Nearly there: Bonneville 391!

By Honda Racing F1
July 20 2006

A day full of drama and excitement resulted in the Bonneville 400 Team from Honda Racing F1 almost breaking the 400 kph barrier over the measured mile on the infamous Bonneville Salt Flats yesterday.

The team and driver Alan van der Merwe edged to within sniffing distance (391 kph) of its self-imposed target speed in dramatic fashion, after a day of outstanding resilience in extreme conditions.

Yesterday the project team began its final leg of the unique challenge of taking an F1 car to the legendary salt flats to set the world's first Formula One land speed record in style. Having busted two FIA international class records and setting the first land speed record for a race specification Formula One car, the team started today in an effort to exceed the speeds set on Monday and push towards its personal goal of 400 kph.

The world's fastest F1 team began day two at 5am local time after lengthening its salt straight to nine miles overnight. The extra four miles were added to give Alan van der Merwe extra distance to run into the measured mile, to compensate for the grip level of the salt.

Although the team experienced a hydraulic problem that prematurely ended the morning run plan, the crew turned the car around in impressive time in temperatures which were climbing to a searing 47°C.

The car, driver and team rested during the high afternoon temperatures before returning to the salt early in the evening as the edge of a heavy storm threatened the flats. Summer storm winds whipped across the course and heavy skies loomed in the near distance, and the team and its enthusiastic body of supporters resigned themselves to an early night to prepare for a return the following morning (Wednesday).

As quickly as the winds had struck up, they died away leaving a perfectly calm salt flat and course. With the changes to the car complete, the team seized the initiative and sent Alan van der Merwe out for two short three-mile runs to check the car’s balance. With dark skies still cloaking the Bonneville flats, the pressure was on the team to make a high-speed run and attempt to beat its own records.

The spectacular evening sun was dropping over the mountains but the track was coming back to the team and the changes had validated the evaluations carried out since the morning runs. As van der Merwe made his approach to the measured mile, it was clear to the spectators that this was a high speed. On his first pass, Alan cleared the measured mile in a north-westerly direction to set an average speed of 391.645 kph (243.357 mph). His return run approach to the mile heading south-east looked at least as quick, until Alan backed as the engine temperature soared.

The engine, which has been performing robustly in extreme conditions, was cooled and the team prepared for another run. Knowing that one more south-easterly run at a slightly increased speed within the hour could set a new record by a considerable margin, and possibly touch the magic 400 kph, the Bonneville crew reacted with dry ice and a strategy to begin the run from the opposite direction. But as the support vehicles sped down the side of the course to reposition for the run, nature intervened as 80 kph crosswinds hit the flats, forcing the team to cancel for the day. The flats were transformed from a serene and silent landscape to a mistral-like desert in minutes as the support teams fought their way across the vast flats in poor visibility back to base camp.

But the team’s resolve had only been redoubled and they left the salt with a determination to return on Thursday to go again. Tomorrow’s weather, as always at Bonneville, is uncertain with light winds and a 20% chance of light rain showers predicted for a short period late evening. Only the sunrise over Bonneville will testify to the accuracy of the weather reports – Alan and the team will head back before sunrise to try and push the barrier once more.