I love that smell; Dirt, oil, and oxidizing fuel. I instantly remember working on my first project car. If this was the World of Speed Museum’s device for pulling me in… Touché. The nostalgia quickly found the recesses of my mind as I found myself staring down the needlepoint barrel of a dragster. A clearly posted sign provided a brief synopsis of the vehicles glory days and accomplishments. In all honesty, I have never been interested in drag racing. However, being only a few inches away from a massive V8 and a toothy drive belt brought a new interest.
The World of Speed is located in Wilsonville, Oregon. It is massive and looks more like a private jet hanger, than a museum. The high ceilings, polished concrete floor, and row after row of machines will suck in any gear-head. The first row offers a lot of history directly tied to the state of Oregon. Here I found one-off cars found nowhere else in the world. Cars built by farmers from the ground up. Men anxious to embrace the new found ability for the speed and rumble that only the accelerator pedal can offer. Some of these creations topping out at over 100 mph.
The subsequent rows quickly moved from Franken-cars to corporate sponsorship. Pace cars, land-speed hopefuls, and even super charged go-carts are sticker covered and their stories on display. Some of the stories boast of greatness while others show defeat from less than .2 seconds. Scars, wrecked bodies, and perfectly polished headlight stickers are posed and waiting for their next driver.
You aren’t allowed to sit in or drive these museum pieces. That doesn’t mean that the World of Speed wants you to miss out on the experience. The next corner provides you with the exact experience you might be seeking. Three simulators are waiting to introduce you to a tangible experience of driving at Formula, Indy, or NASCAR speeds. The cockpits dimensions are exact and three screens surround you with the high-speed simulation. There aren’t fans in the stands, but don’t allow that to stop you from this white knuckle experience.
My visit can be summed up as this. A walk through fuel powered history. Roadsters with a top speed of 39 MPH, pristine classics, re-purposed war machines, side-winding motorcycles, and everything in-between are lined up and waiting. This impressive collection will keep you entertained and make you want to get back to and under your own project.