If Steve Fossett was scouting a place to set the land speed record, what was he doing flying low in the mountains?

Seems fishy to me, but then, what do I know. I suppose he could be in a plane that had to fly low over mountains and he needed to get over them to scout out someplace big and flat. But why couldn’t he use the Bonneville Salt Flats like everyone else? Something doesn’t smell right to me. You?