ABERGAVENNY motorcycle racer Rhys Hardisty is gearing up for a hectic year on the road as he continues to pursue his dream of victory on the Isle of Man.

It’s a deeply personal mission for the 27-year-old, who says he is carrying on the legacy of his late father.

Charles Ian Hardisty died while racing in the Production TT at the 1998 Isle of Man TT, when his son was aged just ten.

Rhys Hardisty began his own racing career aged six in the Gwent School Boys Trials.

Losing his father put a stop to his competitive riding but he maintained a passion for road racing and began competing in motocross at the age of 17 before moving on to road racing in 2009.

From 2010 he competed in the NGRRC National 250 Championships and gradually worked his way up to the Manx Grand Prix last year.

Hardisty qualified second quickest on his ERR650 in the 2014 Manx Grand Prix and on his Yamaha TZ250 he qualified fourth fastest but, during the Newcomers Supertwin race, a brand new piston failed to quash his dreams of a podium finish.

And on his reserve bike the next day in the Supertwin race he ran out of fuel just four miles short of the finish line when well placed.

This year he is racing the Kawasaki ERR650, Yamaha TZ250 and Yamaha R6 and plans to compete in the 2015 Classic TT in August, part of the Isle of Man Festival of Motorcycling.

“It’s a legacy thing, a personal voyage,” said Hardisty, who works as a motorcycle mechanic and has self-funded his entire race career.

“Every kid dreams about what they want to do when they grow up and I always wanted to be Joey Dunlop and win the TT. I’m still a big kid really; I haven’t grown up.”

Despite the painful memories of his father’s death, Hardisty had no reservations about racing on the Isle of Man.

“The Isle of Man is my happy place,” he said. “As soon as I’m on a bike nothing else matters and all my worries are gone. It’s like therapy for me.

“Last year confirmed that it is for me,” he added. “I was going so well and then had the technical issues. It was like winning the lottery and then losing the ticket so I want to put that right this year.”

Hardisty has been supported by several local businesses, including Kaymac Marine, Reps Motorcycles, Willson & Wilding, BR Special Tuning, M&D Cycles and PowerMaxedUK.

But to achieve his dream he is always on the hunt for new sponsors and can be contacted on his Facebook page RHRacing and on Twitter at @RHRacing40.