The runs were carried out at Skellefteå Drive Center a former airfield outside Skellefteå in northern Sweden. The speed record was monitored and approved by the international motor sport association, the FIA. The truck covered the distance in both directions. Based on these two runs, the average time and speed were calculated. The record result that the FIA presents is the average speed of the two runs.
“Specialists from several different Volvo Trucks departments worked closely together to develop a truck with unsurpassed performance. Apart from Volvo Trucks’ powertrain, which is the heart and soul of The Iron Knight, we’ve hand-built the truck from the ground up. The fact that we succeeded in securing not just one record but two is absolutely amazing,” says Olof Johansson, a technician at Volvo Trucks.
Behind the wheel of The Iron Knight was Boije Ovebrink, who has more than 30 years’ experience of both car and truck racing. He has previously beaten five speed records and in 1994 was European Truck Racing Champion.
