Grandad sets land speed record on steam-powered bike built in his shed

Graham Sykes is on the brink of turning 60. That means it won’t be long until he is eligible to receive a senior citizen’s bus pass.

But this grandad of nine doesn’t have any intention of travelling in the bus lane – instead, he’s had his eyes firmly set on smashing records in the fast lane.

The self-proclaimed ‘nutty inventor’ from Bedale, Yorkshire last month propelled himself into the record books by setting a mind-boggling world land speed record on two wheels.

He did so by hitting a top speed of 163mph on a steam-powered rocket motorcycle… that he built in his back garden!

Sykes, who turns 60 this week, is a precision engineer by trade.

But in his spare time has created the ‘Force of Nature’ motorcycle – a two-wheeled beast that ultises ‘steam-based science’ to achieve mind-bending acceleration.

The two-wheeled rocketship uses the latent energy of superheated, pressurised water that is then released through nozzles. 

The water itself is heated by hydrogenated vegetable oil, further boosting its green credentials. 

The bike then turns this water to steam which thrusts it forwards. 

The shed-built vehicle is said to be ‘eco-friendly’ and ‘uses nature, science and innovation to reach incredible speeds’.

During the UK&ITA World Records Speed week hosted at Elvington Airfield last month, Graham obliterated the previous record for a steam-powered motorcycle.

On 21 May, he clocked a top speed of 163.8mph as he completed the 1/8th-mile drag run in just 3.878 seconds.

In fact, the top speed peaked at around 180mph after the 1/8th-mile beam, though that doesn’t count for the record.

Before Graham’s ground-breaking creation, the fastest recorded steam-powered motorcycle had reached a speed of 80.509mph in 2014, the wheel driven bike was crafted by American inventor Bill Barnes – differing from the Force of Nature, which is thrust driven. 

Graham Sykes, who turns 60 this week, has nine grandchildren. He says his steam-powered rocket motorcycle is like riding ‘a big bomb’

When asked to describe The Force of Nature bike, the Grandad, who turns 60 later this week, said: ‘It’s just a big bomb really, and it all started in my shed.’

He added: ‘I’ve taken the principles of chemistry, and married them with precision engineering to create something I’m passionate about – fast bikes. 

‘I wanted to do this in a way that is sustainable for the planet – I’ve got nine grandkids after all – and demonstrates that you don’t have to compromise on speed, you just have to get creative.’

The triumph is the latest record held by Graham.

He previously shattered the British National record for the fastest three-wheeled vehicle in 2015 with his self-built V8 3-wheeler ‘SYKO’.

On that custom-built vehicle, he managed to achieve a peak speed of 180.3mph (171.4 mph average over the flying 1/4 mile).

Clocking a top speed of 163.8mph last month, Graham completed a 1/8th-mile drag run in just 3.878 seconds

But Graham has no intention to stop here and believes he can go even faster.

He plans to break his own record and become the fastest steam-powered vehicle ever.

In fact, he hopes the Force of Nature Steam Rocket Bike can surpass the 200mph threshold in the standing 1/8 mile sprint.

‘We are now officially the quickest and fastest Steam Powered Motorcycle in the world,’ Graham added.

There is still lots more power to come, and I feel sure we will run quicker in the coming months.’

The motorcycle has been designed and built in a shed at Graham’s Yorkshire home using state-of-the-art CAD modelling and CNC Machining.

He says it ’embodies the indomitable spirit of British engineering’.