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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallBurt Munro’s 1967 Bonneville run is often reduced to a few competing numbers: 184.087 mph, 190.07 mph and 205.67 mph. The distinction matters. Only one of those is the corrected official two-way class record.
Here are 10 key facts about Munro, his extensively modified Indian Scout and the record he set at age 68.
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1. The record was set at Bonneville on August 26, 1967
Herbert James “Burt” Munro set the record during the Bonneville Speed Trials at Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats. The Southern California Timing Association hosted the event, which used the salt’s measured course for high-speed attempts.
Bonneville records are not normally based on one spectacular pass. A rider must complete timed runs in opposite directions, allowing the results to be averaged and reducing the effect of wind and course conditions.
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2. Munro was 68 years old
Munro was born in 1899, making him 68 when he made his record-setting attempt. That alone made the run unusual: he was competing at an age when most racers had long since retired.
His age is important context, but it was not a substitute for preparation. Munro had spent decades developing the motorcycle and refining his own approach to high-speed running.
3. The record bike started as a 1920 Indian Scout
The machine was not designed from the outset as a Bonneville streamliner or purpose-built land-speed racer. It began life as a 1920 Indian Scout, a 600cc V-twin motorcycle with a claimed top speed of approximately 55 to 60 mph.
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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Munro bought the Scout new and gradually transformed it into a much faster, heavily modified racing machine. That long development history is a major part of the achievement: the record-holder was an evolved production motorcycle rather than a clean-sheet competition design.
4. Development began in 1926
Munro began systematically modifying the Indian in 1926. He continued developing it for decades, making changes whenever money, materials and equipment allowed.
He worked with limited resources and fabricated many components himself. The project therefore involved much more than tuning a standard engine. Munro altered the parts needed to make the Scout survive and perform at speeds far beyond its original design target.
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5. The engine grew from 600cc to roughly 950–953cc
By the 1967 record attempt, the engine had been enlarged to approximately 950–953cc. It remained a heavily modified Indian V-twin, but very little about its final specification represented an untouched 1920 Scout.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesThe work included custom pistons, flywheels, valve gear, gearing and chain-drive components. These changes addressed both power production and the ability to transmit that power reliably at Bonneville speeds.
6. The official corrected record is 184.087 mph
The current official figure to cite is 184.087 mph. It belongs to the 1000-S-AF class in the American Motorcycle Association’s national record listing.
The class designation is more precise than the popular description “the under-1,000cc world land-speed record.” Munro’s mark was a class record, not the outright motorcycle land-speed record for every engine size and category.
7. The record was a two-way average
Munro’s official result came from two timed runs:
| Run | Speed |
|---|---|
| Northbound | 184.710 mph |
| Southbound | 183.463 mph |
| Corrected average | 184.087 mph |
Averaging the two runs gives 184.0865 mph, which rounds to 184.087 mph. This is why the official record cannot be represented accurately by quoting only the faster northbound pass.
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8. The 190.07-mph run was not the official record
Munro also achieved a 190.07-mph run, frequently described as the fastest officially recorded speed on an Indian motorcycle. However, it was a one-way pass rather than the completed two-way average required for the class record.
That makes 190.07 mph an important performance figure, but not the official 1967 record number. When describing the record itself, use 184.087 mph.
9. The famous 205.67-mph figure was not a completed record average
The often-repeated 205.67-mph figure refers to an officially timed flying-mile run. It demonstrates how fast Munro and the Indian could travel under the right conditions, but it was not a completed record-setting two-way average.
It should therefore not be presented as Munro’s official land-speed record. The three figures have different meanings:
| Speed | What it represents |
|---|---|
| 184.087 mph | Corrected official two-way class-record average |
| 190.07 mph | One-way qualifying or recorded pass |
| 205.67 mph | Officially timed flying-mile run, not the completed two-way record |
10. The record was corrected after Munro’s death
Contemporary 1967 reporting listed Munro’s result as 183.586 mph. In 2014, his son John identified an arithmetic error in the original calculation. The result was subsequently corrected to 184.087 mph.
The correction did not turn a different run into the record. It fixed the calculation of the two official passes. The class has since been retired, and the current AMA record list continues to carry Munro’s corrected mark.
Why Munro’s record still matters
Munro’s achievement combines three unusually difficult elements: an aging rider, a decades-old motorcycle and a record attempt at speeds far beyond the machine’s original purpose. The Indian Scout’s transformation was incremental and largely self-built, not the result of a factory racing program.
For accuracy, the cleanest description is this: in 1967, 68-year-old Burt Munro rode his extensively modified Indian Scout to a corrected 184.087-mph two-way average in the AMA 1000-S-AF class at Bonneville.
FAQ
What was Burt Munro’s official land-speed record?
His corrected official record was 184.087 mph, set as a two-way average in the AMA 1000-S-AF class at Bonneville in 1967.
Did Burt Munro really reach 205.67 mph?
He recorded a 205.67-mph flying-mile run, but that was not the completed two-way average used for the official class record.
What motorcycle did Burt Munro use?
He used a heavily modified 1920 Indian Scout. It began as a 600cc motorcycle and was enlarged to approximately 950–953cc by the 1967 attempt.
How old was Burt Munro when he set the record?
Munro was 68 years old when he set the record at the Bonneville Speed Trials on August 26, 1967.
The Bottom Line
Burt Munro’s official corrected Bonneville record is 184.087 mph, based on northbound and southbound runs of 184.710 and 183.463 mph. The 190.07-mph and 205.67-mph figures describe separate one-way or flying-mile runs, not the official two-way class-record average.
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