Tom,
Nice to hear from you. After thirty years my wife and kids wouldn't know me
without the beard.
As for the ten mile circle course...they used to use two overlapping ones as
laid out by the Utah State Road Commission for the Salt Lake Chamber of
Commerce which was the entity that controlled the salt in those somewhat
more co-operative days. At night they lit those little round metal lamps
with an exposed wick on top for the drivers reference. There was also a
twelve and one-half mile circle they used on the outside of the other two.
Chamber of Commerce literature at the time referred to the salt flats as the
eighth wonder of the world. Too bad we can't get their support like it was
in '49-"59 for the first Speedweeks. Auburn/Cord/Duesenburg museum sells a
video, "Speed on Salt" that shows the salt in the thirties and the Ab
Jenkins runs. The surface broke up under the pounding of the twenty four
hour runs and they would drive as far as two hundred yards outside of the
course to avoid the soft spots. Some things don't change...we just don't
remember them
----------
> From: "Thomas E. Bryant" <saltracer@awwwsome.com>
> To: "Wester S. Potter" <wspotter@jps.net>
> Subject: Re: Salt Flats International Course
> Date: Wed, 14 Jul 1999 07:07:07 -0700
>
>Wester,
>
>Good to have you on the site. Your input is quite a historical view of
>the place we all love. Not too many people I talk to today even remember
>the 10 mile circle. I am certain that we will be on the international
>course, as you stated, there is no other area I know of that will give
>us nine miles. It is exciting to here the reports on conditions out
>there.
>
>Wes, I didn't shave my beard because of your likeness, I feel honored to
>be compared to you. I did it for my mother a few years ago. She said she
>would like to see my face again before she died. She is now 94 and going
>strong.
>
>Tom
>
>"Wester S. Potter" wrote:
>>
>> Thanks Keith
>> I have been interested in racing on the salt since I caught "salt fever"
on
>> my first visit in 1951. I built a street driven car to race in 1960...53
>> Stude 5 window with a 293 sb Chev but they caught me on a new roll cage
rule
>> that year and I gave up on it. That rule and the 55 Chev that boosted
the C
>> Gas record to 155 that year. Traded it a couple of months later for a
>> friends equity in a 1960 Austin Healey 3000 that was almost new.
>> Currently I am secretary for the USFRA ...the replacement for my old
friend
>> Mary West who I met on the salt in '51. No race car...kids in
college...but
>> I feel the need to put my efforts where they can do some good. I am
>> responsible for some of the stuff on the USFRA web site at saltflats.com
>> including the pictures of the fast bike trophy in progress.
>> I know Gary and Tom. Tom and I were accused by some of looking alike so
he
>> shaved off his beard.
>> ----------
>> > From: "Keith Turk" <kturk@ala.net>
>> > To: "Wester S. Potter" <wspotter@jps.net>
>> > Subject: Re: Salt Flats International Course
>> > Date: Tue, 13 Jul 1999 22:00:46 -0700
>> >
>> >First and foremost... Welcome to our Place to hang out and Bench
race....
>> >there are no rules other then being polite... if it interests you and
your
>> >interested in LSR then bring the subject on...
>> >
>> >Spelling and Grammar aren't counted here... and I appreciate your
immediate
>> >desire to pitch in the info on the international course.... I will ask
you
>> >a couple of questions by replying to all instead of individually...
Lots
>> >of conversations take place one to one... I try and keep most my stuff
out
>> >in the Open arena as I feel we have a need to perpetuate the list as a
>> >place to ask questions and receive answers....
>> >
>> >Take a sec if you would .... (Like myself several folks here on the list
>> >don't have a ton of history on the other folks) and tell us a bit about
>> >your interests at Bonneville... are you running a car and what kind...
what
>> >have you run in the past and what would you like to run in the future...
>> >
>> >I am fascinated with the quality of folks we have here... from Tom
Bryant
>> >to Wendy Jeffries... it's been a great place to learn and hang out...
The
>> >information is Archived at www.listquest.com and you can go back and
type a
>> >subject and anything said about it in the past will be available to
you...
>> >Pretty neat deal...
>> >
>> >Take care and once again welcome.... Keith D/GALT 1980 Camaro with the
>> >current ECTA record at 180.361mph ( most likely not a record setter at
>> >bville but my dream of driving on the salt is absolutely going to happen
>> >this year)
>> >----------
>> >> From: Wester S. Potter <wspotter@jps.net>
>> >> To: Keith Turk <kturk@ala.net>
>> >> Cc: land-speed@autox.team.net land-speed@autox.team.net
>> >> Subject: Salt Flats International Course
>> >> Date: Tuesday, July 13, 1999 3:06 PM
>> >>
>> >> I'm new to this group but have a bit of experience with the salt
>> >flats...If
>> >> I may give an answer to Keith...
>> >> The international course is the one used by all land-speed attempts
from
>> >the
>> >> nineteen thirties on. It was the course of choice because of the
>> >> length...some thirteen miles most recently. It begins just north of
I-80
>> >> and parallels the Salduro Loop at the start and passes between the
loop
>> >and
>> >> the end of the access road. The northmost part aims for Floating
Island.
>> >
>> >> When John Cobb ran there he looped to the east up there to get more
>> >length
>> >> for his runs. With the flooding onto the area north of the freeway of
>> >> magnesium chloride in November of 1993 from the Reilly ponds, that
course
>> >> broke up...turned granular like sugar...and there were some serious
>> >> incidents because of it. We had to move the course several times to
even
>> >> have something to run on and have had to do so ever since. The course
we
>> >> have used recently is the "hot-rod" course which crosses the
>> >International
>> >> Course at the six mile area. It has been used when the longer
>> >International
>> >> Course has been too wet. That area north of the dike is where Ab
>> >Jenkens,
>> >> and the Brits and the 1970"s runs by Bobby Isaac had their ten mile
>> >> endurance circles. If we have a nine mile course this year you can be
>> >sure
>> >> it is on the International Course. That is the area of the greatest
salt
>> >> depth and the longest area of good salt.
>> >
>
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