Didn't do this on a Ducati, but still pretty cool. Flew over to Ireland this past summer and participated in a "real" road race. For those of you who are not familiar with road racing, Ireland is the birthplace of road racing. They race through public roads (closed down for the weekends). People complain about run off here on U.S. tracks. In Ireland, if you miss a turn you are likely to hit a house, stone wall or a pub! They are the only place in the world, that have an entire season dedicated to road racing
I've been planning this trip for about 2 years and spent a s**tload of money doing so. I went with my girlfriend and we flew in a day before the race. We were greeted by regular Irish weather when we stepped off the plane (rain!). When we got to the actual circuit, we went for a quick spin in a car. The first thing in my mind was "what the hell am I doing here." There are parts of the circuit that are barely 15ft wide, where you're going well over 100mph.
We stayed with friends of the late Martin Finnegan in Lusk Co. Met Martin Finnegan's family, old boss etc. Saw his MV Agusta. A guy came up with his kitana and let me take it around the course to see what I was getting myself into. Here's a shot of Duke's Bends. During the race, someone ran off here, hit a stone wall. His gas tank came off and lit 4 spectators on fire. Very sad scene.
Here's a video of the above corner, at race pace:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBJnfH0yOKI
Martin's bike:
Practice Day:
We woke up in a rush, my gf and I overslept due to jet lag. We had 30min to get to the circuit before they closed the roads for the race. I didn't realize how big this event was. There were over 40,000 people spectators and about only 70 racers Met up with the person providing me my bike. Was on an '04 R6 with a superbike motor. (This thing was wheeling out of the corners with ease!)
Long story short, I ended up qualifying ahead of 5 racers. I only got 8 laps to learn the circuit. 15min before the start of the race, it starts pouring f***ing rain. Keep in mind, the irish are used to racing in the rain. Me? I've never done it. I pussyfoot it home, but glad to finish. Afterwards, had an after-race party. Hung out with Archibald, McGuiness.
Here are some pictures. The first one is the jump, called Gilley's Leap. When you land, you literally have 1 ft margin of error
I'm number 7:
paddock:
Here's an onboard lap someone recorded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtTEO1FF9mQ&feature=related
Overall a great experience I'll never forget. Was glad to come home on my own terms (and not in a bodybag!)
I've been planning this trip for about 2 years and spent a s**tload of money doing so. I went with my girlfriend and we flew in a day before the race. We were greeted by regular Irish weather when we stepped off the plane (rain!). When we got to the actual circuit, we went for a quick spin in a car. The first thing in my mind was "what the hell am I doing here." There are parts of the circuit that are barely 15ft wide, where you're going well over 100mph.
We stayed with friends of the late Martin Finnegan in Lusk Co. Met Martin Finnegan's family, old boss etc. Saw his MV Agusta. A guy came up with his kitana and let me take it around the course to see what I was getting myself into. Here's a shot of Duke's Bends. During the race, someone ran off here, hit a stone wall. His gas tank came off and lit 4 spectators on fire. Very sad scene.
Here's a video of the above corner, at race pace:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBJnfH0yOKI
Martin's bike:
Practice Day:
We woke up in a rush, my gf and I overslept due to jet lag. We had 30min to get to the circuit before they closed the roads for the race. I didn't realize how big this event was. There were over 40,000 people spectators and about only 70 racers Met up with the person providing me my bike. Was on an '04 R6 with a superbike motor. (This thing was wheeling out of the corners with ease!)
Long story short, I ended up qualifying ahead of 5 racers. I only got 8 laps to learn the circuit. 15min before the start of the race, it starts pouring f***ing rain. Keep in mind, the irish are used to racing in the rain. Me? I've never done it. I pussyfoot it home, but glad to finish. Afterwards, had an after-race party. Hung out with Archibald, McGuiness.
Here are some pictures. The first one is the jump, called Gilley's Leap. When you land, you literally have 1 ft margin of error
I'm number 7:

paddock:


Here's an onboard lap someone recorded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtTEO1FF9mQ&feature=related
Overall a great experience I'll never forget. Was glad to come home on my own terms (and not in a bodybag!)