Igniter -- Through the roof -- Belly tank racer -- The jet car idea -- Spirit is born -- Black line zigzag -- Bringing it back -- American hero -- Speed war -- Roll the ambulance -- "I almost drowned in that thing!" -- Sonic i -- Back into battle -- Russian roulette with jets -- Cutthroat -- Hard times -- Playing with fire -- The river -- Sonic arrow -- Turbulence -- Breedlove's back -- World's fastest car crash -- The boom.
Summary:
An L.A. hot-rodder with a high school education, a family to support, and almost no money, Craig Breedlove set out in the late 1950s to do something big: harness the thrust of a jet in a car. With a growing obsession that would cost him his marriage, he started building in his dad's garage. The car's name was Spirit of America. Through perseverance and endless hard work, Craig completed Spirit and broke the land speed record on the Bonneville Salt Flats, setting a new mark of 407 mph in 1963. He went on to be the first person to drive 500 and 600 mph, breaking the land speed record five times. In the early 1970s he turned to rockets and set an acceleration record at Bonneville that stands to this day. He built a jet car in the 1990s, Spirit of America-Sonic Arrow, to go head to head against Britain's ThrustSSC to be the first to Mach 1. Craig's subsequent crash at 675 mph remains the fastest in history. Even today, at the age of eighty, he is going strong with plans for yet another Spirit of America racer. The ultimate goal: 1,000 mph. Ultimate Speed is the authorized biography of Craig Breedlove, with a foreword by Craig himself. A candid revelation of one of motorsports' most interesting figures, the book is based primarily on countless hours of interviews with Craig and dozens of people connected to his life.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.