Bonneville Speed Week May Not Happen, Final Decision Pending
The final decision on Speed Week will come down July 22, organizers said this week. The Southern California Timing Association, who hosts the event in Utah at the Bonneville Salt Flats near Salt Lake City, said Thursday that they’re still planning on test runs on July 21, ahead of a final determination.
A smaller event was cancelled last week at the salt flats because of poor conditions, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
The annual Speed Week event, which has more than 600 racers registered this year already, could become extinct in coming years.
Salt mining operations on the lake have deteriorated the track conditions, some race organizers say. Coupled with a rainier season than normal, it may not be possible to find a suitable track.
In a letter to racers last week, SCTA organizers said “Mother Nature is still not cooperating with us.
“We are hoping to find the 7 Miles of dry/smooth salt necessary for the event,” the letter states. “We are also considering the feasibility of having a ‘short course only’ event if we are able to find 4 miles of good course.”
The mud layer beneath the salt crust can break through if the top salt isn’t dry or thick enough.
Dennis Sullivan, head of the Utah Salt Flats Racing Association, said the U.S. Bureau of Land Management has promised a study on the salt depletion at the flats by 2018, but results from that study may be too late to save the annual race, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.
The Truth About Car’s Salt Lake City bureau is reporting sunny skies and 88 degrees today.
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I'm boycotting salt.
facepalm