I really don't know what to say when one of the legends dies of old age.
Breedlove, Shelby, Mickey, Roth... there are many others but I just want to set the context of what I mean, those few guys were legends IN their own life!
Not many ever achieve half the fame, cult celebrity, or whatever it is that these guys have.
Neil Armstrong, John Glenn, John Wayne... there are probably only a hundred or so in my life that have made their mark like this. Evel Knievel and Craig Breedlove were effing hero worshipped by young guys like me in the 70s.
What the hell can I articulate in a head line, that conveys the respect for their accomplishments? Some gutted it out, like Breedlove, in a car they made in the garage. Some, like Knievel, rode the wave, hyped their reputation, dared again and again to try for a mark just a bit past what they'd already risked their life for, and often failed.
But they all went into the history books. None were forgotten until their obit was splashed in the news.
Not only did Breedlove hit the 500 and 600, he pushed every other wanna be to try for the next number, the next record, and then he went and did the AMX records, and kept kids entertained in the magazines like Hot Rod and Car Craft. He was one of the few to cause the country to wonder, what IS the highest speed that can be conquered at Bonneville? And then the others came to race on the salt. Arfons, Thompson, etc.
I am just a car guy, those guys were legends, and when we learn they've died of old age, what the hell can I say to show respect, and a bit of appreciation for all the motivation and good will they created for so many car guys?
I went with what another guy I respect immensely would probably say, in what I think was the way Walter Cronkite used to speak, when I was watching the CBS evening news regularly, impressed by what a straight shooter and outstanding anchorman Cronkite was, such a grandpa like guy who told you the news, and ended the show with "and that's the way it is"
So, Craig Breedlove, first to 500 and 600 mph at Bonneville, died on April 4, 2023, at the age of 86.
Nice of you to commemorate this. (I think that's the right word). Cannot imagine what 500 and 600mph felt like in those vehicles. Quite a guy.
ReplyDeletethank you, I really don't know what to say when one of the legends dies of old age.
DeleteBreedlove, Shelby, Mickey, Roth... there are many others but I just want to set the context of what I mean, those few guys that were legends IN their own life! Not many ever achieve half the fame, cult celebrity, or whatever it is that these guys have. Neil Armstrong, John Glenn, John Wayne... there are probably only a hundred or so in my life that have made their mark like this. Evel Knievel and Craig Breedlove were effing hero worshipped by young guys like me in the 70s. What the hell can I articulate in a head line, that conveys the respect for their accomplishments? Some gutted it out, like Breedlove, in a car they made in the garage. Some, like Knievel, rode the wave, hyped their reputation, dared again and again to try for a mark just a bit past what they'd already risked their life for, and often failed.
But they all went into the history books. None were forgotten until their obit was splashed in the news.
Not only did Breedlove hit the 500 and 600, he pushed every other wanna be to try for the next number, the next record, and then he went and did the AMX records, and kept kids entertained in the magazines like Hot Rod and Car Craft. He was one of the few to cause the country to wonder, what IS the highest speed that can be conquered at Bonneville? And then the others came to race on the salt. Arfons, Thompson, etc.
I am just a car guy, those guys were just legends, and when we learn they've died of old age, what the hell can I say to show respect, and a bit of appreciation for all the motivation and good will they created for so many car guys?
I went with what another guy I respect immensely would probably say, in what I think was the way Walter Cronkite used to speak, when I was watching the CBS evening news regularly, impressed by what a straight shooter and outstanding anchorman Cronkite was, such a grandpa like guy who told you the news, and ended the show with 'and that's the way it is"