#AndrewCapone

The 2016 Isle of Man TT is done and dusted, and what a fortnight it was! It was a meeting filled with incredible highs and lows, brilliant warm weather throughout, record-setting performances across every class, and, sadly, the death of four competitors. The emotional intensity, fervor, and outright love for the TT and the brave riders who take on the Mountain Course is hard to describe, and quite complex.

The 2016 Isle of Man TT fortnight has come to a close, and thousands of people, from visitors, to racers, to now-unemployed TT umbrella girls are saddened. Our coverage of every race from the 2016 TT can be found at this link. But since my gig is to provide color on the atmosphere and goings on around the Isle of Man, I’m going to pivot now from racing to pork sandwiches.

This week’s video come from our correspondent Andrew Capone on the Isle of Man for the annual TT races. Capone sent us this video of the Suter MMX 500 two-stroke warming up ahead of the Senior TT. “I smell like Castrol R, and I like it,” Capone wrote, when he filed the video.

My ‘office’ on the Isle of Man today is the Creg-ny-Baa pub, one of the best vantage points for race watching on the TT Course. Up here you can see the race bikes come straight down from Kate’s Cottage for over ½ mile, reaching 180 mph, braking hard, then banking over and pinning it again down to Brandish. They’re already 34 miles into a lap, and from the balcony of the Creg, you can see and appreciate the bike’s suspension and motor working in harmony with the brain chemistry of the rider to achieve unthinkable speeds and the smooth, consistent riding required to succeed at the TT.

Arriving on the Isle of Man for the TT during the somewhat quieter Practice Week allows for a visiting motorcyclist to make number of adjustments. Not the least of which is that you are no longer on Earth, that place where most people don’t like you. You are now in a parallel reality, where folks are warm and accommodating to bikers, and the average citizen knows that Bruce Anstey is racing a Honda RC213V-S this year. On the IOM, motorbikes are abundant and admired, the beer and air are pure, meaning-of-life vistas greet you at every turn, and race bikes achieve astounding speeds on public roads. All dogs may go to heaven, but we go here, and it’s better.

With a history dating back to 1907, the Isle of Man TT stands alone as the most exciting event in motorsports. But beyond the racing, it is the total, immersive nature of the fortnight that makes the TT a singular experience. There is nothing virtual about the reality of being on the Isle of Man for the TT.

The 2015 Isle of Man TT festival has been a corker. McGuinness, Hutchinson, Anstey and a host of up and coming riders set lap records and made history. And to cap it, the island has bathed in near-perfect weather. Save for a few days in practice week where the a storm and the misty ‘Cloak of Mannanan’ descended upon the island, wreaking havoc with riders, campers and race organizers, we have been blessed with sunny, warm Northern California-esque conditions for virtually the entire meet.

It takes a few days to settle in after landing on the Isle of Man for the TT races. This is the result of jet lag, the overwhelming assault on the senses that the races provide, and of course, late evenings in the pubs. The best way to clear the head is to get on a motorbike and tour this magical island. I wrote about it last year, and after eight IOM visits and many miles, the absolute pleasure of riding here is undiminished.