Press release
There is no doubt that the Tourist Trophy is a mad race. It's about going very fast on very narrow lanes flanked by stone walls and through small Manx villages. The race transforms the sleepy little island into a petrolhead nirvana. Unlike other racetracks which feel a bit manicured, this one is the real thing, the public roads of the Isle of Man. Riders say it's a bit like going to work on your bike – except going very fast.
Talk to one of those petrolheads and they will tell you about the stresses on the bike, suspension strike through, the shaking and near wipe-outs on the 37 ¾ miles (60.7 km) and its 200 bends, going from sea level to 1,300 ft (396m) and back.
Imagine zooming past a 30 mph sign at 200 mph – legally. DR
The TT race is biking in the raw and it has not changed much since the days when Charlie Collier won the first race in 1907. His 500cc (500 cm3 Matchless clocked an average speed of 38.21mph or 61.5km/h. A hundred years later and John McGuinness's average speed was 131.578 mph or 211 km/h with a top speed of 200 mph (321 km/h).
Not surprisingly, the sponsors of this quirky race are equally quirky Anglo-Swiss watchmakers GRAHAM-LONDON who designed the special winners' watch for this occasion.
Eric Loth, founder of GRAHAM-LONDON, is also a keen motor cycle rider: “We like this race because it's historic, it's real, it's mad and it's British and gritty and we want to see it prosper. In the Isle of Man, one can still do one's own thing. Perhaps it's no coincidence that it's also the home of fellow petrolheads Jeremy Clarkson and Nigel Mansell.”
Catch more details on www.graham-london.com and May the Best Manx win.
The Chronofighter Oversize Tourist Trophy
The special edition watch by GRAHAM-LONDON for all 18 winners in the different categories.
The Chronofighter Oversize Tourist Trophy Bi-compax chronograph, automatic mechanical movement, Calibre G1734, 27 jewels, 28'800 A/h, Incabloc shock absorber.
30 minutes stopwatch counter in the form of a 30 mph road sign and a sweep seconds hand in the form of the Manx coat of arms, the Triskelion. Super-LumiNova coated hands and markers for night visibility. Date at 7 o'clock for easy reading angle. PVD coated stainless steel case, fast action start-stop lever and non-slip stopwatch-reset button. Domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on both faces. See-through case back with TT logo. Limited and numbered edition of 211 pieces.
GRAHAM-LONDON is for the second year the official timing partner of the Tourist Trophy Isle of Man and we look forward to the start of this year's racing!
GRAHAM-LONDON traces its origins to London clockmaker George Graham (1673-1751) who is responsible for many innovations in timekeeping. He invented the chronograph, the dead-beat cylinder escapement, the mercury pendulum to compensate for temperature differences. He also built the master clock for Greenwich Royal Observatory which defined time for most of the 18th century. GRAHAM-LONDON was resurrected in 1995 and is today a privately owned Anglo-Swiss watch company which design and builds its own watches in its in La Chaux-de-Fonds production facilities in Switzerland.
CHRONOFIGHTER OVERSIZE TOURIST TROPHY
Technical features
Functions
Chronograph
Left-hand side: fast action start/stop lever and reset button
Central chronograph second hand
60 second counter at 3 o'clock
30 minute counter at 9 o'clock
Hours and minutes from the centre
Date at 7 o'clock
Movement
Automatic bi-compax Chronograph
Calibre G1734
Frequency: 28'800 alternations per hour (4 Hz)
27 jewels
Power reserve: 42 hours
Case
“Clous de Paris” bezel. Case, lever and crown in PVD-coated stainless steel
Reset button in stainless steel
Limited edition and individual number engraved on the case back
Diameter: 47 mm
Thickness: 16 mm
Water resistance: 330 feet or 100 metres
Dial
Black galvanic dial. Yellow and red colors dedicated to the official “Tourist Trophy” logo colors. Red scale and white background for the 30 minute counter with black “ironic” big “30” at 9 o'clock. Full red second counter at 3 o'clock. White Super-LumiNova numerals hour markers
Hands
Super-LumiNova white hour and minute hands
Red chronograph second hand
Yellow 30 minute counter hand
Yellow sweep second hands dedicated to the “3 legs” of the Isle of Man coat of arms
Glass
Domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on both sides.
Sapphire crystal See-through case-back with “Tourist Trophy” logo, secured by 8 screws
Strap
“Clous de Paris” decoration. Integrated black rubber strap
Buckle
Black ceramic pin buckle
Limited edition: 211 pieces
Reference: 2OVUV.B33A.K52N
Public price: 7'950 CHF
