LAND SPEED RECORD.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXIV, Issue 955, 27 December 1933, Page 11

LAND SPEED RECORD.

Sensations of a Racing Driver. (Special to the ** Star.”) LONDON, November 7. Sir Malcolm Campbell, who holds the i world's land speed record of 272.108 I miles per hour, hopes to improve on j this. His present idea is to make the . attempt next August in America. ; At the Authors' Club last night he j said that his great ambition was to ! achieve a speed of five miles a minute, jor three hundred miles an hour. To ! do this he must reduce his present time lor the mile by 1.23. seconds. He recalled that on the occasion when he set up his record at Daytona the beach was in so bad a condition that he had serious wheel spin. According to his engine revolutions he ought to have been going at 325 miles per hour and was bitterly disappointed when he learned that iiis speed had worked out at 272 miles. At one time tyres w-ere the great difficulty-, but on this score, he remarked, he had now no fears. Tyres have been tested to stand well over 300 miles an hour. Sir Malcolm attempted to give some idea of what the feelings of the driver are when attempting to break one of these records. " Like a Projectile.” “It is like being catapulted through the air like a projectile.” Then after a moment’s reflection he added; ‘‘Because, you know, we are beginning to shift these days. “ There is not much time for the visualisation of your feelings—you are so engrossed on your engine revolutions, on keeping the car straight, and on heaps of other matters. Thousands of things are crammed into a brief space of time, so that it is only after a period that you realise your sensations. “ On the last occasion it felt dangerous, because the car would not go straight, owing to the nature of the beach. “ There is no vibration, but a tremendous feeling of power. The utmost concentration i;t required, otherwise you w-ould be off the course. At Daytona the course is 60ft wide. You take the centre, with 30ft on either side. If you lost control for one-fifth of a second you would be off the course. “ Some people think that the driver is doped or half-tight. Personally, I never touch anything either before or after an attempt. I have also heard it said that the steering is locked. If it were you would not get far. “ For months before the attempt one’s last thoughts on turning out the light at night are about the car. One’s first thoughts in the morning are about the car. Fortunately I never dream about it. For two months before, one’s subconscious mind is on it. Work of Many Months. “ Imagine the feelings the night before the attempt. If you let yourself dwell on it you would never get there. You just push it right from your mind. “As you get into your car you realise that the work of months rests on the next minute or two.” Sir Malcolm spoke of motor racing as a “ hobby very dear to me.” His first license goes back to 1903. and as he was not then old enough or rich enough to own new cars, he had those c<f the 1899 and 1900 vintage. His first competition was in 1906. He recalled in succession his various attempts on the land speed record from his first effort in a car with an engine of 350 horse-power right down to his last successful attempt in his Blue Bird with its engine developing 2650 horsepower. The Desert—and the Rain. He related his experiences in trying to find a suitable spot for racing in an African desert. He heard of one which was reported to be quite close to civilisation, flat as a billiards table, and with natives available at a nearby farm. “We had at one time 600 fellows working to clear the site,” he said. “ The nearest farm was sixty-five miles away.” When the course was nearly finished the aeroplane in which he was travelling one day hit the only tree there was for miles, and as a result his nose was badly cut. While he was lying ill in Cape Town he received news that all the work on the course that had taken so long had been undone in a night. The irony was that in that particular region there had been no rain for twenty years. Just as the course was nearly finished there were torrential downpours which destroyed the course. Some Early Experiences. Sir Charles Igglesden, who presided, mentioned that in 1899 he achieved a speed of twenty-three miles an hour. “We pioneers were reckless devils of ; the road,” he said. He spoke of an occasion at a country . house when a member of the party had j a car of which he was very proud. They all assembled to see him ride. Round and round the carriage drive went the motorist, calling out to them that he could not stop. So they w-ent into tea and left the man circling the drive until he ran out of petrol. This story was promptly capped by Sir Malcolm Campbell with one for the truth of which he vouched. He had actually seen the incident. “ A fellow went up for his first solo flight, having been instructed to circle the aerodrome and then to land. He flew round and nervously attempted to land. At the last moment he thought better of it and rose. He repeated this five or six times, each time rising higher and higher. At last, giving up all hope of making a landing himself, he left the aeroplane to itself, knowing that it was a very safe type. It actually made a perfect landing—in a churchyard.”

The task of refilling the gear-box ] with lubricant is sometimes irksome i because of the heavy nature of the oil | used and its refusal to pour steadily, i But if the engine is allowed to idle in ! neutral while the gear-box is being replenished, the work will be simplified, | as the suction effect of the revolving j gears will help to draw the thick lubricant into the housing.