This information is being sent out to all those enquiring about the TT races trip 2010.     Same info has already been to around 20 people, and about a third of these have confirmed their places.

The trip won’t suit everyone.  It’s no frills, and camping – but you get a wonderful, well supported package if you’re the adventurous outdoor type, who wants the full TT experience.

I need a response of “No Thanks” if this isn’t your thing, or, a firm “YES”,  followed by your deposit, if it’s your biking Nirvana.  Then you’re firmly on the TT Races trip.

Hopefully, most items are covered in this document.

Contents of this lengthy tome.

1. Boat tickets
2. Travel arrangements
3. Proposed guest list (names)
4. Accommodation (camping or house)
5. The Package
6. Pricing
7. How to reserve your place
8. Bike shipping
9. Questions

My Ferry tickets for June 2010

Motorcycles

20 bike  & rider motorcycle tickets.

5 bike rider & pillion tickets.  (already, the five bike / rider / pillion tickets, for 10 people, are now taken).  Talk to me if you need a pillion place – there’s maybe a place in the van, or I can probably get an extra pedestrian ticket)

(in other words, 25 motorcycle tickets and 30 people. Plus three in the van)

Sailing out on the Ben-My-Chree from Heysham to Douglas, Friday 4^th June 2010 at 14:15pm.  Arrive in Douglas 17:45pm.   Booking Reference Number Gxxxxxx / 000

Returning from Douglas to Heysham,  Saturday 12^th June at 07:30am.  Arrival in Heysham at approx 12:00 noon.

Support Vehicle  (to carry tents / luggage / tools)

Stuart’s large Iveco bus.   Driver, plus 2 passengers if required.   Booking reference Gxxxxxx / 000

Sailing out,  1 day before the bikes, in order to carry our luggage, and set up camp.  Heysham to Douglas, on the Ben-my-Chree, Thursday 3^rd  June 2010.

Returning on the same day as the bikes.

The Guests

Usually a mixture of people from all around the world.  Perhaps around 50% from the UK, 10-20% from elsewhere within Europe, and the rest from USA / Canada / South Africa / Australia.  Riders from within the UK and Europe tend to use their own bikes.  Others ship them in, or hire something in the UK.  There are no bikes for hire on the Isle of Man.

Travel arrangements

Some UK guests simply meet the main group at the docks in Heysham, 3 hours before sailing.  It’s better to meet up before this if possible however.  As all the bikes are booked on the same reference number, we all have to meet, and check in together.

Riders from the South of England, or from outside the UK, often join me for the ride up to Heysham. In the past few years, we’ve had a one-night stop over in the Yorkshire Dales; one of our finest National Parks.  This gives us a very short ride to Heysham the following morning; less than 1 hour, with a coffee stop en-route at Devils Bridge. (Note: check-in is 3 hours before sailing, because there can be around 500 bikes to be loaded onto the ship)

Riders coming in from overseas will probably need to arrive one or two days BEFORE the 4^th June sailing day, in order to pick up their rental bike, and make their way up to Nottingham, the Yorkshire Dales, or directly to the port of Heysham.   This pre-TT trip is a separate issue, and the fine detail will be sorted out later.  It’s an “extra” that many UK guests don’t necessarily need or want.  Some prefer to follow me, or the van, while others make their own way to the port of departure.

If you’ve flown half way across the world to be here, it might make sense to extend your trip by a few days, before or after the TT, in order to see more of Great Britain & Europe if you have the time to do this.

Important – I provide “The Full TT Experience”.  It’s a complete package, where you ride to the port, take the bumpy sea voyage on a crowded boat for 3.5 hours, stay the whole race week, ride the circuit and the whole island, and ride home again.   Warts & all, come rain or shine; the mud, the blood, the tears and the celebrations. This is NOT a “fly in, fly out,  spend a few comfy nights in The Hilton, cut yourself off from the real fans  and watch only from the Grandstand” kind of thing.   Doing that is simply missing the whole point in my opinion.  There are many people who want exactly that however.  Just don’t apply here.  It’s not what I do.

Accommodation 2010

From 2008 onwards, I only offer a camping package.  

The Camping

All people on the 2010 TT Races trip will be camping – unless they simply want to buy my package, then sort out alternative accommodation themselves – that happens sometimes.  As usual we’ll be 2.5 miles out of Douglas, at Union mills, right on the TT race circuit.  During “roads closed” there is an interesting escape route via the woods to the rear of the site.  Guests can view the racing from the campsite wall, but it’s better to go down to Union Mills itself for a better view.  Normal practice is to set off by motorcycle before roads closed, to choose a different place for each race, at any point around the island. I can advise on circuit crossing points and short-cuts through the interior of the island.

There is a café and bar on the campsite now. Even live music in the beer tent.

The campsite is a working farm, and I’d better describe it as “fairly basic”.  It is a very popular campsite and gets busy during Race Week.  The same people come back year after year, and it’s one of the most popular campsites for regular TT fans.  “Busy” can sometimes mean noisy groups, music, laugher and ribald banter through the night, as well as queues for the shower blocks at peak times.  It also means an awful lot of fun. 

If this sounds like your idea of hell, you’d better talk to me first before signing up. 

 Some people will never be persuaded that camping can be great fun.

The campers generally bond very well together and form a strong team – despite the fact that most were strangers before the TT.  Heard the phrase “triumph over adversity”?    It’s like that.  If it rains – it can be miserable, with wet boggy ground.   However our sense of humour and stiff upper lip carries us through.  When the sun comes out, it’s glorious.  We take a mess tent, or use the awning on the van to shelter inside if it rains.    As I said, the campsite now has a bar, and there are also two pubs within walking distance.    In good weather we often hold a BBQ on site.  There is a regular bus & taxi service into Douglas.

My own preference has always been camping because it’s more fun, and makes a less expensive package for guests.  

Watch someone else’s amateur video here.  It’s virtually all shot on the campsite where we stay.http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=L4OdMaLcoTE  The first few minutes show Douglas in the rain, a girl riding a WR that’s too tall for her (this group were down the hill in the same field as us from the look of it), then quite a bit of race footage taken from the campsite wall.

The Package

This is a deal which includes;

-         Return Ferries from Heysham to Douglas

-         8 nights accommodation (camping)

-         a support vehicle, with driver to carry luggage where needed.

-         Supply of tents to those who need them

-         Supply of shared camping equipment, cooking gear, BBQ tables and chairs

-         Full tool kit for those inevitable little breakdowns

-         Bill and / or Stuart to provide support, help and back up if needed.

-         Assistance in sourcing a rental bike where required

-         Assistance with pre-trip logistics and accommodation where required.

-         Option to join the pre-TT “mini-tour” into the Yorkshire Dales.