Deteriorating landscape casts doubt on racing at Salt Flats

Land speed racers from around the world have long flocked to the Salt Flats near the Utah-Nevada border, whose 30,000 acres offer a perfect testing ground for their specialized cars and motorcycles. For the last couple of years, however, most of the races have been canceled due to poor conditions. The sturdy salt crust that racers rely on is deteriorating, and though the precise cause remains unknown, the changes have revealedThe Bonneville Salt Flats formed roughly 12,000 years ago in the waning days of the last ice age. The massive lake covering central Utah began drying up, leaving behind a vast expanse of salt. By the early 1900s, speed enthusiasts had begun testing their cars on the hard wide-open surface, and over the years, faster cars were built and new records set. the surprising fragility of the landscape — and raised questions over whether or not it can be saved...more