First of all, a bit of backstory about the TT if you are not familiar. It is a motorcycle race that was first held in 1907 and is an around 60 km long course on public roads that goes around the island. The Isle of Man is an island located between Ireland and the UK and you can either get there by ferry or by airplane. My roommate is the one very passionate about motorcycles and extreme sports in general. I came along for the vibes and with no expectations, but the event itself was wild. These people ride motorcycles at around 200km/h on roads that have stone walls and a lot of bumpy places. We also volunteered as marshals, which was an even crazier experience because we got to stay even closer to the track and make sure the spectators were respecting the rules. 

I applied to be a marshal the night before our flight while researching the Isle of Man. I stumbled upon another blog describing someone’s experience, and they mentioned the marshalling process in passing, which caught my interest. So after a few google searches I came across this website: https://www.iomttmarshals.com/ which really has everything you need to know. I watched some videos, completed two quizzes, and received an email with the location to pick up my gear once I arrived on the island. 

Marshalls are the people with the orange vests who stay closer to the track and make sure that people don’t have cups on the edge of the wall that could fall on the street or are not leaning over too much and generally keep the race safe. Marshalls also work with paramedics and are the first people to reach the spot of the accident to stabilize the rider in case of anything. Thankfully that was not the case in the places where I was but on one of the days we were there a huge accident did take place on the other side of the island, but the guy who fell was okay in the end, he had to be taken to the hospital by helicopter but they managed to stabilize him.

Now what really surprised me about the whole experience were the other marshalls. I personally was feeling on another planet, did not know what was going on, who was who from the riders or what I should be paying attention to during the race. But the other marshalls made, for me at least, the experience so much more pleasant. They were really passionate about the sport and I love talking to people who really care about something because you can feel the energy they radiate while they talk and the passion they put into the conversation. So, because as a marshall you were not allowed to stay on your phone at all, that is also the reason I have so few photos of everything. I talked with the other people there. Some have been religiously marshalling for years now and one guy has been coming to the races almost every year since the 90s. They had a whole community there and it was so cool to witness and be part of, even if just for a few days. 

On our last day of marshaling there I was assigned with an older gentleman to stay on the other side of the track on this metal thing before a huge turn, to warn the riders in case there was sun on the other side or if something happened that they should pay attention to. We did all this with different types of flags. There were five types, if I am not mistaken. And this gentleman was the coolest person I met. First of all, he loved to talk, so for the 4 hours we were there, I got his entire life story and random lore about the TT Race and the different riders that participated. In one of his stories, he told me about the different types of cameras he brought to the island to take photos for his book and if that isn’t the biggest side quest thing I’ve ever heard in my life, I don’t know what could be. He didn’t elaborate on the book thing and in the end, before we were supposed to go home, I gathered the courage and asked him what book he wrote. His name is Colin Jackson and he wrote a book that’s called “The British Motorcycle Story” I haven’t read it yet, but I promised him I would buy and read it. This is the link to it: https://books.google.ro/books/about/The_British_Motorcycle_Story.html?id=Eq1lLwEACAAJ&redir_esc=y

To sum it up, the stories I left that island with were better than the experience of seeing those riders go 200km/h past me, even though now that I say it again, both things sound spectacular. The people made the atmosphere even better and the way I was feeling those motorcycles deep in my chest, like when you go to a festival and sit too close to the speakers and your entire body vibrates, that’s how it felt for the split second when they were rushing past me. I 100% recommend you attend this event at least once in your life and if you have the time and want to hear some cool stories, then definitely marshall as well. I am planning to write another post on how exactly we got there and the logistics part of the trip, so stay tuned for that.