John
It is great to hear of a project taking shape in Ireland - which is a
little bit closer to the UK than the USA, but I guess you are following the
path to Bonneville? If you need to know about the UK activity, past and
present and future, I will pass on any information I have. At the present
time thrust powered two wheelers feature in the plans to go fast here in
the UK. E mail me directly if you wish.
The tyre selection will depend upon the speed plans and the style and size
of vehicle that you will construct. Jack Costella in the USA has a small
capacity streamliner, on small diamter tyres, whilst the Ack Attack
programme from the same country is twin engined and runs 'normal' lsr
tyres.
In Britain the motorcycle streamliners built have been aiming for speeds
that the USA riders have also been aiming for and in a few cases achieving.
A resource for contacts is the speed record club based in the UK but with
worldwide membership. The clubs news editor is working on his own outright
lsr streamliner. The Gillette Mach3 challenger triple rocket bike ran on
Goodyear lsr tyres but at speeds over 356 mph one left the seating on the
rim and deflated, fortunately it did not come off the rim as the bike
slowed. On a different surface to the salt at Bonneville this free running
streamliner would have used its alloy wheels without any possible mishaps
of this type.
Through the motorcycle and tyre topics on landracing.com you will soon
glean from the wisdom of (mostly) USA Bonneville racers, two of whom have
tried Lake Gairdner in Australia in recent years to better the Dave Campos
FIM record and the speed of Sam Wheeler.
The only sensible source for high speed lsr motorcycle tyres will be found
in the USA, unless your target speed is within a road racing tyre
capability.
Good luck with your project.
Malcolm Pittwood, Derby, England
Team Administrator, Gillette Mach3 Challenger
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