Assuming that racing continues at Bonneville for at least a few more years, here
are some thoughts for consideration . . .
If/when the salt is effectively gone, what will the surface be like?
I've been to El Mirage Dry Lake (in southern California) a few times.
I've also been to the Alvord Desert (in southern Oregon) a few times. These two dry lake beds are similar to each other, but are not salty. They are, barring excess rain, just dry lake beds. El Mirage, roughly 5 miles in total length, is relatively small compared to Alvord, which (if the weather cooperates) offers about 10 miles of decent smooth dirt for racing. Alvord's northern end tends to be rockier and rockier, as you near the absolute northern end of the lake bed. But of course, rocks can be removed. And fortunately, as a vehicle slows down, the danger from hitting a rock also decreases (although one would still want to totally avoid hitting such a rock, even at low speed).
I haven't yet seen a long written discussion regarding comparative traction or steering ability on dirt vs. thin salt, but I believe that Bonneville racers should prepare to be racing on salty dirt (instead of hard salt) at Bonneville, from now on.
Regarding future racing at Bonneville (I was there in early September, 2025), the same -- or at least similar -- methods of preparing a racing lane should continue to apply. This would include removal of debris and all foreign objects such as rocks, vehicle parts, and any miscellaneous objects not comprised of very small pieces of salt or dirt . . . followed by dragging the lane-preparation steel weldments along the track to level and smooth it out. Yes, it's tedious . . . but very important. And I have a great appreciation for the people and efforts involved.
Bonneville is still kinda long, at least compared to El Mirage. And records continue
to be broken, which has me wondering whether the length of the race course should
be increased. I don't have a problem with the length of the acceleration & timed
mile including 6 miles available for acceleration, followed by several miles of available track for safe deceleration. I am a big fan of safety, and would favor an effort to clear rocks from the eastern "end" of the track in order to provide more slow-down distance. I'd even be willing to help remove these rocks.
I welcome any comments about any of this. Thanks for reading.