Stan Barrett

Born	June 26, 1943 (1943-06-26) (age 66)

Stan Barrett (born June 26, 1943) is a Hollywood stuntman, stunt coordinator and actor. His biggest act was however outside the movie world. On the 17th December 1979, he attempted to break the Land Speed Record, and the sound barrier in the Budweiser Rocket rocket powered three-wheel vehicle. His calculated speed was 739.666 miles per hour, (Mach 1.01), which would have made Barrett the first man to break the sound barrier in a land vehicle. The attempt was surrounded by controversy and the speed was never officially recorded. Barrett also raced in 19 Winston Cup series races between 1980 and 1990, posting two top ten finishes.

Contents 1 Land Speed Record 2 NASCAR 3 Stuntman career 4 Family 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Land Speed Record

In an effort led by Hal Needham, another Hollywood stuntman, and sponsored by Budweiser, the Budweiser Rocket was built with the intention of being the first land vehicle to break the sound barrier. The 3-wheeler was powered by a hybrid liquid and solid-fuel rocket engine. The solid fuel booster engine essentially came from a Sidewinder missile.

At Rogers Dry Lake on Edwards AFB the vehicle, driven by Stan Barrett, made on the 17th December 1979, an attempt to break the sound barrier. The claimed speed of 739.666 mph, equalling Mach 1.01, was never officially recorded. The wide scepticism which surrounds the attempt, relates to the measuring method and that no independent authority was sanctioning the attempt. The lack of sonic boom during the attempt also suggests against the claim, as well as the lack of visible shockwave.

[edit] NASCAR

The publicity gained from the attempt, took Barrett to NASCAR. Between his movie commitments, Barrett found time to race in 19 Winston Cup series races, during the 1980s. Barrett posted two top ten finishes, running his last race in 1990.

In 2008, at age 65, he made a surprising return to stock car racing. His son Stanton Barrett running Chevrolet's in the second tier Nationwide series, invited Stan to run beside him in the SBM Motorsports team. After an abbortive attempt at Mexico City, Stan later qualified for the Montreal and Watkins Glen races. He was forced to retire in both of them.

[edit] Stuntman career

He has worked as a stuntman since the 1960s in motion pictures and television series [1]. He has been stunt doubling and stunt coordinating for many of Hollywood actors in films such as: When Time Ran Out..., and Smokey and the Bandit

[edit] Family

His son Stanton Barrett who is also a Hollywood stuntman, and also a racing driver. He is the godson of Paul Newman, and the grandson of Dave McCoy and Roma McCoy, the founders of Mammoth Mountain Ski Resort.[2]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Stan Barrett at the Internet Movie Database
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