With reference to a lack of noise, I have an idea which is not absolutely original but would make the TTXGP machines identifiable to the ear.

My friend attached a 15cm strip of thin Kevlar to the "swinging arm" on the rear of his mountain bike. This strip is so mounted as to make contact with the rear wheel spokes. As he rides the bike the spokes strike the kevlar producing a loud buzzing noise which rises up and down as he peddles fast or slow.

It is most effective and I think that if the whole TTXGP entry was made to do as he did, we could have some quite unusual sounds off....

Think what it would sound like as the TTXGP machines "plunged" down Bray Hill and also when they buzzed along Cronk-y-Voddee !!

The musical fans at the TT could calculate the speeds by the note of the buzzing ("A sharp" = 25mph !)

I'm all for progress but in this case I feel that this event should have been run on the Southern 100 course (or at Onchan Stadium as my wife suggests ---) with a few laps allowing us to see the machines constantly passing and easy to follow as to placing on the scoreboard.

I remember the 50cc races when there were such awful gaps. Are the TTXGPs setting off at minute intervals or en masse ??

http://www.theiet.org/local/uk/london/ttxgp.cfm