Guy Martin gears up for motorcycle speed record bid

Lincolnshire motorcycle racer Guy Martin is due to try to break the two-wheeled world land speed record after the attempt was postponed due to course conditions.

Martin, 34, from Grimsby, was due to begin record runs on the Bonneville Salt Flats, in Utah, USA, on Thursday but the attempt was delayed because of safety concerns about the wet track.

Triumph Motorcycles said they needed "optimum conditions" to perform the attempt.

On Thursday, a spokesman said there were areas of the 11-mile salt course that were "too wet to safely undertake any runs" but the company was hopeful the attempt would go ahead as planned on Friday.

Martin will ride the purpose-built 400mph Triumph Infor Rocket Streamliner as he attempts to break the current record of 376.36mph.

During practice sessions over the summer, the bike became the fastest to be built by Triumph as the TT star achieved a speed of 274.2mph.

The bike was designed by aerodynamic engineer Matt Markstaller.

It features a carbon Kevlar monocoque construction - in which the chassis is integral with the body - with two turbo-charged Triumph Rocket III engines producing a combined 1,000 brake horsepower (bhp) at 9,000 revs per minute (rpm).

The bike is 25.5ft long, 2ft wide and 3ft tall and is powered by methanolfuel.

Martin said:

Martin has set speed records in a variety of human and engine-powered vehicles, including world records for fastest speed on a gravity-powered snow sled, fastest speed in a soap box and highest speed on a wall of death, which he set earlier this year.

The current motorcycle land speed world record was set by Rocky Robinson in 2010, riding the Top Oil-Ack Attack Streamliner at 376.36mph.