Classic Sidecars will race at the Southern 100 Races on the Isle of Man this July after the Auto-Cycle Union approved the class, giving the Billown meeting a replacement for the suspended modern Sidecar category. The change means sidecar racing will still feature at the 4.25-mile Billown Circuit in Castletown when the event runs on July 6-9.
The move matters now because the modern Sidecar category remains out of action at both the Isle of Man TT and the Southern 100 after the incident at Crosby in which Ryan and Callum Crowe’s outfit flipped off the road. An official Sidecar Sustainability Review has been launched by the TT organisers, and the future of the modern class remains unresolved while the replacement grid is put together for this summer.
Southern 100 Clerk of the Course Giles Olley said the speed with which the Classic Sidecar field was assembled showed the strength of the road racing community. He singled out Greg Lambert for tireless work on the ground with the drivers and passengers, and thanked Dr Paul King at the ACU for helping clear the administrative hurdles needed to get the class approved.
The Classic Sidecar entries are being fully funded by a private benefactor, which has helped the organisers move quickly from a blank slate to a workable grid. Competitors can submit entries through the official Southern 100 website, and the technical regulations require either two-stroke machines built before 31/12/1967 or four-stroke machines built before 31/12/1972.
That gives the meeting a way to preserve one of its most distinctive attractions while the safety review continues around the modern category. The classic machines were last raced on the island during the Pre-TT Classic races, also run on the Billown Circuit, and this July’s Southern 100 crowds will get the same sidecar spectacle even as the class that was suspended stays under review.
For riders and supporters, the immediate answer is clear: Billown will have sidecars this summer, just not the modern version that was pulled after Crosby. What remains unanswered is how long that suspension will last, and whether the modern class returns once the review is complete.
