Introduce Yourself

[dw230]

There should be one soon. They plan to run at WoS.

DW

[fredvance]

Yup, I bet that B motor will be fast.

[TAKERRY]

Hello to everyone
My name is Kerry and I have been dreaming about going to Bonneville for years. I'll be heading out tomorrow. Going to run the 130 at the World of Speed. Driving 1500 miles each way. My car is a 1979 Pontiac Trans Am. Just look for a white T/A with a black cowl induction hood. Love to meet everyone.

First I thought of just helping out anyone. Then last year I deided I wasn't getting any younger.I'm 61.
Put a new shortblock in (383). Told my wife and kids I'm going and thats that. I have owned my own auto repair shop for almost 30 years and was a line mechanic for Ford and Buick before. Still turn wrenches and I do all my own work. Lived in LA inte early 70's, went to LA tech and GM school. Our class had the record holder in ure stock 72&73 buick stage 1. Was at Lions te night it closed(we ran high 12's. Went to Elmirage
once. Anyway read the forum all the time. One of my customers a few years back holds the record in g/bgms, worlds fastest alfa romeo. Go to SEMA love totalk to the land speed racers. Even taked toCraig Breedlove before he tried for 750. I once read an article about Al Teague how he builthis car in his mothers garage. Then they talked about shifting into second at 100 3rd 175 4th 250. Something like that.
THIS I GOT TO SEE. Anyway Looking forward to meeting everyone

Kerry Friedman

[landbc]

I am from the Salt Lake Valley and have been riding dirt bikes in the mountains and out on the salt flats my entire life.  I started attending speed week in 2005 with my grandfather-in-Law.  I haven't missed a speed week or WOS since.  I love all things automotive and dream of building a lakester some day.

I would really like to learn how to weld, along with other fabrication skills, but have not been able to find any classes for hobbyists and I do not have enough time for career oriented programs. If anyone in the North Salt to Layton area needs a hand around the shop (even if that hand is pushing a broom at the end of the day) I am eager to learn and would love to help.

-Ben C.

[Tman]

I am from the Salt Lake Valley and have been riding dirt bikes in the mountains and out on the salt flats my entire life.  I started attending speed week in 2005 with my grandfather-in-Law.  I haven't missed a speed week or WOS since.  I love all things automotive and dream of building a lakester some day.

I would really like to learn how to weld, along with other fabrication skills, but have not been able to find any classes for hobbyists and I do not have enough time for career oriented programs. If anyone in the North Salt to Layton area needs a hand around the shop (even if that hand is pushing a broom at the end of the day) I am eager to learn and would love to help.

-Ben C.

Talk to Chris Elmer and the Throttlers club. SLC locals. Good guys, if they can't help you they can point you in the right direction.

[dw230]

"...holds the record in g/bgms, worlds fastest alfa romeo. "

Sorry Kerry,

When we had the car Lee Kennedy ran a 251 in 3 miles, unblown.

Mike Cook now runs in the 255 range with a Wayne Jesel Dodge.

Welcome anyway, good group of people,

DW

[SabreTooth]

About the same time, I watched "that" wonderfully inspirational film, that I'm certain everyone here has seen, car or bike fan, about Burt and his old Indian Scout...

...I was very fortunate to get a last minute, second chance to go with a fellow Canuck & team to Speed Week 2011 and the Bonneville Salt Flats and knock off one or two "bucket list" items. Alas, now I have added quite a few more items to said list and intend to return to race.

OK. A little additional forum reading would seem to show that some don't appreciate the influx of folks that "The World's Fastest Indian" or other press brought to LSR. Huh, tough virtual crowd and quite unlike my observations from the salt so far. As a kid, I was fascinated with the history of Campbell, Segrave et al. Then Richard Noble set new Land Speed Records in my youth. As a kid, I also remember being in awe at the sight, smell and sounds of vintage blown Bentley's and vehicles of similar ilk running round the Nuerburgring. I've taken in the nostalgia of Brooklands. I've been to spectate at 24h of Le Mans, the GP at Brands Hatch & Silverstone too. The best smell on Earth?...why, Castrol R of course...Just been in the right place at the right time. So, I've been looking forward to a chance to go to the Bonneville Salt Flats since I was a kid. Now I've been, I'm looking for more...

So as far as I can see, nobody's looking to steal the good ol' days, new folks are there to create some new "good ol' days." So whether it was Burt and a movie, the Salt Fever or some childhood fantasy, may the "new" learn from the "old," new records be set and the tradition and the volunteering continue.

As for my plans, we'll see. Most likely, it'll be to challenge or set a record in the vintage bike classes as I have always had a great deal of respect for the old iron...

Cheers & thanks. Jim



We all start here, just as it all starts here...

[wobblywalrus]

Jim, do not be ashamed if the Fastest Indian movie got you interested.  A lot of us do not live in Salt lake City or Southern California and this movie was our first look at saline hijinx.     

[robtech]

hey im Rob...aiming to be on the salt for 2012 speed week...planning on bringing a m-g500/mps-g500 bike to speedweek

[nanno]

Good luck with reaching 200 ... your antique Z1 made 85 hp stock ... you will need to double that for 200

Sorry for the long delay (but work kept me busy) and I hope the spammer-comment was aimed towards me.

Quite frankly, most of them don't even make 85hp at the crank, let alone at the rear wheel.

Cheers,
Greg

[greyforestlakester]

A small point of clarification, if I may.  I think that most of us grew up hearing of the salt and the legends, e.g., Campbell, Thompson, SoCal belly tank, Chrisman coupe, etc.  (Lots of times when I had the flight SLC to OAK, I'd tip a wing down to see the area.  A little bit of right rudder and you never got off course even if "george" was flying.)  If you are like me, living elsewhere from the salt locale, you continue to work on the old cars and be intrigued with those who are lucky enough to attend the event regularly as it is a bit more convenient but it kind of fades off as a lot of kid dreams do.  The movie just brought all those old dreams and aspirations back to the forefront and moved ol' farts to action.  That's what happened with me and my high school friends as we saw our bucket list dream come true this year with a visit to Speed Week.  Now, all I have to do is inspire that group into the belly tank project that I have to move to the next step.

PS, If I had known about Ab Jenkins before, he certainly would have been a hero of mine, I believe.  That is another plus from this year's visit was seeing the movie presented there about his life on the salt.

[RichFox]

I don't think that many or even few competitors really resent the new wave. Everyone complains to a certain extent about change. Unless they are the change. Waiting on the access road behind a long row of spectators is never going to be popular. But no one is going to begrudge you your chance to hang out on the salt. I fact as individuals I believe you were probably welcomed by anyone you came in contact with. It's true, for me, that I don't understand Bonneville as a spectator sport. Nor do I get driving around in a car with 99C or some other old number recently painted on. And I feel like motorcycles are taking over. But check the entries. Not true. So in short I don't think you will have any bad feelings to worry about from old guys. They just miss being new, young guys.

[Milwaukee Midget]

Rich, here's what I think is going to happen.

A lot of the spectators who are riding the WFI phenomena are eventually going to want to spend their vacations in more hospitable surroundings - I expect to see a leveling or perhaps a drop in attendance by spectators over the next few years.

But those who are truly inspired by Bonneville will get involved.  That's how it's happened in my case.

As far as a spectator event is concerned, it does require a deep interest in the categories and the nuances to maintain attention.  It's a lot like baseball in that respect - the more you discover and figure out, the more interesting it becomes.  To a passive spectator who is there to either say they've been there, or is there to be seen there, eventually, they'll want to do something else in August than stand on a dried up lake bed in 90 degree heat.

The best things change just enough to stay the same.  I think the current popularity is an outlier, and will eventually correct itself, but from this, a new guard will step up.  Eb and flow - arsis and thesis.

Just my thoughts.   

Oh, one last thought - just because a new guard might be stepping up, don't expect the old guard to pack up the Winnebago and spend their summers in a KOA camp.  At 80 years old, Gene Winfield just flew through the lights backwards at better than 200 miles an hour.


 

   

[lsrengineer]

Hello.  I'm an engineer helping a LSR team with input here and there where I can.  Went to the Aug. 2011 speed week.  Right now I'm estimating the best final drive gearing for a 750cc class car.  I'll try to find the exact location of timing devices that are used to calculate the numbers on the timing slip and the mph's listed online.  There seems to be a lot of good info. here.
-Henry

[dw230]

Chris,

My theory is that a person attends for the first time and either becomes enthralled or just blows the salt off as being too hostile. Once you attend as a spectator you want to become involved. Confirmed by Ms. Porterfield while standing at the 4 mile waiting for her crew.

For three years a couple of guys sat just outside my Impound at WoS and asked question after question. This year there was a well constructed and partially done '34 Ford Comp Coupe sitting there. People were asked for opinions, recordings made and a former spectator will be putting wheels on the track next year.

I love that place,

DW