GENE BURKLAND 1936-2009
One of the most respected and likable individuals on the Salt, Gene Burkland became a member of the coveted Bonneville 200 MPH Club in 1978 by piloting his radically chopped Studebaker Competition coupe to an average speed of 255.863 mph. He was known as a master welder and innovator, and his profound skills led to the fabrication of the legendary 411 Burkland Streamliner. Gene, along with his wife, Betty, and their eldest son, Tom, successfully designed, built, and campaigned the twin-Hemi, earth-shaking, all-wheel-drive, chute-snapping streamliner.
At the ’04 World Finals, they set the current SCTA AA/Blown Fuel Streamliner record at 417.020 mph. At the Mike Cook Shootout in 2008, they established an impressive new FIA world record of415.896 mph and broke Al Teague’s longstanding flying-mile FIA world…