From the day he was born, New Zealand native Burt Munro felt the need for speed. Whether he was racing the fastest horse across his family’s farm or competing as a professional speedway driver, he lived a life driven by the passion to go faster and push boundaries. Munro's 1920 Indian Scout was the 627th 600cc Scout to leave the American factory. The bike had a top speed of 55 mph. Not nearly enough. So he decided to start modifying. Despite limited means and a complete lack of funding, Munro worked day and night to perfect his bike, which he took to calling the Munro Special.
Starting in the 1940s, Munro started claiming a number of New Zealand land speed records, and by the 1950s his Scout was too fast for New Zealand’s speed courses. He formed a new goal—to race on the flat, expansive Bonneville Salt Flats. Over the years, Munro and his Scout raced on the Bonneville Salt Flats nine times and set world records in three of them. In 1967, Burt Munro made his final trip to the Bonneville Salt Flats. 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. 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. Burt Munro was inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame in 2006, a tribute to the pursuit begun eight decades earlier.
BURT MUNRO BY THE NUMBERS
184.087 MPH
The standing world land speed record
68 YEARS
Burt Munro’s age when he set off
across the Bonneville Salt Flats on his record-breaking ride
1920
The year Burt Munro’s modified
Indian Scout was built
THE CELEBRATION
RECREATING MOTORCYCLE HISTORY
In 1967, 68-year-old New Zealand native Burt Munro made motorcycle history by setting a new official land speed record - 184.087 mph with unofficial top speed of 205.67 mph—when he raced his heavily modified 1920 Indian Scout Streamliner across the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, U.S.A. Now, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the record, Burt’s great-nephew Lee Munro will be attempting to recreate his great-uncle’s historic run.
WHO IS BURT MUNRO?
DRIVEN BY THE PURSUIT OF SPEED