Passie voor road race is nooit ver weg, zeker als het gaat over Joey Dunlop in Ballymoney. Dit jaar is het 25 jaar geleden dat Joey om het leven kwam, en daar werd zaterdag bij stil gestaan. 25 originele racemotoren bereden door een fijne selectie racers.
Prachtig om Rea te zien op de Yamaha TZ750 die zijn grootvader in 1977 ter beschikking stelde aan Joey Dunlop om deel te nemen aan o.a. de TT.
Michael Rutter, Ryan Farquhar and Ian Lougher flew in by helicopter from the Isle of Man TT paddock to join a star-studded line-up that included Carl Fogarty, Jonathan Rea, Jeremy McWilliams, Ron and Leon Haslam, Eugene Laverty, Bruce Anstey, Adrian Archibald, Adrian Coates, Steve Cull, James Courtney, Alan and Glenn Irwin, Phillip McCallen, and more.
Op zoek wanneer Dunlop op de Rea Yamaha deelnam kwam ik dit stuk tegen:
Citaat:
Joey’s first road race, also on the Triumph, came at the Temple 100 in 1970, riding number 32 in the 200cc handicap event.
It would be six years later in 1976 when Joey made his debut at the Isle of Man TT on a 250 Yamaha.
Making his way over the Irish Sea on a fishing boat, he signed on just after he arrived and was out for his first ever practice laps that same evening.
He’d never even seen the course before, he hadn’t even driven around it.
It was definitely no initiation for the faint hearted.
By the following year, however, he’d learnt the circuit pretty well.
He finished tenth in the Junior on a Yamsel, fourth on the same make of bike in the Senior and seventh in the Classic on a Yamaha.
The TT programme that year also featured a special four-lap race to commemorate the Queen’s Silver Jubilee.
Joey, riding the Rea 750 Yamaha, won the race easily setting a race speed of 108.86mph and a fastest lap of 110.93mph – he was obviously a quick learner.
Daarnaast een quote van McWilliams:
Citaat:
MotoGP legend Jeremy McWilliams remembered the shock of hearing news of Joey’s fatal crash.
“I remember the day it happened; I was commentating on Superbikes for Eurosport.” he explained. “I was speechless, and I actually had to leave the studio. I literally just left and flew home. I was dumbfounded and like everybody here, I remember the day very well.
“It was such a shock to the system and then the next week was the Donington Grand Prix.”
McWilliams produced one of the rides of his life in that year’s 500cc British GP before making a very special dedication.
“I actually had an awful qualifying, but I had a really good race. I led it for a while and in the end Valentino Rossi and Kenny Roberts Junior beat me to the line. I was third and I remember dedicating that podium to Joey.
“I wish I had won it to dedicate the win to Joey, but it was the least I could do. It was still very raw at the time.”