There are several times in which this Millyard Viper V10a unique creation of the inimitable Allen Millyard has been the protagonist of some of our chronicles. What we never imagined is that both (the motorcycle and its owner) could separate their paths at some point. However, the famous British engineer and builder has decided to put it up for auction, thus offering his followers a unique opportunity to get hold of this little piece of two-wheeled history.
Millyard Viper V10: A record-breaking motorcycle
If you are really interested in the story surrounding the Millyard Viper V10, we urge you to take a look at this article in which we explained in depth all the details surrounding the project. In short, as Millyard himself declared at the end of the construction, the main reason that pushed him to set out to create such a motorcycle was “beat the Americans at what they do best. They’ve tried twice to build a Viper-powered bike (the Tomahawk and a one-off Boss Hoss version) and this one is better than both.” And boy has he achieved it.
The path to getting the Millyard Viper V10 ready was not easy: for 5 long years he dedicated himself body and soul to designing, assembling, tuning and finally homologating this bizarre engineering project. Once ready for road use, he invited MCN’s test manager, Bruce Dunn, to test it at the Bruntingthorpe circuit that same month. After some adjustments and mounting a larger rear sprocket, they managed to catapult it up to the 207.101 mph, more than 330 km/h.
Over the next few years, Allen has traveled more than 9,000 miles aboard the Millyard Viper V10, an almost unusual feat considering the size of the bike or its enormous fuel consumption. This demonstrates the love of its creator for this one-of-a-kind machine, which also has various awards of different levels, including the prestigious “Most OTT” (Over The Top) award, awarded during the 2014 edition of the Salon Prive Concours d’Elegance.
Finally, reviewing the commendable history of the Millyard Viper V10, we have the Guinness record for speed in the Tandem category together with its partner in the program “The Motorbike Show”, Henry Cole. The latter agreed to be Allen’s passenger and both surpassed the previous record created by Allen by almost 5 mph. Erin Hunter and Andy Sillsachieved on the well-known Bonneville Salt Plain in Utah in the 2011 season.
After the test, Guinness World Records certified that Millyard and Cole had reached a maximum speed of 295.31 km/h along the three kilometers of the runway located at the Elvington airfield located in the town of North Yorkshire. Now, after the auction of the Millyard Viper V10 was made public, its owner and creator declared to his colleagues at MCN: ““I don’t think I have anything to prove to her anymore.”
“To be honest, it takes up a lot of space in the house and comes with the responsibility of keeping it in good condition. In 2001 I built a V8, sold it and with that financed a lot of fun for me and my children. Once it’s gone, it will still be my bike, but it will be in a museum or in someone else’s possession.”
He concludes by explaining: “For me, the fun is creating it and the challenge of building it. I have mixed feelings about selling it. On the one hand, I wonder ‘what am I doing?’, and on the other, I’m excited.”
For more information and details about the auction of this little piece of motor history, you can go directly to the official H&H Classics website.
