Zef turns to titanium-spiked tyres in ice speed attempt
MADMAX team rider Zef Eisenberg is hoping to race into the record books as the fastest motorcyclist on ice this month.
The team is gearing up to return to Arsunda in Sweden for the Ice Speed Weekend.
The annual two-day event sees ice racers from around the world descend on Arsunda – the fifth largest lake in Sweden – with the very best seeking to travel at over 200mph on the lake’s five-mile, frozen, specially groomed surface.
The current world motorcycle ice record is 197.5mph, or 315kmh.
In 2019, Mr Eisenberg made his debut at the event with the team’s 400hp supercharged Suzuki Hayabusa and came second in the motorbike class, despite having four tyre failures.
‘Since our attempt last year the Hayabusa has been adapted for the extreme ice-strip challenge with a new engine, upgraded electrics and we’ve focused a lot of time and effort strengthening the tyres,’ he said.
‘We know it’s the biggest issue for all of the racers and hope that our new reinforced tyres can now withstand the extreme centrifugal forces of 200 titanium spikes trying to rip themselves from the tyre.’
Each of the tyres features 200 hand cut titanium spikes, weighing 8g each, but the centrifugal force means that at 200mph they become the equivalent of 12kg each. ‘And with 200 studs per tyre, that becomes 2.2 tonnes trying to rip the tyre apart, with forces as high as 1,430g,’ Mr Eisenberg said.
‘The maths is scary.’
Last year, racing came to a halt for the Madmax Race Team when the tyre ripped apart at 283kmh/176mph.
The steel banding around the front tyre snapped and sliced the radiator open, causing the engine to overheat rapidly and coolant to spray everywhere, followed by the rear tyre exploding and ripping the tail of the bike off.
Tyres and ice are not the only challenges the team will have to contend with.
The temperature can drop to -20C and wind chill can make it feel even colder.
The Madmax team has had a successful start to the year, scooping three world record awards at the National ACU/FIM motorcycle awards ceremony.
At the recent ceremony at the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull, West Midlands, it collected the awards for its electric-powered machine.
