Bonneville Salt Flat Racing Vintage Studebakers Speed Week 2011 is quickly approaching! And you know what that means...Salt Fever! It's reminded me that I still have many Speed Seeking Studebakers to add to the series I started after last year's Speed Week. In fact, there's 11 more racing Studebakers I have to bring ya. Rounding out a total of 14 Studebaker racers on the Salt Flats I caught last year (and I'm sure I missed a few!) If you missed #1-4, begin here - All Speed Seeking Studebakers. To start with is this wicked 1953 Studebaker Coupe owned by Bob Drury and Old Stud Racing running in the A/cF ALT category with top speeds of 225 mph. Also a '53 is this more highly modified body, #974. With an extreme chop and a hood scoop to match the roof height it's an extreme looking Studebaker salt flats racer! In 2008 this Stude set the class record at 249.945 mph. Another highly modified and chopped coupe is this #749. They're not ALL '53 Coupes. There's always a good showing of Avanti's also..of course! Speaking of Avanti's, keep an eye out for...

Custom 1953 Studebaker Coupe Altered Into A Fastback Studebaker folks are unfailingly interesting. So when I met John Saltsman at the 2011 Grand National Roadster Show this past January standing by his amazing Atomitron, a highly customized 1949 Studebaker pickup, I wasn't too surprised to hear that he had other Studebaker stories to share. However, when he produced the few pictures in existence of the 1953 Studebaker Coupe he modified as a teenager, I couldn't believe what I was seeing! The first unbelievable thing about this custom... It was built by John while he was still in high school! The year was 1970 and Fastback Mustang's were all the rage. He liked 'em, but couldn't afford one. What he lacked in cash he made up for with a wealth of car building knowledge in his family. Looking at the lines of the  '53 Coupe he figured it could be built into a fastback all his own. The main modification was creating the fastback. To do this, he took the trunk out of a 1949 Cadillac and covered the whole trunk section and back window with it, integrating it into...

Custom Studebaker Pickup from 2011 Grand National Roadster Show I promised I had a few customized Studebakers up my sleeve that I found at the 2011 Grand National Roadster Show....so here's #2 (Check out this Studebaker Ute if ya missed #1!) Who's ever seen a Studebaker pickup like this one!? Believe it or not, this 1949 Studebaker Pickup has been in the works for about 25 years. When the current owner, John Saltsman, got the truck it had already been chopped about 6" by "Merc John." With a small block Chevy drivetrain (just like my Studebaker coupe,) John used it as his daily driver on long commutes for at least 8 years. As John drove it, his vision for what he wanted it to become grew. He had a "wild and mild" proportioned-custom in his mind. As its been completed, this Custom 1949 Studebaker Pickup has a laundry list of custom items from customizing legends! It started with the 6" chop of course. To that was added a 15 1/2 " channel. And as "one thing led to another," this pickup was transformed with: a 59 Chevy trunk lid, 55...

Custom Studebaker Ute at GNRS It isn't every day you see a custom Studebaker coupe. Really, I think what people say to themselves before changing any metal of the Studebaker coupe body is..."The coupe is a perfect car - why change it?" I certainly don't have plans of truly customizing my own '55 Studebaker. Metal flaking the roof, moon discs, and some pinstriping is as far as it'll go I think. But I do love customs - so every time I encounter a custom Studebaker coupe I get pretty excited! This year at Grand National Roadster Show I encountered not just one - but three custom Studebakers! I'll be unveiling each one (and hopefully one or two more) in the coming weeks. To start with... the Studebaker Ute, a.k.a. Kart Hauler. I first encountered this custom Studebaker Ute at the 2009 Grand National Roadster Show - and now once again at GNRS 2011. In 2009 it was in the hall of cars previously shown at GNRS, commemorating the show's 60th anniversary. This 1953 Studebaker coupe was customized in the late fifties into this wagon-style Ute for the 1959 Oakland...

Bonneville Salt Flat Racing Vintage Studebaker The moment my Studebaker and I drove out on to the salt this year during 2010 Speed Week, what was the first thing I did? Look for other Studebakers of course! And what was the first one I found but Gord Driedger's Blue Beauty. This 1953 Studebaker Coupe looks like she was born on the salt! In fact, this was her first time there - as well as Gord's! People end up on the salt from every corner of the earth it seems, and with all sorts of fascinating stories about how they got there. For Gord, his timely meeting with Blue Beauty happened while on vacation... in Napa of all places. Sitting on the patio, basking in the California sun, enjoying Napa wine, when suddenly Gord and his Wife's peace was disturbed by the loud sound of a racing engine. With salt flat racing on his bucket list, Gord went a-searchin'. The search led him to a neighboring garage. Not to the Studebaker, but to the guy who would put him in touch with #653. As it turns out, Blue Beauty was...

Bonneville Salt Flat Racing Studebakers I've already covered the two record-taking Studebakers for this 2010 Speed Week in previous articles of this Speed Seeking Studebakers series (#1 1953 Studebaker Coupe & #2 1949 Studebaker Pickup). So before looking at more racing Studes, I wanted to show you some of the fine Studebakers that spectators were driving around on the salt! To begin with, is Bob Weaver's 1953 Studebaker Coupe. I'm not sure color has as much to do with speed as the aerodynamics body of the Studebaker coupe - but in this case yellow=fast! My 5-year-old nephew exclaimed "Yellow cars are the fastest" while wandering around Gene Winfield's shop a couple of months ago, and in this case I'd say he's right! It isn't just the yellow color and aerodynamic body that's making this Studebaker go fast. This special Stude has a Chrysler Hemi powerplant! I was amazed at how snugly it fit in the engine compartment. This hot rod sure looks just as pretty under the hood as above it! Any Studebaker-fan knows that us Studebaker owners are a quirky bunch of folk! So I wasn't overly surprised...

Bonneville Salt Flat Racing Vintage Studebakers #898 obviously isn't a coupe, but it's still Speedy. And most importantly, it's a Studebaker! This 1949 Studebaker farm truck out of Kansas took the second of the two records for this years Speed Week. And break a record did it ever! With Chevy power under the hood in it's AA/MP class, the old record was blown away by nearly 18 miles per hour! Norris Anderson definitely knows how to build one, as he powered this truck down the line at 219.331mph! And you know what that means, its a record-breaking run over 200mph... so Norris Anderson gets his well-deserved Bonneville 200mph Club admission. He'll be a happy man wearing that red hat. In fact... he was already wearing it, even as he did broom duty around the pits! It looks like Norris Anderson and his Broom Crew have a lot of fun out on the salt! It was in 2004 that Norris first found the old farm truck and began building it into a salt flats racer in 2004. Their motto? "Safe Trucks Travel Fast." Start here for All Speed Seeking...

Bonneville Salt Flat Racing Vintage Studebakers Heading up the line of this year’s Speed Seeking Studes, is #4594. It may not be the prettiest out there, but what it’s got going for it is a Studebaker engine and multiple record-holdings!  Greg Meyer's from Minnesota brought his Salt2Salt Racing's 1953 Studebaker Coupe powered by a 182cid V8 Studebaker engine, putting it in the F/CGALT class. I think it was the only non-Avanti to have Stude power rolling it down the line! The engine class being F, means it’s got to be somewhere between 123-183 c.i.d (cubic inch displacement.) In order to get this engine’s c.i.d. down to 182 the Studebaker V8 was destroked, pushing it into the “F” class by just a hair! Although Greg reports they encountered a few problems and there's still more to do to get this particular engine running at its top speed, they were still able to set 2 records in their class by the end of the week. First with Greg driving in the F/CGALT catagory at 131.593. Then with partner-in-crime, Bob Waitz driving in the F/CFALT catagory (wounded engine and all) at 113.998mph! Good job Salt2Salt...

Bonneville Salt Flat Racing Vintage Studebakers If you’ve spent any time at all reading my posts, you know I drive a 1955 Studebaker Champion Coupe. Last year, during my first trip to Bonneville for Speed Week, I had no idea how many Studebakers I would find out on the salt. I knew Studebaker coupes were long-loved in land speed racing for their aerodynamic bodes—but it seemed like everywhere I turned there was another Studebaker! As I’m finding out, Studebaker coupes have a longer history with land speed racing than I would have guessed. The Bob Bourke-designed streamlined body first appeared in 1953, drastically different than any other car produced. By August of 1953, a ’53 Studebaker Hardtop made its first official run out on the salt. By the following year, the ’53 Coupe had broken its class D/CG record at 114.430mph. In fact, the first full-fendered stock-bodied car to break the highly coveted 200mph mark was a Studebaker coupe, in 1964. The official record was set at 201.744mph by Pisano Brothers/Jim Short in a ’53 Coupe with a 365c.i.d. Chrysler supercharged engine racing in the B/S Gas Coupe category....

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder. Since Stude's spent the past 3 months suntanning her metal in the Mojave sun outside Gene Winfield's shop...I've grown fonder then ever. The great news is (drum-roll please,) she's back on the road!!! Not only is she back, she's running better than ever! Replacing the transmission was the biggest job that needed to be done. Saving money and finding the right transmission is what took the bulk of the time. Luckily I had good friends and lots of help through the process...thanks to all who were involved! I ended up having a great guy, Rick Annis in Phoenix, AZ, rebuild a 700R4 for me. Then my car club pal, Lori, and I took the 700R4 up to Mojave to meet Stude. Up at Gene's we got a lot of help from Bart putting it in. With Bart having a lot of experience in engine tuning he wouldn't let my car out of his sight with just a new transmission - so we worked on getting Stude's little 383 small block up to par also. The first weekend we did a lot...

We first told you about this Studebaker Avanti and its Land Speed Racing legend status in the Land Speed Racing Avanti intro.  We have a quick update for you.  Dan and crew took the #88 Avanti and its borrowed twin supercharged Studebaker V8 to El Mirage for some runs down the dry lakebed at El Mirage.  It was 191 days in the making and it was well worth it. The Stude looks right at home on the dry, cracked lake bed.  Dan suited up and was able to make 2 runs, well, 1.5 runs.  Before actually getting down the dirt track, it took many hours and helpful hands to get the Avanti to pass tech inspection.  Most of the little things are safety related, like sealing off the interior from fire hazards and the correct protection. Avanti Dan suiting up.  No racing happens without help of family and friends. Two land speed racing Avanti's at the starting line at El Mirage is a beautiful sight to see.  Dan and team were able to figure out a bunch of bugs, get tech inspected, and get another list together to get ready...

I'm going to put this out there up front... I will not be able to do this story justice.  But, its such a great story and a cool car that you are going to get it and you are going to like it.  Ok, I got that out, now on to the man and the machine. The man is cancer survivor and current cancer fighter Dan Sallia.  The machine is the historic Burke Bros. Bonneville record holding 1962 Studebaker Avanti.  I originally found Dan's story on landracing.com in a build thread he started there.  That led me to his more detailed build thread on RacingStudebakers.com where I spent about 4 hours reading through the posts during 2 separate nights, checking out the pictures and soaking in one of the coolest car-guy stories I've ever heard.  I knew I had to share it the MyRideisMe.com readers. Here's Dan working in the engine bay of the Stude.  Now THAT is a setback motor! Dan has been racing against Cancer for about 4 years and has had 3 tumors.  Recently another tumor was discovered, so Dan is working with his doctors (one doctor is actually a land...