4 June: Craig Doyle's exclusive ITV.com preview blog

Published: Friday, 4 June 2010, 7:28PM

A life in sports broadcasting can be more changeable than the Isle of Man weather.

One afternoon you are in a packed Twickenham stadium watching the most thrilling Guinness Premiership final ever seen. The next day your basking in the sunshine on an island in the middle of the Irish sea, discussing the merits of Ohlin forks over the K Techs on a Superbike.

Yes, the Isle of Man TT is with us again, and it’s bigger than it has been in quite a few years. Visitor numbers are up by almost 10 per cent and the start list is packed full of World, European and British Champions.

England's John McGuinness is still the man to beat around the 37.7 mile course, having already posted a plus-130mph lap. With 15 TT wins to his name he is a legend here, he cannot move without someone asking for a photo or autograph, yet when he returns home to Morecambe he goes back to his normal life as a bricklayer and to relative obscurity. It’s one of the many fascinating aspects of this most unique event, and road racing in general.

It's difficult to describe the feeling as you watch bikes tear around these country roads at speeds of over 200MPH. The mind cannot quite comprehend it. Don’t forget these are normal public roads for most of the year. Can you imagine if the street you live on became one of the fastest road racing tracks in the world?

Another unique feature is how big factory race teams race against individuals who have scrimped and saved to get here. The HM Plant Honda team looks like its straight of the MotoGP paddock, yet five minutes walk away there is some chap in a clapped out camper van, tinkering with a bike he will ride the mountain course on. Imagine if you can, having a kick around with your mates at Wembley an hour before the teams come on the pitch for the FA Cup final. That's kind of what happens on the island over race week.

There is also a wonderful camaraderie between the fans and riders. Jenny Tinmouth, currently the fastest ever woman around the TT Course, had a minor crash during practice yesterday. It’s well documented that she runs her bike on a tight budget, so when a fan saw her drag her bike out of a hedge he handed her a £20 pound note and said: “Thats a little something towards the repairs.” Wonderful.