he Ton (100 mph)

There was an attempt to copy my motorcycle and sidecar hearse service with a trailer behind a trike. In the UK most people relate a trailer to going down the Rubbish Tip so I was worried people would associate this coffin trailer with what I did.

Sidecar Hearse Stability at Speed

People have been racing sidecars for 100 years, setting them up for high speed, grass track and rough terrain has come down to a fine art. A light weight single axle trailer could never be as stable as a well set up combination as a trailer inevitably weaves and sways as the pace picks up. Behind a lightweight trike this weaving can occur at even low speeds.

Hayabusa and Sidecar Hearse Breaks World Record

To highlight this difference I built a Ton-Up Hearse (100mph). The first attempts were a disaster and it took a long time to find good enough engineers who could get it right, but  in 2004 our Hayabusa Sidecar Hearse broke the Fastest Hearse World Record.

Fast Bikes Magazine supplied all the equipment and personnel needed to ensure this was an official world record test. 

and trailing behind?

Coffin trailers never did take off in the UK and our reputation for The Ton-Up Funeral became so well known it was emulated by Martin Clunes on the William and Mary TV series. I was an advisor for this.

In the UK a motorbike hearse is exactly that, a motorbike!