No racing the next day, however it was Mad Sunday. A day spent riding and enjoying the island, despite only having a VT500. Being able to ride the course is another part of what makes the TT unique for me. The lifting of limits over the mountain course is a really nice touch, even if the consequences can be fatal on occasions.

During the visit I was really impressed with the attitude of the locals towards the bikers. Throughout the UK at that time it was pretty normal for groups of bikers to be treated at best with a certain amount of nervousness, yet on the island we seemed to be regarded as welcome clients and customers. I hope this is still the same now as it was then.

We stayed on one of the guest house hotels on the seafront at Douglas. It had a somewhat quaint, rather faded glory feel to it. I seem to remember the heating wasn't up to much, being unable to dry out most of my wet weather gear throughout the stay! The guys I went with were more into brit bikes than me, one of them even brought his one-piece overalls to do some repairs on his BSA while we were there: