Qualifying at the 2013 Isle of Man TT continued to be affected by inclement weather forcing officials to revise the schedule for Thursday evening. The sunshine of Wednesday afternoon gave way to rain in the north of the island and with the roads wet between Milntown and the Mountain Mile, Clerk of the Course Gary Thompson was forced to declare the session untimed, adding to Monday and Tuesday’s cancellations.
After mechanical problems on Saturday, newcomer Cheung Wain On finally got the chance to complete his speed controlled lap of the course before Ivan Lintin and Josh Brookes led the riders away at 7:15pm. A group of more experienced TT competitors were soon away after a five minute wait with Michael Rutter, Conor Cummins and Guy Martin on Superstock machinery with John McGuinness and Bruce Anstey opting for their Supersport bikes.
Before long though, rain was intensifying from Ballacraine onwards and yellow flags were shown to warn the riders, many of whom dived into the pits at the end of their first lap. A number of the newcomers did opt for a second run as they took the opportunity for extra track time while McGuinness did likewise, although he pulled in at Quarter Bridge on lap two.
At 8pm, the sidecars also ventured out for an untimed session but as in the solo classes, many completed a single lap before calling it a day. Dave Molyneux and Patrick Farrance, the fastest pair on Saturday, chose not to run at all in the hope of friendlier conditions on Thursday.
2013 Isle of Man TT fuelled by Monster Energy – Qualifying Schedule (Thursday 30th May) | |
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18:20-19:10 | Sidecar |
19:15-19:55 | Superbike/Superstock/Supersport/Newcomers (Except Lightweight) |
20:00-20:50 | Supersport/Lightweight/Newcomers (all solo classes) |