Craig Breedlove, Land Speed Racing Legend, Is Dead at 86

Craig Breedlove, legendary land-speed racer and the first person to break the 600-mile-per-hour mark in a car, has died at the age of 86, according to the Southern California Timing Association.

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Breedlove was born in Los Angeles, California in 1937 and purchased his first automobile at 16, when he piloted his supercharged 1934 Ford to a top speed of 154 mph on a dry lake in the Mojave desert. At the age of 20, he drove an Oldsmobile-powered streamliner to a top speed of 236 mph at the Bonneville salt flats.

“THE WILDEST RIDE” 1964 BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS LAND SPEED RECORD w/ CRAIG BREEDLOVE XD65944

In 1959, Breedlove purchased a used jet engine for $500 (around $5,187 in 2023 money) and used it to power his first vehicle built specifically to chase land-speed records. The now-famous vehicle was dubbed “Spirit of America” and would go on to unsuccessfully attempt to beat Englishman John Cobb’s 394-mph record in 1962. After making some changes, Breedlove returned in 1963 to set a new record of 407 mph, making him the first American to hold a land speed record in more than 30 years — a feat immortalized by a Beach Boys song.

The next year, Breedlove set a new record of 526 mph but nearly died in the attempt when his vehicle’s brakes and parachutes failed, resulting in him hitting a series of telephone poles at 400 mph and ending up nose-down in a nearly 20-foot deep brine pond. Breedlove was able to escape the wreckage and swim to safety. Almost unbelievably, he was uninjured.

Craig Breedlove – The Spirit of America

In 1965, Breedlove became the first human being to travel at 600 mph on land in the replacement Spirit of America Sonic 1. His wife, Lee Breedlove, also participated in land-speed racing, becoming the fastest woman on Earth in 1965 in the Sonic 1, hitting a top speed of 308 mph.

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Craig Breedlove never really gave up on regaining his crown as the fastest man on Earth, spending many of his later years building a car to attempt to beat the 763-mph set in 1997 by racer Andy Green.

Reports of Breedlove’s death come from multiple sources, including several organizations with which he was associated, like the Southern California Timing Association and the Bonneville 200 mph Club. Jalopnik was unable to confirm these reports directly; we will update this article with any new information we receive.