Following a highly successful North West 200, which saw Öhlins shod riders Michael Dunlop and elder brother William take victory in the two Superbike races, Öhlins now moves to the iconic Isle of Man TT looking for further victories ‘between the hedges’.
Once again, many of the top TT riders have chosen Öhlins for the iconic event, including the Tyco Suzuki duo of Guy Martin and William Dunlop, Milwaukee Yamaha stars Ian Hutchinson and Josh Brookes and last year’s sensation and BMW new boy, Michael Dunlop. Michael will be using the new 2014 TTX GP available to all customers through Öhlins Service Centres.
At 37 ¾ miles long, the Isle of Man TT course is like no other circuit in the world and with an average speed of over 130mph, it is a true test of man, machine and equipment.
With each lap taking over 17 minutes, there is little time to fully sort out the machine especially if bad weather curtails practice but with huge success at the TT over the years, the skilled Öhlins technicians have good base settings and make the correct adjustments to ensure the rider gets the best feel from their motorcycle. Featuring a mix of high speed, sweeping corners on the mountain as well as slow, bumpy and rippled sections, it is impossible to find a perfect set-up so the riders will be looking for the right compromise.
With every lap seeing riders experience bumps, jumps and different cambers, their bikes suffer extreme stress on the engine, chassis and in particular, the suspension. Often considered as the ultimate test of both set-up and durability, the Isle of Man TT serves as a perfect test laboratory for Öhlins suspension.
Harris Performance as a UK Öhlins Service Centre with long experience at the event is already in attendance in the paddock, ready to support the Tyco Suzuki, Milwaukee Yamaha and BMW Motorrad teams plus Michael Rutter on the Bathams IWR Superbike and Superstock bikes and Conor Cummins on Superstock and Supersport machinery.
Iconic British manufacturer Norton have entrusted their latest Öhlins shod racing machine, the SG3, into the hands of experienced TT winner Cameron Donald.
Speaking ahead of the opening practice session company founder and owner Kenth Öhlin said, “The Isle of Man TT races is the biggest and most iconic motorcycle race in the world with a global audience. Entering its 107th year in 2014, it is still continuing to grow and is the perfect platform for Öhlins to not only show off the ability of its products but also act as a testing ground to further improve them.”
For more info on the full line-up of Öhlins products visit www.ohlins.com and the stories behind the brand in Performance their online magazine at www.ohlinsnews.com
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