Full grids are guaranteed at the Blackford Financial Services Pre TT Classic Road Races with over 230 entries having been received for the prestigious Classic event which annually brings the Isle of Man TT Festival to life.
The nine race programme caters for single cylinder 250cc & 350cc machines, Lightweight 250cc, Junior 350cc, Senior 500cc, 850cc Classics, Classic Superbike's and Sidecars. and due to the number of entries received in the Classic Superbike’s the organisers have had the split the capacities into two separate races to cater for all the entries received.
As organiser, we are immensely proud and indeed honoured that the club have been invited by the family of Geoff Duke OBE to name one of our races after the six-time World Champion and TT winner who sadly passed away on Friday 1st May in his honour, which we are delighted to do. Peter Duke will present the winners laurel wreath to the winner of the Junior Superbike Post Classic Race.
The other Solo races remain the same as the successful format of the previous years, whilst the Sidecar competitors once again have two four-lap races, the second of which for the Camathias Cup is one of six rounds being held in the Isle of Man, England, Belgium, France, Germany and Holland during 2015.
As in previous years a Solo Support Race has been included in race programme to cater for the number of entries received. Mike Hose, with 11 wins to his credit is in for a busy time entered in five of the seven solo races in this years programme.
Blackpool’s Roy Richardson has a Italian 500cc Paton machine along with a 350 Honda and a 250 Yamaha at his disposal and will be hoping to add to his 11 wins so far at the Blackford’s Pre-TT Classic.
Veteran competitor Ted Fenwick returns with his faithful 250cc Ducati single aiming to make it to the top-step of the podium after a disappointing last year and hoping to add to his three-in-a-row race wins in 2009, 2010 & 2011 carrying the number ‘87’ plate this year.
Bardney, Lincoln rider Ivan Lintin returns to the Billown Classic with a 500 Seeley G50 and a 750 Kawasaki, whist we welcome back Jamie Coward who will be kept busy with six rides throughout the afternoon, having missed last year due to a serious racing incident, but is now fully fit and riding well at the earlier meetings this season.
Fellow Yorkshireman, James Cowton also returns with a pair of machines, a 500 Honda and a 250 Yamaha on which he won the Junior Post Classic Superbike last year.
Another Yorkshireman, a close neighbour of father and son Paul and Jamie Coward, Bill Swallow, who first rode at the Pre-TT in 1989 and won the Junior classic on his debut on the famous Lawton Aermacchi setting a new lap record and Bill will once again be on a similar single-cylinder machine Italian Aermacchi.
Other previous winners returning this year include Alan Oversby, Chris McGahan, Ewan Hamilton, Alan ‘Bud’ Jackson, Terry Kermode, Rich Hawkins, Roger Birkenhead and Paul Coward. The Blackford’s Pre TT Classic has attracted a total of thirteen Newcomers in the Solo races this year, with no less than four sidecar crews making their debuts any get to enjoy ‘the Billown Experience’.
The ever popular Sidecar races have attracted 21 entries including previous winner Eddy Wright, this time with Kieran Clark in the chair and no less than three crews from Switzerland, France and The Netherlands taking part. The 2015 event commences on Friday Evening 29th May with the first Practice session and continues on Saturday Afternoon 30th May with the final practice, followed by the first two races of the event, the 350cc and 250cc Singles race over six laps and the opening Sidecar race over four laps.
Sunday 31st May sees a full afternoon of racing action from 1.00pm concluding at 8.00pm at the latest with the meeting concluding with the Prize Presentation and Concours d' Elegance in Castletown Square on Monday Afternoon between 2.00pm and 4.00pm.
Further details can be found on the official website: www.southern100.com and on Facebook: Southern 100 Motorcycle Races.
