He was the first rider to reach 480km/h on a conventional motorcycle, and he held the world land speed record for the class at 499.104km/h, but on Sunday something went horribly wrong for Bill Warner as his 730kW, methanol-fuelled, turbocharged Suzuki Hayabusa veered off the runway at the former Loring Air Force Base in northern Maine and crashed at more than 450km/h, in front of about 400 spectators.
Warner, 44, a marine biologist from Wimauma, Florida, was conscious and talking after the crash, but died later in hospital.
Tim Kelly, race director of the Loring Timing Association, which hosted the Maine Event at Loring Air Force Base, said later: "No one will touch Bill's achievements or be the type of racer he was. He was a personal friend and the land-racing community is less for his loss."
WORLD RECORD
Warner set his world-record benchmark at the same venue in 2011, using 2400 metres of the 4330-metre runway. This time he was trying to reach 480km/h in only 1600 metres and he was timed at 456km/h on his final run, just before the Suzuki began to veer to the right, leaving the runway about 600 metres further on and crashing in the grass.
The Maine Event is an annual timed speed event for cars and motorcycles, held on the runway at the former Strategic Air Command base, which was closed in 1994. The remainder of Sunday's event was cancelled after Warner's crash.