After setting a land-speed record of 232.522 mph in the 2008 BUB Speed Trials at the Bonneville Salt Flats, Leslie Porterfield was accepted into by Guinness World Records as the Fastest Women in the World.
Porterfield piloted a Foremost Insurance sponsored 2002 2000cc Turbo-Charged Suzuki Hayabusa to the speed on March 12, 2008, beating out the women who previously held the record for over 30 years, motocross rider and stuntwoman Marcia Holley. Holley’s top speed was 229.361 mph on a single-engine streamliner motorcycle in 1978.
“I couldn’t believe it when they called,” Porterfield said in a press release.from her busy Dallas, Texas dealership, High Five Cycles. “It’s takes awhile after filing the paper work with the FIM (International Federation of Motorcycling) to get the record certificate, and then with Guinness – this has been going on for awhile and when they called I was just thrilled.”
According to a Foremost Insurance Press Release, Porterfield, owner of the Texas dealership High Five Cycles, first set the Salt Flats of Bonneville on fire in 2008 by recording an overall land speed record of 232.5 mph in the 2000cc modified class, the fastest record of any woman on two wheels. After that she was honored as the AMA Female Rider of the Year in 2008, was featured in the Discovery Channel documentary Speed Capital of the World: Bonneville and toured the world as a public speaker – all while owning and running her own motorcycle dealership, where she is also an appointed Foremost insurance agent.
“Recognition such as this is an enormous achievement for any of the Foremost sponsored riders, but in Leslie’s case it’s especially sweet for us since she is also a Foremost Independent Agent,” says Randy Slotten, Marketing Director, Foremost Insurance Group. “She is an amazing and driven individual who has achieved great success in both racing and business. On behalf of everyone at Foremost, I’d like to congratulate Leslie, one of our own, for being accepted into the Guinness Book of World Records.”
Porterfield was already a rising star in the professional motorcycle industry before Guinness came calling, as well as an advocate and role-model for the rising population female riders. Most recently, she has been a featured speaker at the Cycle World International Motorcycle Shows and the 22nd Annual AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame Breakfast.
While her crew begins prepping for the next round of speed trials, which begin in May in El Mirage, California, Porterfield is taking some time to focus on StandUp for Kids, a non-profit organization that assists homeless children in America. In June Porterfield and StandUp for Kids will raffle off a Honda CBR1000, with all proceeds going to the charity. After that it’s back to Bonneville, back to BUB and back to the hunt for her next accomplishment.
“I don’t just want to be the fastest woman in the world,” says Porterfield. “I want to be the fastest person in the world. That’s what’s next.”
