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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>Craig was a real estate broker in Rio Vista CA on the Suisun Bay, the eastern reaching bay that the Sacramento, American and other delta rivers flow into and out to sea through San Francisco and the Golden gate Bridge. I jumped at the chance invitation of a Facility tour. He gave me a warm guided tour of his “Racing” facility like none other as you only could imagine. He was a Car Guy uniquely combining technologies with different Jet engine technologies with fiberglass & metal on a wheeled chassis in a small low overhead small industrial building sitting just off the flat bay mud-tidal-reeds fields of the Suisun Bay waters. Craig talked of his next car going 800 to 900 MPH and was excited to tell me why and how he was going to do it if he could find the right sponsor.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>God’s Speed Craig<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:black'>From: </span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:black'>TPR <tpr-bounces@teampanteraracing.com> on behalf of David Carpenter via TPR <tpr@teampanteraracing.com><br><b>Reply-To: </b>David Carpenter <davecarp80138@outlook.com><br><b>Date: </b>Monday, November 10, 2025 at 2:50 PM<br><b>To: </b>"teampantera@yahoo.com" <teampantera@yahoo.com>, Team Racing <tpr@teampanteraracing.com><br><b>Subject: </b>Re: [TPR] Fw: Drag Racing, Salt Flats, and the Pursuit of 600 MPH<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>Craig Breedlove's Death<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>Date and Cause<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>Craig Breedlove passed away on April 4, 2023, at the age of 86. His death was due to cancer, as confirmed by his wife, Yadira Breedlove.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>Legacy<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>Breedlove was a legendary American race car driver known for his remarkable achievements in land speed records. He was the first person to exceed 400 mph, 500 mph, and 600 mph in jet-powered vehicles named Spirit of America. His contributions to motorsports made him a cultural icon, and he was inducted into several halls of fame, including the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>Impact on Motorsports<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:#212121'>His pursuit of speed began in his teenage years and culminated in a fierce rivalry with other racers during the 1960s. Breedlove's records and innovative designs helped popularize land speed racing, making it a significant part of American motorsport history. His legacy continues to inspire future generations of racers.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div id=ms-outlook-mobile-body-separator-line><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div></div><div id=ms-outlook-mobile-signature><div><p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black;background:white'>"The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money!!"</span></i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black;background:white'>Margaret Thatcher</span><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Aptos",sans-serif;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><hr size=0 width="100%" align=center></div><div id=divRplyFwdMsg><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='color:black'>From:</span></b><span style='color:black'> TPR <tpr-bounces@teampanteraracing.com> on behalf of teampantera--- via TPR <tpr@teampanteraracing.com><br><b>Sent:</b> Monday, November 10, 2025 9:25:54 AM<br><b>To:</b> Team Racing <tpr@teampanteraracing.com><br><b>Subject:</b> [TPR] Fw: Drag Racing, Salt Flats, and the Pursuit of 600 MPH</span> <o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div><div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue"'>FYI...A little history.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue"'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue"'>MD<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div id="x_ydpd1321aa7yahoo_quoted_3587265357"><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>----- Forwarded Message -----<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'> William L. Hohnhorst <wlhohnhorst@gmail.com><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>Sent:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'> Sunday, November 9, 2025 at 09:41:22 PM PST<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>Subject:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'> Drag Racing, Salt Flats, and the Pursuit of 600 MPH<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div><div><div id="x_ydpd1321aa7yiv1463832866"><div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><h1><span style='font-size:30.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#26282A;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in;background:#F3F4F6;font-weight:normal'><img width=32 height=32 style='width:.3333in;height:.3333in' id="_x0000_i1029" src="cid:~WRD1873.jpg" alt="Image removed by sender. Drag Racing, Salt Flats, and the Pursuit of 600 MPH"></span><span style='font-size:30.0pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#26282A;font-weight:normal'><o:p></o:p></span></h1><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>Five-time world land speed record holder Craig Breedlove with his 1996 model of "Spirit of America" jet-powered car in Los Angeles. </span><span style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#707070'>Kim Kulish /AFP via Getty Images</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Helvetica;color:#2F2F2F'><a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/author/dustin-bass" target="_blank"><span style='color:#2F2F2F;text-decoration:none'><span style='color:blue;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in'><img border=0 width=44 height=44 style='width:.4583in;height:.4583in' id="_x0000_i1028" src="cid:~WRD1873.jpg" alt="Image removed by sender. Dustin Bass"></span></span></a></span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Helvetica;color:#2F2F2F'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Helvetica;color:#2F2F2F'><a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/author/dustin-bass" target="_blank"><span style='text-decoration:none'>Dustin Bass</span></a></span></b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Helvetica;color:#2F2F2F'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Helvetica;color:#707070'>11/8/2025<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div id="x_ydpd1321aa7yiv1463832866m_1993139517811295177post_content"><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>After several decades, Utah finally defeated Florida. The two states had been in contention for the home of speed. The Florida beaches at Ormond and Daytona and the Bonneville Salt Flats of Utah were perennial locations for drag racers, racing enthusiasts, and daredevils to demonstrate their vehicles’ capacity for speed and their personal capacity for danger. In March 1935, Florida conceded its defeat, though it would become home for greater racing exploits, specifically the Daytona races.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Two years later, Craig Breedlove was born in Los Angeles. A product of the Great Depression and the World War II eras, he also grew up during the era of speed. America, and many of the world’s leading nations, like Great Britain, France, and Germany, were consistently pushing the limits of speed on land and in the air. After the war, speed had accelerated immensely, leaving Breedlove and other car enthusiasts to test just how fast their vehicles could go.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>At 13 years old, Breedlove purchased his first car, and quickly found himself eyeing the finish lines during local “underground” drag races. When he turned 16, he took his supercharged 1934 Ford V-8 coupe to El Mirage, one of the dry lakes in the Mojave Desert. It was his first Land Speed Record (LSR) event, driving his car to an impressive 154 mph.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>While Breedlove was zooming along California streets and deserts, two half-brothers and Navy veterans in Akron, Ohio were tinkering with airplanes and motorcycles. Walt and Arthur Arfons worked in their father’s feed mill, and when not working at the mill, they were assembling their own airplane. One day, in 1952, the two pulled their plane to Akron Fulton Airport for its maiden flight. The airport, though, was sealed off.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>It was hosting one of its drag racing events. Witnessing the races, the Arfons brothers were inspired and decided to keep their heads out of the clouds and on the ground. They returned home and began work on their own vehicle. That the airport, far from the California desert, was hosting a large drag racing event was a testament to how much enthusiasm was behind this new sport. Interest in these “underground” races against the clock (or stopwatches) spread throughout the country and would soon become a national phenomenon.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 style='margin:0in'><span style='font-size:22.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626;letter-spacing:-.25pt'>The Spirit of America</span><span style='font-size:22.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#26282A;letter-spacing:-.25pt'><o:p></o:p></span></h2><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>America’s first drag strip was in California, close to Breedlove’s home city of Los Angeles. It was called the Santa Ana Drags, and is now the location of John Wayne Airport. The races and the venues, like dry lakes and abandoned military airstrips, proved drag racing events were rather haphazard. There were no grandstands for spectators, and to an extent, no formal set of rules. In 1951, Wally Parks, editor of Hot Rod magazine and a hot-rodder himself, founded the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA), which began to properly organize the events, setting standards for cars, drivers, and drag strips.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>By this time, America specifically and the world in general, had been introduced to jet and rocket propulsion—technological breakthroughs engineered by the Germans during World War II. While air forces, especially the Cold War combatants—America and Soviet Russia—were aiming to outperform each other with faster jets, it resulted in two positive outcomes for the drag racer. First, Americans witnessed the advances in subsonic and supersonic aerial speeds. If such speeds could be reached in the air, then why not on land? This was especially true if a racer were to place the same engine into a land vehicle. This was the second outcome: By the late 1950s, there was a surplus of discarded jet engines. Racers—those who could afford them—rushed to get their hands on them.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Breedlove had become fully acquainted with the jet engine after taking a job with </span><u><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#8E7100'><a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/bright/donald-douglas-first-around-the-world-5497945" target="_blank"><span style='color:#8E7100'>Douglas Aircraft Company</span></a></span></u><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>. By this time, he had also become a serious drag racing competitor. At the age of 20, and after exchanging his supercharged Ford V-8 for a supercharged Oldsmobile V-8, he hit 236 mph at Bonneville. A couple of years later, in 1959, he set his sights on a jet engine. For $500, he purchased a General Electric J47 turbojet engine. The J47 was first used in the F-86 Sabre. Breedlove named his three-wheeled jet-powered car Spirit of America.</span><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 style='margin:0in'><span style='font-size:22.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626;letter-spacing:-.25pt'>The Pursuit of the LSR</span><span style='font-size:22.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#26282A;letter-spacing:-.25pt'><o:p></o:p></span></h2><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"new serif",serif;color:#262626'>Two years after Breedlove’s jet engine purchase, the NHRA barred such engines from its competitions.</span><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'> For racers like Breedlove and the Arfons brothers, who had come to dominate the drag racing scene in Ohio with their Green Monster cars, this proved little deterrent to their ultimate goal: to be the Fastest Man on Earth.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#262626'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in'><img border=0 width=32 height=32 style='width:.3333in;height:.3333in' id="_x0000_i1027" src="cid:~WRD1873.jpg" alt="Image removed by sender. The Arfons's Green Monster. (Public Domain)"></span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>The Arfons's Green Monster. </span><span style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#707070'>Public Domain</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><div style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"new serif",serif;color:#262626'>In 1960, the Arfons brothers, who had by this time had a falling out, began pursuing the use of jet engine technology separately. That year Walt Arfons purchased a Westinghouse J46 engine with afterburners.</span><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'> Art Arfons, who had topped 300 mph in 1961 with his Allison engines, purchased his own jet engine, a GE J79. The two brothers worked toward placing their names, separately, in the record books. And they would do it in Breedlove’s backyard: the Bonneville Salt Flats.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#262626'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Breedlove and the Arfons acquired sponsorships to help them afford their pursuits. Breedlove and Walt Arfons were sponsored by Goodyear, while Art, quite fittingly, was sponsored by Goodyear rival, Firestone.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>In 1962, Breedlove aimed for the land speed record (LSR), which had been held since 1947. John Cobb, a Brit, had reached 394.2 mph at Bonneville in his internal-combustion engine-powered vehicle. Breedlove, however, fell short of Cobb’s record. The young Californian returned to his workshop to make improvements. On Aug. 5, 1963, Breedlove returned to Bonneville.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>On this day, he pushed his Spirit of America to its limits over the course of 11 miles, clocking in at 407.45 mph—the first to ever break the 400 mark. The LSR was now back in America and it belonged to Breedlove. Fellow Americans Walt and Art Arfons now set their sights on Breedlove’s record.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in'><img border=0 width=32 height=32 style='width:.3333in;height:.3333in' id="_x0000_i1026" src="cid:~WRD1873.jpg" alt="Image removed by sender. Spirit of America, originally on exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, is now at the Museum of American Speed in Lincoln, Neb. (Royalbroil/CC BY-SA 2.5)"></span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>Spirit of America, originally on exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, is now at the Museum of American Speed in Lincoln, Neb. </span><span style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#707070'>Royalbroil/CC BY-SA 2.5</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>A year later, in October 1964, Walt and Art arrived at Bonneville in pursuit of the title of Fastest Man on Earth. Walt’s attempt ended in success. His car, driven by Tom Green, zoomed to 413 mph. His LSR would last three days until his brother set the new record of 434 mph. Art’s record, however, didn’t last much longer, as Breedlove crushed the record and became the first to break the 500 mark at 526 mph.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Breedlove’s attempt, however, nearly ended in tragedy when his parachutes (for breaking) failed, sending his Spirit of America approximately six miles, through a telephone pole at 400 mph, and nose-first into a salt pond. His $250,000 Spirit of America was destroyed, but he survived to celebrate his historic feat. His title was short-lived as well, as October 1964 went down as one of the most competitive months of LSR racing in history with Art’s J79 car setting the LSR again at 536 mph.<o:p></o:p></span></p><h2 style='margin:0in'><span style='font-size:22.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626;letter-spacing:-.25pt'>The Pursuit of 600</span><span style='font-size:22.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#26282A;letter-spacing:-.25pt'><o:p></o:p></span></h2><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>With a destroyed vehicle and a toppled record, Breedlove was far from deterred. He set to building a new car, which he called the Spirit of America-Sonic 1. Taking a page out of Art’s book, Breedlove purchased a GE J79 engine taken from an F-104 Starfighter and thus prepared for the 1965 racing season.<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>By the 1965 season, Walt had bowed out of competition. In fact, the reason he had Green drive his car the previous year was because he had recently suffered a heart attack. Nonetheless, two LSR legends met at Bonneville in November 1965: Breedlove and Art Arfons.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Breedlove set the pace and a new LSR in his Spirit of America-Sonic 1 at 555.127 mph, only for it to fall to Art days later when his car surpassed the record at 576.553 mph.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Breedlove had been the first to 400 in 1963 and the first to 500 in 1964. It seemed only fitting for him to be the first to 600 in 1965. He returned to the Salt Flats shortly after Art Arfons had beat his record. It was during this week in history, on Nov. 15, Breedlove got behind the wheel of his four-wheeled J79-powered Spirit of America-Sonic 1, determined to not only beat Art Arfons’s record, but to be the first to 600.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>When Breedlove completed his attempt, he had accomplished his goal, finishing at 600.601 mph. His record stood more than days, weeks, or even months. His LSR of 600.601, during a period of faster and faster vehicles, stood for five years. It was only until Gary Gabelich, another California-based racer, sporting a rocket engine-powered Blue Flame that Breedlove’s LSR fell. Gabelich’s speed of 622.407 mph would hold for 13 years.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt;padding:0in'><img border=0 width=32 height=32 style='width:.3333in;height:.3333in' id="_x0000_i1025" src="cid:~WRD1873.jpg" alt="Image removed by sender. At Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, Gary Gabelich’s Blue Flame beat Breedlove’s record on Oct. 23, 1970 with a speed of 622.407 mph. (Public Domain)"></span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'>At Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, Gary Gabelich’s Blue Flame beat Breedlove’s record on Oct. 23, 1970 with a speed of 622.407 mph. </span><span style='font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#707070'>Public Domain</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p style='mso-margin-top-alt:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.25in;margin-left:0in'><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Georgia",serif;color:#262626'>Breedlove’s accomplishments for the 400, 500, 600 mph marks, however, made him America’s King of Speed. His efforts were undoubtedly propelled by the competition of his fellow American racers, among them, the Ohio legends, Walt and Art Arfons. Interestingly, during Art’s pursuit of 600 mph, he suffered a horrific crash, leading media outlets to announce his death. Art, however, had not died, but the news of his possible death led the Arfons brothers to reconcile their differences.</span><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:#26282A'><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Helvetica Neue";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><p class=MsoNormal>_______________________________________________ TPR mailing list TPR@teampanteraracing.com http://teampanteraracing.com/mailman/listinfo/tpr_teampanteraracing.com <o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>