AGV Backmarker: Isle of Man Dreams, Shared

December 10, 2009 by Mark Gardiner
Filed under Backmarker

$Is this man the best American hope for a TT podium? I think so. Last year, Jimmy Moore struggled with his brace of Yamahas. The handling was finally improved by dramatically increasing free sag—the amount the bike settles under its own weight, without a rider. Most setup guides pay more attention to the sag under the rider’s weight, and in any case free sag on short circuits is minimal—a fraction of an inch. Jimmy found that a TT bike needs a lot more free sag and, far more supple suspension. Moore has paid his dues and learned the island’s lessons. Now it’s time to give him his own team and a bike set up to his own standards. If you want to help him visit www.usttfoundation.com.$

Is this man the best American hope for a TT podium? I think so. Last year, Jimmy Moore struggled with his brace of Yamahas. The handling was finally improved by dramatically increasing free sag—the amount the bike settles under its own weight, without a rider. Most setup guides pay more attention to the sag under the rider’s weight, and in any case free sag on short circuits is minimal—a fraction of an inch. Jimmy found that a TT bike needs a lot more free sag and, far more supple suspension. Moore has paid his dues and learned the island’s lessons. Now it’s time to give him his own team and a bike set up to his own standards. If you want to help him visit www.usttfoundation.com. -David Collister, couresy Moore

There are dreamers, and then there are crazy dreamers. And then there are people who dream about racing on the Isle of Man. I know, because I was once one of those people. Jimmy Moore is one of them now.

If you followed AMA racing earlier this decade, you remember Moore as a national champion in the 750 Supersport (later renamed Superstock) class. His AMA career was derailed when he tangled with Josh Hayes and crashed in Turn 1 at Brainerd. There is a subset of Backmarker readers who, knowing Brainerd, read that last sentence and thought. Holy crap! He crashed in Turn 1 at Brainerd and lived?

We spoke months ago, about his life after those AMA titles, and how his interest in racing was rejuvenated when he went to the Isle of Man in 2007 to race for the first time. He’s raced there every year since, putting in some of the best TT rides ever by an American. He called me earlier this week to lay out his plans for a 2010 Isle of Man campaign, and it turns out that you can share his dream. This is what he told me…

When I got back from the [2009] TT, I got an email from a local journalist here in Oregon, Paul Duchene, who has always been interested in the TT. We got to know each other, and I was telling him how I always went to the TT as a guest of other teams.

I go because it’s fun, but also because I really desperately want to do well. Racing is a serious business for me, and I’d been disappointed with bike failures and difficulties with the teams I’d ridden for. I told Duchene that I really wished I could go over with an American team, where I’d have a little more control over my equipment—I was tired of having to beg to make changes to my bike, and I know the TT would love to have an all-American team there, too.

So Duchene took this idea and created a grassroots foundation, with the goal of funding an American team with me as rider. We’re looking for ordinary people to sponsor us, just a very small donation from each person, but we’re going to use the internet to appeal to a very large number of people. Sort of like the way Obama raised funds for his presidential campaign; Kenny Roberts did something similar once, too.

We started out with four people and now we’re up to seven people—marketing guys, web guys, all volunteering. The goal is to take over an American team, with American mechanics. We’d love to build our bikes in the U.S., but to make it easier the first time, we’ll lease bikes from Padgett’s and just bring an American crew, with our own bodywork so it looks the part.

I went to the Isle of Man for the first time in 2007. Mark Miller had done it in 2006, and I followed his adventure online and was emailing him. He got home and we spoke many times about it. I joked with him that I’d go over and be his mechanic or pit whore, whatever; but the more we talked about it, the more I knew that watching it wasn’t going to be good enough. He put me in touch with the right people, and I got to do it in 2007.

I went to the press launch there in February of that year, and I did one lap in a car. I came home with six pages of notes from that one lap. That first year, I did much better than I dared hope. Mark Miller had drilled it into my head that I had to know the course. “Don’t bother trying to learn it when you get there,” he said. “You have to know it beforehand.” So I read my notes, watched the videos, played the games. When I got there, it was fine the first time I did a lap in a car on open roads; it seemed familiar. Then, when they sent the newcomers out with a pace rider to show us the lines [I wish the TT organizers had done that for me! MG], I forgot everything; I couldn’t figure out where I was on the course at all.

But it only took a few days for me to settle in. I had a great teammate in Ian Lougher, one of the most experienced riders there. He was really helpful telling me how to deal with the track, telling me what to concentrate on and what to ignore. On the last day of practice that first year, there was a huge crash near Glen Helen, and a whole hillside caught on fire. I went through the crash, there was smoke and burning bikes; they almost canceled the session. But they let us do one more lap and that was the one where it finally clicked for me; I did that lap without having to think about it. It just felt natural.

In that first race week, I got better and better every race. I was actually quicker on the 600 because my 1000 kept running out of fuel; it wouldn’t do two laps. My fastest lap on the 600 was 121.38, I think. I’ve been told it was the fifth-fastest lap ever by a newcomer, and the fastest lap ever by a newcomer on a 600. My goal had been to break a 120 mph lap, which I did. It was fun; it was incredible.

The promoter really wanted to see me get on a good team the next year. Phase One, a team that had won the Endurance World Championship wanted to come to the TT, and the organizers suggested me as a rider.

It would be an understatement to say that I didn’t gel with Phase One. On the second day of practice, I came in and fired myself. Despite my interest in having a successful second year, it wasn’t worth dying because I couldn’t get comfortable. I became a spectator my second year, and I don’t know what’s more fun—watching or riding. [I know which is more fun. Riding is more fun. MG]

When I was over there with all that time on my hands, I noticed the bikes of JMF Millsport, an Irish team that seemed to come really well-prepared. I contacted them and stayed in touch with them over the winter. Paul Phillips, who works with the TT, encouraged them to let me ride. I went to the North West 200 with them before the TT, which is a good warm-up for the TT, but the event was almost rained out. I don’t know if I got more than a half-dozen laps at the North West.

So I had very little practice there, and had had very little seat time the year before at the TT. It was a long gap, and when I started practicing in 2009, I had high expectations and it was a little disappointing. Right at the end of practice, I think I was sixth-fastest amongst the 600s, so it did come together, but that’s sort of where the struggle started between me and the team.

They had other riders on their bikes, too. And every rider needs his own setup. I knew I could go quicker, but I was really struggling with the handling of the bike. And I was getting resistance from the team; they didn’t want to make the changes I needed.

The TT is hardly a “road” course; it’s more like a paved motocross track. I was on an R6 and an R1. They both felt the same—too stiff, they shook violently. I knew we needed to make changes, and the team didn’t want to make them, or if they did, the made little tiny changes when we needed to make great big ones. On the bumpy, bumpy sections where I should’ve been able to hold the throttle wide open, I was having to back off to get the bike under control, and it cost me too much time.

That was where the tug-of-war between the rider and the team took place, and that’s what motivated this whole project for next year. The goal is to bring over my own team, an American team, that will give me the bikes I need to put an American back on the podium [for the first time since Dave Roper, in 1984. MG] Padgett’s is a Honda dealer; their riders are Ian Hutchinson and John McGuinness, so we’ll be on Hondas.

One of my long-time friends, Tom Kenny—I grew up with him in Alaska—will be the team manager. The person I’ve spoken to about being a crew chief and looking after the bikes is Evan Steel. I’ve got a close friend, Aaron Miles, who will assist us too. We’re looking for one more person; I want to keep the team small; anything more than four people will just clutter up our effort.

Now with an added sixth date!

Actually, what Jimmy needs is 5,004 people. The hope of the U.S. TT Foundation is to raise a $50,000 budget by getting 5,000 people to donate $10 each. To donate your ten bucks, go here. I think it’s America’s best shot at a TT podium.

Still moron the Isle of Man

If you live in Marin County, San Francisco, Seattle or Portland, and you’re not tired of hearing about the Isle of Man, you’re in luck because I’m not tired of talking about it.

Beginning tomorrow, my friend Ed Milich and I will be on a West Coast book tour. I’ll be reading from and selling copies of Riding Man and a new book that Laurel Allen and I co-authored called BMW Racing Motorcycles: The Mastery of Speed. Ed will be reading moto-poetry from his book Wrenched: Man and Machine.

If you really, really can’t get enough of the TT—or would like a few free books—Ed and I are looking for someone with a couple of extra couches, who will put us up for a couple of nights in Seattle and Portland (contact markegardiner@yahoo.com.)

Hope to see you at a reading!

AGV Backmarker: Isle of Man Dreams, Shared

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