Martin Jessopp
In his last column for us this year, Martin tells of his TT wows and TT woes. It’s been emotional, dude!
Rounding up all the good and bad bits from the TT.
Last month, as the magazine was going to press, I was getting ready for the biggest motorcycle race in the world; the Senior TT. All the nerves that slowly faded away throughout race week came back on Friday morning. I was more nervous that day than any other in my life. It was a realisation that I was about to take on the Senior.
We had the Lightweight TT in the morning, which took my mind off the big race. I’d never even sat on one before the NW200 this year, but the VRS Racing ER-6 was so much fun to ride. You’re bouncing off the hedges and walls on a superbike, but the supertwin lets you think about things a bit more.
I started off 26th and managed to claw myself up to 11th spot, grabbing a silver replica that I was over the moon with. And we had one of the fastest pit stops – my boys did a mint job with a splash and dash as you don’t have to change tyres on the twin. I also did a 114mph lap, so I was right up there in the times. I actually crossed the line in 10th but by the time I went up on stage to collect my award, I’d been handed 11th...
Then it was time for the big daddy race. I was starting way down the order and that meant overtaking lots of riders on the first lap. I still clocked a 123mph lap from a standing start, so I was pleased with that.
When I came in for the pit stop, we made a bit of a fudge job. The fuel cap didn’t go on properly so I had to stop down at Bradden Bridge two miles down the road in to fix it. That wasn’t ideal...
As I was going faster, the BMW was bucking and weaving. I was going much quicker than I was in practice, and the bike starts to change as you’re riding it differently.
Towards the end of lap three on one of the slowest corners on the track as you come out of Governors Dip, I touched a tiny bit of damp under the trees. I was being a bit greedy, trying to use all of the track to get good drive onto the start straight (I had the third fastest speed trap time from the race) but, er, exited the corner a couple of feet above the bike!
That was that. I went up the road, hit a kerb and that chucked me into the wall. I had a big old whack to my head and broke my scapula (at the back of my shoulder). I’m sure I’m about three inches shorter than I’ve ever been because I went into the wall and pushed my neck down.
I’m not so angry about crashing, it’s just frustrating I didn’t get the chance to put a true flying lap in. You either start or have to pit on any other lap, so to not complete that last lap was gutting. I reckon I was on for a 127mph.
Peter Hickman had an awesome week and raised the bar again. I knew straight away when we first started coming over here that his knowledge of the circuit was incredible. I’m not going to stand here and say I would have done a 129mph lap, but I think I was good to do 127mph.
So there I was, laid in hospital. I had William Dunlop one side of me and Horst Saiger on the other. They wanted to keep me in overnight but I wanted to get out and collect my awards, plus have a night on the beers with the boys! So I signed the forms and walked out.
I’ll be back for Brands BSB but I think I’ve done a little bit too much too soon. I was back in the gym within two weeks and fucked the sling off after eight days. At the minute, however, it’s not making any progress so I’m taking things a bit easier now!
Hopefully, I’ll be back at the TT next year. Short circuit racing is priority, but I don’t know what I’m doing in 2015 yet. I always used to treat the roads like holiday races, just a bit of fun. When I had Easton or Rutter as my teammates, I’d go along because the team was going. But then I had a podium at Macau (with a broken leg) and qualified front row at the NW200, so I was taking it a bit more seriously, rightly so!
that was that. i went up the road, hit a kerb and was chucked into a wall...”