FEATURE I TOP OF THE WORLD LAND SPEED SHOOTOUT
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Joining the 2023 competi-
tion were Scott Horner, Jamie
Williams and Mike Garcia of the
U.S., Richard Assen of Australia
and four-wheel competitor Jim
Knapp (the 2023 event was co-
sanctioned by FIA).
After a week of shipping
delays, sub-zero temperatures
wreaking havoc on machinery,
electrical complications, windy
conditions, blown engines, rent
-
al car failures, radio issues, and
a harrowing high-speed crash,
it seemed the odds were firmly
stacked against racers at the
2023 Top 1 Oil Top of the World
Shootout. But true to form, the
competitors took it down to the
wire, and on the final day of the
six-day event, two FIM Land
Speed World Records fell.
PASSING
THE TORCH
The first day of competition
was slated for Wednesday,
August 16, but on account of
the containers not arriving until
Thursday afternoon, tech inspec-
tions not completing until Friday
morning, and windy conditions
through the afternoon, the first
pass on the salt didn't take place
until Saturday. As luck would
have it, the very first attempt
ended in disaster, as Richard
Assen came off his hand-built
turbocharged Hayabusa at an
estimated 240 mph just before
reaching the timed mile.
"It was a simple fact of too
The Garcia Sims
Racing team
celebrates a new FIM
Land Speed World
Record of 265 mph.
