JCB Fastrack storms into the record books
Guy Martin reaches top speed of 153 miles/h to set new Guinness World Record for world’s fastest tractor
JCB’s Fastrac has stormed into the record books after being crowned the world’s fastest tractor with a speed of 135.191 miles/h.
The Fastrac – designed and built by a team of young engineers in Staffordshire – secured the title at Elvington Airfield in York with motorbike racer and lorry mechanic Guy Martin at the wheel.
The feat was officially ratified by Guinness World Records who presented the company with a special framed certificate minutes after the achievement.
The story of the tractor’s development and assault on the record was told in a TV documentary on Channel 4 last night (17 Nov) called ‘The World’s Fastest Tractor.’
The achievement comes after JCB set their first Guinness World Record for the fastest tractor at Elvington in June. Called Fastrac One, it reached a speed of 103.6 miles/h with Guy Martin in the driver’s seat.
JCB then embarked on an ambitious plan to break their own record and developed Fastrac Two – which was 10% lighter and was even more streamlined than its smaller brother.
Fastrac Two hit a peak speed of 153.771 miles/h on its way to recording an average of 135.191miles/h at Elvington.
Guy Martin said: ‘This has been a massive undertaking and I was a very small cog in the machine. It was a proper privilege to be involved, so thank you very much to JCB and their engineering team, who got this tractor absolutely spot on.’
A team of JCB engineers has been working on the project to further develop the tractor over the last few months and today JCB chairman Lord Bamford praised their ‘amazing achievement’.
He said: ‘When we reached 103.6 miles/h with the Fastrac in the summer, I was convinced we could go even faster, and the JCB team has risen to the challenge by setting this new record.
‘It’s an amazing achievement delivered by a young and enthusiastic engineering team. Everyone involved should be very proud of the part they have played in showing off British engineering at its very best.’
JCB’s chief innovation and growth officer, Tim Burnhope, added: ‘Fastrac One really proved to us that there are no limits to what a young and dynamic engineering team can achieve, so we pushed boundaries and ideas, and looked at all aspects of the project to find solutions and make improvements.
‘The biggest challenges have included aerodynamics, reducing weight and improving performance – getting a 5-tonne tractor to safely reach 150 miles/h, and stop again, is not an easy task, but we’re all so proud to have not only reached these goals, but to have exceeded them.’
