Runcorn race ace Ian Mackman to lend a hand at Legend Fires North West Stages Rally

Jan 26 2012 Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News

RUNCORN speed demon Ian Mackman is taking some down time to lend a helping hand at the Legend Fires North West Stages Rally.

Known as ‘Mackers’ to his legion of followers, the TT race ace has been part of the Legend Fires North West Stages Rally results team for the past six years, and he is all geared up again for this year’s event.

Based in Blackpool, the two day rally is the biggest of its kind in the North of England and kicks off on February 3.

The event features spectator stages on Blackpool Promenade and Fleetwood Waterfront, and Mackman is involved in delivering race results.

Anyone trying to spot Mackman shouldn’t expect to see him on his race machine though, as he undertakes his duties on a completely standard road machine in the form of a Kawasaki GPZ500.

You can however see his full race specification Kemtile backed Kawasaki ZX10 on display at the rally’s headquarters - the Norbreck Castle Hotel.

The move to a ZX10 marks a new chapter in Mackman’s career, having competed on Suzukis for the past six years he’s hoping for great things from his new mount.

“It’s a big move for me having ridden Suzukis since 2005. The new Kawasaki is making really good power and has proven itself at the TT and the short circuits,” said Mackman.

Mackman - who first took to a motorbike at the age of nine - suffered life threatening injuries in 2009 after a 120mph crash. His resilience in recovering for the start of the following season astounded doctors, and the 32-year-old has prospered since.

This weekend though he’ll be travelling at a more sedate pace, keeping well within the speed limits and the 32-year-old is just hoping for good weather. He added: “I cover around 150 miles travelling around the stages and I reckon last year was the hardest. I'd been pretty lucky with the weather up until then but we had lots of rain and I was soaked right through to my under crackers.”