Hi Ian
Firstly, no person on earth has more enthusiasm than you for the TT. You have FAR more than me! I am a little burned out by all the effort I gave it, but keen none the less.
You are wrong about the course speeds. If the course was "as it was", say the 1995 course, they would still be getting round now in 17m 35 seconds, or there abouts. It's the bikes that have come on. We had 128bhp on an RC30, today they all have 180 plus. Brakes, suspension, tyres, quick shift etc, I reckon Hizzy could have lapped in 18m exactly in 1991 on a 750, albeit the best 750 EVER made! So in real terms the modern bikes are going round about 25 seconds faster than the best rider at the time, with the technology available at the time. That seems fair to me. I also think that the increase in prize money has made it more competitive. Because these riders have little opportunity to earn money anywhere else, the TT stands head and shoulders above anything they can earn elsewhere. Hizzy, and Foggy, could earn money on the short circuits, and Joey had a fair contract with Honda that gave him security. I really DO think that the current crop are having a real go, which is very exciting, but, I admit, I am scared for them all!
Finally, the TT really needs more variety, I reckon it can stand two or three more years in this guise before it needs rebranding, and then it will need doing urgently. I think everyone will have been thrilled by the racing, this year, but I came back thinking it offered a familiar mix of triumph and tragedy. My heart goes out to those families who's lives are changed by the TT for ever.