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Billown Circuit
Motorcycle road-race course on the Isle of Man
Motorcycle road-race course on the Isle of Man
The Billown Circuit is a motorcycle road-race course used for the Southern 100, the Pre-TT Classic races and the National Road Races meetings near Castletown on the Isle of Man. Racing is held on public roads closed for racing by an Act of Tynwald, the parliament of the Isle of Man.
The course is 4.25 miles (6.8 km) long and is in the parishes of Arbory and Malew. The course start-line is on the outskirts of Castletown and the course includes parts of the primary A5 New Castletown Road, the A28 Castletown to Ballabeg road, the A7 Ballasalla to Port Erin road and the A3 Castletown to Ramsey road.
History
Following the closure of the former RAF Station at Andreas to motorcycle racing in 1954, and to celebrate the success of George 'Sparrow' Costain and Derek Ennett at the 1954 Manx Grand Prix, the Southern Motor Cycle Club (SMCC) proposed that a motorcycle circuit be developed in the area around Castletown in the Isle of Man.Southern 100 Silver Jubilee Road Racing Meeting pp33 SMCC Ltd (1979)
The proposal for a "South TT" using roads around the new Castletown A5 by-pass and the Billown Mansion met with a lukewarm response, and an application for a grant of £500 for race expenditure was rejected by the Tynwald Race Committee in April 1955. A grant of £500 from local businesses, including T. H. Coleburn for a public address system, enabled the first Southern 100 road race event to be scheduled for July 1955 as a club-level race meeting.
The Billown Circuit became a regional registered circuit in 1956 and a National Racing circuit in 1957, with a maximum of 45 entries per class. In 1988 a new race meeting was introduced with the Pre-TT Classic races, followed by the National Road Races in 1990. The re-introduction of two-stroke racing at the 2008 Isle of Man TT, with a Lightweight TT and Ultra-Lightweight TT race, used the Billown Circuit to host Isle of Man TT races as part of the 2008 National Road Race meeting.
Speed and race records
The lap record for the Billown Circuit is 2 minutes 10.176 seconds at an average speed of 117.541 mph set by Dean Harrison during the 2025 races. The current sidecar lap record, also set in 2025, stands at 103.281 mph, achieved by Ryan and Callum Crowe.
List of fatal accidents involving competitors
| No. | Rider | Date | Place | Race | Event | Machine |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England Maurice A.Bowdery | 10 July 1958 | Castletown Corner | 1958 Southern 100 | Junior | |
| 2 | UK Tom Swindlehurst | 9 July 1964 | 1964 Southern 100 | Senior | 500cc Norton | |
| 3 | UK Graham Naylor | July 1970 | Williams Corner | 1970 Southern 100 | Senior | |
| 4 | UK Mike Pepper | July 1973 | Great Meadow | 1973 Southern 100 | ||
| 5 | Northern Ireland Jim Farlow. | 9 July 1974 | Church Bends | 1974 Southern 100 | ||
| 6 | England Tony Dickinson | 15 July 1981 | Billown Dip (Black hole) | 1981 Southern 100 | 250 Race | 247 Yamaha (F) |
| 7 | Wales Graham Williams | July 1983 | Church Bends | 1983 Southern 100 | ||
| 8 | Scotland John Tawse | July 1985 | Church Bends | 1985 Southern 100 | Practice | 250cc Rotax |
| 9 | UK Steve Taylor | 10 July 1988 | Great Meadow | 1988 Southern 100 | Solo Championship | |
| 10 | Isle of Man Andy Bassett | July 1991 | Billown Dip | 1991 Southern 100 | Practice | 350cc Yamaha |
| 11 | UK Roger Allen | 2 June 1992 | Ballakeighan Corner | 1992 Pre-TT Classic | Vintage Classic Race | 498cc Triumph |
| 12 | UK Michael Bellerby | 30 May 1995 | Ballanorris | 1995 Pre-TT Classic | Senior Classic Race | |
| 13 | Isle of Man Matthew Wood | 30 May 1995 | Ballanorris | 1995 Pre-TT Classic | Senior Classic Race | |
| 14 | UK Rob Harrison | 18 July 1994 | Iron Gate | 1994 Southern 100 | ||
| 15 | UK Graham Hayne | July 1996 | Great Meadow | 1996 Southern 100 | Practice | 600cc Yamaha |
| 16 | Isle of Man Michael Craig | July 1996 | Great Meadow | 1996 Southern 100 | Practice | 600cc Yamaha |
| 17 | UK Dave Pinkerton | July 1996 | Great Meadow | 1996 Southern 100 | Practice | 350cc Yamaha |
| 18 | UK Gavin Lee | 13 July 1999 | Williams Corner | 1999 Southern 100 | 250cc Yamaha | |
| 19 | UK Marc McDonald | 13 July 1999 | Williams Corner | 1999 Southern 100 | 600cc Kawasaki | |
| 20 | UK Andy Brown | 9 July 2003 | Ballawhetstone | 2003 Southern 100 | 600cc — Ireson Yamaha | |
| 21 | UK John Dowling | 9 July 2003 | Ballawhetstone | 2003 Southern 100 | ||
| (Sidecar Passenger) | 600cc — Ireson Yamaha | |||||
| 22 | UK Tony Smith | 25 May 2006 | Iron Gate | 2006 Pre-TT Classic | Practice | |
| 23 | UK Barry Pepperrell | 25 May 2006 | Iron Gate | 2006 Pre-TT Classic | ||
| (Sidecar Passenger) | Practice | |||||
| 24 | England Phillip Dongworth | 14 July 2009 | Ballanorris | 2009 Southern 100 | Practice | 600cc Ireson Honda |
| 25 | Isle of Man David Jukes | 8 July 2013 | Ballakeighan Corner | 2013 Southern 100 | Practice | 600cc Yamaha |
| 26 | Isle of Man Mark Madsen-Mygdal | 11 July 2013 | Castletown Stadium | 2013 Southern 100 | 600cc Race B | 600cc Yamaha |
| 27 | Isle of Man Paul Thomas | 11 July 2013 | Osbourne's | 2013 Southern 100 | ||
| (Sidecar Passenger) | Sidecar Championship Race | 600c Baker Yamaha | ||||
| 28 | Isle of Man Dean Martin | 28 May 2016 | Billown Dip | 2016 Pre-TT Classic | Practice | |
| 29 | England James Cowton | 12 July 2018 | Stadium Bends | 2018 Southern 100 | 600cc Challenge Race | 600cc Kawasaki |
| 30 | Ireland Alan Connor | 11 July 2023 | Castletown Bypass | 2023 Southern 100 | Practice | Suzuki |
List of riders by overall numbers of races won
| Rider | Wins |
|---|---|
| Joey Dunlop, Ian Lougher | 42 |
| Michael Dunlop | 26 |
| Jason Griffiths, Chris Palmer, Dean Harrison | 22 |
| Ryan Farquhar | 21 |
| Dave Madsen-Mygdal | 19 |
| Kenny Harrison | 18 |
| Dave Leech | 17 |
| Bob Heath, Dave Molyneux | 15 |
| William Dunlop, Bill Swallow | 14 |
| Bill Smith | 13 |
| Lowry Burton, Bob Jackson, Jason Griffiths | 12 |
| Derek Walley | 11 |
| Barry Wood, Robert Dunlop, Tim Reeves, Davey Todd | 10 |
| Geoff Bell, Ray McCullough, Ivan Lintin, Dan Sayle | 9 |
| Mike Hose, Bud Jackson, Guy Martin | 8 |
| Ian Bell, Nick Crowe, Selwyn Griffiths, Darran Lindsay | 7 |
| Charlie Freeman, Bob Jackson, Phillip McCallen, Alan Oversby, Tim Poole | 6 |
| Colin Bevan, Blair Degerholm, John Knowles, Dave Pither, Roy Richardson, Meryvn Stratford, Alan Steele, Charlie Williams, Derek Young, John Watson, Mark Wilkes, Alistair Howarth, Rob Hodson | 5 |
| Ian Bell, Tony Baker, Mick Burcombe, Bill Davie, Geoff Hands, Alan Oversby, Klaus Klaffenböck, Ben Birchall | 4 |
| Terry Shepherd, Tim Poole, Darryl Tweed, Pete Founds, Jevan Walmsley | 3 |
| Bill Currie,(Pete & Ron Hardy) Kenny Howles, Greg Lambert, Geoff Young, Rob Bellas | 2 |
References
References
- ''Isle of Man Examiner'' pp. 1, dated 14 January 1955
- ''Isle of Man Examiner'' p1 dated 22 April 1955
- ''Isle of Man Examiner'' p.1 dated 13 May 1955
- ''Isle of Man Weekly Times'' pp8 dated 11 July 1958
- ''The 1992 Southern 100 TT Classic Solo & Sidecar Racing — Official Programme'' pp18 Southern 100 MCRC Ltd (1992) Quine & Cubbon Ltd
- ''Southern 100 Motorcycle & Sidecar Racing — Official Programme 1999'' pp30 Southern 100 MCRC Ltd (1999) Quine & Cubbon Ltd
- ''Southern 100 Motorcycle & Sidecar Racing — Official Programme 2003'' pp6 Southern 100 MCRC Ltd (2003) Quine & Cubbon Ltd
- ''Isle of Man Examiner'' p5 dated 28 July 2009
- ''Southern 100 Race Guide 2009'' p32 (2009) Southern 100 MCRC Ltd Quine & Cubbon Ltd
- ''Isle of Man Courier – Roieder Ellan Vannin'' page 1 Isle of Man Newspapers Ltd (2013) Johnson Press Publishing – Sheffield Web 12 July 2013
- ''Isle of Man Examiner – Brialtagh Ellan Vannin'' page 11 Isle of Man Newspapers Ltd (2013) Johnson Press Publishing – Sheffield Web 15–21 July 2013
- ''Southern 100 International Road Races 2013'' Southern 100 MCRC Ltd (2013) Quine & Cubbon Ltd Page 34
- [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-isle-of-man-36404621 Isle of Man Classic TT 2016: Rider dies in practice race] [[BBC. ''BBC News, Isle of Man'']], 28 May 2016, Retrieved 29 May 2016
- [https://www.bbc.com/sport/motorsport/44815725 Southern 100: James Cowton killed in crash] [[BBC. ''BBC Sport, Motorbikes'']], 12 July 2018, Retrieved 13 July 2018
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