Chris Carr and Denis Manning set new land-speed record at Bonneville;
second record in three days
Story and photos by
Grant Parsons
In what will be remembered as the biggest day in the history of
motorcycle land-speed racing, AMA Grand National Champion Chris Carr
shattered the two-day-old FIM world record by piloting Denis Manning's BUB
Enterprises
streamliner to 350.884 mph at the AMA/FIM International Motorcycle Speed
Trials by BUB on the Bonneville salt flats.
Carr broke
the
record of 342.797 mph set by Ack Attack, the first
motorcycle to break the long-standing 16-year-old mark of 322 mph set by
the Easyriders streamliner piloted by Dave Campos. With salt conditions
perfect, even Carr's new record is not safe.
 "It don't know how long the record will stand," said Carr, tearful
with joy. "It might stand for only a couple of hours, but right now, I'm
the fastest guy in the world."
As it turned out, Carr will be the fastest motorcycle rider in the
world for at least a year. Despite additional attempts at the record by
Ack Attack and another contender, the EZ-Hook streamliner built by Sam
Wheeler, the speed trials ended Thursday with nobody able to surpass
Carr's mark.
With conditions on the salt flats nearly perfect, however, it wasn't
clear that Carr would keep the record. In fact, even as Carr and Manning were celebrating, the Ack Attack streamliner
that set a new record on Sunday was lining up for another attempt.
FIM rules state that a world record must surpass the existing record
by at least 1 percent, so Ack Attack would have had to average nearly 354
mph in its two runs to dethrone the BUB streamliner. Rocky Robinson rode
Ack Attack to a 349.031 mph run in the westward direction — the fastest
run yet heading west — suggesting that a record run was possible. But
winds prevented them from making the required backup run in the opposite
direction within two hours.
Another record contender, Wheeler's EZ-Hook streamliner, arrived at the salt flats Tuesday,
but a mishap at the end of its first run left the motorcycle damaged and
unable to make another run.
Carr's record won't become official until it is ratified by the FIM
at its congress in October.
Watch for a full report on
the speed trials in the November issue of American Motorcyclist
magazine.
© 2006, American Motorcyclist Association
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