Max Biaggi breaks 11 electric bike records | GRR
As previewed here on GRR very recently, the revived French motorcycle constructor Voxan has now achieved most of its goals and set eleven (of the planned twelve) new electric motorcycle world speed records, with six-time world motorcycling champion racer Max Biaggi in the saddle.
Taking place at the Châteauroux airport runway in central France, Monaco-based Voxan celebrated its 20th anniversary of electric vehicle construction by setting eleven new world speed records, with an outright top speed of 254mph (408km/h) achieved over the three day record-breaking attempt.
Max Biaggi and the Voxan Wattman beat the most sought-after of the twelve world records they had been targeting with a speed of 228.05mph (366.94km/h) for the ‘partially streamlined electric motorcycle over 300 kilos’ class. In doing so, they dethroned previous holders Ryuji Tsuruta and Mobitec EV-02A with their speed of 204mph (329km/h).
In line with FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) regulations, the Voxan Wattman’s speed was measured from a flying start over one-mile in opposite directions, within a period of two hours. Under FIM regulations, the final speed is the average of the two speeds recorded over these two runs. The Voxan sent records tumbling as the GPS speedometer peaked at an instantaneous speed of 254 mph.
Given the relatively short track (2.17 miles, or 3.5km), reaching such a high top speed has encouraged Voxan to now set its sights higher, with designs on an average speed of 249mph (400km/h) when they make their next attempts on a longer course in 2021.
A non-streamlined version of the Voxan Wattman, without its fairing, achieved a final average of the two speeds recorded at 217.14mph (349.38km/h), peaking at a top speed of 231mph (372km/h).
The electric Voxan team had a number of other world records in their sights, with the final record tally as follows:
- ¼ mile, flying start, partially streamlined – 245.10mph (394.45km/h) – no previous record
- ¼ mile, flying start, non-streamlined – 221.95mph (357.19km/h) – no previous record
- 1km, flying start, partially streamlined – 240.07mph (386.35km/h – previous record of 204.62mph (329.31km/h)
- ¼ mile, standing start, non-streamlined – 78.42mph (126.20km/h) – no previous record
- ¼ mile, standing start, partially streamlined – 79.10mph (127.30km/h) – previous record of 54.16mph (87.16km/h)
- 1km, standing start, non-streamlined – 115.30mph (185.56km/h) – no previous record
- 1km, standing start, partially streamlined – 119.20mph (191.84km/h) – previous record of 76.11mph (122.48km/h)
- 1 mile, standing start, non-streamlined – 138.45mph (222.82km/h) – no previous record
- 1 mile, standing start, partially streamlined – 139.81mph (225.01km/h) – no previous record
Images courtesy of Voxan.