Chasing 550
THE CMR TEAM IS GEARING UP FOR ITS BIGGEST CHALLENGE TO DATE: AN ATTEMPT TO BECOME THE FASTEST WHEELDRIVEN, PISTON-POWERED CAR ON THE PLANET, AND WE’LL BE FOLLOWING THIS KIWI TEAM AS THEY PUSH THE BIG BLOCK CHEV WELL OUTSIDE ITS COMFORT ZONE WORDS: MARCUS GIBSON PHOTOS: CMR t the age of 75, you could say Reg Cook has achieved a ton in his lifetime; his south Auckland race shop is littered with memorabilia from past championships, engine programmes, and recordsetting runs. While some might think he’d be at the age of winding down his programme, or aspirations, nothing could be further from the truth. For Reg and his Cook Motor Racing (CMR) team, there is one big challenge they are currently throwing all their power, energy, and resources towards: building a streamliner capable of running over 550mph (885kph) to claim
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Auto Channel Issue #38 August 2021
the world record for a wheel-driven, piston-powered car. To further complicate the situation, this is for an FIA record, which is different to a Bonneville (Southern California Timing Association [SCTA]) record — but more on the differences later. Land-speed racing is nothing new to Reg and the CMR team; they have been completing at Bonneville for the past decade — which you could say has been an apprenticeship leading up to this ultimate goal — each year building the team’s skills and knowledge in what is the most demanding motorsport on the planet. First it was with
a Nissan NX coupé, then with the first streamliner, ‘Wairua 1’; both now hold multiple SCTA records. They would have been on the water right now, headed back for another crack, had it not been for current travel restrictions. However, the silver lining is that it meant Reg could focus on the ‘Wairua 2’ programme, with the goal of making an attempt in only a couple of years. The location, although not set in stone, will most likely be in Bolivia. To give you a sense of the scale of this operation, Reg is gearing up to take a 70-strong team with him.
