Island factfile - Sporting facilities
Sporting facilities are plentiful and wide-ranging on the Isle of Man, catering for everything from aerosports to watersports. Full club details are listed in the Manx Sports Council's official annual directory, available from the National Sports Centre. Information on sporting activities is also free from the Tourist Information centre and listed in the Isle of Man Yearbook, available from major bookshops.
Astroturf pitches at Ramsey, Peel, Castletown and Douglas enable football, cricket, rugby and hockey to be played in all weathers. The pitches can be booked through the Sports Development Office at the National Sports Centre.
Manx athletics has a long and successful international record, largely due to the excellent track and field facilities provided by secondary schools and the NSC.
Crown green bowling is popular, with many fine greens around the island and a number of clubs and competitions open to all ages. Indoor bowling is available at the Manx Superbowl in the Castle Mona Hotel complex.
Competitive cycling takes place on tough closed road circuits, culminating in June's International Cycle week when riders compete around tight streets and over the TT circuit. The island's quiet hills are also ideal for mountain biking and blue signs dotted around country roads indicate the routes of six, leisurely one-day cycle trails.
Disabled sport is well supported in a number of fields from horse riding to international level athletics. Contact Manx Sport & Recreation for details on 01624 688555.
Equestrian sport ranges from dressage and showjumping to cross-country horseriding, available through commercial stables and equestrian centres. No foxes or deer mean no blood sports, but traditional drag hunts are well supported. There is no horse racing on the island but bookmakers provide for UK and overseas betting.
Family facilities include Onchan Leisure Park, Ramsey's Mooragh Park and Silverdale which all offer plenty of activities for young children from boating lakes to mini-putt golf, adventure playgrounds and mini-Grand Prix circuits.
Anglers can enjoy fishing on 95 miles of coastline, six well-stocked reservoirs and numerous rivers, for freshwater fish including salmon, eels, brown and rainbow trout and sea fish such as flounder, cod, dabs, herring, plaice, mullet, mackerel, wrasse, conger eel and pollack. Rocky coastlines produce crabs, lobster, Queen scallops and mussels. Freshwater fishing licences are available from main post offices and the Tourist Department.
Non-commercial flying activity is co-ordinated through the main airport at Ronaldsway with lessons available from the Flying Club at Derbyhaven. Some microlight flying also takes place at the former RAF airfield at Jurby. Further north, gliding is enjoyed in the peaceful skies above another former RAF airfield at Andreas, the home of the active Andreas Gliding Club.
Eight fine golf courses, ranging from a 9-hole municipal course to 18-hole championship links, enable golfers of all abilities and budgets to enjoy their sport all year round. Details of costs, coaching and equipment hire are available from the Tourist Information centre or individual clubhouses.
Motorsport is the Island's best-known activity but the famous TT circuit is used not only for the modern race bikes of the TT and Manx Grand Prix but also for Pre-TT Classic racing, International Cycle Week, Manx Classic car racing, Jaguar and Morgan Tours and the Manx Rally. The full 37.73 mile circuit follows public roads, signposted at one mile intervals, from Douglas to Ballacraine, north to Ramsey and finally back across the mountain road to Douglas. The smaller, 4.25 mile Billown circuit adopts roads on the outskirts of Castletown for the Steam Packet road races at the end of TT fortnight and the Southern 100 in July. In the far north, the Jurby racetrack provides a venue for the national motorcycle championships, pre-TT testing, drag racing and the World Wheelie championships. Ramsey promenade is also used for drag racing during TT week. The island's varied landscape itself is ideal for a wide range of motorcycle sports including sand racing, international trials, scrambling (motocross), trail riding, vintage rallies, grasstrack and sidecar trials. Over 120 miles of closed tarmac roads make a challenging venue for the Manx International Rally (the final event of the British Rally Championships) and the Manx National Rally. Hill climbing for high performance sports and saloon cars is popular in out-of-town areas, while Peel is a town that actually uses its narrow, winding streets as a thrilling kart racing circuit. The crazy sport of stockcar racing is more suited to the stadium setting of Onchan Park raceway which roars into life on Monday evenings throughout the summer.
The National Sports Centre (NSC) in Douglas is the island's main sports complex, combining an athletics track, sports hall, swimming pools and a floodlit astroturf pitch in one world-class venue. Netball, basketball, handball, squash, hockey, football, rugby, cricket etc. are all available at the new complex which also has attractive cafe/bar facilities and plenty of parking. The Sports Development office based there offers extensive school holiday programmes run by top-class coaches and 'Fun Days' for youngsters to experience a wide range of sports.
Most larger towns around the island have recreation parks with 'green' areas, adventure play areas, mini-putt golf, bowling greens and boating lakes (See also: Family Life). Many also provide for a range of racquet sports. Public Tennis courts are plentiful and squash, badminton and table tennis are available through fee-paying clubs, youth clubs, hotel leisure centres, community halls and the NSC. The Onchan Park Squash and Table Tennis Club is also open daily with coaching and equipment available.
The IOM Shooting Club has a covered, 32 firing point, 50m range at St Johns for .22 outdoor target shooting. There are a number of rifle associations and clay pigeon shooting clubs and wildlife shoots for pheasant, grouse and duck are held on private land during the winter season.
Sports fields for cricket, rugby, football, archery, etc are generally run by local clubs and enquiries should be addressed to the clubhouse or local commissioners office.
The island is a haven for walking with an extensive public footpath system and over a dozen areas of Manx National Trust land open to public rambling. The main walkways are the 28 mile Millennium Way from Ramsey to Castletown, the 95-mile coastal Raad Ny Foillan or 'way of the gull' and the Bayr ny Skeddan 'Herring road' from Castletown to Peel.
Watersports require toughness (or a wetsuit) to combat the chilly Irish Sea but many beaches have clean, white sand and swimming can be pleasant in July and August. Some bays are affected by sewage outfalls but water quality is monitored monthly and the results posted at main beaches. Derbyhaven and Gansey are good for water skiing and boardsailing and a number of sheltered bays are ideal for jet-skiing. Larger towns have public indoor swimming pools and a handful of hotels with health club pools offer memberships to non-residents. Clear coastal waters and numerous wrecks offer great opportunities for diving, though exploring some wrecks requires prior permission. The island has a number of sailing clubs and mooring facilities and marinas are planned for Douglas, Ramsey and the south. Canoeing and dinghy sailing lessons are available in the safe confines of Ramsey's Mooragh Park.
Acknowledgements: Manx Heritage Foundation