0:00:10 > 0:00:13I'm just outside the small town of Cookstown, Northern Ireland,
0:00:13 > 0:00:1550 miles to the west of Belfast.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18It's a quiet and peaceful rural scene,
0:00:18 > 0:00:21as you'd expect when you venture into the Irish countryside,
0:00:21 > 0:00:25but this weekend that peace and quiet is going to be well and truly
0:00:25 > 0:00:26shattered.
0:00:32 > 0:00:36On any other day, these roads would be used by normal traffic.
0:00:36 > 0:00:39As you can see, they are lined with walls, trees and hedges,
0:00:39 > 0:00:42all kinds of obstacles - road furniture, as they call it.
0:00:42 > 0:00:44But for the next two days,
0:00:44 > 0:00:49these roads will be closed for road racing as 200 road racers push
0:00:49 > 0:00:53themselves and their machines to the absolute limits as they compete on
0:00:53 > 0:00:57this circuit. Mostly men, but also some incredible women.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03The week before a race, a minute before a race, it's the adrenaline,
0:01:03 > 0:01:06the buzz. It is like a drug.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09If you start worrying about getting hurt all the time,
0:01:09 > 0:01:12where are you going with that? There's no point in doing that.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15You have to push on and prepare as best you can.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20It's on the same level, you know, your love, your friends,
0:01:20 > 0:01:22and your passion for racing.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25I'm happy that it's like that.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59So incredible!
0:02:01 > 0:02:06By its very nature, road racing is an extremely dangerous motorsport,
0:02:06 > 0:02:10with riders reaching speeds here of 180mph.
0:02:10 > 0:02:11Morning.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14But it's also a sport full of tradition,
0:02:14 > 0:02:16with a strong family atmosphere.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20I've never seen so many characters in one small space.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Hi!
0:02:24 > 0:02:28- Nice to meet you.- Thank you.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30Pleasure, absolute pleasure.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Well, this is so friendly it's incredible.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38You know what, it actually reminds me a little bit of when I used to go
0:02:38 > 0:02:41and watch British superbikes, about 25 years ago.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45It is bringing back that overwhelming family feeling,
0:02:45 > 0:02:48and just that feeling of a grassroots motorsport.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50There's not television cameras everywhere,
0:02:50 > 0:02:54it's just very much racing at its basic level.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01This race, the Cookstown 100, is in its 95th year,
0:03:01 > 0:03:03and apart from the machinery,
0:03:03 > 0:03:05I doubt that it's changed very much over that time.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11But one thing has definitely changed since racing began here.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14In today's paddock, you can find some women road racers.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18I think Melissa's in here.
0:03:18 > 0:03:20Hiya.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22Here she is. Hello.
0:03:22 > 0:03:23How are you?
0:03:23 > 0:03:26- Nice to meet you.- You too. The first time I was ever on the bike,
0:03:26 > 0:03:29I kept falling off it, I couldn't work the gears,
0:03:29 > 0:03:31couldn't work the clutch, I was like, "I don't want to do this,
0:03:31 > 0:03:36"I don't want to do this." But Dad kept at me and now look at me.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38I'm still here, 14 years on.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41So what was the point then where you stopped thinking,
0:03:41 > 0:03:45"I don't want to do it", and you thought, "I only want to do this"?
0:03:45 > 0:03:49Yeah, there have been times where it has been quite hard,
0:03:49 > 0:03:52because I am in a man's sport and
0:03:52 > 0:03:56it's...for a girl, it's hard.
0:04:00 > 0:04:03I just think I'm immortal, I just think that I'm not going to get
0:04:03 > 0:04:05hurt, that it's not going to happen to me.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10And it's the fact that it's something I love so much,
0:04:10 > 0:04:13I can't get away from it, I really can't.
0:04:13 > 0:04:15Like, people that don't know me,
0:04:15 > 0:04:18I would say to them, "I race motorbikes,"
0:04:18 > 0:04:21and they look at me as if I've two heads.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29It's just disbelief, I guess, because I am a girl, obviously,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32and the fact that I'm so small, too, draws attention.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42My poor mum, bless her, like, I know
0:04:42 > 0:04:45she doesn't particularly like me doing it.
0:04:45 > 0:04:46She won't even watch me.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49She can't, she just can't bring herself to watch me,
0:04:49 > 0:04:51which I don't blame her. That's the way she copes with it.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57Lavinia, you're Melissa's mum and some might say that you've got the
0:04:57 > 0:04:59- hardest job of all.- It's hard.
0:04:59 > 0:05:04You know, my stomach was churning and your heart's going as well
0:05:04 > 0:05:07before she goes out.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10And I'll always give her a hug, kiss her and say I love her,
0:05:10 > 0:05:12and away off she goes, so.
0:05:12 > 0:05:14And then I just sit and wait.
0:05:14 > 0:05:16Sit and wait, with my fingers crossed.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20It's hard not to feel for Melissa's mum,
0:05:20 > 0:05:23to have brought a daughter into this world and see her commit at such a
0:05:23 > 0:05:28young age to this sport that could take her away at any time.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31Lavinia may not want to be here but she's here for Melissa.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41I've worked in motorsport for 22 years and I think this is the most
0:05:41 > 0:05:44dangerous motorsport that I've ever seen, and I'm sort of slightly
0:05:44 > 0:05:47polarised by it, because it's incredible watching
0:05:47 > 0:05:50it and another part of me is like your mum -
0:05:50 > 0:05:53- I'm absolutely terrified...- I know, yeah.- ..for you being out there.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01I know it's not nice for her, but
0:06:01 > 0:06:03when I come back in and I am thoughtful of her, like,
0:06:03 > 0:06:07having her here is probably the biggest support I have.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10Because everybody needs their mum.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12That's very true.
0:06:17 > 0:06:21I like road racing because maybe I'm too crazy for normal life.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27I don't know, really, but I have road racing in my heart,
0:06:27 > 0:06:31and it's like how I said - it's like a passion.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35So I need maybe the adrenaline and all the atmosphere,
0:06:35 > 0:06:37or something like that, and everything.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39And bikes is my life.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48I'm not too much thinking about the dangers.
0:06:48 > 0:06:53If something will happen, it will happen, and...
0:06:55 > 0:06:57it could happen, you know, anywhere,
0:06:57 > 0:07:00you know? It can't be only at the road racing, you know?
0:07:02 > 0:07:04For Veronika Hankocyova,
0:07:04 > 0:07:07taking part in Irish road racing is a huge commitment.
0:07:07 > 0:07:08I can see Veronika up there.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14Along with her fiance and fellow racer Michal, or Indy as she calls
0:07:14 > 0:07:16him, she drives from her home in the
0:07:16 > 0:07:18Czech Republic just to race on these roads.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25- Hi, I'm Suzy.- Yeah, nice to meet you.- Nice to meet you.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28Michal's out there now. That's why you're here. Is he?
0:07:28 > 0:07:29Is Michal on track right now?
0:07:29 > 0:07:33Yeah, he's there right now because he's on a 600 but doing
0:07:33 > 0:07:37- 1,000 class on that bike, you know, so I'm just watching him.- OK.
0:07:39 > 0:07:43I have problems watching the races, it's so fast, you know,
0:07:43 > 0:07:46I can't believe it. But if I'm there it's completely different.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48I always say to Indy,
0:07:48 > 0:07:51"Yeah, you have to go, just, you know, have a nice ride."
0:07:51 > 0:07:54It's not about racing, I have to say,
0:07:54 > 0:07:58it's about a very nice, fast ride, safe as much as possible.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01OK.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05Well, we'll be watching you and wishing you all the luck, of course.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08Have you seen him? Is he back in?
0:08:08 > 0:08:13I think he's not here. I have to go to the tent to see him.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15- Go on.- Perfect.
0:08:17 > 0:08:18It's astonishing, isn't it?
0:08:18 > 0:08:21Everything that she said, really,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24and the fact that she's standing here and she's more nervous about
0:08:24 > 0:08:27waiting for her boyfriend to come in than she is when she's actually out
0:08:27 > 0:08:31there racing. I kind of understand that, as well, a little bit.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36Yeah, it's quite a lot to take in.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51I'm fascinated by Veronika and Indy,
0:08:51 > 0:08:55a couple committed to each other but also to competing in this sport.
0:08:56 > 0:09:01In fact, it's the danger of road racing that drew them even closer
0:09:01 > 0:09:03together, six years ago...
0:09:06 > 0:09:10..when Indy was badly injured here at the Cookstown 100.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23I had a big crash at Cookstown.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25I broke my back in many places.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28And after that, I was lying in hospital and I came out of the
0:09:28 > 0:09:32hospital and I asked her if she would marry me because I realised
0:09:32 > 0:09:37afterwards that life is too short. Now we are ten years together, we
0:09:37 > 0:09:40got engaged six years ago, and we have never had time to get
0:09:40 > 0:09:44- the marriage done.- Come on, Indy! - Yeah, I know!- Come on, sort it out!
0:09:44 > 0:09:47Yeah, we spend all our money on bikes, everything, so...
0:09:47 > 0:09:49- And travelling. - Travelling, you know.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52Veronika was telling me she's a little bit nervous about going out
0:09:52 > 0:09:55- on the 600 cos it's...- Yeah, she is actually, sort of,
0:09:55 > 0:09:57her first year on a 600, really,
0:09:57 > 0:10:00on the roads, so that is going to be a big premiere for her.
0:10:00 > 0:10:04Of course, you know, she's getting used to the speed and, you know...
0:10:04 > 0:10:06and I'm getting more nervous than her, I think, you know,
0:10:06 > 0:10:09because you know when your partner is out there,
0:10:09 > 0:10:11you know how tricky it is sometimes.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15So I hope she's going to do well and she's going to enjoy it.
0:10:15 > 0:10:17She was saying exactly the same thing about you
0:10:17 > 0:10:18- while you were out there, too. - I know.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28My first love was horses and showjumping.
0:10:28 > 0:10:30Motorbikes just didn't figure at all.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Then, about 2004, I found myself on my own.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37That was basically the end of the marriage.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42And I'd been married for 24 years.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45That's been a long time being with somebody all the time,
0:10:45 > 0:10:47and all of a sudden you're on your own,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49and it's very daunting, as well,
0:10:49 > 0:10:51but for me, it was the start of a new life.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04There is no doubt that Yvonne Montgomery is a road racer with a
0:11:04 > 0:11:08difference. It's not just that she's a woman,
0:11:08 > 0:11:12but a woman who began racing in such exceptional circumstances.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16From learning to ride a motorbike to actually racing was only a year.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21Do your licence and get a wee motorbike and have a bit of
0:11:21 > 0:11:24independence, so that's actually what I did do.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30I didn't go looking for motorbikes. I didn't go looking to start racing,
0:11:30 > 0:11:33it just all started to fall into place
0:11:33 > 0:11:36and I went along the road that it led me.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39It led me to motorbike racing, road racing,
0:11:39 > 0:11:42and I've got such a good life now.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44I enjoy my life so much.
0:11:44 > 0:11:46It's a good time for me.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51Hi. Has there been a birthday recently?
0:11:51 > 0:11:53No, there's a birthday at the end of August.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56- It's coming up, is it? - The last day of August.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58- Oh, yeah.- 60.- It's a big one.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Well, sure, I don't know.
0:12:01 > 0:12:02It's just a number, isn't it?
0:12:02 > 0:12:05Yeah, it is. You're in this for racing.
0:12:05 > 0:12:09You love the racing. You like overtaking. You're not just...
0:12:09 > 0:12:11I like catching them and passing them.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14That's what racing's about,
0:12:14 > 0:12:17to get past whatever's in front of you and go on.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20When you're on that grid with your lid on, visor down,
0:12:20 > 0:12:22- you're racing out there.- Oh, yeah.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24You're not just going out there to have a good time?
0:12:24 > 0:12:26Of course not. It's far too expensive.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29If you want to go out and just piddle around,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32there's other things you can do a lot less expensive and dangerous as
0:12:32 > 0:12:34racing. No, I'm out there to compete.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40Whatever I earn goes straight into the bike.
0:12:40 > 0:12:42The girls talk about getting their nails done, their gel nails.
0:12:42 > 0:12:47It's £25. I think, "That's a jerrycan of fuel for me!"
0:12:47 > 0:12:49THEY LAUGH
0:12:53 > 0:12:55We're away now.
0:13:02 > 0:13:03Yvonne springing into action.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11I don't think that racing gets any more raw than this.
0:13:11 > 0:13:15You don't just see and hear it, you can also feel it.
0:13:15 > 0:13:19It's such an immersive and overwhelming experience.
0:13:21 > 0:13:25- How you doing? You good?- What?- Are you good?- Yeah, good to go.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28- Feeling good.- What Yvonne, Veronika and Melissa have in common,
0:13:28 > 0:13:32like all the racers here, is a total commitment to this sport.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38Their goal is the same, to go out,
0:13:38 > 0:13:42race as hard as they can and beat some fellas along the way.
0:13:45 > 0:13:49They look like they're talking about the track, and Indy is giving her
0:13:49 > 0:13:52some pointers on his experience from just being out there.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56I don't speak Czech but I can tell by the body language.
0:13:56 > 0:13:58I was wondering whether she was visualising the track
0:13:58 > 0:14:02before she went out there.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07It's so extraordinary standing here with them waiting to go out,
0:14:07 > 0:14:10even though it's only for a practice, but on a road,
0:14:10 > 0:14:13on a country lane, it feels so weird.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25When you're there, like she's sitting on her bike now, waiting to
0:14:25 > 0:14:28- go, there must be so much going through your head.- Oh, yeah, it is.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31What are you thinking? Are you visualising the track?
0:14:31 > 0:14:35- How do you work?- You are trying to visualise how it was last year,
0:14:35 > 0:14:38"How shall I go this way?"
0:14:38 > 0:14:42Not to concentrate on cameras, not concentrate on anything.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45- Just be you...- 100% focus on what you're going to do.- Yeah.
0:14:59 > 0:15:01Shut the gate, health and safety.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11At least she's taking it easy.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15- Yeah, she's taking it easy.- She's taking it easy?!
0:15:19 > 0:15:22My mum would be having kittens about me being here, watching this,
0:15:22 > 0:15:26in case something happens, let alone being on there actually racing.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29I can't really imagine how he's feeling.
0:15:33 > 0:15:37It's clear to me that you can't take part in this sport
0:15:37 > 0:15:39if you don't love it.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42It's too expensive.
0:15:42 > 0:15:48It's too dangerous to just be some casual pastime, but for Melissa,
0:15:48 > 0:15:50like everyone else on the grid,
0:15:50 > 0:15:52there's a price to pay for that love.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57I've just spoken to all of her family and they have...
0:15:59 > 0:16:02..a massive amount of pride and admiration,
0:16:02 > 0:16:06but they're all incredibly nervous for the unknown, really.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19This is racing how it used to be,
0:16:19 > 0:16:24a kind of racing in which the riders have to take on the road as well as
0:16:24 > 0:16:26their fellow competitors.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30And the rest of us will never know just how exhilarating that must be.
0:16:30 > 0:16:32Only the riders can know that.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39It looked like she got a good start.
0:16:40 > 0:16:44She's so tiny, you know, against guys that are
0:16:44 > 0:16:48twice the size of her and probably three times as strong as her,
0:16:48 > 0:16:50and there she is, away.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09Seventh?
0:17:09 > 0:17:11Leading that second pack.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14Seventh. She qualified ninth, so it's all good so far.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21I felt a little bit torn there, because half of me just wanted her
0:17:21 > 0:17:25to come back and be safe and the other half knows how much she wants
0:17:25 > 0:17:28to do well, and I desperately wanted her to get a top ten finish.
0:17:28 > 0:17:31There's a competitive side to you and then there's the human side that
0:17:31 > 0:17:33just thinks, "Just come back."
0:17:35 > 0:17:37Anyway, she's coming back.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43- Hi.- Hi.- How are you doing?
0:17:43 > 0:17:48- Sweet.- Yeah?- Went good, yeah. It was good.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51Good. I think there's going to be a little huddle of people that are
0:17:51 > 0:17:54- very happy to see you back here. - Yes, I think so. Bless them.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00Any more relaxed at all this weekend with all the races going on,
0:18:00 > 0:18:03- or normal?- We're just normal.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06Just a bit before she goes out, you know.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10But I'm relieved now it's finished and she's back safe and sound,
0:18:10 > 0:18:12that's the main thing. Yeah.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18All good.
0:18:25 > 0:18:30Before I came here, people said to me, "Oh, road racing is mad,"
0:18:30 > 0:18:33but I don't think the racers are mad.
0:18:33 > 0:18:39They're skilful, and also measured and calculating.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42They have to be to put themselves on this grid,
0:18:42 > 0:18:46to make their lives work around the thing that they love,
0:18:46 > 0:18:52because everything in their lives leads to this, to being here.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55They're addicted, they're obsessed,
0:18:55 > 0:18:57however you want to describe it,
0:18:57 > 0:19:02because they have to be here and they will do anything to get here.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06And for me, that's not madness, that's passion.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18That's making my heart bang so much, you can feel it,
0:19:18 > 0:19:21it's like thunder going through your body.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23Incredible. The second wave.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32If it is so extraordinary, such a physical sensation,
0:19:32 > 0:19:35to just stand by the roadside and watch,
0:19:35 > 0:19:38what must it feel like for riders like Veronika
0:19:38 > 0:19:40as they race between the hedges?
0:19:43 > 0:19:46It must, I guess, be some kind of euphoria.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51Well done.
0:19:51 > 0:19:52I thought you did really well.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55I guess OK, I'm in one piece.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59- That's the main thing.- It is. - And a top ten finish to boot.- Yeah.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02- Does the job.- Indy's out there now. Am I stopping you going to see him?
0:20:02 > 0:20:05- Do you want to go and have a look? - Yeah, I'll go there.- Yeah, OK.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07- Thanks a lot.- Great.
0:20:09 > 0:20:10Cool as a cucumber, isn't she?
0:20:10 > 0:20:14I don't think I'd be able to speak if I'd just got off that bike.
0:20:14 > 0:20:16It's just amazing.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18They're all incredible.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25In some ways, perhaps the most incredible of all is Yvonne.
0:20:25 > 0:20:30She's so warm and softly-spoken, but a woman with such a strong
0:20:30 > 0:20:33can-do attitude.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35How would you describe yourself?
0:20:35 > 0:20:39Because there's not many people that would start riding a bike at the age
0:20:39 > 0:20:42of 47, let alone racing a bike at 47.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48I like to try things
0:20:48 > 0:20:51and my whole thing is, try it and see.
0:20:51 > 0:20:55If you don't like it, don't do it again, but if you do like it,
0:20:55 > 0:20:56look what you would've missed
0:20:56 > 0:20:58if you hadn't tried it in the first place.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05Don't limit yourself, do it now.
0:21:05 > 0:21:10Do it, live every day and enjoy every day and plan for the future.
0:21:10 > 0:21:12And don't let your age stop you doing...?
0:21:12 > 0:21:13Don't even think about your age.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16If you start thinking about your age, you'd sit and do nothing.
0:21:16 > 0:21:19You just have to... The only thing age does
0:21:19 > 0:21:22is makes you more determined to get that done, because in ten years,
0:21:22 > 0:21:24you mightn't have the opportunity.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28In ten years I'll be 70, I'll not be racing then.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31I've spoken to a lot of people in this paddock that are retired,
0:21:31 > 0:21:33they've come back, they're semiretired, they've come back.
0:21:33 > 0:21:36They describe it as an addiction.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39- Oh, it is.- A drug. It is?- It is absolutely an addiction.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42You can get treatment for every other addiction,
0:21:42 > 0:21:45but there's no treatment for motorbike racing.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51Yvonne's addiction to racing is inspirational.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56To me, and I'm sure to many other women, as well.
0:21:58 > 0:22:02We all want to do things and then talk ourselves out of them.
0:22:02 > 0:22:04But Yvonne talks herself into doing things.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10And she's not prepared to let any setbacks get her down.
0:22:10 > 0:22:15Not even an engine blowing up during the warm-up for her race.
0:22:15 > 0:22:17Do you know what? It's good to see that you're still smiling when
0:22:17 > 0:22:19you've put all this effort in, to come in,
0:22:19 > 0:22:22and what track time have you had this weekend? About 15 minutes?
0:22:22 > 0:22:24That's life, you know. What about it?
0:22:24 > 0:22:26The bikes haven't given trouble,
0:22:26 > 0:22:28this is the first time, actually...
0:22:28 > 0:22:30I've raced for about six years that I've had to pull in
0:22:30 > 0:22:35- with engine failure.- Oh, is that right?- Yeah. So it just happens.
0:22:35 > 0:22:39I can't wait to get home to get the sump off that
0:22:39 > 0:22:43to see how many pieces fall out when I take the sump off!
0:22:43 > 0:22:45The addiction continues.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48- "Come on, I've got to sort the bikes out now."- Absolutely, yeah.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55She's still smiling and she's put all that effort into coming here.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58She goes out and she has a problem with the second bike.
0:22:58 > 0:23:02All that money she's put in and she just can't wait to fix the bike.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06Amazing.
0:23:08 > 0:23:12Being at a road race is like being on a knife edge.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15It's exciting and compelling,
0:23:15 > 0:23:19but you never quite escape the fear that something awful could happen at
0:23:19 > 0:23:21any moment.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26Maybe the racers get used to that or learn to filter it out.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30But they can't avoid it.
0:23:30 > 0:23:35It's a reality that Veronika has to confront once again, as news reaches
0:23:35 > 0:23:40the paddock that her fiance, Indy, has had another heavy crash.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45High sider, big high sider.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48Carried to the hospital, so...
0:23:48 > 0:23:52I need to dress me up and just go and get his ID card and his
0:23:52 > 0:23:57papers and go there just to be sure of what's going on.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00- Are you OK? - Yeah, yeah, I'm all right.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03Did you actually see him? Have you spoken to him?
0:24:03 > 0:24:06Yeah, I spoke with him and he wasn't in pain.
0:24:06 > 0:24:10So he was...he didn't too much realise the reality because he was
0:24:10 > 0:24:15on that, you know, some morphine or something.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19- OK.- So he was just talking something, you know, but he was
0:24:19 > 0:24:22- completely...- Not talking any sense? - Yeah, yeah.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26Everybody is like, you know, "Oh!"
0:24:27 > 0:24:29And I don't know nothing, they don't know nothing.
0:24:29 > 0:24:35It's much worse for me because I need to be strong because of him.
0:24:35 > 0:24:40You know, I can't go there and just cry and see what's going on.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42There's no point, you know.
0:24:42 > 0:24:46So I have to be strong, and if I see he is all right,
0:24:46 > 0:24:49you know, that's the main thing.
0:24:49 > 0:24:51Yeah. Give him our love.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54Yeah. Thanks a lot, Suzi.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56You're great, you're great.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58OK, you get going, we won't hold you up.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02- I will cry later, don't worry! - SUZI LAUGHS
0:25:02 > 0:25:05I thought Veronika was so strong walking back here,
0:25:05 > 0:25:08talking complete sense and being
0:25:08 > 0:25:13very matter-of-fact about everything and I wasn't expecting her to kind
0:25:13 > 0:25:18of hug me at the end, but she, you know, clearly needed a little bit of
0:25:18 > 0:25:21humanity to get her through the next hour or so, getting to the
0:25:21 > 0:25:24hospital, but I can't imagine what that must be like for her.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30That's road racing, and they know that.
0:25:30 > 0:25:32They all know that here. All these people get it.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37It's us on the outside that don't, but today, having spent the day
0:25:37 > 0:25:40here, I kind of get it a bit more now.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44As he returns from hospital,
0:25:44 > 0:25:47a badly shaken Indy faces a long and difficult journey home to the Czech
0:25:47 > 0:25:52Republic. But there seems little doubt that he and Veronika
0:25:52 > 0:25:56will soon be racing on the roads once again.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58Would you describe road racing as an addiction?
0:25:59 > 0:26:02What it is...
0:26:02 > 0:26:04for me...
0:26:06 > 0:26:09It's a very hard question just now, because after all the troubles
0:26:09 > 0:26:12we've had these two weekends,
0:26:12 > 0:26:16maybe I'm a bit negative now, you know, but no, road racing,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19it's like a passion for me and we are like a big family.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27Is it maybe about a feeling... where you come to a race,
0:26:27 > 0:26:30do you sometimes feel right about it and then do you sometimes
0:26:30 > 0:26:34feel wrong? Do you sometimes feel hesitant about going out?
0:26:34 > 0:26:40Yes, my very old friend, he was a mechanic in the '60s years,
0:26:40 > 0:26:44he said to me that a great racer is an old racer,
0:26:44 > 0:26:49so... And I now realise what he means, you know, by that.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57Most of your friends are in this paddock now, then?
0:26:57 > 0:26:59There's a lot of friends in the paddock, yeah.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02It's just like a big extended family.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05It really, genuinely is like a big extended family.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08It's like all your cousins and all your friends that you have at some
0:27:08 > 0:27:11christening or wedding or something, you see them all then.
0:27:11 > 0:27:16This is like having this extended family every race meeting.
0:27:21 > 0:27:25There are sportsmen out there, but they don't face what you face.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27- No.- All motorsports are dangerous.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31We're aware of that, but this is right on the line, isn't it?
0:27:31 > 0:27:33Everybody knows the drill.
0:27:34 > 0:27:39Like, it's understandable for people who are in this environment,
0:27:39 > 0:27:43but for people outside, they wouldn't get...they don't get it.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45They don't get it.
0:27:46 > 0:27:51What these women do, what all these racers do, is extreme,
0:27:51 > 0:27:55because there is nothing more extreme than loving something that
0:27:55 > 0:27:58could cost you your life, but these
0:27:58 > 0:28:01are people who move mountains to do what they want to do.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05That's also extreme, and it is extraordinary.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09I've had such a great time here and I've learned so much,
0:28:09 > 0:28:13and it's really been a privilege to meet the girls and just to see their
0:28:13 > 0:28:16dedication and determination to get
0:28:16 > 0:28:18their bikes out here and to race on roads.
0:28:18 > 0:28:20They're wired differently to me.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23I couldn't do it, I still don't know quite why they do it,
0:28:23 > 0:28:25but I have such a respect for them
0:28:25 > 0:28:28and I can't wait to come back to another road race.