The Isle of Man TT Mountain Course, also known as the TT Course or Snaefell Mountain Course,Isle of Man Centenary TT – ACU/MMCC Official Race Guide page 67 Isle of Man Department of Tourism and Leisure (2007) Mannin Media Group Ltd is a street and public rural road circuit located in the Isle of Man, used for motorcycle racing. The motorcycle TT Course is used principally for the Isle of Man TT Races and also the separate event of the Isle of Man Festival of Motorcycling for the Manx Grand Prix and Classic TT Races held in September of each year.International Isle of Man Tourist Trophy – 2018 Regulations page 26 Section 7 Qualifying and Race Procedure TT Business Development Manager (2018) Isle of Man Department of Economic Development. ACU Events Ltd The start-line for the Isle of Man TT Mountain Course is located on Glencrutchery Road in the City of Douglas, Isle of Man.Daily Express page 38 Friday 7 September 1979
The clockwise course has a lap of ,Official TT Guide 1992 pp 45 Mannin Media Publication/Isle of Man Department of Tourism from the start line at the TT Grandstand on Glencrutchery Road (A2 Ramsey to Douglas) in the island's main town of Douglas. After negotiating urban streets, the racing circuit turns right to leave Douglas at Quarter Bridge, then proceeds along the A1 Douglas to Peel Road from Braddan Bridge, through the villages of Union Mills, Glen Vine, Crosby, and Greeba. The course then turns right at Ballacraine on to the A3 Castletown to Ramsey road, firstly through countryside glens followed by agricultural land interspersed by the villages of Kirk Michael, Ballaugh and Sulby, finally intersecting with the A18 Snaefell mountain road after negotiating urban streets in the town of Ramsey. The A18 then takes the course back to Douglas through the highest point, situated after the Bungalow at Hailwood's Height near the 31st Milestone and the UK Ordnance Survey spot height of above sea level. The descent starts through countryside before entering the residential outskirts of Douglas back to the finish line.
History Motor racing began on the Isle of Man in 1904 with the Gordon Bennett Trial and originally was restricted to touring automobiles. As the UK Motor Car Act 1903 placed a speed restriction of on cars within the United Kingdom, the Secretary of the Automobile Club of Britain and Ireland approached the authorities in the Isle of Man to seek permission to race cars on public roads.Island Racer 2004 page 112–113 Mortons Media Group Ltd ISSN 1743-5838 The Highways (Light Locomotives) Act 1904 passed by Tynwald gave permission to use local roads for the Highroads Course for the 1904 Gordon Bennett Trial.The Statutes of the Isle of Man Vol VII from 1896 to 1905 page 569 Edited by C.T.W Hughes-Games Brown and Sons Ltd
For the 1905 Gordon Bennett Car event it was decided to run a trial for motor-cycles the day after for a team to represent Great Britain in the International Motor-Cycle Cup Races. The inability of the motorcycle competitors to climb the steep primary A18 Snaefell Mountain Road section of the course forced the organisers to use a section of the Gordon Bennett Trial course. For this reason, the 1907 Isle of Man TT Race used the St. John's Short Course. The 1906 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Race for automobiles the Highroad Course was reduced from to . For the 1908 Tourist Trophy race for automobiles, the course was again reduced to with the removal of the Peel and Sandygate loops and was known as the Four Inch Course.TT Pioneers – Early Car Racing in the Isle of Man page 103–104 Robert Kelly, Mercury Asset Management (1996)(1st Edition) The Manx Experience, The Alden Press ISBN No 1 873120 61 3 The name of the course derives from the regulations for the 1908 Tourist Trophy adopted by the Royal Automobile Club which limited the engines of the competing automobiles to a cylinder diameter of . The Four-Inch Course was adopted by the Auto-Cycle Club for the 1911 races. The Four-Inch Course subsequently became known as the Isle of Man TT Mountain Course or TT Course when used for motor-cycle racing.
Course changes: 1920–1939
For the 1919 Isle of Man TT, changes were made to the Mountain Course and competitors turned left at Cronk-ny-Mona and followed the primary A18 Mountain Road to Governor's Bridge with a new start/finish line on Glencrutchery Road which lengthened the course from the pre-World War I length of to . An extensive programme of road improvements occurred to many roads in 1922 by the Highway Board including the Mountain Course with road widening at Sulby Bridge, from Port-e-Chee on the A1 Peel Road to Braddan Bridge and part of the main road through Crosby.Isle of Man Examiner and General Advertiser page 12 No 2158 Saturday 12 November 1921 – Tynwald £27,325 improvement scheme for course Modification of Signpost Corner including rounding off the bend occurred in 1922 along with further road widening at Governor's Bridge with the completion of the link road to A2 Glencrutchery Road/Governor's Road and the removal of fence posts at Keppel Gate.Isle of Man Examiner and General Advertiser page 2 Saturday 12 May 1922 Further changes to the course followed in 1922 with the adoption of a private road part of the Ballastowle Estate between Parliament Square and May Hill in Ramsey.Isle of Man Examiner and General Advertiser page 12 No 2158 Saturday 12 November 1921 The course had previously had negotiated the A2 Albert Road and Tower Road in Ramsey and the new course length was now . The official course distance for the Snaefell Mountain Course was amended in 1938 to which is the current course length.Official TT Guide 1992 page 45 edited by Norrie White Isle of Man Department of Tourism (1992) Mannin Media Ltd
For the 1934 Isle of Man TT races major alterations to the TT Mountain Course were carried out which included the removal of the East Snaefell Mountain sheep-gate.Isle of Man Examiner dated 31 May 1934 This was followed by the removal of the hump-backed bridge at Ballig and the road work was completed for the Manx Grand Prix in September 1935. Road widening occurred on the Mountain Course at the Highlander, Laurel Bank, Glen Helen (between the Old Quarry and Brew's Restaurant), and at Brandywell with the removal of the Beinn-y-Phott sheep-gate for the 1935 Isle of Man TT races.Isle of Man Weekly Times dated 25 May 1935 Road Improvements occurred at the 26th Milestone, Greeba Bridge and on the Sulby Straight for the 1938 Isle of Man TT races. Further road widening and landscaping occurred at the Waterworks with road widening between the Gooseneck and the 26th Milestone for the 1939 races.Isle of Man Weekly Times pp4 dated 13 May 1939 A memorial to Jimmie Guthrie was built in 1939 at The Cutting at a cost of £1,500Isle of Man Weekly Times pp18 dated 17 June 1939 (equivalent to £ in ).
Course changes: 1947–1999
Major road widening occurred on the Mountain course at the 33rd Milestone, including the removal of fence posts at road level and the removal of a section of a grass bank before the start of the 1947 Isle of Man TT races.Isle of Man Weekly Times dated 12 May 1947 Changes to the Mountain Course occurred for the 1953 races including road widening at Bedstead Corner, elevation works at Signpost Corner and Cronk-ny-Mona, and the widening of the corner at Gorse Lea.Isle of Man Weekly Times pp7 dated 25 April 1953 Before the commencement of racing for the 1953 Manx Grand Prix, the cottage at Appledene Corner was demolished between the 6th and 7th Milestone road-side marker on the primary A1 Douglas to Peel road on the Mountain Course.Isle of Man Examiner pp12 dated 14 August 1953 Further changes occurred to the Mountain Course to facilitate racing on the Clypse Course and during the winter of 1953/54 road widening occurred on the primary A18 Mountain Road at Creg-ny-Baa, Signpost Corner, Cronk-ny-Mona, and at the approach to Governor's Bridge.Isle of Man Examiner pp12 dated 5 January 1954 The approach to the Quarterbridge on the primary A2 Douglas to Peel road was widened and re-profiled and the jumps at the Highlander and adjacent to Ballagarraghyn Cottages were removed for the 1954 Isle of Man TT Races.TT 100 – The Authorised History of the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Racing by Mick Duckworth pp111 (2007)(1st Edition) Lily Publications Other major course alterations for the 1954 Isle of Man TT Races included road widening at Appledene, Handley's Corner, Barregarrow, Rhencullen, Ballaugh Bridge, Ginger Hall (Sulby), and Kerrowmoar.Isle of Man Examiner pp6 dated 28 May 1954 During the winter of 1957/58 the hotel at the Bungalow tram-crossing was removed on the Mountain Section of the course.Isle of Man Examiner pp1 dated 10 April 1958TT 100 – The Authorised History of the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Racing by Mick Duckworth pp29 (2007)(1st Edition) Lily Publications
During the 1960s further road-widening occurred at Ballig and also at Greeba Bridge on the primary A1 Douglas to Peel road. In 1963 a roundabout was added to the road junction at the Quarterbridge.Isle of Man Examiner pp5 dated 6 June 1963 The winter of 1970/1971 and road-widening occurred on the A18 Mountain Road at Verandah by cutting into the hillside.Isle of Man Weekly Times pp1 dated 6 January 1971 During the winter of 1975/76 road-widening and landscaping by the Isle of Man Highway Board occurred at Snugbrough on the primary A2 road at the 2nd Milestone.TT 100 The Official Authorised History of Isle of Man Tourist Trophy Racing page 21 by Mick Duckworth Editor Miles Coswell (2007)(1st Edition) Lily Publications Ltd The winter of 1986 further re-profiling occurred at the Quarterbridge road junction with a new road traffic system including two new mini-roundabouts, the removal of a traffic island, and trees. Road re-profiling and widening occurred at Quarry Bends during the winter of 1987. During the winter months of 1991/1992 the A18 Mountain Road was closed for repair work to the road foundation between the 26th Milestone and the Mountain Box and also between the Windy Corner and Keppel Gate.Official Isle of Man TT Programme 1992 pp 45 edited by Norrie White Isle of Man Department of Tourism (1992) Mannin Media Ltd
Course changes: 2000–present