
BRITT GRANNIS CLOCKS 167.1 MPH!
After his team set a record of 156.3 MPH at Bonneville on the 10th of September, 2012, Britt himself piloted his screaming yellow zonker 1969 Ghia to a phenomenal 167.1 MPH on 9-10 April 2016. Juan Cole, Britt's co-driver, officially turned 159.6 MPH in the same event.
Full disclosure: RetroRacing believed in Britt and passed along help to him out starting in 2010, before he became the celebrated, but modest land speed record star he is now. (also, Britt's name is Grannis, not Grinnis, as misspelled in the EMPI ad on the back page of the August 2016 edition of Hot VW's magazine)
THE MOJAVE MILE vs. BONNEVILLE
The Mojave Mile is a standing-start one-mile stand-on-it race for highest recorded top speed. The events are held with the sanction and cooperation of the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave California.. It is similar to Bonneville, but on pavement, not salt.. The track is actually a smooth, 12,500’ runway followed by nearly a mile in slow-down distance. It has sophisticated electronic timing equipment, a pro staff and mobile safety teams, water, power, even food.

Salt-blasted Ghia after qualifying, Bonneville 2012.
The Bonneville Salt Flats are just that, salt. And fairly flat. Whatever is available for maintenance of the cars or comfort of the crews and drivers must be carried out and carried home again. The campout is part of the Bonneville heritage. The big contention, of course, between the two sites is Mojave is paved and Bonneville is salt. Salt is less forgiving, has less traction. Harder to drive.
Any car has more of a chance at stable runs at Mojave, with the difference being is in how each site makes its runs. At Bonneville, depending on classes, a car will get at least a mile to build up speed, then is timed through a measured or "flying mile," and given another mile to slow down. The qualifying pass and the followup pass are averaged.
At Mojave, depending on class, you get either a one mile, or the mile and a half "Mojave Magnum" run. The cars launch off the line, the clock ticking as they do, and shoot through the timing traps at the end of a measured mile, and allowed to slow down before returning. It's that simple.
So, there is no direct comparison to these two top speed events.

Britt's Ghia with a prototype RetroRacing "ducktail," an aerodynamic device employed by Porsche in the early 1970's RSR's. The ducktail added stability without drag.

The official Bonneville timeslip from September 2012 for a hard won 159.6 MPH record.
FJC