2003 Isle of Man TT

Isle of Man TT Mountain Course
Formula One TT winner Adrian Archibald at Quarterbridge

The 2003 Isle of Man TT was the 96th edition of the event. It was marred by the high-profile death of outright lap record holder and nine-time TT winner David Jefferies during practice.[1] Jefferies crashed at around 180 mph (290 km/h) at Crosby, due to a patch of oil that was not signalled by the marshals.[2] In the aftermath of Jefferies' crash, Jim Moodie's neck was hit by the cables of a telegraph pole laid down by the accident,[3] but he was not seriously injured.[4] Friend and rival of Jefferies John McGuinness was one of the first riders on the scene, and described it to be "like a war zone".[5]

Two riders took two wins during the event: Shaun Harris and Adrian Archibald. Shaun Harris won the Production 600 and 1000 races,[6][7] the only two TT podiums of his career.[8] Adrian Archibald took an emotional Formula One TT win, which he dedicated to his former team-mate David Jefferies,[9] and then won the prestigious Senior TT.[10]

Fog was a recurring issue during the final few days of the event, causing delays and shortened race distances for the Production 600 TT and Senior TT.[7][10]

  1. ^ "David Jefferies killed in TT practice". www.motorcyclenews.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  2. ^ "TT ace skidded on oil in fatal crash". Bradford Telegraph and Argus. 2003-08-21. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  3. ^ "Whatever happened to TT hero Jim Moodie?". www.motorcyclenews.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  4. ^ newspaper (2003-05-30). "Jim Moodie Involved In Jeffries Crash At Isle Of Man". Roadracing World Magazine | Motorcycle Riding, Racing & Tech News. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  5. ^ Broadbent, Rick (2023-11-09). "John McGuinness: It's brutally dangerous – I just ride it, embrace it". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  6. ^ "Harris wins 1000cc Production TT". www.motorcyclenews.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  7. ^ a b "Harris wins Production 600 race". www.motorcyclenews.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  8. ^ "Database". www.iomttraces.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  9. ^ "Archibald dedicates first win to Jefferies". www.motorcyclenews.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  10. ^ a b newspaper (2003-06-07). "Archibald Wins Senior TT At Isle Of Man". Roadracing World Magazine | Motorcycle Riding, Racing & Tech News. Retrieved 2023-11-09.