When getting elbow deep from the underside of a car, some wind up covered in dirt. Rob Zomber, however, generally has a coarse layer of salt. He picks it up from the dried alkaline lakebeds and salt flat race tracks.
Zomber, an American River College student, is a volunteer Southern California Timing Association safety tech inspector. He knows vintage cars and motorcycles as well as where to find the fastest ones, and that’s on the salt. Zomber compares the moment arriving on the salt during Speed Week to a spiritual experience.
“It’s hard not to feel emotional about it. It’s hallowed ground as far as hot-rodders are concerned,” said Zomber.
The salt flats are like working on hot snow. The reflecting sun hits “really awkward places you didn’t expect,” creating memorable sunburns. Zomber respects the holy salt. This is how he earned his place protecting people against it.
Zomber is tall and skinny. His leg can shake a table the same way a 450 mph blown glass streamliner shakes your body. Maybe that’s why his metabolic rate so high he can get half his body under aerodynamic chassis with ease. At 28 years young, Zomber is destined is to be an old timer. He is one of only two tech inspectors in their 20s that volunteer.
Bonneville Speed Week is the last form of true amateur racing. Unlike the Indy 500 or any NASCAR races, the first week of August about reaching top speeds, not how fast participants finish. They do so with “an absolute lack of ego.” More records are broken during speed week than anywhere else in the world. When previous records are shattered, it’s not just the team that gets excited – it’s a win for the entire Bonneville community.
Every rule is written in blood. Statistically speaking, “it’s amazing how many people go hundreds of miles per hour and don’t die,” said Zomber. This is why volunteers like Zomber do what they do.
“I make sure that they’re going to go out and be safe, or as safe as they can be,” said Zomber.
Zomber encourages everyone to come see at least SCTA event, come camp, watch fast cars and spend less than $50. El Mirage is only five hours south of Sacramento. Wendover, Utah, where Bonneville’s Speed Week is held annually, is a longer drive that’s worth it.
In the future zombie apocalypse, you can find Zomber riding in a big streamliner dubbed “Zomber Challenges Zombies” and listening to David Bowie’s “Space Oddity.” You can also stop by So Cal Speed Shop at 1715 Del Paso Boulevard in Sacramento and pick through their selection of literature or Zomber’s brain for more information.
