SPEED KINGS.

Gisborne Times, Volume LXVIII, Issue 10734, 3 November 1928, Page 11

SPEED KINGS.

RACING MOTORISTS DEFENDED.

RECORDS SIMPLY THEORY TESTS.

(By Sir Charles G. Wakefield, Bart., C.R.E.. in “John o’ London’® I.U>\ .

1 do not know whether it is necessary to defend speed itself. Like many other attributes of modern life, it is to be judged by attendant circumstances!' Although the Home Secretary in a recent speech was .more than tolerant-in his attitude towards. speed in motoring,. I imagine that liis official action in. the ease of embryo Campbells and Segraves who might attempt to dash along Piccadilly at untold miles per hour would still be-severe—and rightly so. Nevertheless. Sir William Joynson-Hicks was emphatic in; his appreciation or the services of high-speed motoring as a form of practical research. That aspect of racing motoring, however, I will deal with in a moment. Let me first of , all try and meet a type of criticism that is not by any means uncommon. There are some who would seem to decry all attempts to-test the possibilities of mechanic-ally-achieved speed whether on land or.sea or in the air. They sav that such adventures -should he forbidden —although who is to forbid them it is rather difficult to see. It is only too evident that life may he lost in these gallant endeavors, and it would be foolish to shirk the fact that grave risks are run. Both in motoring and aviation there lias been a rapid development in the matter of speed, and speeds that were thought tu be impossible a year or two ugo

are now actually achieved. The number of fatal attempts have been either reckless or impracticable. •Fatal accidents in motor racing have occurred, but in racing tlio accidents have. been , mainly the result of cpllisions or of endeavors to avoid collisions rather than the effect'of speed as such. In individual speed efforts the chief factors of risk found in racing are eliminated. The point at issue is really one of deep-rooted principle. If we are to say that this or that risk shall not be taken by persons who are willing and indeed anxious to put themselves to the test, what becomes of the spirit of adventure? If no one is to try to do anything that is not safe and strictly according to precedent, what becomes of the idea of progress? The question cannot be confined to high speed in motoring and it is surely historically true that many of the great achievements which have opened up new worlds and revealed new truths would have been impossible in a world rigidly bound by the principle of ‘safety first-.”. This would be a poorer and a narrower sphere if the great heroes of exploration and scientific experiments Pad been prevented from venturing into the unknown. It is necessary to be just to the memory of such brave men as Mr. Parry Thomas and Lieutenant Iviukead. and, more recentlv still. Mr. Frank Lockhart, who are ‘indubitably to be classed as heroes in the grand manner, whose memories will rightly.be honored in our national Halls of Fame.

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Those who know something of. the men who have secured these remark-: able triumphs over time and space can smile at the idea that there is anything ol : mere Ilupert-like recklessness about them or their achievements. They itake risks, maybe, but no chances. They know from long experience and careful study what special dangers attach to ’ these • phenomenal speeds, and they have no intention of being taken by surprise. In the design and manufacture of tlieiijv machines a reasonable margin of safety is always kfept well in view, and every factor as regards flip materials employed, the tract to ho used in the attempt, gradients,/consistency direction, and force of wind and. so oh, is thoroughly considered. The, victory that the world’.s speed kings' win are- the results of extraordinary'' care and thoroughness m preparation, calculations to the last degree of exactitude, and the development of a marvellous technique oi driving.' - Recklessness is generally the result of ignorance, and is displayed by the tyro motorist (often quite unconsciously), never by .the crack racing driver in pursuit of records. . 6 ' . , , The garage of Captain Malcolm Campbell's house in Surrey is indicative of the man. It is a remarkably well-equipped workshop, and even to theJ v non-expert eye it iis- crystcil-cleai

that he is a keen and tireless experimenter, and that every aspect of the technical planning , and equipment of liis high-speed cars lias .been .the'subject of much thought and constant practical research. In building his famous Blue Byrd car he had) the cooperation of expeirtls , in'the selection of every single part of. 1 the machine. In the course of each of his successive speed records he devised and employed new ideas so that it might be said t-liat each achievement was made possible because Captain Campbell profited by lessons learned as a result of. the previous attempt. Hie late. Mr. J. G. Parry Thomas was also a practical motor-engineer, and his name as a designer of genius became of world-wide fame through the original and highly efficient- car which bore his name. It'is not too much to say that such men as these “race” not at all. They are scientists. They try. out on track and road the results of theories and ideas gleaned from ceaseless workshop experiments. Hie filial value of their work is reflected in' the steady improvement of normal engine design. ' We are fortunately able to ratify our judgment of these brave and skilful, men. in the ease of Major 11. 0. D. Segrave, whose book, “The Lure of Speed,’? recently published, is an authoritative summary of the aims

and ideals of the speed kings of motoring. He states that “Great Britain stands supreme in the production, of the light, economical form of touring ear rated roughly at from 8 to 12 horse-power,” and adds that “this position lias been obtained solely because of the long series of racing events which have been promoted for light cars.” “Bv virtue of racing,” he says again, “designers have learned liow to get all the power they require from an engine of t-lPs size (“the typical 11.9 h.p. engine”) without iu any way sacrificing the quality of reliability.” Here are some of fbc practical results of years of speed tests—the simultaneous reduction of weight and increase of power (obviously the very foundation of modern motoring); the wonderful power of acceleration in the engine of today ; aluminium pistons; improvements in steel-production, as evidenced in the longer lives of valves today ; four-wheel brakes ; and, .finally, the supercharger, which Major Segrave prophesies will inevitably be adapted to ordinary touring car design.

These are some or the practical improvements which we owe almost entirely to racing experience, and for fuller information oil these and other points I can only, refer to the reader Major Segrave’s extraordinarily interesting book. Incidentally, we gam from it an enormous respect for the character of the writer and of his many brilliant predecessors and compeers. The story of liis long appren-

ticeslUp in the pursuit of speed is a sufficient answer to any who imagine that the speed kings of motoring are merely petrol jockeys. His wonderful records have been the fruits or arduous labors and have only been made possible - by . unusual determination and persistence. As I write, it is clear that wei are not yet at the end of the long senes of achievements in the domain of speed. It is reported that the ie w cords of Major Segrave and Captain Campbell have been capped by an American driver, and the world learns that both the English champions intend 'to' enter the lists again in'order to win hack the record for Great Britain. What the ultimate limit to speed on land may be no one can say, but the attainment of that unknown x. miles per hour is a very practical and logical idea towards which every, kind of motoring ability will continue : to press for some considerable' 'time to come. These further efforts. will doubtless yield other practical results of value to the motor engineer, which will in due course affect the design of the ordinary touring car of to-morrow. It is therefore only just to pay a final tribute to all the speed pioneers of the past and. to our present-day champions, through whose endeavors the path of the private motorist has been made both smooth and safe.