New Land speed challenger announced

[racergeo]

    I just picked up an issue of DRIVE! magazine (avalible for free at some parts houses). It has an artical called NASCAR meets Bonneville. The story is about Russ Wicks breaking his own stock car world record with a speed of 244mph. It tells how he's in the Guiness World records and how he returned the record to Dodge.But interestingly at the end of the story he says " next summer I intend to break the world gasoline powered speed record which stands at 364 mph" It says he the preliminary design and a build team ready to go. "By using the latest in design and technology I intend to push the limits of speed and hope to one day hold both the outright land and water speed records."             
    In thinking about this car and the Moore-Hanna-Crietz car and a few others being built, it may renew the rivalries that we all miss. With retirements and tragic deaths of some of the greatest of all LSRacers only the Burkand 411 can currently run the big numbers. But I believe the Burkland car is ultimate in that it uses two engines in a super small package that can hardly be rivaled in CD, make use of super chargers so can make power regardless of CA and has 4WD, and if challenged coud put on of those Garlets type wings like was on the Joe Laws car. (super low drag with big down force) and they still allow fast accelleration because down force comes at higher speeds. On a limited length track would traction trump a little drag? At only 40% throttle what would that car do if it were opened up? I think 500 is very possible and that would present quite the challange to the other contenders. It would sure be fun to watch and would for sure be worthy of a documentry on the Speed channel!!

[1212FBGS]

Maybe he does hope to one day hold both the outright land and water speed records. and maybe he does have an idea to do so.....Its his dream, hopefully for him if he can back his mouth up.... I want to go to the moon.!... My plan is to piss off as many people as i can so they will all chip in and send me there.....anyone interested can send there donations to Romero....Oh by the way Marlo is building quite a machine.
Kent

[JackD]

REMARKABLE !
I am suitably impressed with the "NASCAR World Record" and the listing in the Guinness Book is a real feat.
Everybody starts at the bottom , but they usually don't start off yelling.

Wanna buy a shirt ?

[Sumner]

.......................I want to go to the moon.!... My plan is to piss off as many people as i can so they will all chip in and send me there.....anyone interested can send there donations to Romero...............

The money is in the mail  .  Oh BTW thanks for the help the other day and don't leave until I have all of my questions answered  ,

Sum

[Dean Los Angeles]

The team's new 30-foot streamliner, complete with Wicks-sized humanoid, is a work in progress aimed at breaking the gasoline-powered world speed record of 364 mph. The team is hoping for 400 mph.

Autodesk has bottomless pockets, so money shouldn't be a problem. His biggest accomplishment so far is self-promotion.

Claiming the world's fastest propeller driven boat at 205 is interesting considering blown fuel hydros are over 250.

I seem to notice a trend. Every wanabee LSR guy, credits or not, is going to break the record in less than a year from conception. The salt will tell.

[Sumner]

Hey guys what happened to us encouraging people on their speed quests.  You guys have been doing it for me and I hope to break someones record some day with my own car and don't mind saying so. 

Reading the NASCAR account...........

http://www.deskeng.com/articles/aaaeee.htm

I don't see much bragging and in fact they were very careful to tell how some of their speeds where in an actual NASCAR configuration and some runs weren't.  They also mention their lows and respect for setting a record on the salt. 

Here is Russ's site, judge for yourself if he has been able to accomplish some of his goals:

http://www.russwicks.com/

Personally I think the streamliner looks pretty good and their current goal is to break the 364 mph "gas" record.  Good luck to them and good luck to the guys that have Harold's car in getting it back.

c ya,

Sum

[Stainless1]

Hey guys what happened to us encouraging people on their speed quests.  You guys have been doing it for me and I hope to break someones record some day with my own car and don't mind saying so.

It's just a little carry over from standard nascar bashing....
As you get closer to taking someones record, I may encourage you less...    OK, just kidding  now get back to work.

[racergeo]

   dIdn't mean to snub Marlo and Les as being challengers but read they were just going to test at BV and actually race for record at Lake Gardainer in Au. The car speaks for its self and Les Davenport is a many times championship winning alcohol funnycar and dragster tuner. And his  specialty is the very PSI blower they are using. That car is NO BRAG! I would love to see it go all out at BV. I just think its  great to see new interest in the unlimited class'. I still say it would be cool to let all the fast cars come out on early AM salt and run their big speeds.

[Malcolm UK]

Your American racer Russ Wicks seems to bring out the worst in folk!  But then there seems to be no middle ground with Russ (and I have yet to meet him) - many hate him.

The guy has a project plan and is very adept at getting success during each stage to promote his backers.

The unlimited hydro racers did not like him for using a 'spare' race boat to set a UIM propellor driven record over the kilometre.  But until Team Budweiser tried the unlimited racers were not interested in speed records.  Team Budweiser did not directly attack Russ's APBA/UIM record though.  As to 250 mph race boats - possibly radar detected peak speeds on some water but never officially timed over a kilometre (or mile).  What is the official speed over the kilo for an unlimited?

Then Russ chose to use a 'Nascar' on the salt flats and try to beat the speeds set by an earlier team _ at a time when Nascar "good old boys" & support folk seemed to be welcomed onto the salt.  Once again the regular Nascar racers and race teams did not have any inclination to see how fast these cars could go when off the oval and running a straight line.  Mixing 'species' it might have been but the speeds have now gone up and are being challenged by others it seems.  Quite how the Guinness people could consider it as entry I do not know (Nascars are hardly an International vehicle).  But it adds another speed related entry to that book and is useful to perpetuating speed record interest.

Now the guy steps up to a streamliner and this group starts to pick on him in his planned 'gasoline' car.  At least for some he must be using the right 'species' now.  I could become upset because only you Americans have a 'gasoline' record where as Internationally there is no difference in fuel type.  But who is checking that Russ will be running a true gasoline of the correct type against an SCTA/BNI record?  My guess is that he will join SCTA and run on the flats using your fuel (but what do I know as a Brit).  If not then you may have grounds for complaints and the holder of the fastest gas record in the rule book can complain loudest.  But lets wait and see.

I hope Russ does get the car built and running because once again it adds to the international publicity for record breaking worldwide.

Any chance that his critics are most upset because "Damn, I did not think of that.  I wish I had thought of breaking that record"? 
200mph records on land and water might in a few years be 300 mph on both media.

Malcolm 

[aircap]

Porkpie, I have asked about the NASCAR bashing, too. Boy did I get the treatment! And I'm not even a NASCAR fan at all anymore, at least - not since around the time Petty retired.

However - Mr. Wicks website is very much a promotional tool - he's definitely no humble "good ol' boy" out to kick a little butt. This guy wants to rule the world of speed! I pretty much expect that the next picture I see of him - he'll be wearing a cape and tights emblazoned with his name and a corporate logo.

[bak189]

Sponsorship for LSR is very hard to find........so leave the guy alone.........if he can get a big $ sponser with a little BS and hipe.....more power to him.....in the long run it is good for the sport!!

[PorkPie]

Porkpie, I have asked about the NASCAR bashing, too. Boy did I get the treatment! And I'm not even a NASCAR fan at all anymore, at least - not since around the time Petty retired.

What had my name to do in this request!......by the way I write myself Pork Pie......I'm not bashing someone...I'm simple write my opinion...and this very straight........

What ever you mean, Aircap, I followed this subject the last days.

As Malcolm wrote right....which gas record......

To Russ.....he understand to make publicity......and honestly you have to be stupid or got the guts or both together to sit in a hydroplane boat to set a world water speed record, especially if you never drove a boat fast before, so as Russ.

Other people done so before...they was not so lucky as him..........he survived......

From there on he got the opinion he can use this luck again......and tried for the absolute water speed record....very though thinking.......and this for some years now. Except that from time to time some "news" are on the website nothing happened. Instead of moving this project forward he went to salt and done some "promotion" records with the Nascar........could be that he found out that his idea on water was too tough.......
The concept for the boat looks not very successful for a attempt......

And now he likes to go for a gas record of 364 mph?? What kind of record. As Malcolm correctly wrote - FIA has no gas or fuel records like the American records of the SCTA, BNI or USFRA.  What kind of record is it...
just another publicity gag........or another Guinness book of records on the side of a beer drinking record.....

And the racer, this is just a confentional racer, nothing new, nothing which can create a "Wow" effect. Saw better concepts of new racer the last years.

At last, we will see what Mr. Russ will do this time.......hope that this time it's more than using his luck or creating public bubbles.......

[dwarner]

"And now he likes to go for a gas record of 364 mph?? What kind of record. As Malcolm correctly wrote - FIA has no gas or fuel records like the American records of the SCTA, BNI or USFRA.  What kind of record is it...
just another publicity gag........or another Guinness book of records on the side of a beer "

2007 rulebook, page 78 -
AA/GS   Wooden/Vaughn     E. Wooden    10/04    364.761
Malcom is always stuck on FIA records, it has been decided here that most don't give a fig about FIA.

DW

[JackD]

Listing in the Guinness book looks pretty good, but you have to sell or drink a lot of beer first.
Proclamations like his run about 10 t0 1 against success.

NEXT ?

[Glen]

I think the guy has been making to many left turns. A lot of top  cars with tons of experience behind them will tell you how hard it is. Look at Terry Nish and all of the best equipment knows it ain't easy or cheap.