“Internet Barn Find”: Dry Lakes Racers Australia

Posted by Hechtspeed on May 20, 2010 in Featured, Racing, Vintage Rides | 3 comments

The latest Internet Barn Find is for those land speed racing Salt (or dust) Fever infected bunch.  I bring you DLRA.org.au, the Dry Lakes Racers Australia site. 

The Dry Lakes Racers Australia held it’s first Speed Trials meet in March 1990 and has been doing so (weather permitting) ever since. It has attracted competitors from all over Australia, the United States of America, New Zealand and the UK.  Currently they only race once per year, but that could change in 2011.

The racing happens on Lake Gairdner (well, it used to be a lake).  It’s an 8 mile track including the shut down area.  The bummer part is it takes 80 miles driving on dirt roads to get to the race track (compared to Bonneville’s 1 mile from “Lands End”).  Just like at Bonneville, the site admin told me that if you stand around too long, you’ll likely get put to work. 

Here’s a fendered (smart move with 80 miles of dust) hot rod roadster heading out to Lake Gairdner for Salt Flats Racing.  80 miles of dirt roads is no joke and not for the faint of hot rod heart.

There is some cool history of how racing on this Lake came to be.  It took a couple dead end roads before finding this great racing location.  What they’ve found is a salt lake that is as good if not better than any other salt lake in the world.

From the DLRA site, “Since 1990 , a lot of purpose-built dry lakes racecars and bikes have been built and raced with speeds ranging from 90 mph to well over 200 mph. and with this year’s some approaching 300 mph. In this form of racing there is virtually a class for anything and in fact the D.L.R.A decided very early in the peace to run by the rule book of the S.C.T.A.”

We hope you’ll check out DLRA.org.au NOW and see what the hot rodders from down under are up to on their own Salt Flats.

Hechtspeed