This happened in Vegas last week

[jamesearthdrum]

He was very laid back and would fit in very well around the fire at a rally.

james

[Flying Scotsman]

Im impressed.
Get him on a FJ for the TT and ill be even more impressed lol.........

[PaulG]

That reminds me of my encounter with the late-great Joey Dunlop.  It was 1990 at the Isle of Man TT.  I was in the Mitre Pub in Kirkch Michael the evening after the F1 race quaffing pints, playing pool and darts.  There was a loud rumble outside which nobody thought about as there was 30,000 bikes on the island. 

The door opens and in alone comes Joey still in his race leathers. He glances around as everyone turns their head.  Everything goes silent for about 3 seconds (just like a scene from a western, I'm not kidding!), and everyone turns back to whatever they were doing.  Joey hobbles over to the bar in that gait that racers get after a lifetime in the saddle, gets a stool, orders a pint and has a smoke.

I was gobsmacked as they say.  I so much wanted to go and blabber to him how awesome he was, but saw how everyone else was deliberately ignoring him to give him some peace and quiet - as much as you could in a pub full of bikers at the greatest race in the world - that I let him be.  He probably just finished his post race debrief, prepping for the next race in 1 1/2 days, and probably an hour or two of interviews.  I think he had a pint or two then left unassumingly.  He was one of the last of the "old school".

That has been my only meeting with anyone famous, let alone a true living legend, and one of my very few heroes.  I've been watching McGuinness race for years, and he carried the mantle that Joey passed on, and eventually broke his TT records. I'm glad he finally retired before the road caught up to him like it did with Joey and so many others.

That's a lucky break you got to meet him.  These guys are a breed apart, even from those "regular" motorcycle racers.  What was the event in Vegas by the way?

[jamesearthdrum]

It was at EMC World, an IT computer conference. The company I work for produces the show management booths. EMC put a bunch of sensors on a CBR1000 and in a set of leathers and had McGuinness ride around a track in Spain with another control rider. They collected a bunch of data attempting to discover what makes him so fast. It's really a marketing thing. They said he would be riding the bike at the TT this year. Not sure how true that will be.
I was in charge of moving the bike between the main stage and the booth where he did the book signing. 

[PaulG]

From what I have heard he has "retired".  But that didn't stop him from racing an E-Bike at the TT last year,and breaking the lap record for an electric bike.  I think he will be doing the odd one-offs, but full on TT weeks, Southern 100, Tandergee, the North West 100 I think are out.  Considering the last three are even more deadly than the TT.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlxZs2-gICc

Sounds like an interesting project.  Now all you have to do is finagle a trip to Spain out of it as a technical consultant, or France... England... Germany... Holland... Italy.  I think the Suzuka 8hrs would be a good test don't you?