3 riders/visitors using public roads were killed in 2011. While the deaths are tragic, I'd hate to see major changes to the TT on account of them. These guys know the risks, and very, very few of them even make their living doing this, ie, this isn't something they have to do. Obviously, safety precautions are taken and can probably still be improved without seriously changing the race, and they should be. But I'd really hate to see major course or rules changes to tame the race.
The view from Bray Hill...
