The Southern 100 Diamond Jubilee year kicked off in style with a press launch in Castletown on Friday and the club’s annual dinner at the Palace Hotel the following evening.

Work commitments meant that 2014 Manx Gas Solo Championship race winner Guy Martin was unable to attend the Friday function, but he was in the island for the dinner on Saturday.

Among the riders who were in attendance at the launch were father and son Conrad and Dean Harrison.

Conrad won the sidecar title last year with local passenger Jason Crowe, who was also in attendance, while Dean Harrison was the man of the meeting.

He won the Corlett’s Trophies 1000cc race, finished runner-up in the Mike Kerruish Plumbing 250/650 event, first in the Radcliffe’s Butchers 600cc race, first in the 600cc S&S Motors 600cc race, first in the Ocean Ford 650cc SuperTwin and second behind Guy Martin in the main solo championship race.

Reigning Southern 100 sidecar champions Conrad Harrison and Jason Crowe

with Manx Radio's Tim Glover at the launch

Isle of Man Steam Packet Company have been title sponsors of the Southern 100 since 1999 but involved with the event as a whole for considerably longer.

Marketing and online manager Renee Caley and sales development manager Brian Convery were in attendance and happy to confirm the continued sponsorship of the island’s roll-on, roll-off shipping line.

Gary Cregeen announced Manx Gas’s sponsorship of the two main championship events and of several regular solo and sidecar crews, in addition, for the first time, extra support for Conrad Harrison.

Dave Smart’s Blackford Financial Services will once again be the headline sponsor of the Pre-TT Classic, having been title sponsors since 2005 and five years earlier through an associate business.

Tyre company Metzeler is the main sponsor of the Post-TT meeting for the third time. Manx Telecom are the official communications partner. Manx Radio, who covered the evening’s proceedings live on medium wave and online, are the official broadcast partners. Sports editor, Tim Glover, interviewed the various sponsors and riders present.

James Proudfoot represented Greenlight Television, producers of the TV footage shown across the globe to an audience of 442 million homes. The company also produces the annual Southern 100 DVD. The 2014 edition has already sold a record number of copies.

The Blackford Financial Services Pre-TT Classic will take place on May 29, 30 and 31.

The Metzeler Post-TT meeting is on Saturday, June 13 and the Diamond Jubilee Steam Packet Southern 100 International Road Races between July 6-9.

Past champions Phillip McCallen and Dave Leach were both in attendance on Friday evening, along with George ‘Sparrow’ Costain and Allan ‘Kipper’ Killip who both rode in the inaugural event in 1955.