Bonneville: Worlds Fastest Indian
https://www.tamparacing.com/forums/g...ml#post9367709

 

Links tying some racing history together:

see last post in thread

 

2014 Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials - ScooterShoots
http://www.scootershoots.com/BUBMoto...-Spe/i-qMrbfV7

 

Bonneville has long been synonymous with the innovative "outside the box" approach to all-out speed which began on the dry lakes and salt flats in the western United States following World War II. Little has changed at the annual Bonneville Speed Weeks held on the desolate expanses of central Utah over the years in that prize money is non-existent, television coverage is unheard of, and the variety of the race cars and the people who drive them is unlimited.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M46wg5saQBU

 

Land speed races have been held at the Bonneville Salt Flats near Wendover, Utah for more than 100 years. The first timed speed record in the Flats’ history was set in 1914 when Teddy Tezlaff drove his Blitzen Benz to a speed of 141.73 mph. In the years since, non-piston-powered cars have achieved speeds exceeding 600 mph, while motorcycles have approached 400 mph. Thousands of amateur and professional land speed racers have competed there.
The Bonneville Salt Flats has long been recognized as much more than a racetrack. It is both a place of unique natural beauty and is considered an “area of critical environmental concern.”

The degradation of the Salt Flats has been going on for decades, primarily as a result of industrial mining. Some impacts have been exacerbated by periods of heavy rain, in which the salt surface can be dissolved and thinned. Although that generally does not remove the salt crust altogether, but instead results in the migration of salt to other areas of the flats. Another problem affecting the salt surface is contamination of the pristine salt crust from mud berms and surrounding mountain washes.

Screen-Shot-2014-09-25-at-11.55.29-PM-770x431Mining the salt for its halite (table salt) and potash mineral content has been a factor in both the reduction in salt surface area from its original area of more than 96,000 square acres to about 30,000 square acres, as well as reducing the thickness of the salt crust.
Escalation Of Concerns

The problem has been recognized since 1974, but in recent years has become increasingly critical. So critical in fact that on October 27, 2015, Utah Governor, Gary Herbert sent a letter to Neil Kornze, Director of the Bureau of Land Management, saying, in part, “As Governor of Utah, I would like to express our deep concern with the deteriorating conditions of the Bonneville Salt Flats and the consequent impending demise of land speed racing.”
Herbert’s letter continued, “Our alarm is amplified because the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which is responsible for the care and protection of this national historic landmark, has long identified the internationally famous speedway as an ‘area of critical environmental concern,’ and yet the Bonneville Salt Flats are not only severely damaged but are, in fact, approaching ruin.”
Herbert’s letter, which was also copied to Sally Jewell, Secretary of the Department of the Interior, called for the BLM to undertake immediate efforts to restore the Salt Flats and on-going monitored remediation.
Big as the problem is, Herbert’s demand is not outside the realm of possibility; indeed, the restoration he calls for has already been proven feasible by the BLM’s Salt Laydown project, which was conducted from 1997 to 2002.

 

By Gary Ilminen
After weeks of effort to hold the Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials and AMA Land Speed Grand Championship as scheduled August 29th – September 3rd, event planners have been forced to cancel the 2015 event.

The latest release received today (Aug. 17) from Event Manager/Owner Delvene Manning says, “Over the past year, we have all been working towards the goal of racing motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats. As the event management, it is always our intent to run the premier motorcycle land speed racing event, the AMA Land Speed Grand Championship, at Bonneville. However, we are always beholden to mother nature to provide us with good conditions in the environment that we all dedicate our time and resources to.”

“Last year we were able to hold an event when conditions were stacked against us. This year, the conditions have been improving but not at the pace needed. We have assessed the conditions and we are unable to sustain the minimum standards for a premier event. Due to this, we are cancelling the 2015 Bonneville Motorcycle Speed Trials, AMA Land Speed Grand Championship.”
“It’s been an extremely difficult decision to make, and one we have not taken lightly. Our dedicated team has put in countless hours to evaluate the options for course layouts, the quality of the course, pit locations, salt flats on/off accessibility, course volume sustainability, and the impact on salt flats resources. Although we are cancelling, other events are still scheduled for this season. Our decision does not affect the ability for other events to proceed.”

Manning went on to explain the course conditions that led to the decision, saying that even though weather conditions lately had been promising, that ½ of water still remained in the area of the “mountain course” and in the pit area.
Efforts to find a suitable alternative course location were not successful and the “international course” or long course was not suitable for competition over its entire length. Finally, course deterioration over the period of the entire event with more than 300 possible entrants would be likely and damage sustained in the course access areas last year has not completely resolved as of yet.

With regard to the next steps of the cancellation as it affects participants, future events and conditions affecting the salt flat itself, Manning said, “We appreciate your patience while we sort through the details of the cancellation. We will be in touch with participants in the coming weeks with further information to answer any question that you have, and to provide further details on our cancellation procedure.”
“There have been a lot of discussions and comments recently about the deterioration of the Bonneville Salt Flats due to human interaction, mining and the stewardship of the public land. Like many public areas, it is beloved by people for recreation, livelihood, and intrinsic beauty. As racers, we are carrying on a tradition of pushing the boundaries of human ingenuity that goes back over 100 years.”
“There are many factors that contribute to the conditions that we are facing this year. Regardless of the causes, we are seeing that the salt this year is not the same as years past. The traditional race courses for all of the organizations are becoming increasingly difficult to develop. In the coming weeks we will be sharing further information of how we plan to contribute to a positive future for all who use this wonderful resource, and what you can do to help.”
“We appreciate, and understand, all of the hours that you have dedicated to preparing your motorcycles. The sacrifices you will have made to reach for your goals throughout this year, and for our international participants, the additional logistics that you encounter to reach us.”
“We are working along side you as we extend ourselves to help you achieve those goals.”
“We thank the volunteers for their contributions, the AMA and FIM organizations and support staff. We also wish to thank our sponsors for their support of our sport,” Manning concluded.
Images by the author from the 2014 BMST event.

 

By Sam Bendall


Conditions at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah are not looking too good for this year’s Speed Week—especially for the eager petrol heads looking to go insanely fast in fully customized mechanical contraptions.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune article linked here, salt levels on the flats have reached dangerous levels due to depletion from mineral mining and environmental erosion.

For those unfamiliar with the ecosystem of the Bonneville Salt Flats, it's an alien landscape completely devoid of life—truly remarkable from every angle. The crusty salt surface, which has varied in thickness over time from six-inches to now only two-inches and less, lies atop a dirt and water quicksand-like surface that makes racing or traversing the flats impossible.

The salt crust is the platform that allows for high speed machines to operate. The thicker the better, but with current conditions being what they are, who knows what fate the future holds.

Just as thickness is important, so is the distance of the track. Land speed shattering vehicles need a minimum of six miles to get up to speed, hit their traps and slow down. This is the SCTA’s desired distance for setting up a track, and this year no six mile stretch has salt over two inches thick.
As motorcyclists, many of us—myself included because I worked on the project in 2014—are eager to see if the Triumph Rocket can break the 376.363 m.p.h. barrier set by Rocky Robinson and the Top Oil-Ack Attack in 2010, and take back the title of “World’s Fastest Motorcycle".

Currently the World's Fastest Motorcycle, the Top-Oil Ack-Attack.2014 saw similar environmental delays on the flats as inclement weather, which brought heavy rains and flooding to the flats.
We are waiting for a response from the Southern California Timing Association (SCTA)—the main sponsors and organizers of Speed Week—on whether or not Speed Week will happen at all this year.
In the mean time, enjoy this beautiful video put together by Triumph Motorcycles America last year on the Microclimate of the Salt Flats.

Credit: Triumph Motorcycles America
Photo Credit: Tony Webster, Flickr (Creative Commons)

 

[h=1][/h] By Sam Bendall
For the past couple years, Triumph Motorcycles Limited—in conjunction with Hot Rod Conspiracy, Carpenter Racing, and Castrol—has been getting back to their land speed racing heritage by building what essentially is an insanely powerful, modern motorcycle engine powered land speed missile.

Triumph Motorcycles Limited has confirmed this year it will once again seek a run with the Triumph Rocket in the Class-C fuel blown motorcycle category at the world famous Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah in August 2015. Due to inclement weather and persisting environmental conditions in 2014, the team was unable to attempt a land speed run despite being ready and willing.



Piloting the 1,000 bhp Triumph Rocket streamliner will be Isle of Man TT racer, truck mechanic, and TV presenter Guy Martin. Well known for his love of speed, Guy is relishing the prospect of bringing the land speed record back to Triumph after an absence of 45 years. In previous years, the Triumph Rocket was piloted and tested by AMA Pro Road racer, Jason DiSalvo. Triumph was unavailable for comment as to why Jason has stepped down or why he has been replaced by Guy Martin.

Triumph is no stranger to land speed racing. In fact, the brand owes much of its heritage to this sacred ground in Utah. Triumph has a long legacy of smashing the land speed records and held the title of "World's Fastest Motorcycle" from 1955 to 1970 with the exception of a brief 33-day period. The record-breaking Triumph streamliners of that period were Devil's Arrow, Texas Cee-gar, Dudek Streamliner and Gyronaut X1—the former achieving a top speed of 245.667 mph (395.28 km/h). Today's bar, held by Rocky Robinson since 2010 riding the Top Oil-Ack Attack streamliner, sits at 376.363 mph (605.697 km/h).
The 2015 Triumph Rocket streamliner features new livery and sponsors compared to previous years. The body is a carbon Kevlar monocoque construction with two turbocharged methanol fueled Triumph Rocket III engines, which produce a combined 1,000 bhp at 9,000 rpm. The motorcycle is 25.5' long, 2' wide and 3' tall.


The iconic Bonneville name was conceived following Johnny Allen’s land-speed record runs at the Salt Flats in September 1955, when he reached the record breaking speed of 193.72 mph. The first T120 Bonneville model was unveiled at the Earls Court Bike Show and went on sale in 1959.

 

1100 BHP Camaro at Bonneville
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEcbwvNaxE8

 

Diesel World Land Speed Record
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y80HKtAleqE