Blogs

Michael Dunlop rode to victory in yesterday afternoon’s (June 9th) Senior TT race on the Isle of Man. The Bennetts Suzuki rider took his 15th TT victory and a fastest lap of 132.903mph. Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) was second and Dean Harrison (Silicone Engineering Kawasaki) third. The race was shortened to four laps following a restart after Ian Hutchinson crashed at the 27th milestone on lap two, which brought the race to a halt. He was taken by air ambulance to hospital and confirmed to have sustained a fractured femur.

Arklow (Irish: An tInbhear Mór) is on the east coast of Ireland. Nine-year-old Olivia Mythen from Arklow, placed a message with a small packet of sweets in a bottle and sent it on its way across the Irish Sea. Sara McAleese found the bottle on Wallog beach, near Aberystwyth in west Wales and was surpised to find the message inside. She was able to read enough of it to see it was from an Olivia and that she was nine. Sara, a midwife in Powys, posted a photograph on a social media page dedicated to items lost at sea.

Tragic news from this years Isle of Man TT. Jochem van den Hoek and Alan Bonner died yesterday. Davey Lambert passed away following an incident in the Superbike curtain raiser on Sunday.

Michael Rutter rode to victory in the Bennetts Lightweight Isle of Man TT yesterday (June 7th), setting a new lap record. This is his fifth in total TT win and gave the Italian Paton manufacturer their first ever win around the Mountain Course. He was joined on the podium by Martin Jessopp (Riders Motorcycles Kawasaki) in second place and third was Peter Hickman (IEG KMR Kawasaki):

Result of Bennetts Lightweight TT

1. Michael Rutter – SC Project Paton 

2. Martin Jessopp – Riders Motorcycles Kawasaki 

There have been calls for the Hill of Tara zone to be declared a National Park in addition to a National Monument. The Hill of Tara (Irish: Teamhair na Rí) in County Meath is an important archaeological complex that contains a number of ancient monuments and was according to tradition, the seat of the High Kings of Ireland. There has been an ongoing campaign to save the prehistoric site from continued damage sustained over many years and prevent further destruction. It has been included in the 15 must-see endangered cultural treasures in the world by the Smithsonian Institution.

'Ireland 2023 will capture the imagination of the world. We promise to stage a Rugby World Cup full of Irish spirit and commercial success, that will help drive rugby's global momentum.'  This is the promise on the official site for Ireland's 2023 Rugby World Cup Bid, which also has information on the Bid Team, Venues and the Bid itself.

The below letter has been sent to Cornwall Council. Oversight of Heritage matters in Cornwall has been devolved by the Westminster Government to Cornwall Council and a stakeholding body was suggested from the outset of that announcement.

Re: Heritage Kernow

I was one of the stakeholders who attended the Heritage Kernow meeting last autumn. I was to have attended its follow-up a few months ago, but that was postponed for an unspecified reason, and we've all been waiting to hear of the rearranged date ever since. We still haven't been advised of this.

The 1851 oil-on-canvas painting of a red deer stag The Monarch of the Glen by Edwin Landseer has been described as encapsulating the majesty of Scotland’s highlands and wildlife. The painting is Landseer's best known work and depicts a ‘royal’ or twelve point stag, which is a reference to the number of points on its antlers.  The setting is said to have been in Glen Affric (Scottish Gaelic: Gleann Afraig), which is amongst the most beautiful in Scotland and located within the Highlands National Nature Reserve.

The International Isle of Man TT continues. Today (5th June) Michael Dunlop, from Ballymoney in Ireland rode his MD Racing Carl Cox Yamaha to his 14th TT victory when he won the Supersport TT Race 1.  James Hillier came in second on the JG Speedfit Kawasaki with Peter Hickman securing third place riding the Smiths Trooper Triumph. 

The International Isle of Man TT (Tourist Trophy) Race is underway on the Isle of Man (Manx Gaelic: Mannin). The TT was first held on the Island in 1907 with the now world famous Snaefell  Mountain Course first used in 1911. The 37¾ mile course rises to 1,385ft (422 metres) above sea level at its highest. Yesterday June 4th) the Superbike race was won by Tyco BMW rider Ian Hutchinson, five seconds ahead of Peter Hickman, while Dean Harrison on a Kawasaki was third.