I have this gut feeling that DED want the old scoreboard to be sold off on ebay and replaced with a new digital one

Isle of Man TT: Petition launched to save 'iconic' scoreboard



The scoreboard has been used during the TT races for more than 100 years 

The Isle of Man TT scoreboard which has stood for more than 100 years will be dismantled for road works to go ahead, the government has confirmed.

More than 680 people have signed an online petition to save the "iconic" scoreboard which sits on Glencrutchery Road opposite the TT grandstand.

Engineers said steel supporting for the scoreboard is likely to need replacing.

Campaigners fear it will not be replaced and a petition spokeswoman said it was "unique in motorsport."
The Department of Infrastructure said scheduled road works would require the scoreboard to be dismantled by 2017.
A DoI spokesman said structural engineers had assessed that the steel supporting the scoreboard looked like it would need to be replaced.



Scouts have worked the scoreboard at the TT races for more than 100 years 

The petition spokeswoman said: "Losing the Isle of Man TT historic scoreboards would be like taking Ballaugh bridge out of the TT circuit".

In a statement the Department of Economic Development (DED) said it "understands the passions of the fans and of the importance of the history and heritage associated with the scoreboard".

It continued: "No decisions have yet been made but these will be factors taken into account in any final decision."
The DED Motorsport Team said it was currently reviewing all options including a manual scoreboard, a digital scoreboard or a combination of the two.

A separate health and safety risk assessment was also carried out during the 2014 TT with concerns raised by the clerk of the course over the position of the scouts who work the scoreboard during races.

A working party has been set up and a safety fence could be in place by the 2015 event.

End of the road for piece of TT history?

Have your say!

The chequered flag may be about to fall for the last time on the historic TT scoreboard when planned repair work on Glencrutchery Road could see it dismantled for ever.

The Department of Infrastructure is planning resurfacing work, expected to take place in 2017 or 2018, depending on how well work on Douglas promenades progresses.

When the work is carried out the board will have to be dismantled and a spokesman for the government has said it may not be re-erected.

He said: ‘The Department of Economic Development understands the passions of the fans and the importance of the history and heritage associated with the scoreboard.

‘No decisions have yet been made but these will be factors taken into account in any final decision.

‘The DED’s motorsport team is currently reviewing all options including a manual scoreboard, a digital scoreboard or a combination of the two.’

A statement from the DoI said structural engineers had assessed the steel supports for the scoreboard and judged it ‘likely’ they would need to be replaced.

In the meantime, clerk of the course for the TT, Gary Thompson, has raised health and safety concerns about the position of the Scouts who traditionally man the scoreboard during races, working at the front of the boards.

TT organisers ACU Events Limited completed a health and safety risk assessment during the Manx Grand Prix and Classic TT this year and a working party has now been set up to decide the best way to minimise any risk.

As a result a safety fence may be put in place ready for next year’s TT races.

Responding to the threat to the scoreboard, TT sidecar racer Debbie Barron has set up a page, on social media website Facebook, called Isle of Man TT Scoreboard History.

On it, she invites anyone to post images, comments, information and trivia about the scoreboard, saying: ‘I am being told another piece of history is to disappear forever, no doubt sold off in pieces.

‘Before it gets pulled down forever has anyone got old photographs or information about when it first appeared, who designed it?

‘Where will the modernisation stop? Another question is where is the Dunlop Clock that was taken down and never put back up?’

TT historian, author and owner of the TT Fottofinders archive Bill Snelling said his collection includes pictures of the scoreboard dating back to the 1920s with the structure largely unchanged.

(13-01-2015, 12:04 PM)spannerman Wrote: I have this gut feeling that DED want the old scoreboard to be sold off on ebay and replaced with a new digital one

Isle of Man TT: Petition launched to save 'iconic' scoreboard



The scoreboard has been used during the TT races for more than 100 years 

The Isle of Man TT scoreboard which has stood for more than 100 years will be dismantled for road works to go ahead, the government has confirmed.

More than 680 people have signed an online petition to save the "iconic" scoreboard which sits on Glencrutchery Road opposite the TT grandstand.

Engineers said steel supporting for the scoreboard is likely to need replacing.

Campaigners fear it will not be replaced and a petition spokeswoman said it was "unique in motorsport."
The Department of Infrastructure said scheduled road works would require the scoreboard to be dismantled by 2017.
A DoI spokesman said structural engineers had assessed that the steel supporting the scoreboard looked like it would need to be replaced.



Scouts have worked the scoreboard at the TT races for more than 100 years 

The petition spokeswoman said: "Losing the Isle of Man TT historic scoreboards would be like taking Ballaugh bridge out of the TT circuit".

In a statement the Department of Economic Development (DED) said it "understands the passions of the fans and of the importance of the history and heritage associated with the scoreboard".

It continued: "No decisions have yet been made but these will be factors taken into account in any final decision."
The DED Motorsport Team said it was currently reviewing all options including a manual scoreboard, a digital scoreboard or a combination of the two.

A separate health and safety risk assessment was also carried out during the 2014 TT with concerns raised by the clerk of the course over the position of the scouts who work the scoreboard during races.

A working party has been set up and a safety fence could be in place by the 2015 event.

End of the road for piece of TT history?

Have your say!

The chequered flag may be about to fall for the last time on the historic TT scoreboard when planned repair work on Glencrutchery Road could see it dismantled for ever.

The Department of Infrastructure is planning resurfacing work, expected to take place in 2017 or 2018, depending on how well work on Douglas promenades progresses.

When the work is carried out the board will have to be dismantled and a spokesman for the government has said it may not be re-erected.

He said: ‘The Department of Economic Development understands the passions of the fans and the importance of the history and heritage associated with the scoreboard.

‘No decisions have yet been made but these will be factors taken into account in any final decision.

‘The DED’s motorsport team is currently reviewing all options including a manual scoreboard, a digital scoreboard or a combination of the two.’

A statement from the DoI said structural engineers had assessed the steel supports for the scoreboard and judged it ‘likely’ they would need to be replaced.

In the meantime, clerk of the course for the TT, Gary Thompson, has raised health and safety concerns about the position of the Scouts who traditionally man the scoreboard during races, working at the front of the boards.

TT organisers ACU Events Limited completed a health and safety risk assessment during the Manx Grand Prix and Classic TT this year and a working party has now been set up to decide the best way to minimise any risk.

As a result a safety fence may be put in place ready for next year’s TT races.

Responding to the threat to the scoreboard, TT sidecar racer Debbie Barron has set up a page, on social media website Facebook, called Isle of Man TT Scoreboard History.

On it, she invites anyone to post images, comments, information and trivia about the scoreboard, saying: ‘I am being told another piece of history is to disappear forever, no doubt sold off in pieces.

‘Before it gets pulled down forever has anyone got old photographs or information about when it first appeared, who designed it?

‘Where will the modernisation stop? Another question is where is the Dunlop Clock that was taken down and never put back up?’

TT historian, author and owner of the TT Fottofinders archive Bill Snelling said his collection includes pictures of the scoreboard dating back to the 1920s with the structure largely unchanged.

Read the original posting on this matter, on this website, back in 2008 - HERE

I'm very fortunate to have carefree memories of sitting on the front, legs dangling watching the start of the races when I was a Scout on the scoreboards. It's health n safety and corporate hand in hand with one blaming the other and fogging the issue, there's no way the CoC only watched from the board side for the first time last year as he said and the bean counters will have sold the sponsorship of a new board already. I work in a very focused health n safety repair environment - if that scoreboard wasn't in the slightest fit for purpose it would have gone ages ago. I had the same gut feeling when I read the CoC's words last year - what exactly needs to be improved on ?, there isn't a problem there - I can't remember any accidents involving the scoreboards or users and i'm sure it will be the same now as when I was dib dib dibbing with the Scouts looking forward and being privileged to get the chance to work the scoreboards - it's a unique viewing point as well

A while ago on the 'dark side' I was quite vocal about the DED getting rid of tradition by inspite of many, many years of support for the TT, both Mylchreests who provided the course cars, and Honda who provided the TM bikes, were both done away with in 2007 just so sponsorship money for both these services could be capitilised on.
We have come a long way since then, with various things being prostituted for the highest amount in the name of 'we need the money to carry on'.
I then questioned where does this stop, and asked what is, and what is not out of bounds, and used the analogy of someone like the AA or RAC offering to carry out the Scouts duty on the scoreboards ( for a heathy fee to the DED of course) and remember being lambasted on the 'dark side' for being stupid, and yet here we are.
Nothing is out of bounds with the DED if they think they can increase there year on year income from the TT.

Only 680 petitioners, surely just a vocal minority. (Mind they were on Facebook, so clearly a more lively and engaged audience than some backwater web forum).

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/157/161/3...oreboards/

Here is a link to the petition

If its only a matter of steel supportings, my mate and i are happy to stay a few more days after TT15, and get it fixed, free of charge.
If any local supplier can afford to drop some materials, we'll save this unique piece of history.

(13-01-2015, 08:45 PM)choke Wrote: If its only a matter of steel supportings, my mate and i are happy to stay a few more days after TT15, and get it fixed, free of charge.
If any local supplier can afford to drop some materials, we'll save this unique piece of history.

Lovely idea and would work in our world, some scaffoldng/key clamp tube and fittings/welding and carpentry work would very easily get the job done .. unfortunately I suspect you would need no end of risk assessments, CIS certificates, project management, safe working practice legislation and insurance, traffic management/direction/cones etc as you need at least 1 metre from site. Basically upon completion of repairs the first time somebody stubs their toe the legal finger points at the last contractor on site. There might be a way of doing it along the lines of public support/charity/site of interest/national treasure etc but that won't happen by itself.

If the TT scoreboard is to be replaced by a didigital thingy, and I have no doubt that once it is removed for road works it will not be replaced, perhaps the majority of it could be re assembled somewhere in Nobles park. I did suggest in the past that it would make a wonderful front to a TT museum, something else that will never happen because of short sightedness on behalf of the TT organizing committee and the DED.

To lose the scoreboard in its present form would be a travesty. There must be many fans who flock to the Grandstand just to see the scoreboards.
It is a pity that when the new Grandstand was built in 1985, it was set back a further 10 yards or so from the original site, thus making the reading of the times/speeds more difficult. However, it is and will remain an iconic symbol of the TT Heritage, and it is unthinkable that the DED are not aware of this.
To have this rebuilt would be a relatively small cost compared to road improvements.

It isn't possible to improve on the spectacle of the scoreboards and how it works, the Scouts, the lights, the noise of the riders clock hand clanking around, the hussle n bussle on, behind and up top on the boards. Being invited to work on there was a true privilege and is looked forward to today by everybody involved, it gets all involved very excited. Anything digital will undoubtedly suffer from "computer says no" problems.

I mentioned to a non biking friend about the possible removal of the scoreboard and he was suprised by this and even with his limited knowledge of bikes and racing he still knew about the famous scoreboard and the scouts running around updating the race imformation.

Although the scoreboard is part of the Manx and the TT, it doesn't now give the information that the pit crews require.  Live timing is becoming essential for pit crews but is almost impossible to access because of the effective ban on tablets and phones in the pit lane area. It is daft that the public are better informed than we are and if a new scoreboard is introduced which gives all this data to each pit crew then that can only be a good thing. 

Of course the sensible option would be to allow the data technology to be used in the pit lane and keep the scoreboard for tradition.  I have no idea why the ban is in place when the commentators are running up and down the pitlane with radio mikes, we are all wearing battery powered wrist watches, and no doubt many of us have a pocket full of copper and nickel change which could make a small voltaic pile.  Additionally there is no requirement to earth the bikes to the fuel rig before dispensing fuel which is something far more likely to cause a fire.

I am with you on his Can , if you have to move the scoreboard and do it up then while you are at it bring it up to date with the technology , and as you say the place that needs the tech stuff is in the pits it must be possible you would have thought , and then keep the tradition on the other side of the track for the punters , I am all for moving with the times but where possible make those changes sympathetic to structural heritage , the heritage and history are what make the TT what it is

This would be one of those changes which would be the ruination of the TT and MGP. By all means make it safe for the people who operate the scoreboard but to throw away history and tradition, in many areas, will eventually turn the TT into a shadow of itself!

It's an iconic piece of history, very special - I hope it remains. The recent "Racing Legends - John Surtees" even focussed on it as iconic / full of history etc..... which it is.