NZ land speed record set

Eddie Freeman relives the moment.Photo / Supplied

Eddie Freeman hits 383km/h.

It could well have been the fastest thing on the Ohakea Air Force Base runway since our Skyhawks were mothballed.

And Kiwi speedster Eddie Freeman certainly had the afterburners on when his Lamborghini smashed the New Zealand land speed record yesterday.

Freeman averaged an incredible 355.485km/h. The previous record stood at 348.23km/h.

The Castrol Trophy for the land speed record had been held by Owen Evans since 1996. Evans nearly paid with his life when he lost control of his Porsche 911 Turbo during one of his attempts, a horrific crash that was caught on camera.

An elated Freeman said he too had been shaken about. "It was pretty intense. There was poor visibility and the car was vibrating but things held up well and I'm delighted."

Freeman was attempting the record in a Lamborghini Superleggera, a supercar producing 530bhp and capable in its standard specification of a top speed of 315km/h.

The $450,000 car was modified at one of the world's leading automotive tuners in the US to prepare it for the attempt. During the record-breaking run, he hit a top speed of 383km/h.

Evans, yesterday racing at the Pukekohe raceway, extended his congratulations to Freeman.

"People don't realise how difficult it is to achieve speeds like that and I'll be more than happy to hand the trophy over to Eddie," Evans said.

- Herald on Sunday