Sam Wheeler, the legendary land speed motorcycle racer died on Monday during a testing session at Bonneville Salt flats in Utah. The 72-year-old racer was rushed to a hospital in Salt Lake City, but the doctors couldn’t save him.
Mike Cook, the event organizer, who witnessed the incident said – “Wheeler was going at about 200 mph when his streamliner motorcycle started fish tailing. His motorcycle began to slide and then popped into the air and came crashing down on the caged section where wheeler was seated.”
Pat McDowell, a fellow racer and a long time friend said – “At one time, he held the land speed record for motorcycles, He’s was pretty much one of the legends of our sport. He did it with his brain, not his wallet.”
Sam Wheeler was testing the motorcycle for two big races in August and September at the Salt Flats. He had been working on the motorcycle in the recent years with a goal of setting and surpassing the 400 mph speed record on a motorcycle.
Sam Wheeler had about 50 years of land speed racing experience and he topped 355 mph at Bonneville a decade ago.
Bill Lattin, president of the Southern California Timing Association said – “Wheeler was known for his ability to build and modify his motorcycle by himself. He was perfectionist who knew aerodynamics well.”
