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Unique Quadbike
World Speed Record Attempt
NEWS FROM DEAFBLIND UK
7 June 2002
For immediate release
RESCHEDULED
QUADBIKE WORLD SPEED RECORD ATTEMPT
In an amazing event which will prove that
being both deaf and blind doesn’t need to stop you being
the best, double world record holder Graham ‘G-Force’
Hicks from Peterborough will be attempting to smash his
own quadbike world speed record on 22nd June 2002 at
Leicestershire’s Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground. The
event had been scheduled for 13 May but driving rain and
strong cross-winds meant it had to be postponed.
 Graham
will be hurtling through the 100mph barrier on ‘G-Force
Challenger’, probably one of the fastest quads in the
world. Based on a Honda TRX400EX quad with a 1100cc
Super Blackbird 152bhp engine, this bike was custom-built
by Terry Chard, former technician for ‘Only Duke’, and
Race Engineering. It has been built to Supermoto
specs, with a full race exhaust system supplied and fitted
by Venom Performance Products.
Graham, who is blind and totally deaf, will be taking full
control of the quad and pillion rider, Rob Hall, will give
Graham navigational directions to help him keep straight
down the runway. The directions will be given using
a touch-based system since Graham can neither see hand
signals nor hear spoken directions.
 As
well as fulfilling his personal ambition to break his last
record of 99.26mph, Graham will also be using the event to
promote the national charity Deafblind UK which gives its
full backing to his amazing challenges. Graham and
Rob are part of the charity’s Deafblind Challenges Team
which aims to raise public awareness about the potential
of deafblind people and to raise funds for the vital
services Deafblind UK offers to deafblind people
throughout the country.
Deafblind UK would like to thank the following companies
who have sponsored the Quadbike World Speed Record
Challenge:
Anglia Bearing Company Ltd; Apex Tyres; BSD Racing;
Chalcon Ltd; Cooper Avon Tyres; Crighton’s of Peterborough
Ltd; Dunlop Tyres Ltd; Fenland Engineering; Goodridge UK;
GTS Racegear; Halfords Ltd; Honda UK Motorcycle and Power
Equipment; ID Leisure Ltd; John Elliot Quad Racing; KIK
ATV Specialist; Malvern Timers; Marks & Spencer Ltd;
Mitsubishi UK; Philip Charles Leisure Ltd; Putoline Oil
Ltd; Race Engineering; Ten Fore Ltd; Terry Chard (former
technician for Olly Duke); Venom Performance Products; VP
Racing Fuels.
And finally, a word from Graham: “I was very disappointed
on 13 May to have to postpone the record attempt because
of the appalling weather. But I’m raring to go on 22
June and I’m determined not only to beat my own record but
to prove to everyone what it’s possible to achieve,
despite being deafblind. There’s no point waiting
for a cure for deafblindness. You’ve got to make the
most of life while it’s there.”
NOTES TO EDITORS
Filming/Interview Opportunities
The schedule for
the record attempt on 22 June will follow shortly.
(In the unlikely
event of yet more appalling weather, it will be held on 23
June.)
Advance Photos
300dpi pics of
Graham and Rob testing the bike at Bruntingthorpe are
available from Fiona Todd or Jo Johnson: 01733 358100.
Deafblind UK
Deafblind UK,
which supports all Graham’s amazing activities, is a
national charity dedicated to making life better for
deafblind people throughout the UK. Although a rare
disability, round 40 in every 100,000 people are deafblind,
with up to 250,000 people having a combined sight and
hearing difficulty. Many people lose their sight and
hearing later in life but there are also many younger
people who have become deafblind through illness, road
accidents, hereditary conditions and other causes. Simple
communication we take for granted is always difficult for
deafblind people and accessing information and travelling
independently provide further huge challenges. A great
many deafblind people face unnecessary and unfair
difficulties and end up lonely and isolated not reaching
their full potential. People like Graham Hicks prove what
can be achieved when barriers are removed or cast aside.
Deafblind UK’s
work is crucial in helping deafblind people to break out
of their isolation and live independently, enjoying many
of the activities which we take for granted.
In 2002, Graham
Hicks aims to raise significant funds to support Deafblind
UK’s vital work and reach out to many more deafblind
people.
For more information, please contact:
Fiona Todd or Jo Johnson
PR Department, Deafblind UK.
Tel: 01733 358100.
Emails:
ftodd@deafblinduk.org.uk;
jjohnson@deafblinduk.org.uk
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