Less than ideal conditions at the Bonneville Salt Flats have proven challenging for Guy Martin and Triumph Motorcycles latest attempt at the motorcycle land speed record.
With the sun out and little breeze, Guy Martin took off from mile marker nine to record his FIM-required certification run in the 1,000+ horsepower Triumph Infor Rocket Streamliner.
After a good start, Martin was piloting the streamliner through mile one when he lost traction on a damp section of the salt.
The unintended loss of traction caused the rear wheel to step out of line and brought the nearly 8m long machine down on its side.
Martin was uninjured in the crash, however the streamliner will now be subject to a full inspection before it can hit the salt in anger again.
“It’s all part the job boy, isn’t it?” Martin said after the incident.
“Feeling our way. I guess if it was an easy thing to do everyone would have done it by now. So we’ll get a plan sorted and get on with the next go at it as soon as we get the chance.”
Designer of the Triumph Infor Rocket Streamliner, Matt Markstaller commenting: “It’s one of the challenges of Land speed racing – the salt surface can be so unpredictable. We’ll fully inspect the streamliner and get ready for the next phase of our attempt.”
