Stark's SM Sköll just beat an Audi R8 LMS around a 100-year-old race track
There are plenty of ways to prove an electric motorcycle is quick. Stark has apparently decided that simply showing us a fast lap wasn't enough. Instead, it took its VARG SM Sköll to the bizarre concrete banking of Sitges-Terramar in Spain and knocked more than half a second off a lap record set by an Audi R8 LMS back in 2012.
The Sköll is already a pretty serious bit of kit. Now Stark has added a ridiculous achievement to the CV.
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Watch Stark's event video below
A 100-Year-Old Track, an Audi and an Electric Supermoto
Sitges-Terramar is not your average test track. Built in 1923, the 2 km concrete oval has huge, steeply banked corners and hasn't been resurfaced in around a century. It's basically the sort of place you'd expect to find in a dusty motorsport documentary, not being used for a modern motorcycle record attempt.
That's where Stark took the VARG SM Sköll on September 10. The result was a 41.888-second lap, with the bike reaching 210 km/h (130.48 mph) and averaging around 172 km/h (106.8 mph). That was enough to beat the previous 42.600-second record set by Carlos Sainz in an Audi R8 LMS in 2012. The difference was 0.712 seconds.
“With zero time to react or fix a mistake at those speeds, all I could do was completely trust the bike. It was an absolutely insane adrenaline rush and easily the wildest thing I have ever done.” Jonas Skovby
At 123.4 kg, with 80 hp, a single-speed drivetrain and 914 Nm of torque at the wheel, the Sköll has a different set of tricks to work with than a racing car. No gear changes, no clutch. Just instant torque pushing a very light motorcycle forward.
The Sköll is Stark’s road-legal supermoto, with a fully blacked-out look and more than 1 kg shaved off the standard VARG SM's weight with upgraded titanium parts. Yes, you can buy it, but it’s limited to 500 examples. So this wasn’t a one-off prototype built purely to chase a record.
Although the timing does make you raise an eyebrow. Stark announced the Sköll on September 16, six days after the record run, with the record footage and story following shortly afterwards.
So yes, it looks very much like the record was part of the launch plan.
The BCB Take
Forget the marketing for a minute. That lap is still bloody impressive.
A 123 kg motorcycle doing more than 200 km/h around a concrete track built in 1923 is a ridiculous combination.
Beating an Audi R8 LMS there doesn't suddenly mean an electric supermoto is quicker than every racing car. It means the Sköll's tiny mass, instant torque and off-road DNA work exceptionally well on a very unusual circuit.
Take a very light motorcycle, put it somewhere that rewards acceleration and agility, and it can punch well above its weight.
Stark clearly knows that. Now it has another record on its CV to prove it.
Ride safe, folks.
To compare the VARG side-by-side with other e-motos, visit BCB Bike Compare.
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