On TV last night

[fontana]

Did you all watch the TV show When Britain ruled the world last night
It was all about WSB's in the 90's.
I'm not into racing but I enjoyed it thoroughly.
What great characters those guys are.
Especially Jamie Whitham and Carl Fogarty who were interviewed at great length during the programme.
I really do recommend trying to watch it on catch up or whatever.
For me as someone completely indifferent to bike sport, that's saying something.
It was brilliant.
https://www.itv.com/hub/superbikes-when ... rld/2a1853

[milleplod]

Yep, a cracking programme, well worth a look....it really brings back memories of just how big WSB was back in the day. I've met Jamie Whitham a couple of times, he's a big mate of a friend of mine - he's a really, really nice bloke, very funny, not full of himself at all. Unfortunately, his cancer is back - he seemed to have it beaten a while back, but he's got to go through it all again now. All the best to him, he's one of the good guys.

Pete

[fontana]

Foggy's a bit of a bragger I noticed, but then, he has every right to be.

[milleplod]

Foggy's a bit of a bragger I noticed, but then, he has every right to be.

He has indeed! Can't say as I've actually 'met' him, but me and a mate did bump into him once at a cafe in Hawes. He was with 3 or 4 others, all on offroaders, they'd obviously had a day green-laning as they were mucked up to the eyeballs. Me and my mate were the only others on bikes at the cafe, and nobody else seemed to recognise him. I exchanged a few words with him at the counter, he was pleasant enough but didn't strike me as being anywhere near as easygoing as Jamie....I think it was those eyes that did it!

Foggy.jpg (12.73 KiB) Viewed 6412 times

Pete

[fontana]

Made me laugh when Foggy recalled when he and Whitham looked at each other when they were side by side on a stretch of the TT and Foggy thought JW only had one eye, because they are so close together.

Obviously just taking the piss, but that's the kind of characters they are.
I've have a completely different outlook on the sport after watching that.

Good interview here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNYguMb3w-s

[Al]

Fogarty also said in so many words he was a bit of a p***k to most people during his racing years, he's not wrong, one WSB meeting at brands it was torrential rain and the marshals campsite was at the lower end of the paddock and flooded in about 10 minutes, all the riders and wives/partners came out to help, offered space in motorhome awnings, cuppa's etc, not fogarty he came out swearing at everybody about the noise being made!!! It was in the afternoon ffs. A lot of the marshals were a bit slower to help him after that. People's champion!not.
Al

[slparry]

Foggy's a bit of a bragger I noticed, but then, he has every right to be.

He has indeed! Can't say as I've actually 'met' him, but me and a mate did bump into him once at a cafe in Hawes. He was with 3 or 4 others, all on offroaders, they'd obviously had a day green-laning as they were mucked up to the eyeballs. Me and my mate were the only others on bikes at the cafe, and nobody else seemed to recognise him. I exchanged a few words with him at the counter, he was pleasant enough but didn't strike me as being anywhere near as easygoing as Jamie....I think it was those eyes that did it!

Foggy.jpg

Pete

when my daughter won the "North Wales Biker Babe" competition at the Llangollen motorcycle show 7 years ago, I had to introduce my self to Foggy as her Dad as he was getting a bit um "friendly"

[fontana]

Fogarty also said in so many words he was a bit of a p***k to most people during his racing years, he's not wrong, one WSB meeting at brands it was torrential rain and the marshals campsite was at the lower end of the paddock and flooded in about 10 minutes, all the riders and wives/partners came out to help, offered space in motorhome awnings, cuppa's etc, not fogarty he came out swearing at everybody about the noise being made!!! It was in the afternoon ffs. A lot of the marshals were a bit slower to help him after that. People's champion!not.
Al

Who gave you that little nugget
Hearsay I suspect.
I doubt there's any proof anywhere that this actually happened.
Even if it did, it doesn't take anything away from him as a rider.
Oh and Foggy and Whitham are very good friends
Not sure how that fits in with your analysis

[Al]

I know it happened because I was there marshalling, which I did for over twenty years, and had a tent in the campsite. I don't recall ever saying Whit and Fogarty don't get on, first you abuse me by pm and now I'm a liar, you go up in my estimation every time you post.not.

Al.

[fontana]

I know it happened because I was there marshalling, which I did for over twenty years, and had a tent in the campsite. .

So you actually saw witnessed this happening.
I see.

[fontana]

I know it happened because I was there marshalling, which I did for over twenty years, and had a tent in the campsite. .

So you actually saw witnessed this happening.
I see.

I don't recall ever saying Whit and Fogarty don't get on,.

I see.
I don't quite understand what this means then, in the context of my previous post about Foggy recalling a memory of Whitham.

Fogarty also said in so many words he was a bit of a p***k to most people during his racing years, he's not wrong,

[gingergeezer]

What it means is that despite a vaguely interesting piece on TV about Foggy which may colour some of this forum's opinions about the man, he remains a marmite figure in racing. I worked with him on 'Men and Motors, ITV4's laddish car/bike prog back in the 90's and as presenter, he behaved like a loutish prick, unhelpful and full of his own importance. He pissed off the crew so much that he was sidelined and his wife Michaela stepped in. She did a far better job. So his behaviour at the track side mentioned by Al comes as no surprise at all.

Certainly not dull racing, I watched him on the Ducati a number of times in WSB and he was truly fantastic but couldn't cut it in MotoGP... or in his words, 'never got a competitive ride'. Or just wasn't good enough. All of which might have accounted for his acid temprement. His stock rose considerably by winning the Jungle celebrity prog doing really challenging things like eating camel cocks and other such culinary delicacies. He appears to have become a happier, less embittered person but when racing, anyone who threatened him, ie, was better than him, was verbally and sometimes physically on the track, attacked. Whitham was never a threat to him so they got on as racers and drinking buddies.

[fontana]

What it means is that despite a vaguely interesting piece on TV about Foggy which may colour some of this forum's opinions about the man, he remains a marmite figure in racing. I worked with him on 'Men and Motors, ITV4's laddish car/bike prog back in the 90's and as presenter, he behaved like a loutish prick, unhelpful and full of his own importance. He pissed off the crew so much that he was sidelined and his wife Michaela stepped in. She did a far better job. So his behaviour at the track side mentioned by Al comes as no surprise at all..

Did you watch the documentary, because he more or less admitted to being an ass, and even expressed some regret.

but when racing, anyone who threatened him, ie, was better than him, was verbally and sometimes physically on the track, attacked. Whitham was never a threat to him so they got on as racers and drinking buddies.

It's called being fiercely competitive.
No loss of brownie points there.
So who did he physically attack
During the TV documentary, there was only one physical attack, which was by an Italian racer against Foggy.
Sorry I don't know the name, but he lost fair and square, then after the race threw his toys out of the pram like a big baby.
It's the nature of sport.
Yes there are some ass holes in all sports.
Boxers for example, routinely put each other down.
Footballers fight in front of the TV camera's.
And so on.
It's an emotionally charged atmosphere.
Do you really think those poor fellow racers got their feelings hurt by Foggys loud mouth.
Erm OK

[gingergeezer]

Now some of us have confessed to finding bike racing, football or whatever else a little dull but if you watch the programme - which has changed some of our views on the sport quite dramatically it seems - Foggy clearly talks about physically deliberately taking out the mardy weirdo but talented Yank John Kochinsky in a WSB race and rather pathetically failing, the net result being that Foggy was out of the race and indeed hugely regretted such a stupid act. He had lost his cool and the team were furious.

I know the programme well and have absolutely no doubt that Foggy's big gob and infantile behaviour had an effect on some competitors. It goes on in every sport so the best thing is to ignore it.

Erm OK

[fontana]

Now some of us have confessed to finding bike racing, football or whatever else a little dull but if you watch the programme - which has changed some of our views on the sport quite dramatically it seems - Foggy clearly talks about physically deliberately taking out the mardy weirdo but talented Yank John Kochinsky in a WSB race and rather pathetically failing, the net result being that Foggy was out of the race and indeed hugely regretted such a stupid act. He had lost his cool and the team were furious.

I know the programme well and have absolutely no doubt that Foggy's big gob and infantile behaviour had an effect on some competitors. It goes on in every sport so the best thing is to ignore it.

Erm OK

Look, I have never had any interest whatsoever in bike sport.
If the personalities of Foggy and Whitham can win me around and make me take notice of the sport, then surely it has to be a good thing.
I draw a parallel between this and the long way down.
This TV programme, or rather it's presenters Charlie Boorman and Ewan McGreggor, were loathed by the biking public.
They were accused of being frauds because they were doing it with huge resources behind them.
Yeah OK, but they got bikes onto prime time TV worldwide.
Even my Mum watched the programme, and she hates bikes.
Name me one other bike rider who's achieved that in recent years.
Foggy did something very similar for bike sport.
Not quite to the level of Sheene, but not far behind.
No one seems to mind Guy Martin attaining celebrity status for being the biking equivalent of Eddie the Eagle.