Found on Facebook

A Japanese gent used a similar bike to set a 'slow bike race ' record some years ago.Apparently he stayed virtually motionless for hours before completing the course.

Stumbled across a small cycle museum in France in 2006 where there one of these bikes or something v similar on display.

This is Mieffret in action at 80mph (on wooden rims) with a very similar bike, then having a nasty crash. He survived and some years later went on to reach 127mph. Brave chap. not for the faint hearted: http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=62221

Wasn't it used on a board mounted between railway tracks somewhere in America? The record breaking attempt was within a three sided box behind a railway locomotive?

There's a great video of Dave Legris using a similar bike on Roy Castle's Record Breakers http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q77GMkXzOVE

It is a Stayer-style bike, which was for motor-paced racing in a velodrome. That gearing, though, is about five times the size of regular Stayer chainrings!!!

you are both nearly right it is actually a specialst build for a world motor paced record, looking at the bike dating pre 1970 any one know who it belonged to ?

Ever drafted a truck on the road? I've seen this before somewhere, it's the riders name Meiffret on the chainring, Google found this - Jose Meiffret, he did over 200kmh behind a special car on the motorway in 1962, on 130x15. http://lepetitbraquet.free.fr/chron13_rdvmort.html

Yes, that's my daily commuter bike. It takes me half my journey, (15 miles) to get up to speed, but the rest of the trip only takes a minute and a half. Glad to clear that up for you. :-)

Graeme Obree winter training bike?

ye as above, its possibly a path frame for a record attempt

I believe custom built for record track attempts behind a motor pacer. Inverted fork to allow the bike to get as close to the pacer as possible. The brake's there for obvious reasons, without it, like traditional track bikes, it would take too long to slow down.