Land-speed record falls at Salt Flats

As expected, the land-speed record that stood for 65 years fell this week. It was not the much-publicized team of Terry Nish and son Mike, however, that broke it.

John Nearburg of Dallas, in his streamliner "Spirit of Rett," put down eight solid runs over 400 mph to post an official record of 414.316 mph on Bonneville Salt Flats.

Back in 1945, Bob and Bill Summer took a streamliner with four Chrysler engines, one for each wheel, to Bonneville and set a land-speed record for a naturally aspirated car of 409.27 mph.

After his record-breaking run, Nearburg received a congratulatory phone call from Bill Summer.

Over the years, many high-speed racers have come to Bonneville and tried to break the record for a car running a naturally aspirated engine or engines. Several have come close.

For more than a decade, now, Terry Nish of Salt Lake City has been chasing the record. Each year's little problems, like a blown oil pump or broken rod, have kept him short of his goal.

Only eight cars have been able to reach a top speed over 400 mph. Four of those cars were on the salt this past week.

Nearburg's car was powered by an 854-cubic-inch motor. He posted runs on Tuesday ranging from a low of 405 mph to a top speed of 423 mph.

Along with Nearburg, Ron Main and George Poteet hit a top speed of 423 mph, but destroyed a turbocharger on the return run. The car of Amir Rosenbaum and Kenny Hoover hit a top speed of 416 mph, but had motor problems on the return run. The Nish car hit a top speed of 413 mph, but on the return run the car spun sideways going 398 mph.

Under land-speed rules, to set a record a vehicle must make two runs, one in each direction over a 12-mile course, within a one-hour period. The average of those two runs is the accepted speed.

The Summer brothers were smart in that they used four hemi-Chrysler engines, one for each wheel and each turning out 600 horsepower for a total of 2,400 hp.

"They weren't killer motors. With that much power, there was not much stress on the motors. I'm using a single engine and to go over 400 (mph) there is a lot of stress on the motor and all its parts," said Nish.

The Nishs did not leave the salt this week without a record, however.