Kiwi Rider March 2022 Vol.2 | Page 89

He managed to increase his Naturally Aspirated 1050cc NZ Motorcycle record by 1.55km / h on the day . This was just enough to log a two-way average speed of 323.35km / h and break the coveted 200mph barrier . The road to the top hasn ’ t been easy for Scott Wilkins and his team starting their Landspeed objective in 2017 with each landspeed event since being another milestone toward the ultimate goal . Knowing that minor tweaks to aerodynamics , ECU settings , tyres and bike setup can have major consequences at highspeed , getting as little as 10km / h extra while travelling upward of 330km / h is a mammoth task . The years of knowledge within the Team proved indispensable on this journey to NZ records . Brett Roberts ’ ( BRM ) expertise in interpreting data and tuning the bike , both in pre-race prep and on the day adjustments , proved to be an unbeatable match . As the day wore on , richer mapping was necessary to get the most from the motorcycle - allowing Wilkins to make NZ history . Scott ’ s father , and former Kawasaki New Zealand owner , Mike Wilkins , along with his wife Pam , were ecstatic to see the record fall . They purchased the bike in 2016 when Mike retired from his role as Managing Director of Kawasaki NZ . The “ for closed-course only ” Kawasaki Ninja H2R is a different animal when compared to the road-legal Ninja H2 and H2 Carbon models , featuring a factory claimed output calculation of 326hp . Scott ’ s team , with the help of Brett Roberts , were able to push this phenomenal number even further to over 350hp at the crank . This equated to a 303hp at the wheel in dyno conditions , an achievement in itself with only 998cc of displacement to play with . From the stock H2R in 2017 with 267hp at the rear wheel achieving
330.5km / h at the Cliffhanger speed trials in Masterton , to the highly tuned & modified H2R with 350hp at the engine and 303hp at the rear wheel achieving 264.5km / h in 2022 on Goudies Road , Reporoa . Asking team owner and manager Mike what the key thing in achieving his goal was , he explained , “ Two things . One , we needed a machine that had the engineering strength to absorb the power increase we gave it . For that we thank Kawasaki . And two , we needed a rider who has the courage and skills to ride the bike at that speed on a five-metre-wide country road , who else , but my son , Scott . I am so proud of him .” Now that Scott and his family ’ s goal has been realised , he plans on hanging up his boots within the Landspeed discipline . However , Scott has his hands in many pies and is a major driving force in the motorcycling fraternity , particularly within the NZ Flat Track scene , so you ’ re bound to spot him wherever two wheels are involved .
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