not so much international, but definitely geotastic are the Bonneville Salt Flats, located in Wendover, Utah. this expanse of salt is pretty amazing, and a spot i call home for one week in August every year.

if you saw the movie The World’s Fastest Indian, then you’ll know exactly where i was and what i’m taking about. Bonneville National Speed Week is the event that draws me to Wendover, and the reason being, my Dad races.

my Dad and his friends have been going to Bonneville 40+ years now, and the team holds a land speed record in the F/FR class. they have a modified 29′ Ford roadster with a V6 engine, and it runs on a fuel mixture, not gas. the races are all about speed, how fast can you go on a straight-away four mile course. a four mile course of salt.

since the Salt Flats are in the desert it’s usually in the 90’s during the day, and temperatures drop at night. the salt is packed hard like any desert floor, and it’s cool to the touch. because it’s white, you immediately think of snow, but it’s not that wet or cold. when it rains the water tends to pool up, as the salt doesn’t absorb water as quickly as it comes down. if it rains too much before the races there is the chance they will have to postpone or cancel, since you can’t race on a wet course.

it takes awhile for the officials to map the course as each year the salt changes, and an area that was good one year can be full of holes the next. the salt is deteriorating, and many believe it is because of the potash plant nearby. the Wall Street Journal featured an article about this very topic last month.

i have been coming to the races for over 20 years now, and it really is quite an experience. the landscape and the cars differ a bit year to year, but it always feels like coming home.

photo courtesy of automotive-photography.net