Video: The Isle of Man TT, 50 years before the Dunlops

Yes, before the days of the Dunlop dynasty, before Joey took his first (of 26) in 1977, it had been 70 years since the first running of the TT. So on the eve of perhaps the maddest, fastest weekend on the motorsport calendar, we thought we’d share with you some vintage TT goodness.

In 1920, before 200mph jumps and twenty feet of air were par for the course, we had race-average speeds hitting a dizzying 52mph at the hands of T.C. de la Hay. Before the shapely superbike formula we know and love, the period equivalents resembled something we’d consider to be somewhat agricultural today. The event has endured, but for sure has evolved beyond the wildest most fevered imaginings of those early pioneers. Some traditions remain, however, including the duty of lap time-keeping being in the hands of the local cub scouts armed with a tin of paint.

Want to see TT bikes close up? Tickets for the 2017 Festival of Speed are on sale now. For more information visit ticketing.goodwood.com.