Sports Editor Abby Wilson has been following Reg Cook's quest for a land speed record for many years. She explains what drives him as he finally gets within touching distance of his goal.
Reg Cook calls himself The Geriatric and, at 78, by definition he’s probably right. But for the speed addict there’s a much more important number in his life than his age - 800.
That’s how many kilometres an hour he wants to drive on the salt flats of Bolivia.
If he achieves it, he'll become the first Kiwi with a world record recognised by land speed adjudicating body the FIA.
The current record for a piston engine, wheel-driven car is 471mph, which converts to 758kmh. Reg doesn’t just want to better it, he wants to shatter it.
Watch the final preparations for Reg's record attempt on TVNZ+
“We're meant to test ourselves and this is a test, this is a ridiculous test. Outrageous,” he says.
It’s particularly outrageous when you look at what he’s put into it in terms of time and money. In 2017 Reg and his motor racing team CMR went to the famous Bonneville Salt flats and came home with a number of land speed records.
But rather than leaving satisfied and with a feeling of mission accomplished, it instead planted the seed for mission impossible - an official and outright FIA world speed record. Something that would send a message.
“The ultimate goal is to say, anybody can do anything. If that old silly old bugger can go and do that, why can't I do this?
“We really want to perpetuate the Kiwi can-do theme, the number eight wire thing, the New Zealand engineering thing, all these marvellous people have done things before and we want to be another chapter of that.”
From his Clevedon shed he hatched a plan. To set an official world record he needed a longer course which could only be found on the Uyuni Salt Flat in Bolivia.
But with no organised meets he needed to create his own, from scratch. So he did. Not only building Wairua 2, a new streamliner - the car he will make the attempt in - for the speed attempt, but also planning the race itself.
The former race car driver’s passion and enthusiasm are contagious and he’ll have more than 50 Kiwis on the ground with him in Bolivia for the attempt next month. More have volunteered countless hours to get things done, even moving into his shed-come-residence to help.
Mark Ballantyne’s done just that. He’s been involved in Reg’s projects for more than two decades and has no doubt they can get the world record.
“He just doesn't give up. His leadership rubs off on everyone else and everyone goes, 'we have to do everything we can to make this happen',” Mark says.
Then there’s John Provo who went to university with Reg some 60 years ago. “He's always done the outrageous," he says. "So, what the hell, I think it's great.”
International effort
His pursuit of the record has gone international. Global components manufacturer Mansons built and supplied 30 wheels out of India in a matter of weeks following an SOS call. And the US Airforce Academy in Colorado Springs created simulations to test aerodynamics and speed, led by Professor Ioan Feier after a chance meeting in Bonneville.
Before moving into education Feier worked in aerospace where he was part of a team which helped develop the DreamChaser, a NASA sponsored space plane capable of more than 20,000km/h - significantly faster speeds than Reg is chasing.
“That the engineering and modelling shows it's achievable is probably the biggest contribution that we've been able to give him,” explained the professor over Zoom.
As well as remote modelling, Feir has made two trips to New Zealand to help with the project.
Have an adventure
Reg says the passionate volunteers are the real fuel of this attempt.
“I couldn't do it without those people who want to have an adventure, to test themselves, to better themselves and we provide the platform.”
He’s also provided the funds and, while tight-lipped on the total cost, it’s in the millions. He jokes that he’s spent his children’s inheritance on the quest but he’s probably not wrong, even selling the family home to move into his shed.
There’s been a number of false starts. Covid shut things down and then delayed crucial mechanical parts for months afterwards. Then, last year, Reg was all packed up and ready to go only for someone to suggest he should test the tyres for safety.
So his team built a wheel spinner on the back of a decommissioned 4WD van using rusted pieces of metal from around his yard. It was unorthodox but it worked, using lasers to measure the change in tyre shape and temperature. They put a tyre they were planning to use on the machine and cranked it up to 800km/h.
It blew up.
“We would have gone there and had an accident. I wouldn't be here now. If we hadn't checked the tyres, I wouldn't be here.”
Speed chasing is a dangerous sport. In August, veteran land speed racer Chris Raschke was killed during a record attempt at Bonneville when the 60-year-old lost control of his streamliner Speed Demon 3.
Reg hopes it’s a reminder for everyone in his team to get things right, especially if they want the “old bugger to come back in a car in one piece”.
If he pulls it off, the 78-year-old will become not just the fastest Kiwi, but the fastest driver of a piston powered car - covering 400 metres, or the equivalent of a lap of an athletics track, in under two seconds.
Reg arrived in Bolivia this week and he’s still chasing some permits from Bolivian authorities. With all the obstacles he's faced, Reg says he’s come close to giving up over the years. But then he's reminded why he’s doing it all.
“If we stop then are we ever going to put the Kiwi can-do dream in front of people again? No.
"Do I get my fun out of going on holiday? Nah. Do I get my fun out of achieving something? Shit yeah."
The official attempt is planned for October.
Reg's bid to break the 800km/h mark - watch on TVNZ+
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