The Bonneville Salt Flats

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GTPlanet, the Bonneville Salt Flats serves as one of the most unique places to hold a race. Bonneville is a supreme venue for racing at high speeds, and of course, that is the focus here. I remember watching "Legends of Motorsport" and Rover (or was it MG?) that raced in the 1950s or 1960s and pulled off a pretty good show there that year in question. This topic is free for discussion of racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats, or anything related to such. Go ahead.

Meanwhile, here's my question. I heard of these Salt Flats and the racing surface. What makes it so special for racing on? Do you get a lot of grip, or what?
 
The key word there is flat. It's a flat, hard surface and it goes on for miles. They need a big run up and a big slow down area. Grip has got nothing to do with it.

Thrust SSC set it's time in the Black Rock Desert in Navada tho'.
 
How about 1964 at the Bonneville Salt Flats and Craig Breedlove... this guy was the first to hit 400, 500 and 600 mph. Legend.

He was on his second leg of a 526mph record (to be valid there has to be a run in each direction). But Spirit of America had a problem when both emergency and normal braking 'chutes blew off in to the wind! Brown trouser time.

Bonneville might be a big place but it certainly gets a lot smaller when you are travelling at these sort of speeds. He decided to try to bring his speed down more (skidded for 5 miles in the meantime) and crossed a temporary wooden bridge that was constructed over a trench. After that he hit a telephone pole (shattered it) and tried to turn the car. But he hit a salt pond at 200mph that fired him up in to the air.

He escaped through the canopy and bailed out. Lucky bast**d!
 

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