The depth of the salt has been recorded at 6 feet (1.8 m) in many areas. The Bonneville Salt Flats are a 159 square mile (412 km²) salt flat in northwestern Utah. Additional marks and cones indicate the end of the track and the position of timing equipment on the measured mile.

The straightway is marked with a broad black line down its centre and has several measured mile sections after the second mile. In recent years, there has also been a 5 mile (8 km) long straightway for qualifying slower vehicles. Usually two tracks are prepared a 10 mile long straightway for speed trials and an oval or circular track for distance runs, which is typically between 10 and 12 miles (16 and 19 km) long depending on the condition of the salt surface. The speedway is marked out by the Utah State Highway Department at the start of each summer. The salt flats were first used for motor sports in 1912, but didn't become truly popular until the 1930s when the Ab Jenkins and Sir Malcolm Campbell competed to set land speed records. It is particularly noted as the venue for numerous land speed records. “They’re doing what they can with $1 million, which has not spread nearly far enough,” Handy said, noting that it was ultimately the job of the federal government, not Utah, to manage the land.Bonneville Speedway is an area of the Bonneville Salt Flats near Wendover, Utah, that is marked out for motor sports. Utah clawed back the majority of the funding after it got no matching federal funds.

Without hard evidence the salt laydown would restore the crust, the $45 million hasn't materialized but Stewart said in a statement that he “remains absolutely committed to finding science-based solutions' to save the crust. Rep Chris Stewart, who represents the area, assured Handy his office was working to secure the funds. Steve Handy, a Republican who spearheaded the effort, said the racers' lobbyists initially suggested the federal government would meet Utah’s investment with an additional $45 million, giving the program the $50 million that Sullivan and other racers say is needed to maintain the status quo. In 2019, when Utah lawmakers greenlit the initiative, they allocated $5 million, on the condition that the federal government would also provide funding, to return the briny water needed to preserve the salt crust.

Utah salt flats driftin