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Bonneville Speed Week 2010
Bonneville Salt Flats
Wendover, UT
August 14-20, 2010
Photos by Jack Lawford
Traveled down to the Bonneville Salt Flats on Friday the 13th to check out the first weekend of this year’s Speed Week and like years before, was not disappointed by any aspect of the event. For ease of navigating from the Starting line to the Pits, which are spread out over several miles, we loaded up the HotrodHotline fifth-wheel with a sturdy Sand Rail plus an assortment of bikes.
If you haven’t been to the Salt Flats, it’s hard to describe the terrain. Rugged, yes, but the salt itself is a substance all its own. Sticking like a tick to a hound dog one minute, swallowing vehicles to the frame the next.
We arrived Friday evening, set up base camp amongst hundreds of other spectators and participants and headed over to the event site to pick up our press credentials. For this, Lee Kennedy deserves recognition as being one of the best event officials we’ve dealt with - Thanks for everything Lee! Since everyone has to be off the Salt by 8 PM, it wasn’t long before we got to witness the nightly relocation of participants and crew plus spectators to the campgrounds and the city of Wendover nearby. An overall fun and friendly crowd.
We got up bright (and folks - it is seriously bright on the Salt Flats) and early Saturday morning to get to the Starting Line and hear some of the opening remarks and drivers’ meeting. The line of vehicles of every sort ready for their run on the salt already snaked around from the four starting lines for a good half mile. The mood was upbeat and excited as Speed Week got rolling.
From there the weekend went fast as we checked out the Pits which covered about a mile long and four lanes deep of semis, trailers, check in/inspection areas, and temporary shade areas for cooling off from the piercing sunlight. The clarity of the air at the Salt Flats is amazing and allows the distances to seem endless when looking off down the courses to the far flung mountains shimmering in the heat.
We made sure to take plenty of pictures and we hope you enjoy seeing them half as much as we did taking them!!
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