The Classic TT presented by Bennetts is set to burst into life on Friday 25th August with the now traditional ‘Paddock Carnival’ at the TT Grandstand ahead of the evening’s final qualifying session and the two race days on Saturday 26th and Monday 28th August.

Eight time TT Race winner Charlie Williams will be the host for the day, which will feature upbeat music from local Jazz combo the Manx Jazz Aces and fifties tribute band ‘The Blue Jays’, who will be performing two shows on the purpose built stage behind the grandstand.  

The packed line up, which is free to attend, will also include regular appearances throughout the day from Graeme Hardy who will be performing his uncanny George Formby tribute, complete with ‘Shuttleworth Snap’.

The stage behind the grandstand will also play host to a series of chat shows with motorcycling legends who will be on the Island for the Classic TT including twenty three time TT race winner John McGuinness who will be updating fans on his recovery from injury earlier in the year.

The Team Obsolete crew and Steve Plater will be talking about their upcoming Honda 6 parade lap, while a man inextricably linked to the Honda 6 – six time world champion Jim Redman MBE, will be on hand to share his experiences of racing the bike.

Other notable guests appearing include Stuart Graham,  the 1967 50cc TT race winner, who also raced the Honda 6 as a teammate of Mike Hailwood.Current TT stars Dean Harrison, James Hillier, Josh Brookes, Lee Johnston and Michael Dunlop will also be appearing in the chat show during the day, previewing their Classic TT Races ahead of Saturday’s first race day.

The Purple Helmets stunt show will be bringing their riotous antics to pit lane with their heady mixture of the spectacular and farcical while Bruce Anstey has been known to join their ranks for guest appearances.

Visitors to the Classic TT celebrations will have the chance to enjoy the spectacular Concours d’Elegance, which will be held in Nobles Park, with both cars and bikes on display.  

Categories include ‘Best Racing Motorcycle and Best Classic and Vintage Road Motorcycle as well as three categories for cars - pre 1946, 1946-68 and 1969-86). Anyone wishing to enter should bring their machine to the grandstand from 12 noon on Friday.The evening’s entertainment will be winding down with an outdoor screening of TT3D:  Closer to the Edge in the paddock at the ‘Sundown Cinema.’

17th Annual Stockport Bike Show. Bike show, live bands, Roughleys collectable and legendary clothing, trade stalls, face painting, bouncy castle, tombola, raffle and more…  All welcome, including bikes, trikes and scooters. 

Bike show entrants to have their machines onto site by 11am, prizegiving will be at 4pm by Andrew Roughley. Bands will be playing until late.

Fundraising for NABD, Rainbow Family Trust and The Together Trust.

venue: St Petersgate, Stockport, (near Manchester) Cheshire, SK1 1HE. Midday until 10pm. 
price: £3. Under 16's free must be with an adult - must be off site by 8pm. 
website: www.roughleysbikeshow.com
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People who want to learn to ride a motorcycle or scooter will get the chance to try for free during the August bank holiday weekend at a three-day event in Warwickshire.

Get On, which is the motorcycle industry’s free ‘try out’ programme, will be offering 45-minute taster lessons in the grounds of the British Motor Museum on Saturday 26^th, Sunday 27^th and Monday 28th August.  These will be available between 9am and 5.30pm each day.

Karen Cole, Director of Safety and Training for the Motorcycle Industry Association, which backs Get On events, says this is an ideal introduction to motorcycling:

“First and foremost motorcycling is fun, but it is vital that people get their first taste of riding in a safe and structured environment, where expectations about wearing protective clothing are set and people understand the value of finding high quality training.

“Government vehicle licensing figures show that more and more people are riding motorcycles and scooters each year and we want them to wear the right gear and take training with the best schools in the UK.  So whether you are looking for a new hobby in retirement, or you are 16 years old and planning to get your first moped, Get On will get you started in the right way.”

What happens at a Get On event?

Riders are introduced to the gears, brakes and slow speed handling by a professional instructor.  Motorcycles and protective clothing are all provided, so riders just need to wear long jeans and sturdy shoes. There is no cost at all.

Riders will also be given advice about wearing protective clothing and how to find an accredited local trainer, should they decide to take their interest further, as well as learning what licences are needed for different sized motorcycles.

Get On is suitable for anyone aged 14 or over who wants to learn to ride, from complete beginners to those who are thinking of returning to biking after a break. 

Sessions can be booked beforehand by phoning 02476 408040, or via the website www.geton.co.uk or people can turn up and book on the day (subject to availability).  Under 16s must bring an adult or guardian.

People can also combine their Get On experience with a visit to the British Motor Museum.  The museum is open 10am to 5pm and traces the history of the British motor industry using film, photography and over 300 British cars, which is the largest collection of its kind in the world!  Admission prices can be found on the museum’s website. The museum is off junction 12 of the M40, CV35 OBJ.

The UK’s biggest independent road safety charity IAM RoadSmart maintains that we will not gain the full safety benefits of self-driving cars until every car on the road is connected to each other – a statement that has now been backed up by a white paper produced by experts at the University of Michigan.

Until then, IAM RoadSmart believes that the human mind holds the edge, until such point that connected cars actually ‘talk’ to each other and predict what is happening over the horizon.

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart director of policy and research, said: “The ultimate win-win situation is a place where information from each vehicle is shared with the vehicles around it, add that to human experience born from a lifetime of ‘trial and error’ and you have the ideal double-act to spot crashes before they happen.”

The white paper comes from Brandon Schottle from the University of Michigan called Sensor Fusion: A Comparison of Sensing Capabilities of Human Drivers and Highly Automated Vehicles (reference 1).

Mr Schottle said in his report: “ Machines/computers are generally well suited to perform tasks like driving, especially in regard to reaction time (speed), power output and control, consistency, and multichannel information processing. Human drivers still generally maintain an advantage in terms of reasoning, perception, and sensing when driving. ”

He added: “While no single sensor completely equals human sensing capabilities, some offer capabilities not possible for a human driver.

“In the short to medium term AV [autonomous vehicle] sensing systems will still be critical for detection of any road user or roadway obstacle that is not detected and shared by connected vehicles which is where the human brain comes in.”

Mr Schottle pointed out a number of circumstances in which both human capabilty and a connected vehicle’s perception can be compromised – thus increasing the need for each party to work together – such as extreme weather, excessive dirt or physical obstructions, darkness or low illumination, large physical obstructions and dense traffic.

The report also pointed out where the human brain wins out over a vehicle’s ‘brain’; it said in the areas of memory, reasoning, sensing and perception, human involvement is both desirable and advantageous.

Back in March, IAM RoadSmart warned that cars with growing levels of autonomy could make motorists lazy and over reliant on gadgets – with far reaching implications for the potential reduction of people killed and seriously injured on the roads (reference 2).

Neil Greig said at the time: “When it comes to driverless cars, IAM RoadSmart members are not keen to give up full control. The implications for future driver competence and training as we become more reliant on technology are still far from clear.”

The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee report Connected and Autonomous Vehicles: The future? echoed this view, stating: “Autonomous cars could have negative implications for drivers' competence, making drivers complacent and overly reliant on technology. This is of particular concern in emergency situations, where a driver may react slowly to taking back control of a vehicle.”

IAM RoadSmart is organising a conference in co-operation with the RAC Foundation in London on 4 October 2017 on how to safely manage the transition to autonomous cars. Individuals wishing to register their interest in attending the conference should email [email protected]