I FOR ONE CAN SEE WHERE DAVID US COMING FROM, I CAN REMBER ONE PARTICULATLY BAD YEAR THAT AFFECTED ME AND I WAS GLAD TO GET AWAT FROM THE ISLAND, DETERMINED NEVER TO RETURN, HOWEVER THE COMPELLING URGE THAT GRIPS MOST OF US MEANT I WAS BACK AGAIN FOR THE FOLLOWING YEAR AND MANY THEREAFTER.
AT THIS TIME LIKR DAVID I FEEL IT WOULD BE MOST INAPROPRIATE TO POST MY FULL OPINIONS.

HOWEVER I WOULD REFLECT ON SOUND ADVICE I WAS GIVEN WHEN WISHING TO ENTER MY FIRST MGP BEING MINDFUL OF THE FACT THAT I WAS PROBABLY DOING TWENTY RACE MEETINGS BETWEEN THE START OF THE SEAN AND THE MGPWITH A 125, 250 AND 500, SUFFICIENT TO GIVE ME TEN TT COURSE LICENCES.

ALBERT MOULE A VASTLY EXPERIENCED TT AND IRISH ROAD RACER PLUS A CONTINENTAL CIRCUS GP RIDER ADVISED ME TO FORGET THE 500 AND JUST DO THE 250 AND LEARN THE COURSE ANOTHER YEAR WILL DO FOR THE 500, THE ADVICE WAS SUPPORTED BY TM JACK HARDING AND TT RIDER PAT WALSH, IT WAS SOUND ADVICE, NO 125 MGP THEN.

FURTHER ADVICE WAS GIVEN TO ME BY TERRY SHEPHERD AT THE MANX, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO RIDE WITHIN YOUR LIMIT AND MAKE SURE YOU ARE ABLE TO DRIVE YOUR OWN VAN BACK ON THE BOAT AND COME BACK NEXT YEAR.

SOMETHING THAT WAS ALWAYS TALKED ABOUT YEARS AGO WAS GETTING TT COURSE FIT, TOTALLY DIFFERENT FROM RACING SHORTS, AND USING THE FIRST FEW PRACTICE SESSIONS TO ACHIEVE THAT, THURSDAY AFTERNOON WAS THE TIME TO BE REALLY PUTTING THE HAMMER DOWN.

THE TRAGIC INCIDENT AT KIRKMICHEAL ON THE FIRST LAP OF PRACTICE TWO YEARS AGO INVOLVING A NEWCOMER ON A SUPERBIKE HAS COMCERNED ME EVER SINCE, I ASK MYSELF SHOULD A NEWCOMER WITH NO PREVIOUS EXPERINCE OF THE TT BE ON SUCH A MACHINE WITH THE NOW VERY LIMITED PRACTICE, MISTAKES ARE MADE WHEN UNDER EXTREME PRESSURE TO QUALIFY ON SUCH A MACHINE WITH LIMITED COURSE KNOWLEDGE AND AND TIME TO ACHIEVE QUALIFYING SPEEDS.

WE ALL KNOW THAT THE TT COURSE LICENCE IS A FARCE IF NOT DOWNRIGHT DANGEROUS SIX CAR PARK RACES, OR EVEN HILL CLIMBS IS RIDICULOUS TO SAY IT IS SUFFICIENT FOPR A RIDER TO RACE A MISSILE AROUMD THE MOUNTAIN, BUT THEN WHO AM i TWO JUDGE WITH OVER 4O STARTS ON EVERY SINGLE CLASS EXCEPY SIDECARS AND A FEW FIRST SIX PLACES THE SUITS WHO HAVE NEVER THROWN A LEG OVER A RACING IN THEIR LIVES MUST BE RIGHT.