The Federation Internationale de I’Automobile (FIA) Land Speed Records Commission has homologated Continental Tire the Americas’ world speed records for both 10 kilometers and 10 miles from a standing start.
The tiremaker, in conjunction with Michael Shank Racing, Ford, Roush Yates Engines and International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) set out to break the records at Daytona International Speedway on Oct. 9, 2013. The attempt was made by Colin Braun, who drove a Ford EcoBoost-powered Daytona Prototype fitted with Continental’s ExtremeContact DR tires.
The new world speed record for 10 kilometers from a standing start is officially 110.188 seconds or 203.010 mph (326.714 kph). Additionally, the new 10-mile speed record from a standing start is officially 171.414 seconds or 210.017 mph (337.989 kph).
Both records have been homologated by the FIA Land Speed Records Commission and break the former world records held by Hans Leibold for the last 34 years. Leibold drove a Mercedez-Benz Turbo to a 10-kilometer speed of 199.101 mph and a 10-mile speed of 208.316 mph from a standing start in Nardo, Italy, on May 5, 1979.
“It was an honor to be a part of such a historic day,” said Travis Roffler, director of marketing for CTA. “Our team worked hard to develop a tire that would sustain the loads placed upon them at those speeds on the high-banked oval, and to see Colin make those laps with confidence, on our tires, was incredible. It’s a true mark of distinction for Continental and everyone involved in the project, to break a record that had been in place for 34 years.”
Continental engineered a tire specifically for this project. While based upon the ExtremeContact Dry Race tire that the DP class raced throughout the 2013 Rolex Series season, some minor changes were made to the tire. The tire used for the record-setting run is lighter and has less rolling resistance than the standard race tire and is a harder compound than the tire used for a typical road course race.
“The Continental tires performed great,” said Braun immediately following the record-setting run. “We had good grip. Obviously it’s a balance between rolling resistance and giving up speed and the amount of grip we have. But the Continental engineers did a great job of bringing us a tire that was not only fast and had good rolling resistance, but also had good grip to go out there and go 220+ mph around Daytona. Hats off to those guys for a really good job.” (Tyres & Accessories)
