This is a story of overcoming. Talan Skeels-Piggins has finally achieved the goal it has been pursuing for 11 years. The British driver, “a paraplegic since a motorcycle accident in 2003,” reached 200.254 mph, equivalent to 322.27 km/hduring a speed test held at Elvington airfield, near York, in the United Kingdom.
This figure has an even more striking peculiarity: Skeels-Piggins Control the bike using mainly your upper body and arms. Obviously, the Suzuki Hayabusa What he used to achieve this was developed specifically around his needs, with more than 600 hours of work and numerous modifications to the chassis, suspensions and, logically, controls.
The record came on Saturday, September 19 during the speed event of Straightliners in Elvington. Talan He made 5 passes over the mile measured from a standstill and it was in the last one that he managed to overcome the 200 mph barrier for the first time. The official record was 200.254 mph, about 322.27 km/h.
The day was not easy. The rain and strong wind conditioned the program and forced the team to concentrate the passes in approximately 4 hours in the afternoon. The bike also did not reach the speed they had set in ideal conditions, as the team had to deal with a technical problem during the day.
Still, the fifth and final pass allowed Talan reach 200.254 mph. A month earlier, the South African Sampie Erasmus had set a benchmark of 198.217 mph with a Suzuki GSX-R1000so the 200 mph barrier was especially present in the speed testing environment.
Reaching 322 km/h was not simply about adding power to a Hayabusa. The bike was subjected to a profound transformation to allow it to Talan could pilot it safely. The project was reactivated at the beginning of 2025 after our protagonist regained contact with the engineer and pilot Lee Baxendale. Together with his son Jay and the team Mainline Motorsports, Baxendale He spent more than 600 hours developing the machine.
The chassis was lengthened and lowered, while the suspension received specific modifications. At the front he intervened K-Tech and a shock absorber was installed behind Nitron. Special footpegs and fastening systems using velcro straps were also incorporated to keep the legs Talan in the correct position during accelerations.
One of the most curious elements is the pneumatic gear change. Talan You can select gears by activating the horn, a solution that reduces to a minimum the additional movements and controls you need to control during acceleration.
The turbo came to the end
Curiously, the turbocharger It was not part of the initial project. Lee Baxendale He began working on an atmospheric configuration, with modifications to the intake and exhaust, while even studying the possibility of using nitrous oxide to achieve the necessary power. Finally the opportunity arose to acquire a complete motorcycle from Sean Millsof Big CC Racing. The team took advantage of its supercharging system, disassembled the rest of the components and used the resources obtained from the sale of parts and material from the previous project to complete the Hayabusa.
The result was a machine very different from one Hayabusa conventional, both for its mechanical preparation and for the necessary adaptation so that Talan could remain restrained and control the motorcycle during acceleration that ends above 320 km/h.
11 years behind 200 mph
The story began long before they appeared Lee and Jay Baxendale. In 2015, Talan received a Suzuki Hayabusa that needed repairs and decided to use it for his first attempt at high speed. With a relatively simple preparation, free exhaust and proper maintenance, it managed to register 175.630 mph, about 282.6 km/h. That result became the starting point of a project that would end up lasting more than a decade.
Financial problems, accidents and difficulties in having a motorcycle capable of achieving the objective meant that the project was put on hold for years. Fortunately, the collaboration with Baxendale allowed us to finally recover the 200 mph goal.
From the Paralympic Games to the circuits
Skeels-Piggins He is not a newcomer to the world of competition. After the accident that left him paraplegic in 2003, he decided to continue linked to the sport and went on to represent his country in alpine skiing at the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. His relationship with motorcycles did not end with the accident either. In 2011 he founded The Bike Experiencean organization dedicated to helping people with physical disabilities re-experience riding a motorcycle.
A year later he became the first paraplegic pilot to compete against able-bodied pilots. Since then he has participated in different championships and projects aimed at demonstrating the possibilities of adapted motorcycles. The objective of The Bike Experience It goes precisely in that direction: making it easier for people who have suffered injuries or disabilities to ride a motorcycle again in a controlled environment.
