Eva Håkansson and her home-built electric motorcycle 'KillaJoule' this week smashed several records at Bonneville.
With a top speed of 241.901 mph (389.219 km/h) and a two-way average of 240.726 mph (387.328 km/h), she beat the previous electric motorcycle speed record by 25 mph - becoming the world's fastest female on a motorcycle in the process.
Land speed record holder Eva Håkansson and her home-built electric motorcycle which has a top speed of 241.901 mph (389.219 km/h)
Land speed record holder Eva Håkansson and her home-built electric motorcycle which has a top speed of 241.901 mph (389.219 km/h)
SPEEDY STATS
Weight: about 1540 lb. (700 kg) including the driver Eva Håkansson
Dimensions: Length 19 ft (5.6 m), width 21 inches (0.53 m), height 38 inches (0.96 m), wheelbase 150 inches (3.8 m), track width with sidecar, 45 inches (1.14 m)
Battery: A123 Systems Lithium Nano-Phosphate recharged using wind power
Motor: EVO Electric AFM-240 motor giving 500 HP.
Wheels and Tires: Hard rubber compound land speed tires on custom rims made by Larson Engineering in Boulder.
Brakes: Disc brakes front and back. Two Kevlar ribbon brake parachutes, actuated by Bimba air cylinders.
Body: Fiberglass composite nosecone, canopy, and sidecar wheel cover
In addition to being a new electric motorcycle record, the speed is also an overall new record for any kind of sidecar motorcycle, including internal combustion-powered sidecar motorcycles.
'This is a truly historic event,' Eva Håkansson said.
'It is the first time in over a century that an electric vehicle beats internal combustion for a vehicle type.
The 33 year old is a PhD student in mechanical engineering at the NSF Center for High Voltage/Temperature Materials and Structures at University of Denver.
She said KillaJoule is a 'very expensive hobby project' with her husband Bill Dube, a research scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA.
Although the design is a team work involving family and friends, Eva has manufactured about 80 % of the vehicle herself in their two-car garage.
It has taken 5 years to build the KillaJoule on a shoe-string budget.
The pair said they define themselves as 'backyard racers with high-level engineering skills'
How it works: It has taken 5 years to build the KillaJoule on a shoe-string budget.
Eva Håkansson inside KillaJoule.
'The last time this happened was in 1899 when the world's fastest car was the electric car 'La Jamais Contente' driven by Camille Jenatzy at 65 mph,' said Håkansson.
'Since then, internal combustion has dominated everything.'
The record runs at the Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials on August 28 2014 give Eva and KillaJoule the titles.
The pair say they owe much of their success to 'doing the math' to calculate exactly what will work best, instead of relying on luck, intuition or anecdotal information to find the optimal solution.
'Although the KillaJoule is a fun hobby project, its real purpose is to be eco-activism in disguise,' they claim.
'The main purpose of this 19 ft., 400 HP, sleek, sexy motorcycle is to show that eco-friendly doesn't mean slow and boring. '
Eva is also on a mission to encourage girls and women to pursue a career in science and engineering.
The sidecar isn't their first project - the pair also created the KillaCycle, is the quickest electric motorcycle in the world.
It has over 500 HP and accelerates 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) in less than one second.
Born in Sweden, motorcycle racing is in Eva's blood.
With the help of her father, Sven, Eva built Sweden's first street-legal electric motorcycle ElectroCat.
KillaJoule entering the measured mile at 240 mph. The speed is also an overall new record for any kind of sidecar motorcycles, including internal combustion-powered sidecar motorcycles.
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