Competitor's death saddens Royal Enfield team

The death of a racer in the streamliner class left the Royal Enfield Bonneville Bullet team in a somber mood Wednesday, Kevin Mahoney reports in his daily update on the Dan Holmes team effort to set a streamliner record.

The Salt Lake Tribune reported that Cliff Gullett, 47, of Bozeman, Mont., was traveling at 239 mph when he crashed Wednesday afternoon at the Bonneville Salt Flats.

The American Motorcyclist Association said on its website that Gullett was competing in the 500cc Streamliner class. The AMA also issued a statement on Gullett's death, offering "its most sincere condolences and heartfelt sympathies to the Gullett family and friends during this difficult time."

Kevin's report of the effect this tragedy had on the Royal Enfield team is on the Classic Motorworks site. "The entire race community was stunned and the course was closed for the rest of the day," he writes. "Our sympathies go out to the family of the rider and the rest of his race team who are devastated. It was a very sad ending of this race day."

Before the deadly incident the Royal Enfield entry did make two unofficial runs to test fuel mixture settings. It is running at record setting speeds, Kevin reports. For his full report and his pictures, click on the image below, of the Royal Enfield streamliner preparing for a run.