400hp MADMAX Supercharged Hayabusa
The MADMAX 400hp Supercharged Hayabusa
With 4 national records set and a new top speed of 229.8mph for the Supercharged ‘green monster’, it was a successful weekend at the Straightliners ACU/FIM world speed records at Elvington in Sept 2018. The event had all the drama; rain, strong cross winds, a crash, with air ambulance (not Zef this time!) and the usual racing/mechanical issues… but by the end of the weekend, Team MADMAX, had set 3 new ACU national records for the blown 1650cc category; in the flying quarter, flying kilometer, flying mile and broke a UKTA British record.
The FIM world record of 217.3mph for the flying kilo, was a within a whiskers on Saturday, as Zef had achieved a two way average of around 216.4mph, but with rain, wind and a big crash, we ran out of time to do another two runs. On Sunday morning, we changed gearing and dialled in more fuel which resulted in a superb record qualifying flying kilo of 222.4mph. For the next run, as the track was damp and slippery due to rain, we fitted a softer, sticky racing slick (rain) tyre to help traction. This proved to be a bad idea, as the tyre started to fall apart after the first run. I guess BSB/GP bikes just don’t have 350bhp +
With another tyre now fitted and a return run of ‘just 214mph’ needed, it look like the record was ours, but on the return run, a quarter down the track the super charger , ripped all the teeth of the belt at 160mph. Engine was fine, just no boost, so back in the paddocks, we installed a spare belt, but time was running out, as above 11mph tail wind, FIM regs won’t validate the run, and we needed 2 good runs all over again, before the end of the day. However, all was not lost, as by the end of the weekend, 3 new ACU records set, 1 UKTA record broken, a PB speed of 229.8mph and a FIM world record missed by under 1mph !!
Note: Terminal speed trap speeds are always higher than ACU/FIM records, as all speeds are calculated as the average time taken to cover a given distance (quarter, kilo, mile). Your actual ACU/FIM record ‘speed’ is the average of two runs in each distance to avoid any help with tail winds.
Big thanks to the rest of the team for their superb non-stop help the whole weekend, and the amazing team at Straightliners, ACU, FIM and SRC for making it all possible. Exhausted, safe, and pleased. Back to Guernsey now for a quick turnaround and then off to Wales for the Pendine sand racing speed trials… video to follow…