{"id":2924,"date":"2023-06-09T19:03:54","date_gmt":"2023-06-09T19:03:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/?p=2924"},"modified":"2023-06-16T17:01:25","modified_gmt":"2023-06-16T17:01:25","slug":"in-the-isle-of-man-tt-zone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/?p=2924","title":{"rendered":"In the &#8220;Isle of Man TT&#8221; Zone"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left\"><strong>By Helen Owton<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Isle of man Tourist Trophy (TT) races have been running since 1907 and is notoriously known as one of the most dangerous in motorsports. The riders must navigate around a 37mile track around the Isle of Man with over 200 twists and corners, many of them blind, with \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/www.itv.com\/watch\/no-room-for-error\/10a4522\" >No Room for Error<\/a>\u2019 and top speeds of 200 mph on narrow country roads littered with street furniture &#8211; lampposts, concrete walls, houses, pubs, pavements, cliff edges, and no runoffs . The event has claimed over 150 lives which makes those competing in the event a death-defying act; riders as well as spectators all too aware of the risks.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Superstock Race 2 leader <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/peterhickman60?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" >@peterhickman60<\/a> is through Kirk Michael on lap 2 \ud83d\udd25<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/TT2023?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" >#TT2023<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/jueaJ1NOUT\" >pic.twitter.com\/jueaJ1NOUT<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Isle of Man TT Races (@ttracesofficial) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ttracesofficial\/status\/1667142526074060800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" >June 9, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>What&#8217;s interesting about the TT is the wide range of personalities and ages; one of the highest achievers is 51yr old <a href=\"https:\/\/johnmcguinness.co.uk\/\" >John McGuinness<\/a> with 23 TT wins and is still one to beat. Racers participating in the IOM TT are living their lives on the edge and many wonder why they put their lives at such risk but maybe they&#8217;re not as &#8216;crazy&#8217; as we think they are.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Race Face<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Successful athletes develop effective pre-performance routines or \u2018rituals\u2019 which can be used to help individuals perform under pressure and concentrate on factors that are in their control\u00a0 (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.open.edu\/openlearn\/mod\/oucontent\/view.php?id=65522&amp;section=6\" >Openlearn<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"BBC Sport - London 2012 Psychology\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BxgQ61aKANw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>You might see the riders turning on their \u201cRace Face\u201d which is a term referring to the mental posture that prepares and readies a motorcyclist for their race (Code, 2009: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motorcyclistonline.com\/riders-race-face\/\" >Rider&#8217;s Race Face | Motorcyclist (motorcyclistonline.com)<\/a>, (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=BxgQ61aKANw&amp;t=340s\" >LONDON 2012 VIDEO<\/a>).<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>\u201cYou may say a race face is a protective mask to prevent outside influences from entering into a rider&#8217;s world. Or y<\/em><em>ou may say the mask serves to bridle a rider&#8217;s own force, keeping it ready to be unleashed and do his bidding at the appointed time. Either way, it is a valuable tool-another piece of protective apparel we don before heading on-track\u201d (Code, 2009).<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Attuning the senses<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 1.71429;margin-bottom: 1.71429rem\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2926 aligncenter\" style=\"margin-top: 0.857143rem;margin-bottom: 0.857143rem\" src=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/TT-Rider.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"528\" height=\"350\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/TT-Rider.jpg 528w, https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/wp-content\/uploads\/TT-Rider-300x199.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 528px) 100vw, 528px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Extreme sports are often associated with thrill seekers with a \u2018death wish\u2019 or adrenaline junkies searching for their next thrill (<a href=\"https:\/\/journals-sagepub-com.libezproxy.open.ac.uk\/doi\/pdf\/10.1177\/1359105312446770\" >Brymer and Schweitzer, 2013<\/a>). However, these individuals can be highly trained with a deep knowledge of themselves, the activity, and the environment, who seek an experience that is life-enhancing and life-changing (Brymer and Schweitzer, 2013). Motorcycling, like other high-risk sports, requires a sharpening of senses, meticulous preparation, high work rates, swift recovery following setbacks and thriving in challenging situations (Crust et al., 2019).\u00a0 As Cole (2017) notes, it is important to set ourselves appropriate challenges and be attuned to one\u2019s senses by anticipating, listening to engine sounds, being cool under pressure, being attuned to a constantly moving environment at speed, and positioning the body-motorcycle effectively round the corner; all run by one\u2019s sub-conscious relying heavily on a deep knowledge of the TT circuit.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Muscle memory<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Building that deep knowledge of the course takes time and practice; riders don\u2019t immediately ride the course at that speed, and they have a whole practice week before every TT before the racing starts. This can help build up their \u2018muscle memory\u2019 which can also be referred to as motor memory, referring to one\u2019s body\u2019s memory to perform certain actions. There are two parts of the brain that help to learn sequences of actions and help to adjust errors in learning to improve one\u2019s ability to perform those movements correctly. Also, a concept known as proprioception can be described as our sense of balance, position, and muscular tension, provided by receptors in muscles, joints, tendons, and the inner ear. These bodily (somatic) senses inform our perception of \u201cinside\u201d and \u201coutside,\u201d of inner and outer space meaning that senses act together to help give us our embodied perceptions of space (<a href=\"https:\/\/journals-sagepub-com.libezproxy.open.ac.uk\/doi\/full\/10.1177\/15327086211051786#bibr36-15327086211051786\" >Paterson, 2009<\/a>). Riders who participate in the TT have highly trained and attuned their bodies to that environment &#8211; the TT course &#8211; through practice, breathing, focus and visualisation. To enable them to optimise their potential and perform at their personal best, they engage in an optimal psychological state known as flow.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Risk and Reward<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To induce flow, it is about balancing the level of skill with the challenge we are faced with (Nakamura et al., 2009); balancing risk versus reward and assessing whether a risk is worth taking as <a href=\"http:\/\/professionalmotorcyclerider.com\/\" >James Hiller<\/a> discusses:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"tiktok-embed\" cite=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@ttracesofficial\/video\/7235188168805338373\" data-video-id=\"7235188168805338373\" data-embed-from=\"oembed\" style=\"max-width:605px; min-width:325px;\">\n<section> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@ttracesofficial?refer=embed\"target=\"_blank\" title=\"@ttracesofficial\"  >@ttracesofficial<\/a> <\/p>\n<p>How do you calculate risk VS reward when you&#8217;re traveling at over 200mph?  James Hillier is no stranger to pushing himself to get into the winners enclosure, and emotions run high when you aren&#8217;t in there.  No Room for Error, showing Monday 22nd May: \ud83c\uddec\ud83c\udde7 9pm ITV4 and ITVX \ud83c\udf0e 9pm TT+  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/ttplus?refer=embed\"title=\"ttplus\" target=\"_blank\"  >#TTPlus<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/lovett?refer=embed\"title=\"lovett\" target=\"_blank\"  >#LoveTT<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/nrfe?refer=embed\"title=\"nrfe\" target=\"_blank\"  >#NRFE<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/noroomforerror?refer=embed\"title=\"noroomforerror\" target=\"_blank\"  >#NoRoomForError<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/motorbike?refer=embed\"title=\"motorbike\" target=\"_blank\"  >#Motorbike<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/motorbikesoftiktok?refer=embed\"title=\"motorbikesoftiktok\" target=\"_blank\"  >#motorbikesoftiktok<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/isleofman?refer=embed\"title=\"isleofman\" target=\"_blank\"  >#isleofman<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/tag\/motorsport?refer=embed\"title=\"motorsport\" target=\"_blank\"  >#motorsport<\/a> <\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/music\/original-sound-7235188208865921797?refer=embed\"target=\"_blank\" title=\"\u266c original sound - Isle of Man TT Races\"  >\u266c original sound &#8211; Isle of Man TT Races<\/a> <\/section>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>A TT rider faces intense fears, accepts that control of the future is not always possible and moves through these fears to participate fully in the action and make choices to reduce risk and enhance personal control (Brymer and Schweitzer, 2013; Crust et al., 2019).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Clutch States<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Indeed, switching to what\u2019s known as a \u2018Clutch state\u2019 which occurs under particular high-pressure conditions; it is similar to being \u201cin the zone\u201d but where there\u2019s an important outcome. Clutch performances are comprised of focus, heightened awareness, and intense effort whereas flow states are viewed as effortless attention and automatic experiences (<a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/let-it-happen-or-make-it-happen-theres-more-than-one-way-to-get-in-the-zone-149173\" >Swann and Goddard, 2020<\/a>). Flow states are more aligned with \u201cletting it happen\u201d whereby confidence develops naturally whereas clutch states are associated with \u201cmaking it happen\u201d where there is a sudden increase in concentration and effort (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/283564015_Psychological_States_underlying_Excellent_Performance_in_Professional_Golfers_Letting_it_Happen_vs_Making_it_Happen\" >Swann et al., 2015<\/a>). To activate flow states or clutch states, there has been an association with certain goal types. For example, open goals such as \u201cdo your best\u201d goals are more associated with inducing flow states, whereas specific goals with a fixed outcome such as \u201cwinning a race\u201d and setting a task specific goal to \u201cride at 120mph round the next corner to overtake the next rider\u201d to achieve that outcome is associated with \u2018clutch\u2019 performances. It is likely that there is a shifting or slippage in and out of the states and a blurring between and within the states and may link to how TT riders weigh up risk and reward.<\/p>\n<p>Riding the TT where all the hard work has been done before the race, can induce a quietness of mind while you just breath and focus. While there is a thrill of speed and desire for a win, \u201cOne of the things that make motorcycling so great is because it never fails to give you a feeling of freedom and adventure\u201d (Steve McQueen, 1930-1980).<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"No Room For Error | Official Trailer | Isle of Man TT Races\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SMIrVaHms3g?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Helen Owton The Isle of man Tourist Trophy (TT) races have been running since 1907 and is notoriously known as one of the most dangerous in motorsports. The riders must navigate around a 37mile track around the Isle of Man with over 200 twists and corners, many of them blind, with \u2018No Room for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[149,29,8],"tags":[180,178,176,175,168,179,177],"class_list":["post-2924","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-teamousport","category-helen-owton","category-sport-psychology","tag-extreme-sport","tag-flow","tag-isle-of-man-tt","tag-motorbike","tag-motorcycling","tag-muscle-memory","tag-tt2023"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2924","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2924"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2924\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2944,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2924\/revisions\/2944"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2924"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2924"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2924"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}