The quest for the land speed record in the 1960s and the epic
rivalry between two dynamic American drivers, Art Arfons and Craig
Breedlove.
"Interesting and complex. . . .The best job I've seen done on
the subject so far."
-- Craig Breedlove
Until the 1950s, the land speed record (LSR) was held by a
series of European gentlemen racers such as British driver John
Cobb, who hit 394 miles per hour in 1947. That record held for more
than a decade, until the car culture swept the U.S.
Hot-rodders and drag racers built and souped up racers using car
engines, piston aircraft engines and, eventually, jet engines. For
this determined and dedicated group, the LSR was no longer an honor
to be held by rich aristocrats with industrial backing -- it was
brought stateside.
In the summer of 1960, the contest moved into overdrive, with
eight men contending for the record on Utah's Bonneville Salt
Flats. Some men died in horrific crashes, others prudently retired,
and by mid-decade only two men were left driving: Art Arfons and
Craig Breedlove. By 1965, Arfons and Breedlove had walked away from
some of the most spectacular wipeouts in motor sport history and
pushed the record up to 400, then 500, then 600 miles per hour.
"Speed Duel" is the fast-paced history of their rivalry.
Despite the abundant heart-stopping action, "Speed Duel" is
foremost a human drama. Says author Samuel Hawley, "It is a
quintessential American tale in the tradition of The Right Stuff,
except that it is not about extraordinary men doing great things in
a huge government program. It's about ordinary men doing
extraordinary things in their back yards."
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