Girard splashes cash in search of overall record

If the winner of Saturday’s season opener maintains the fastest time of 2021, then it will indeed be 10 years in a row that the two-wheeled speed enthusiast has set the quickest annual time for the quarter-mile dash.

But there’s one achievement, one that has been a talking point for years now, that would make his reign even sweeter.

That is to beat the all-time record of 9.37sec., set by Colin Le Maitre in his Gould GR37 single-seater way back in 2004.

Now Girard, who set his own best of 9.48 three years ago, has announced that he has bought a BMW S1000 RR to aid him in his bid.

‘Just waiting for bits to turn up – otherwise, I would have ridden it today,’ he said after a season-opening performance of 9.95 on his trusty Honda Fireblade.

‘I’m hoping that’s going to be a bit quicker than the one I’ve got. If not, I’ll have to go back to the Honda.’

The S1000 RR is a serious rival to the Fireblade, or CBR 1000RR, and markets itself as ‘the superbike of superlatives’ with claims of ‘unbridled power’.

Girard will have two more Vazon Sprints this season in which to trial his new machine, these being 7 August and 4 September.

He will be gunning to graduate with a 9.50 at the very least – but you’re unlikely to catch him elsewhere in the multitude of motorsport options Guernsey offers.

Why not, though? The buzz of hitting such speeds – exceeding 140mph in his better runs – is what has kept him tethered to the sprints.

‘It’s just sprints for me, really,’ Girard added.

‘It’s the thrill of the speed, to be honest, and the competition – sometimes you get people coming down who are quite quick as well.’

Meanwhile, for many other drivers, eyes will be set on Easter Monday for the first event of the popular Le Val des Terres hill climb season.