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COLUMBUS—Over the Fourth of July weekend, local motorcyclist Matt Durand of Columbus won in his class at the Firecracker Mile ECTA Competition in Blytheville, Ark.

One of the primary locations for land speed racing, ECTA Motorsports is a home course built on a former Air Force Base in Blytheville. The ECTA is the principal sanctioning organization for Land Speed Racing in the central United States. Multiple times a year, including the Firecracker Mile, the fastest car and motorcycle racers gather to speed down a runway track in hopes of setting a record. 

Vehicles range from production cars and bikes to exotic, purpose-built racers. 

Matt Durand, representing his team, Dooley Durand Racing, demonstrated his skill by winning his production class on fifteen runs in the mile with a top speed of 188 mph., despite the extreme heat, which affected many of the competitors. 

“The conditions were terribly hot,” said Durand. “The heat was devastating, but we got lucky on Saturday, and the wind changed around, allowing me to have my best runs.” 

Durand won on his brand-new 2023 Suzuki GSXR 2000 cc, which was an adjustment from the smaller bikes he’d ridden in the past to set several land-speed records at the Arkansas Mile. 

“This was a big step up as a rider,” says Durand. “This bike was amazing. There were no vibrations or any problems. However, it was hard to hold onto at that speed, and it was all I could do to hold onto it. It was like two people trying to pull you off the bike.”

“I look forward to taking the bike back in October and, after some adjustments, trying to get it up to over 200 mph. That will not only put me in the 200-mph club but also break most of the records in the class.”

Durand expressed his gratitude to Yetee’s Design of Mill Spring for their role in ensuring his professional appearance, and he also credited his wife Gina Durand, his one-woman pit crew, for her support in his success.