Velocette Venom

The Velocette Venom is a single cylinder four stroke British motorcycle of 499 cc made by Velocette at Hall Green in Birmingham. A total of 5,721 models were produced between 1955 and 1970. In 1961 a production Velocette Venom set the 24-hour world record at a speed of 100.05 mph (161.01 km/h). It was the first motorcycle of any size to achieve an average speed of over 100 mph for 24 hours and to this date no other motorcycle of the same capacity has been able to equal this world record. In 1965, the Velocette Venom was further developed by Velocette designer Bertie Goodman to create the Velocette Thruxton with a race specification cylinder head that was gas flowed by hand to accommodate extra-large valves and a downdraught inlet port. It was a very popular and successful clubman racer. However, although it had more power than the Venom, the Thruxton could not save Velocette. Poor sales forced the company into voluntarily liquidation in 1971, with all the remaining stock and tools sold off to pay creditors.