Speedhaven

I've been going to Bonneville since 2000.  Not enough to make me an expert out there - but enough to make me understand just how much I could learn on the topic of land speed racing.

One big area to watch is the condition of the salt.  I've seen a few really bad years and several excellent years.  Since our effort runs full suspension and slow speeds none have interfered with our attempts - but I've seen quite a few friends damage cars and have some nasty spins because of the conditions.  The worst was a spin that caused the rear deck lid to come off.  As the car turned back around it came in through the windshield.  The driver was fine, but I'm sure it was quite a wild ride.  I think it could have been worse if the deck lid had stayed on and applied all the lift to the car - could have been a bad flip or roll after that.

Good news for this year . . . hopefully 3 courses and good salt!

What's your favorite Bonneville close call?

I just spent about an hour looking at photos of various trips to Bonneville, while listening to the Clash sing "Police at my back" (yeah . . . from The Fastest Indian preview . . . I don't even know if it's in the actual movie.  But I watched the preview 100 times before I got to see the film.)

I'm taking off 2010 from racing out there, my car has gotten too rough to continue racing in a dependable manner, and to build the next car I need more than a year to do right. But am I jones'ng for a good run along side the black line.  The anticipation when you suit up, waiting for the thumbs up to go, listening to her sing (scream?) as you head down the course.  And I'm just running 2 cylinders, looking for 105 mph in stock trim.  How about the folks that go 200+?  What a rush that must be.

So if you've seen the movie and you've raced on the salt - tell me, does it do the addiction justice?

23 feet long, 24 inches whide and 3 feet tall, expecting to have 750 horsepower - and shooting to be on the Salt this August.  I wish them luck!

Two Hayabusa heads on a V8 with a single crank . . .Do you think it can be done? 

This was an interesting article in the WSJ about tinkering.  Although not target toward LSR, or even racing or cars in general it did remind me of the creativity and innovation that has been a key part of the land speed racing that I've witnessed.  Read the whoele article here.

Imagine 272 mph on 1000cc . . . here's an interesting read on one of his bikes and his experiences.

When I saw the first shot on this page, I thought it had to be Bonneville.  Turns out it's not - it's Salar de Uyuni, the world's largeset salt flat.  (Don't get hyped to go race there - elevation is a mind numbing 11,994 feet . . . that's gotta rob a lot of horsepower.  (Okay . . . go electric . . . thin air, and go faster!)

Anyway, check out the photos - wild stuff!