In 1915 the farms horses were not enough anymore. When he received a letter from his father to come home and help on the new farm in South Invercargill, he returned dutifully to help his family. His next record was in the Canterbury Speed Trials, setting a first 132.38 mph in 1957 and later 1975, with 136 mph at Oreti Beach. 50 years ago, Herbert “Burt” Munro set a land speed record that still stands today. The Southland Kiwi bought his very first motorbike – a Douglas, which he rode until he could afford to buy a Clyno with sidecar in 1919. Burt Munro was inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame in 2006, a tribute to the pursuit begun eight decades earlier. Instead, he got around the codes by building a low garage. We can help you find the right motorcycle. Munro's 1920 Indian Scout was the 627th 600cc Scout to leave the American factory. His first was set in 1940 at a speed of 120.8 mph, where it remained unbeaten for twelve years. He later bought a 1936 Velocette, which he also modified and raced. The wind tore my goggles off and the blast forced my eyeballs back into my head - couldn't see a thing. "I think he would have been quietly pleased at being able to share his life with millions of people." “If it’s hard, work harder; if it’s impossible, work harder still. Indian also released a special edition of their Indian Scout, called the Munro Special in honor of Munro and his dutiful bike. To qualify, he made a one-way run of 190.07 mph, the fastest ever officially recorded speed on an Indian. Burt’s racing DNA indisputably passed on, with great grandnephew, Lee Munro riding the bike. In New Zealand the Southlander was known as Bert for his entire life. In one of his scrapbooks Burt recalls that his father was not happy about his attempts. That set a record in the category of "streamlined motorcycles under 1,000cc." Burt’s father did not share his son’s passion for speed and had hoped for his offspring to learn how to be responsible with money rather than buying motorbikes or parts to be added onto his bikes with every penny he owned. Fitting tribute. Besides his speed, the Kiwi from Invercargill was known for his “remarkable affinity with machinery”, his “uncanny ability to be able to see through a problem to a workable solution” and the “dogmatic persistence at everything he attempted” as friends recall. Please make sure you entered a valid zip code. In 1919, he purchased a Clyno motorcycle and modified it. Making bigger cylinders out of old cast iron gas pipes, and designing a new lubrication system. After the cannon, which Burt had to hand over to the police, during an amnesty in the early 1950s, he built the shell of an aeroplane – a 10-foot long and 10-foot wide biplane. That’s when Rollie said (…), ‘He’s gone back – back to whatever planet he came from, because he sure as hell ain’t from this one!’”. Once in the U.S., Munro bought a dilapidated Nash station wagon for $90 in Los Angeles to haul the Munro Special to Bonneville. When Burt and his Indian were underway on their first record attempting run, the “tank slapper” came back and got stronger and stronger. Together the couple sailed to Australia where his daughter June was born (Rose Bay, Australia) the same year. According to his friends Burt was still disappointed as he had wanted to prove that his Indian could go 200 mph. In order to pay for his ocean crossing, Munro worked as the ship’s cook. It was the run of 190.07mph in 1967 though, that officially made him into the builder and rider, of the world’s fastest Indian. If I’m going to die, I’ll go die in my car.’ ”. These trained professionals know your vehicle best, and utilize specialized tools and genuine parts for accurate diagnosis and repair. He sold the Clyno to a blacksmith in 1920 and bought the Indian Scout, which he would continuously modify for the rest of his life. His focus and innovation paid off as he set an official land speed record of 184.087 mph, and posted an unofficial top speed of 205.67 mph. The stature is worth a brief stop at Queen's Park. Munro was 63 at the time with a bad heart, yet he still managed to overcome numerous obstacles to set world records, even as a muffler was burning the flesh on his leg. He never got the chance to go to war, despite being in the midst of World War I, and he remained on the farm through the early 1930s. In 1967 Burt found that he was ready: It was time again to travel to America. Meet Jon Brower Minnoch — The Heaviest Man Who Ever Lived, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. He saved for years in spite of limited means to make the trip to America. Everybody thought he would crash. ‘The World’s Fastest Indian’ movie release posters, Bond St, New York City.Photo Brian Sweeney, 2005. He could not see where he was or where he was going. the book about Burt Munro). The 1350cc Indian, called the Spirit of Munro had its inaugural run at El Mirage in July and hit a top speed of 183.59mph creating a new record in the Modified Partial Streamliner, gas class. Despite having almost no extra time and cash, as his job as a salesman was full time and paid very poorly, Munro eventually found a way to modify his bike. The Southland Times, the local Invercargill paper, recorded that Burt had to take his first driving test in his entire life at 70 years old in 1969. By this time, his bike was such a unique amalgam of custom-made components it needed to be torn down and rebuilt after every 10 minutes of run time. Burt on the Munro Special in front of his shed at 105 Bainfield Road, Invercargill – Permission Munro Family Collection, “I feel very proud of Dad and what he has accomplished. When the Great Depression hit, he found work as a motorcycle mechanic, and his interest in racing motorcycles began to pique. From then on record after record flew Burt’s way. During this period, he honed his skills at designing his own parts for the bike. HONORING THE PAST. The crusted salt littered with flashy looking two and four wheeled vehicles. His son, John, said that Munro would have shrugged his shoulders and smiled at the popularity he obtained after his passing. In other words, if there was a competition on two wheels, Munro probably tried it. Munro was 63 at the time with a bad heart, yet he still managed to overcome numerous obstacles to set world records, even as a muffler was burning the flesh on his leg. When my friends got down there I was laughing like hell and they wanted to know what I was laughing at. “He lived in the garage which always smelled of engine oil. Using his Munro Special set speed records in New Zealand races, starting with New Zealand open road record. Lots of people ask me when I’m going to give it up (and) I say ‘I’m never going to give it up till I get a good run” Burt said about himself. The Times (2006). Within a few moments, his fears were forgotten, as the streamlined Indian reached 184 miles an hour, practically flying over the shiny surface of Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats. However when attempting his ride, his bike did not run well as he had to change the shell of his Indian because of last-minute rule changes and he was not able to demonstrate what he and the Indian could do for the film crew. Following several small jobs such as working at the waterfront or sawmill for instance, he went into partnership with one of his acquaintances: Mac Tulloch from Mataura. In the following year Burt started to work as a motorcycle salesman at Alf Tapper’s motorcycle shop ‘Tappers’. When he purchased the Indian its top speed was around 50 miles per hour. He saved for years in spite of limited means to make the trip to America. “I hit one of these rain gutters and the bike shot up in the air. Over the next years Burt became more known for his constant speed improvements and records on New Zealand beaches and roads. While many of his neighbors viewed him as somewhat eccentric, he did not live the life of a hermit. Munro was over the moon with his new purchase. So he packed up his things and travelled to the USA with the same bike – the same Indian he had bought in 1920. 100 wonders of New Zealand engineering, Random House, Auckland. In 1975, with worsening health, Burt Munro lost his competition license and finally conceded that his racing days were over. When the Kiwi returned to the base, he was surprised to hear that he had indeed broken the record for 55cu inch displacement (883cc) bikes with a speed of 178.971 mph. View special offers available on Indian Motorcycles. In 1920, he bought an Indian Scout motorcycle, with a 600cc V twin engine, which he modified himself with homemade tools. Updated record certificate, 1967, Permission Munro Family Collection. He married, wife Florence who presented him with four children and Munro secured employment selling motorcycles. Discover how the spirit of Burt Munro lives on, as Indian take to the Bonneville Flats. He also had an older brother Ernest, who was killed in 1912. Burt Munro married Florence Beryl Martyn in 1927 but divorced twenty years later. However, what was most remarkable about Burt’s journeys, was that no matter what happened to him, Burt always found a solution and never gave up. Again nothing was easy. It took him five months, but the rods lasted over 20 years, through countless high-speed runs. Your email address will not be published. At home in New Zealand, riders simply showed up, signed up and raced. New Zealander Burt Munro was a motorcycle land-speed record-holder of the 1960s. The World’s Fastest Indian, Magnolia Studios, New Zealand. Over the following 45 years of rebuilding and tuning Burt managed to make it go in excess of 200 mph – four times its original speed. August of this year will see the 50th anniversary of the world’s fastest Indian, a remarkable event in motorcycling history. Roger Donaldson (2005). In the subsequent ten years Burt was able to raise that record to 132.32mph and also won the standing ¼ mile sprint in Timaru, New Zealand with just 13.1 seconds. Burt and his wife Beryl, 1937 – Permission Munro Family Collection, In 1926 Burt modified his Indian for the very first time. We were so far off the black line that we missed a steel marker stake by inches. Working overnight, sometimes not sleeping for days at a time, Munro would use the tools he had access to in the bike mechanics shop. Before long, he was fixing up motorcycles, and racing them in different clubs around New Zealand. During those post-WWI years, the New Zealander’s appetite for any competitive motorcycle sport was insatiable, from hill climbs to sprints. Using a micrometer made from a notched spoke, he cast pistons in a can, turned down on an ancient lathe and hand-filed cam lobes and conrods. Due to their isolated locations, land speed attempts in such places hadn’t yet caught on, though. He had burnt his leg on the exhaust pipe. In 50 years he had around 250 motor blow-ups or other machine failures – some happening with the worst timing just 24 hours before another one of his record attempts.” Burt Munro never gave up nor did he take no for an answer. It was then that the typical Burt Munro luck struck and Mr McPherson, a solicitor, took on Burt’s case for free. In the same year of 1951 Burt raced at the NZ Open Beach Championship on December 8 at Oreti Beach. After World War II, Burt Munro built a low garage which served as his workshop and home. For years, he worked 16 hours per day in the shed. The first test run on the salt was supposed to show that a racer could control his bike.