Longtime land speed racer Chris Raschke was killed in a crash at Bonneville Sunday during a pass down Bonneville’s Course No. 1. The crash occurred when the car was going approximately 300 mph and went airborne around the 2.5 mile mark.
The Southern California Timing Association (SCTA), which organized the event, said Raschke was attempting to set a new land speed record around 3 p.m. Sunday when he lost control of his vehicle.
Medical staff were on the scene immediately and the 60-year-old Raschke was airlifted from the course. The SCTA/BNI have released a statement saying that the cause of the accident is unknown and that a full investigation will soon be underway. Racing on the salt was stopped after the crash, at about 4 p.m. Sunday.
“All of us here at The American Hot Rod Foundation are deeply saddened by the news of Chris Raschke’s passing, earlier today at Bonneville,” said AHRF president David Steele. “Chris was known to many as the face of ARP (Automotive Racing Products, a sponsor of the event), but to those who knew him on the salt, he was someone who found the perfect balance of friendly and competitive. Never a usual combination and one that speaks to the quality of his character. We send our deepest sympathies to Chris’s family and friends.”
Raschke had been the driver for Speed Demon Racing, Bonneville record-holder George Poteet’s team. Raschke was piloting a new streamliner called Speed Demon III, made from the workings of Poteet’s golden-colored streamliner Speed Demon II. In it Poteet had set numerous speed records, including fastest piston-powered car ever at over 470 mph. Poteet died last year from a pulmonary embolism not related to racing.
With Poteet’s passing the team built the new car from the parts of the old one.
"We're putting all the same core components into it, motors, wiring harnesses, transmissions, rear ends, wheels, and tires. It's still Speed Demon at heart," the team said on its website.
Bonneville Speed Week, Aug. 2-8, was the debut for the new car. The plan was to start making runs with the E motor package the team has developed over the last five years.
"We haven't gotten the E Record yet," the team said, referring to the class in which it was competing. "But we're chasing it. That'll be the first goal."
It was during one of the first runs with the new car that the accident happened.
The Speed Demon team has been a fixture at Bonneville and won the HOT ROD Trophy for the 12th time at the 2024 SCTA Bonneville Speed Week with Raschke at the wheel, and has set more SCTA class records and FIA International speed records than any other vehicle in the history of the sport, Hot Rod Magazine said.
“Our sincere condolences go out to the Raschke family and everyone at the Speed Demon racing team.”
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