Triumph and Guy Martin Team up for Motorcycle Land Speed Record Attempt, Again

Triumph Motorcycles has once again teamed up with our favorite madman, Guy Martin, in its attempt to break the motorcycle land speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats. The announcement comes after two very long, frustrating years for Triumph and the land speed racing community, which had to put off any record-breaking hopes when Bonneville Speed Week was cancelled due to weather in 2014 (after then-rider Jason DiSalvo had already suffered a mechanical issue) and to salt conditions in 2015.

Triumph first recruited Martin to race its Infor Rocket streamliner early last year, but was forced to put the program on hold when the road racer suffered a massive high-speed crash at the Ulster Grand Prix and broke vertebrae in his back, as well as his sternum. Martin, who we imagine will have trouble keeping airport metal detectors quiet in the trip to Utah thanks to the hardware earned in that crash, has since been issued a clean bill of health and is apparently more than ready to get behind the wheel.

Mostly unchanged since it was first introduced, Triumph’s streamliner (which was then referred to as the Hot Rod Conspiracy/Carpenter Racing Castrol Rocket) features a carbon Kevlar monocoque construction and two turbocharged Triumph Rocket III engines producing a ghastly 1,000 hp at 9,000 rpm. Developed between Triumph, Hot Rod Conspiracy, and Carpenter Racing, the motorcycle is 25.5 feet long, two feet wide, and three feet tall. Powered by methanol fuel, the bike is competing in the Division C (streamlined motorcycle) category and will have to go something more than 376.363 mph to break the current speed record, which was set by Rocky Robinson in the Top Oil-Ack Attack streamliner all the way back in 2010.

When asked about the opportunity, Guy Martin said that, “I can’t wait to take the Triumph Infor Rocket streamliner onto the salt at Bonneville for the first time this summer. The Triumph engineers have built an amazing machine, giving us the very best chance to beat the two-wheeled land speed record.”

Our guess is that there’s an ounce of fear to go with that excitement, but then again, this is Guy Martin we’re talking about here. And he does indeed have the equipment to make it happen. Will Triumph’s streamliner finally have the chance to shatter the record? And exactly how fast will it go? We’re getting close to finding out. Stay tuned!