I wish I could say that the death of Daley Mathison at this year's Isle of Man TT opened an old wound, but the truth is, that wound may never be old.
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This year's tragedy brought the number of riders killed at the annual TT and Manx Grand Prix since 1911 to a staggering 253. That figure does not include spectator deaths. You need to go back to 2001 to find a year where both the TT and Manx Grand Prix were fatality free.
"Let those who ride decide," is often the argument when discussing the future of the event. But do riders accept the risk or block it out, believing it will never happen to them?
Human nature is a strange thing, especially among men who will always be driven by their hunter and gatherer DNA. Men possess an innate urge to be the fastest or the strongest, as well as an unwavering belief in their ability. We believe that bad things only happen to others, and this makes us inherently flawed. However, it also allows us to continue, even though we know the risks - it's a double-edged sword.
Daley Mathison died doing something he loved. But if he'd known in advance that he would be killed during that race, would he have accepted it?
There is no doubt TT racers are the last true gladiators of the sport, possibly any sport, but even the gladiators of the Roman era eventually fought their last bloody battle for the entertainment of the crowd.
If the event is stopped, it will never return, and we will never see anything like it again. That's a tough call to make on an event with a history stretching back more than a century.