Wednesday brought a full session of practice for TT 2024; with all classes out on the 37.73 miles of the Mountain Circuit. It was unseasonably cold and there was a strong north-westerly wind for the riders to contend with. It was bright at Ballaugh Bridge at the start of the session but as it progressed the cloud started to roll in and it was bordering on dark when the sidecars reached us.
Dean Harrison and Jamie Coward were first to leave the Grandstand. Coward (KTS Honda) was the first to jump the famous hump-backed bridge at Ballaugh. James Hillier (KTF Honda) was next; then it was Dean Harrison on the factory Honda. Next to pass us was Davey Todd on the Milwaukee BMW; he produced a fine jump; as befits a top class moto-cross rider. Next through were Ian Hutchinson on the Milenco Padgett Honda; Josh Brookes was close behind on the FHO BMW. Then it was 23 times winner John McGuinness on his Honda and Rob Hodson (SMT Honda); both putting plenty of air under his machine and producing a nice rear wheel landing. Mike Browne took the distance award on his Aprilia. Peter Hickman and Davo Johnson used the fast and flat method; both impressive. Michael Dunlop and Shaun Anderson gave us front wheel landings. The action was excellent for the fairly large crowd gathered either side of the track. Phil Crowe gave us a high jump and his style was like that of a ski jumper; great to watch. South Africa’s Allan Venter gave a neat rear wheel touchdown whilst Julian Trummer, the fastest European in the history of the event followed the Dunlop model.
The second lap action was just as fast and furious, with the riders putting in some impressive lap speeds in the far from ideal conditions. Michael Dunlop held the tightest line past the bus shelter, his shoulder brushing the banners fluttering on the wall of the Raven Hotel car park. At the end of the session, it was Davey Todd who topped both the Superbike and Superstock leader boards at 131.821mph and 130.439mph respectively. Dunlop was second in the Superbikes at 131.729mph with Hickman third at 130.804mph. John McGuinness and Josh Brookes lapped at over 129mph. Hickman lapped at 129.723mph on the stocker, with Conor Cummins third at 129.286mph; he loves this bike and never shows his full hand in practice.
The first two Supersport riders to reach us in part 2 of the sessions were Mikey Evans and Mike Browne; both rapid and neat through the village. Once again, we were treated to excellent action; including a couple of interesting overtaking manoeuvres on the bridge itself. That said; there was nothing that caused one of the sharp intakes of breath often heard here. At the end of the session, it was class supremo Michael Dunlop who topped the charts at 126.917mph; Jamie Coward was second at 125.674mph with Davey Todd third on the Ducati. Dean Harrison and Paul Jordan were not far behind.
Pierre-Yves Bian and Joe Yeardsley led the way on the first lap in the Supertwins before Coward at 118.814mph, Hickman at 118.851mph and Browne at 118.650mph upped the pace on lap 2. This is shaping up to be a very tightly contested race; and the one with most variety of machinery.
The sidecars were last away in cold overcast conditions; the upside being that there was no strobe effect from the lowering sun. Pete founds / Jevan Walmsley were first to skim over the famous old bridge. Next were Ryan and Callum Crowe; they passed Founds going into Hillberry and set the best lap of the session at 118.814mph; their best ever. They parked the machine; but others continued for another lap; Founds upped his speed to 117.873mph whilst Ben Birchall / Kevin Rousseau snatched second with 118.271mph. The returning Lee Crawford and Scott Hardie are settling back in nicely; they were fourth. The session was ended with the red flag due to an accident at Bishopscourt involving newcomers Chris Schofield and Tom Dawkins. They were flown to hospital; thankfully Dawkins is out of hospital and Scholfield is recovering well from punctured lungs and a bruised liver.
Thursday will see another evening session, if the mist hugging the mountain section clears; if not some rescheduling is inevitable for the rest of the meeting.