Bonneville Speed Week
Written by Keith Fudge

The Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah are one of the keynote sites in land speed racing history.  Not long ago, Dennis Gage had the chance to attend Speed Week, an event that brings out just about every type of gearhead and certified car nut around!  In fact, people have been coming to the Salt Flats since 1949 for this event.  This year there were more than 500 entries in a diverse and eclectic group of classes.  While he was there, Dennis had the chance to talk with several of these enthusiasts.  The first one that he found was Dave Davidson with his Red Pro Machine Racer.  This land speed racer started as a hi-boy roadster and is powered by a 364 cubic-inch Chevy outfitted with Hemi heads.  It also features a 20-gallon fuel tank and a custom intake manifold that was milled from a 300-pound block of aluminum.  This car is “unblown” and made a pass of 249 miles per hour.  Dave said that they were going to do some major tweaking and were hoping to hit 260.  When speaking of Speed Week, Dave said, “There’s nothing like it!” 

Gary Brauer has been racing since he was 19 years old and loves to come to Bonneville.  In fact, he loves the salt more than the drag strip!  Gary points out that the folks that come to Bonneville are all good friends who help each other and who have a great time together.  His car is also something special—a 1929 Ford roadster powered by a 496 cubic-inch Chevy engine that is making somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,200 horsepower!  This bad boy is “unblown” and made a pass of 255 miles per hour during the event!  Mike Cook grew up on the salt flats and has racing in his heritage.  His grandfather is Doug Cook who raced in the 1960s and 1970s.  Mike said that he has been coming to Bonneville since he was four or five years of age.  Mike’s dad is his “go-to” guy with the car, and Mike says that he is simply phenomenal!  Speaking of the car, Mike’s ride is a 1932 hi-boy roadster riding on a homemade chassis and features a 370 cubic-inch Chevy engine that makes around 1,200 horsepower!  Mike made a pass of 248 miles per hour and was hoping to do better before the event was finished.  Dennis then found Mark Morton of Hop Up Magazine and the Hop Up Racing Team.  They had just set a record of 116 miles per hour in the B-Class, gas-modified roadster, Flathead four-cylinder category.  Dennis arrived just when they were pulling the heads so that the judges could verify that the engine was under the limit of 220 cubic inches.  Todd Hass was also on hand with a car that was a tribute to his father, Bob.  He drove the car from California, some 700 miles!  The car raced in the G-Class and was powered by a four-cylinder Ecotec engine that was 122 cubic inches and made an unbelievable 900 horsepower!  The chassis is from a 1934 model and Todd is currently the record holder in the Blown-fuel, G-Class!  Toward the end of his visit, Dennis ran onto Fabian Valdez, a member of the Immortals.  This group is comprised of close friends and family members, and they like to do things the old-school way!  When Fabian and his crew found out that a new category was created last year for rear-engine modified roadsters, they built a car to fit the class!  This beast of the strip (or in this case the salt) was built in Fabian’s garage and started as a 1927 Ford roadster.  “El Guapo,” as it is dubbed (meaning “the handsome one”), is powered by a 300 cubic-inch small block Chevy and averaged right at 203 miles per hour in two passes!  Right down to its chain-link steering wheel, this car and its owners represents everything that is right about racing!

Well, there you have it!  From old school to high tech, that is what Speed Week at the Bonneville Salt Flats is all about.  There is actually something more important that that:  the friendships that are here and everyone’s love of cars!  That’s it from Bonneville.  So until our next visit, “Honor the timeless classics.  Happy Motoring!”