Posted: 16 Jun 2010 11:26 AM PDT

The funeral of Paul Dobbs, who died racing at the TT on Thursday 10 June, will be held at the grandstand in Douglas at 2pm Monday 21 June. His wife, Bridget, daughters, Eadlin and Hillberry, mother, Dawn and sister, Shaylene will welcome anyone who wishes to join them in celebration of Dobsy’s life. Please dress as Dobsy would recognise you – team shirts and marshal jackets very welcome.

Dobsy will start his final lap around 2.30pm and bikes particularly will be welcome to join him. There will be no formal order, overtaking is fine but legal speed limits will be observed.

Anyone who wishes to attend Lonan church for Dobsy’s interment may follow the hearse while others wait at the grandstand to be re-joined by the funeral party for refreshments.

Instead of flowers, please donate generously to The TT Riders’ Association (francesthorp@manx.net), Rob Vine Fund (http://www.mms.org.im/robvinefund) or ACU Benevolent Fund (01788 566400).

After the incident in which Dobsy sadly lost his life whilst riding on of my 600 Gixers during last Thursdays supersport race, Hallett racing will be withdrawing from all events, effective immediatly. I have always said as a team owner that if any of our riders where to get hurt then I would stop the team racing and I am sticking exactly to that statement.

My sympathies are first and foremost with Bridget and the girls, I hope they can come to terms with their great loss, I know Paul died doing what he loved best and I will pass on all the condolences we as a team have been sent.

Dobsy will be sadly missed from the paddocks he was always a good laugh and although we had only helped him for 2 events this year  we have been friends with him for many years.

The press has missed for years the mid pack racing between the likes of Dobsy, Paul Owen, Oatesy, James McBride and Mark Buckley who always had close on track battles and had the mutual respect that riding so close to each other at high speeds.

Paul Owen’s actions during that race came as no surprise to me, all of the above riders would have done the same if they had been in the same situation, but I have huge respect for Paul and his actions that day and utter disgust for the riders who went through at race speed  under waived yellows. They know who they are and their huge ego’s will never let them realise what they did but I do hope that someone in the organising group can bring some of these people to some kind of justice. It can’t help Paul but it could stop an even bigger tragedy the next time there is a serious incident.

Again thanks for all your support and messages of condolences

Neil Hallett

Posted: 12 Jun 2010 04:35 AM PDT

Paul Dobbs died while racing at the Isle of Man TT on Thursday 10 June 2010. He had been enjoying a superbly successful TT. The weather had mostly been kind and Dobsy had achieved his target for this year (123mph on the Superstock) during the second practice session and again in several other practices and races.

He had completed three races: Superbike, Supersport 1 and Superstock and finished in replica time in all three. He was lying 4th in the Privateers’ Cup.

He died doing what he did best and what he enjoyed the most. Fifty weeks of our year was spent planning and preparing for the next TT.

I know I speak for our team when I thank the Race Office for their full and continued support at this time. I also thank everyone who has been in touch with their kind words.

Dobsy will stay on the Isle of Man which was what he always wanted. We cannot yet make detailed arrangements but we expect the funeral will be early in the week starting 21st June and we very much look forward to seeing everyone who is able to attend. Anyone who would like to provide a motorcycle escort will be greatly appreciated. We intend to celebrate his life not to mourn his parting.

There will also be a memorial service in NZ at a later date.

Dobsy was never overly fond of flowers so please donate to one of the following instead.

TT Riders’ Association
(helps riders and their families)
francesthorp@manx.net
Frances Thorp
Mountain View
Glen Maye
Isle of Man
IM5 3BJ

Rob Vine Fund
(medical equipment for helicopters and course)
http://www.mms.org.im/robvinefund/

ACU Benevolent Fund
(helps riders and their families)
emma@acu.org.uk
01788 566400
The Auto-Cycle Union Benevolent Fund
ACU House
Wood Street
Rugby
Warwickshire
CV21 2YX

Family Statement

Posted: 12 Jun 2010 04:08 AM PDT

While we are all devastated by Dobsy’s death during the 2nd Supersport race at the Isle of Man TT on Thursday 10 June 2010, I feel that we are lucky in so many ways.

Dobsy died doing what he most loved, in a place he loved and felt at home and surrounded by people he loved and admired.

He died instantly and felt no pain. He had no knowledge of his end but was fully focussed on the bike and the race.

After making a hard decision and missing the TT last year, I am thankful that I was here at this tragic time.

We have been wholeheartedly supported by the whole racing community in both a professional and personal way.

We held nothing back in pursuing Dobsy’s racing and so I need regret nothing. Our lives have been immeasurably enriched by the TT and the Isle of Man.

I would like to thank Bruce Anstey who had Dobsy in his thoughts even in his moment of glory after the Senior TT.

I would especially like to thank Paul Owen. Paul was perhaps Dobsy’s greatest rival and friend at the TT. They were very evenly matched and Dobsy measured his performance against Paul’s. They invariably got together soon after a practice or race to share their experiences. Paul’s selfless and big hearted action on Thursday moves me beyond words. Without hesitation, he did everything in his power to try to help Dobsy. Paul truly embodies the spirit of the TT and I wish the award could be named after him for posterity.

This is a difficult time for Dobsy’s mother, Dawn. I hope that she can overcome and put aside her hurting. She helped to make Dobsy what he was and she should be very proud.

Dobsy’s daughters, Eadlin and Hillberry, are two very special people. They have lived an honest and unsheltered life and I know they both understand exactly what this means. They will miss their Dad terribly and there will be some hard times over the coming weeks, months and years. But I also know that they have been shaped by having Dobsy in their lives and they are all the stronger, smarter and braver for that.

He really spoilt my week but he has brought infinite joy, adventure and fun to our lives. He has energised and inspired. He will live forever in our esteem, our thoughts and our hearts.

Bridget

Posted: 08 Jun 2010 01:14 PM PDT

Supersport (600) race

In NZ my Hallett Aviation 600 Suzuki with its 129hp would be a race winner hands down but in the UK the rules are different and the top bikes have over 140hp. This meant it was going to be a tough race but we had been in the top 20 in practice and the bike was handling very well.
On the 1st lap the bike seemed slow up the mountain which was a bit worrying until on lap 2 I figured out we had a head wind. The first 2 laps were pretty good with little traffic to hold me up. The pit-stop at the end of lap 2 went well and I left with Paul Owen and John Burrows – they are both on very fast Yamahas. John was holding me up on the corners and bumpy parts of the circuit and I managed to get past at Bishop’s Court only to get passed by him and Paul on Sulby straight. I managed to stay with them to the mountain where they pulled around 25 seconds on me. On the last lap we were all passed by Ben Wiley on a ballistically fast R6, horse power rules here.

I got my head down and pushed really hard on the last lap and pulled back around 20 seconds on Paul and John. The last lap was 119.6mph but the bike started to push the front really hard as the tank emptied so a few changes are needed before the next race.

Superstock race

This was our best chance as the R1 is a standard road bike. The changes we had made to the forks worked really well and she was flying. We have been regularly clocked at 184mph at the Sulby speed trap and that isn’t the fastest part of the track.

James McBride came past on lap 2 and after we swapped places a few times he slowly pulled away from me. At the pit-stop we had a stuck visor which cost about 6 seconds so I set off for the last 2 laps on a mission to make up time. The bike was flying and I had my eye in. I passed a couple of lower numbers and set off for a fast last lap.

On Sulby straight for the last time the clutch cried ‘enough’ and I had to slow to adjust it and try to cool her down. The slipper clutch lets the clutch slip on the down changes to improve corner entry speeds but it wears the plates. At Ramsey she struggled to pull out of the hairpin and I nearly parked her up there. The clutch cooled so I could limp home to a 24th place. We are now 4th in the Privateers’ cup.

Posted: 06 Jun 2010 01:51 AM PDT

The 1st race of the week is the 6 lap Superbike and it was delayed 3.5 hours due to fog. Our bike is a Superstock (basically a standard bike) so we were at a slight disadvantage in this race.
I had my start number changed due to my practice times and we moved from 41 to 26, this meant a lot less traffic to get past during the race.

We had made a couple of changes to the front end of the bike so the 1st two laps were a learning curve to see how she would react. I caught Ian Pattinson on lap one and got past easily only to get passed by Davy Morgan on lap 2 on our way to the pits. Davy was riding the ex Cameron Donald bike from 2009 so it’s a fast bike. In the pits for the 1st time it was hard to keep my speed under the 60kpm limit. Due to a slick pit-stop I left in front of Davy, he soon got past but I managed to stay with him until the mountain where he left me. I was feeling good and the bike was behaving well.

At the 2nd stop Bridget said the times were good but I missed the rest of the report. On the run out of the pits Ian was with me again and he pushed me hard. On the last lap my rear tyre and bad knee were crying ‘enough’ but I managed my fastest lap of the race. Ian did get past on the run to the line but I only had to be with him at the line to be 10sec in front as he started ahead of me.

I finished 19th overall and 4th privateer. My race average was over 120mph and I did a couple of 123mph (198.4) laps. I broke all my records and had a great start to Race Week.

Many thanks to Barnes Racing, Dave East Engineering, North Drill, Atherstone Smash Repairs and all the team.

Posted: 06 Jun 2010 12:35 AM PDT

According to the programme, practice was to revert to solos first but there was a change of plans and the sidecars were sent out before us. We were told that the sidecars would get the full 1½ hours and we would get a short session again so we decided to do 2 laps on the R1 and only practice the pit lane speed limit on the 600.

With about 25 minutes notice, it was announced that we’d go out 40 minutes early. With a bit more notice I could have got 2 laps on the 600 before I took the R1 out but I decided it was too late to change my plan.

I had made a small change to the R1 front ride height and it didn’t work as I had expected it to. After the session I spoke to Richard from Maxton and we decided I had too much load on the front tyre and it was deforming entering corners creating the odd feeling I was getting. This was also causing the tyre to look like it wasn’t working. We have a plan for the race so I hope it works.

I practiced the 60kph speed limit in pit lane using the speed read-out on pit lane and decided on the rpm I needed for a safe 55kph as the time penalties are very harsh for exceeding 60. Luckily Bridget picked up the official speeds for the session and it turned out that the read-out was 5kph under so we would need to slow down another 500rpm. We’re not in Ireland but at times we could be!

Posted: 06 Jun 2010 12:19 AM PDT

We were out after the sidecars and there was a delay of 45min due to an accident on the mountain. This meant we had a short practice session and the sun would be at its worst plus there was the risk of an oil slick on the circuit. As luck would have it there was only one oil spill on the track and that may have been a solo. As we could only get 3 laps in and the biggest changes were to the 600, I decided to run her first for 2 laps. We also had to run down the pit lane to work out what rpm was 60kph for the new speed limit.

The changes we had made had improved the 600’s steering but it had put a lot of weight on the front tyre and I had a couple of front end slides so I decided to change it back a little. The times weren’t the quickest of the week but with the low sun I struggled with visibility on some of the fastest parts of the track. I managed to get a rpm to try tomorrow in the pit lane.

The R1 felt very big and fast in comparison to the 600 and the changes to her were hard to work out early in the lap with a full fuel load. As the lap progressed the handling did improve a lot. This is the problem with long races you have to set the bike up to handle across a range of 22 kg’s of fuel on board. We hope to do 2 laps tomorrow to see if the setup is right for the race.

Wednesday’s weather was another Isle of Man special – bright blue sunny skies and then banks of fog rolling in off the sea heralded by the fog horns in Douglas harbour. It settled down in time for roads to close on schedule at 6pm.

First out was the R1 again. This gives Dobsy a chance to get ahead of some of the slower riders that get out in front of him. As he flew across the start/finish onto lap 2 we saw he’d averaged 122.95mph – just a hair from his target for this year of 123. On the second lap there was some traffic and sun strike so the lap speed was 122.8mph.

At the end of the session the R1 still held the 11th quickest speed trap figure. After dinner we collected the timesheets from the race office and found that, over the 3 practices, Dobsy is the 22nd quickest Supersport, 17th Superbike and 14th Superstock just ahead of Bruce Anstey! We’re going to get Bruce to sign that one and we’ll frame it! Of course, a lot will change between now and the end of race week but it is definitely our best start to an IoM TT.

I went out on the Barnes Racing/Dave East/North Drill R1 for the first 2 laps and it was a steady run to find the wet spots. I was pleasantly surprised with the lap times when I came in – 117.5mph and 121.3mph.

The next 2 laps were on the Hallett Aviation/North Drill Suzuki Supersport bike. The track wasn’t drying as I would expect so it was difficult to put in committed laps but once again the lap times weren’t too bad – 116.4mph and 118.1mph.

start of TT2010 has mostly gone to plan. The old, faithful camper started even after a very cold winter with snow and I have Bridget with me after being here on my own last year. The only down sides are that the Mike Pumford 250cc Villiers I was to race at Billown had a gearbox fault that couldn’t be sorted. That stopped me from starting the Pre TT classic races. Secondly, Mike Pulman of North Drill failing for the 2nd year to get to the TT, this time due to a bike crash and a fall at work breaking the same collar bone twice.

The first TT practice was cancelled due to bad weather so we finally got underway on Monday night with a perfect evening, if a bit windy, for a couple of laps on the mountain.

The first 2 laps were on Easty’s Barnes Racing R1 and even with my head struggling to keep ahead of my eyes for the first lap and a half and an old rear tyre I still managed two respectable times. My fastest ever 1st practice at 117.8mph and 119.9mph.

The next 2 laps were on the Hallett Aviation Suzuki Supersport bike and from the off I had a visor problem that caused a stiff breeze to blow into my eyes making visibility a problem. I stopped after the first lap to try to fix the problem but on the 2nd lap it was just as bad. Considering this, the times were encouraging at 114.8mph and 115.2mph.

According to the results sheets, I was the 15th quickest in both the Superbike and Superstock and 16th quickest in the Supersport. There’s still some time in there when we’ve ironed some wrinkles and got my head up to speed but we have to remember everyone else has similar plans.

In near identical times Oatesy found time to complete two laps aboard the Hallett Aviation Suzuki GSXR 1000 at 117mph.

New Zealander Paul Dobbs riding the Hallett Aviation Suzuki GSXR 600 followed Oatesy home in a best time of 19mis 38.9 secs at an average speed of 115.2 mph.

Practice continues tomorrow evening.

Full Practice sheets can be downloaded http://www.iomtt.com/TT-2010/2010-TT-Results.aspx

Stephen Oates made steady progress at Jurby on Sunday aboard the Hallett Aviation Racing/Raceways R6 Yamaha. The final meeting before the start of TT 2010 was a chance to put the R6 through it’s paces before heading up to Nobles Park later this week and setting up base camp for the annual ascent of the Mountain.

Oatesy will be contesting 5 races during the TT Festival under the Hallett Aviation banner. For the Superbike TT, Superstock and Senior TT he will be riding Suzuki GSXR 1000′s. Despite a start number of 34 on the big bikes Oatesy is confident of improving on his 2009 results. The Superbike is certainly a proven package with some excellent results posted last season notably a fine 6th place in the Southern 100 Solo Championship. Only the likes of Guy Martin, Conor Cummins, Michael Dunlop and Ryan Farquhar got the better of Oatesy that day.

In both Supersports races the R6 Yamaha will be the chosen weapon and it’s expected that Oatesy will be in the mix for a strong finish again.

Speaking yesterday;

“I had a good day up at Jurby, steady away on the R6 with T.T. next week . First time out on the steely 2 wins in class and 2 2nds in race not bad from back of the grid and 2 fastest laps.”

Here’s wishing Stephen and the whole team the best of luck for TT 2010.