Motorcycle Racer Dies After Hitting 285mph

A motorcycle racer trying to top 300mph died yesterday after losing control and zooming off a runway at a former air base in northern Maine. Bill Warner, 44, was clocked at 285mph before he lost control, says Tim Kelly, race director for the Loring Timing Association. Warner was conscious and talking after the crash but died about an hour and 15 minutes later, Kelly says.

Riding his modified turbocharged Suzuki Hayabusa, Warner previously hit 311mph on the same course in 2011, using 1.5 miles of pavement. That's considered to be the world land speed record for a conventional motorcycle, Kelly says. "No one will touch Bill's achievements or be the type of racer he was," he says. This time, Warner was trying to hit 300mph using just a mile of pavement. (More motorcycle stories.)