Honoring Burt Munro And Celebrating Speed On The Salt

The legacy of “The World’s Fastest Indian” returned to Bonneville 50 years after Burt Munro’s feat, this time with his grand-nephew Lee Munro piloting an Indian Scout produced by today’s Indian team.
-
On the Bonneville Salt Flats you stand on a mirror of pure white that will burn your skin from below while the arc-welder sun burns from above. Dark jagged mountains surround it. But it’s flat. And big. A place to run for top speed.
In August of 1967, one-man R&D team Burt Munro, then 68 years old, streaked across that salt to set a 1000cc record of 183.586 mph in his home-built streamliner. It was powered by an engine that began as a 36.4-cu.-in 1920 Indian Scout that he'd bought new. With his own hands he had made the OHV heads, cylinders, pistons, connecting-rods and cams of his engine, working in a New Zealand shed that was his home for 27 years. He had set innumerable records with it. That was 50 years ago.
At the end of 2016 Burt Munro's son John and grand-nephew Lee Munro inquired from Indian in Minnesota whether they planned any commemoration of this historic achievement. The answer was, of course! In January 2017 came the go-ahead from the corporate president's office; a Scout-based Bonneville racer would be built and Lee Munro-a competitor in Australian Superbike-would ride it.
On Saturday, August 12, 2017, Lee Munro rode a modified modern Scout to 191.286 mph on the rough and slushy Bonneville short course, in the Modified Partial Streamlining (MPS) 1350-G class. This was not an attempt at a standing record. It was a practical recognition of Munro’s dedication to an ideal (his shelves of holed pistons and twisted con-rods bore the words “Offerings to the God of Speed”) and a renewed commitment to striving for excellence.
The Indian brand is more than 100 years old and the success of Polaris in reviving it is testimony to its power-so many riders and others today had a father or grandfather who rode Indian that the name is folk memory. How did management decide so easily to continue Munro’s Bonneville quest? Without continued striving and achievement, the memory would remain just a big shapeless bag of leftover sentiment.
The basis would be the Scout, whose engine is a liquid-cooled 60-degree V-twin of 99 x 73.6mm bore and stroke for 1133cc, with four valves per cylinder operated by chain DOHC. The limit of the Bonneville class chosen was 1350cc. To get closer to that a whacking great 7mm overbore took the cylinders to 106mm and displacement to 1299cc (79.3 cu.-in).
This is a cruiser engine, right? So what's it doing with a sportbike's four valves and double overhead cams? In two-valve cruiser engines the key to mighty bottom-end torque is short valve timing, but as they rev up, that short timing limits airflow, causing torque to slope down with rising rpm until they wheeze out at around 5,000 rpm. But what if you've ridden other kinds of bikes and like that feeling of winged power that sails without strain to higher revs and real horsepower? The only way to combine the short timing that makes torque down low with enough airflow for power up higher is with a very light four-valve-per-cylinder valve train. That is the essence of Indian's Scout-it has it all.
When you plan for Bonneville you need several things. One is power-the power to overcome aero drag that rises as the cube of velocity. Another is reliability-too many teams "go to blow" because their powerplants are fragile at the necessary power level. After the fact it's romantic to remember all-nighters spent under the stars in the glare of headlights, putting another $10,000 worth of parts into a blown engine. Better by far to have an engine that does what you need it to do easily. The last biggie is traction. Even at the best of times grip on the salt is maybe 40 percent of what it is on nearby Interstate 80. It can also be wet, slushy, and rough. Then there are details like streamlining, or making sure your electrics aren't shorted by the salt that has caused so many efforts to sput out.
The stated aim of the Indian crew was to honor Burt Munro and say “We’re here!” but I have a suspicion that what they really wanted was to hit 201 mph.
Horsepower. First was more displacement-the 7mm overbore. There’s no point in going big if you can’t deliver the necessary extra airflow. The obvious path was bigger valves (intakes are now 42mm, exhausts 36) but the valve guide locations correct for a 99 bore were too close together for bigger valves (crowd them and cylinder heads crack between the two exhaust seats or from plug hole to exhaust-unless there’s enough metal between).
Full story here: www.cycleworld...
Subscribe: www.youtube.com...
Motorcyclist Shirts: teespring.com/...
Shop Products We Use: www.amazon.com...
See more from us: www.motorcyclis...

[@SISU889]

Burt Munro is an inspiration and a legend , what a guy !

[@harrycurrie9664]

That bike sounds about right ... just the speed to work on. RIP Burt.

[@shonith91]

Burt Munro made his bike go 180+mhp by working on it by himself in his own back yard. Not like this hot shot bike, right off the r&d department of Indian, chrome plated, advanced aerodynamics, additional gear sets to go with the bike.10ppl around the rider holding umbrella to the boy so that he doesn't a sweat. this doesn't represent or give value to what Burt did in my opinion.

[@ketankadam5669]

+++

[@ahmads7529]

Totally agree!

[@Metal-Possum]

Also, it's not hard to make the world's fastest modern Indian, given only Indian are allowed to produce bikes under the Indian name... Sure, somebody could modify one, but why bother doing it just to have the fastest bike with the Indian name on it? I doubt there's very little competition for that, which only makes the achievement a lot less rewarding.

[@7316bobe]

Must agree with your comment. This bullcrap video is NOT the great Burt Munro. It is his stupid relatives trying to make a dollar off his name.

[@u1es]

Would be really sad if they break his record. They should actually have a rule that you're not allowed to. That would be honouring.

[@sixthsenseamelia4695]

Grandad ran Indian motorcycle rallys in the South island. Original rally posters & subscriber mags. 1932 sidecar Henderson. Fully & immaculately restored - last shown at 1999 motorbike centennial Upper Hutt. Curly. Wgtn.

[@marlenefraser7103]

I have seen his other bikes in Invercargill, NZ, great........Dennis Bryan from NZ

[@ThePr8head]

So Indian as a company can't produce what one guy (Burt) in his garage did? YOU GO BURT!!!

[@leemunro235]

The guys and gals at the Indian Motorcycle Company did an amazing job given that they had a few months to put a bike together out of the scrap bin basically. They did not fettle a bike over 40 plus years...your comment makes no scence??? How fast did the bike you built in 3 month go at Bonneville...abd did you also set a national land speed record at El Mirage while goung through your licences? We did...🤔 But yes...as you say...Go Burt!!! He is the reason we paid a great tribute to his record...we never attempted to beat his record...it was a tribute to Burt and we averaged faster than Burts averages. So yeah...your comment seems like something a very unwise person would say. But then...how would you know any better? You were not there.

[@BadBandar59]

Kicked butt on the editing of this vid. Good job!!

[@GamersBar]

RESPECT

[@GETUPANDGO]

I enjoyed the movie, one of the reasons I got into bikes

[@M_03256]

All the years Burt was at Bonneville from 1956-1975 1956- Burt's 1st time at Bonneville, (spectator) 1957 - Burt's 2nd time at Bonneville,(spectator) 1959- Burt's 3rd time at Bonneville, ( still as a spectator), also in 1959 Burt first met the young Mickey Thompson, Mickey and Burt instantly warmed up to each other and became good friends. Burt then decided to debut with his Indian in either 1961 or 1962, it ended up being speed week of 1962. 1962 Burt's debut year - bike was 853cc, twin cam ( tail was 3 finned), s-a 883cc record at 178.971 mph (average). Earl Flanders the AMA referee said Burt's 1st measured mile on his first run was well over 180 mph also Bonneville observers said Burt could have topped his record if he hadn't let off early due to his unfamiliarity with the timing setup. Burt had qualifying and runs at 171, 175, 179 mph and 182.55 mph. Burt went full bore with his Indian for the first time ever at the salt in 1962 . He was named sportsman of the year. In total Burt did 53 miles that year alone on the salt. 1963- Burt converted his Indian to a 4 cam configuration. He also lowered the Indians nose for down force, the bike now has a large single, mono- tail fin instead of the triple fin from the previous year, his qualifying went well at 183.673 mph, after the qualifying run Burt was jittery with excitement, since the engine was going like a bomb in his own words and the stability issues were a thing of the past. His first run he was doing over 195 mph when the front connecting rod broke, ending his record attempts for 1963. The AMA said Burt recorded 195.5 mph when his v-twin blew up. Burt averaged 184 mph in the mile, His bike was still 853cc. 1964, Burt enlarged the Indian to 871cc, the Bonneville track was rough and terrible in 1964, doing a mere 40-50 mph Burt was taking a serious beating, he had to go low gear for a while then he put her in 2nd for another mile, slowly winding the throttle up, she started weaving as well so Burt kept sitting up to stabilize the bike while the Indian was getting faster and faster and faster, by mile 4-5 he was in top gear for awhile. Burt still managed to qualify at 184 mph, but bad weather the next day ended his chance of running record runs. Speed week 1964 was a total wash out, only 4 days of running before bad weather ended speed week for good. 1965- a zero year for Burt, he had some runs At 168, 169 mph. At the end of 1965 Burt decided to run in the 61 inch class, 1000cc, instead of the 55 inch class, 901cc. Burt said himself he probably only qualified once. 1966- s-a 1000cc record at 168.66 mph(average), qualifying at 172 mph, unofficial top speed at 212 mph, Burt's Indian was 905cc. Burt was not happy with such a low average, considering his very sketchy runs where he was doing speeds way above that when the Indian was at the speed wobbles. Still it was another record. 1967- Burt arrived in America in late June of 1967. He went to his friend Sam Pierce’s shop in San Gabriel California to work on the Indian. Burt Lengthened the Indian’s tail fin and cut a 8 inch diameter hole into the nose cone which directed air into the body through a 10 kilogram lead tunnel casted from the old weight he had attached to the front of the frame. He also created outlets towards the rear of the shell hoping the modifications would reduce the pressure wave coming off the front which he thought had prevented the tail from stabilizing the machine. Burt also hoped the extra weight would help his bike run true like an arrow. Burt also enlarged the v-twins displacement to 953cc, s-a 1000cc record at 184.087 mph(average), best measured mile at 188 mph, qualifying at 184/190.070 mph, he upped his old record by nearly 16 mph earning himself top record breaker of 1967 and American motorcyclist of the year. He was still a little disappointed though. Burt knew the Indian had enough power to push it past 200 mph like it did the year prior in 1966 but one of the problems was the salt which was unfortunately wet and heavy. He estimated on every run that there was about 110 pounds of salt caked on the bike, which was enough to slow the Indian down to well below it's potential top speed. 1968- Burt had carburetor issues, the Indian kept insisting on running rich, even with the main jet nearly closed she still wouldn't run right, he could only coax a lousy 155 mph from his Indian. It was still a very interesting year though because Burt's good friend Mickey Thompson was at speed week 1968 with his 1200 hp 1969 mustang. Mickey also gave Burt a ride at 11 pm one night in the mustang. After Burt got the Indian to where it seemed to be running like it's old self he decided to test his bike on the road in Nevada that ran through Reno which had no speed limit, he got pulled over after passing a cop at well over 100 mph, when the cop asked Burt on how fast he was going Burt replied with he was doing a lousy 160 miles an hour at best, later on he told the officer that he had already run at over 200 miles an hour and doing 160 is like a stroll in the bloody park. After that Burt gave up for 1968 because the Indian was not running good and there was no point in running it on the salt. 1969, For this speed week Burt was more prepared than any other year prior, he ran a qualifying run at 191 mph and his first run again at 191 mph but on his return run the Indian started blubbering and surging again like it did the year prior in 1968, Burt kept adjusting the fuel mixture, doing 14 runs on the salt in 4 days, but unfortunately to no avail. In 1970 Burt switched his fuel from methanol to nitromethane, even with all the adjustments he made to run his Indian on nitro the v-twin still burned out all his spare pistons. It was now over for Burt who was 71 years old. 1971- Burt's 13th year at Bonneville and 10th year running his Indian, which was his last. Ran a lousy run at 148.51 mph without the shell due to strict rules, without the shell, the Indian was now seriously over geared, he did another run with the shell on going full bore for the last time ever. Burt never ran his bike there ever again. New Zealand film director Roger Donaldson and his crew were also at the salt in 1971, they filmed Burt doing some runs on his Indian for the documentary about him called Offerings to the God of Speed, (1971). it's a phenomenal documentary, I highly recommend people to watch it, it's so good!. 1975 - Burt's 14th and final year at Bonneville, (Spectator), AMA officials said Burt could no longer officially run anymore. In 1975 Burt sold the original and highly modified 1920 Indian chassis/ the last version of his Indians fiberglass streamline shell to his friend Sam Pierce. Burt took the original Indian engine home and gave Sam another one. Back home Burt put the record breaking v-twin which he ran at Bonneville into his 1924 Indian chassis, that frame was only ever run in New Zealand. In 1977 the year before Burt Munro passed away he sold his bikes to his friend Norman Haynes, Burt sold his 1936 velocette MSS 650 and of course the world famous Indian Scout which is not the actual bike Burt ran from 1962-1971 at Bonneville and set all the records on, the v-twin that sits in the frame is the original and highly modified 1920 record setting engine Burt modified but the chassis is from a 1924 Indian, that chassis Burt only ever ran in New Zealand. Both machines are on display at E Haynes and Son Hardware in Burt's hometown of Invercargill New Zealand. So today Burt's actual 1920 Indian Scout is in two countries. The original but highly modified 1920 chassis plus the final version of the Indians fiberglass shell, used from 1967-1971 at Bonneville are in America, (restored) and owned by the Pierce family, the v-twin they have is a different one, not the original/ record setting one. In New Zealand, E Haynes and Son hardware has the original and built 1920 record setting v-twin which Burt modified all his life, that sits in Burt's 1924 Indian chassis( the frame which was never used in America, only in New Zealand). And they also have Burt's other bike he worked on as well, the 1936 single cylinder Velocette mss 650. In January of 1978 Burt passed away peacefully at home, age 78. Over 200 people came to his funeral Losing Burt was a massive loss to New Zealand even in America as well. Indian motorcycles themselves were really saddened by the news of Burt's passing but they were also really proud of him.

[@lovei619]

this have me goosebumps! So awesome!

[@iamtherealzombie]

Burt was a dreamer, and the world needs more of them, but for the record, the "Cathedral of Speed" is TT Circuit Assen, not Bonneville ;)

[@HJZ75driver]

iamtherealzombie Bonneville First, Last, Always

[@MotoStories]

This is Amazing.. goosebumps indeed

[@herretic1]

Amazing. Munro has come back. :)

[@scooby45247]

not what i want.. i want the footage of burt munro..

[@7316bobe]

WE WANT THE REAL BURT MUNRO.

[@driffbro3380]

WoW

[@jonc1901]

Incredible bike with singular pedigree

[@7316bobe]

It is NOT an INDIAN. It is a Polaris motorcycle that has the Indian name on it. It will NEVER be a true Indian. Wake up to your self.

[@douglaselliott8298]

good luck and Good-on em'.

[@sirgeorge01]

Yes 👍🏼

[@triumphrider9796]

OK, it was a nice cinematic piece. Now if Indian would just produce a road-going version of this bike, or of the flat-tracker shown in the magazine recently, I might be interested; I liked the look of the Scout, but I HATE the cruiser seating position. One try sitting on it and I knew I could never live with one.

[@LimMykal]

Sick

[@lindamcmeeking23]

Awesome.

[@scooby45247]

id give anything for a Monroe Scout 23..

[@kenjepsen4579]

An old man with a 1920's motorcycle and living in a shack still kicking butt over corporate racers with unlimited wallets... Good on ya Bert ;)

[@collinpaine2572]

That is one sexy motorcycle

[@kiwiadventures3773]

Aerodynamically the bike is too short. This was the same issue with the Britten Streamliner when the britten engine was used in this for a test run. (cit Britten Engineers). The airflow that passes over the rider and onto the rear of the bike causes massive drag and turbulence and ultimately instability. This can be verified with CFD or Windtunnel tests. Even Burts design had a better streamliner. (not perfect). The rear wheel needs to be enclosed and the low pressure created over the riders back would induce lift. So much more power is required to overcome the induced drag. The R&D department of Indian got this wrong.

[@GIGABACHI]

Hey, INDIAN . . . BUILD SOMETHING ELSE BESIDES OVERPRICED LARD ARSE CRUISERS so that other non-cruiser riders would at least bother themselves to consider you a "maybe" on their next motorcycle purchase !

[@menom7]

AGREED 110% JIGA BACHI !!!

[@antonbjerketorp2764]

What is that helmet? Its really cool, please help.

[@ChevyGuy70]

Cool

[@redshiftrider6651]

How about traction? Wouldn't riding on (salt) crystals lead to loads of slippage?

[@BillyJoe1305]

Red Shift Rider the short answer is yes, but people set things up with that in mind and there aren't a lot of places where you can hit the top speeds you can in the flats.

[@andyreyno9312]

Burt Munro was speed on salt me releasing my anger through fast driving is salt on speed

[@channelonewslowmovinman5620]

You don't have to be nuts, but it sure helps - lol.

[@user-zb9px4fg7f]

Like,Y' know, a pretty boring video, Y' know!

[@shaazali911]

so that means Indian will make supersport motorcycle's

[@menom7]

If only.............

[@Harvieowen]

Honoring Burt Munro my butt. Capitalizing on his name to sell yet another brand of Harley knock-offs is all this is. I give it 7-9 more years and Polaris will pull the plug just like they did with the Victory name. I wonder how all the owners of the Victory motorcycles feel about this "New" Indian brand. Get your act together Polaris. You could have brought out a line of motorcycles under YOUR name in the 90's and have a host of loyal customers to YOUR name.

[@pattonsplace41477]

HAHA Harley knock-off?! You mean the Indian Motorcycle Company which has been around since 1901 vs. 1903 for Harley?! Hardly a new brand.

[@SpudsMcHaggis]

I'm a Victory owner and I love these Indians as well!

[@thealvaco]

I don't think Indian will dissapear anytime soon.

[@HJZ75driver]

You have no idea Harvie

[@kutlu13]

salty

[@malcolmmathers2690]

the lST GREAT INDIAN WAS THE KAWASAKI 1500 DRIFTER