A Brief History Of Early Land Speed Record Cars

The ground speed record (or absolute ground speed record ) is the highest speed achieved by a person using a wheeled vehicle that moves while in contact with the ground.

The specific body for the validation and control of the brand is none. In practice, it is regulated by the standards of Category C ("Special Vehicles"), made official by regional or national organizations under the auspices of the International Automobile Federation. A brief history of early land speed record cars, The ground speed record is normalized as speed over a fixed-length course, averaged over two races (generally referred to as "passes"). The two routes must be traveled in opposite directions within a maximum period of one hour, and a new mark must exceed the previous one by at least one percent to be validated. There are numerous other categories of car registrations; and the Motorcycle speed records belong to a different class.

History

The first car speed governor was the Automobile Club de France, which proclaimed arbiter of registration records to 1902.

Different clubs adopted different rules, and the same world records were not always recognized until 1924, when the International Association of Recognized Automobile Clubs introduced new unified controls: two passes in opposite directions (to compensate for wind effects) averaged; a maximum of 30 minutes (this period was later extended) between the two races. Average slope of the route not greater than 1 percent; timing with a precision of 0.01 seconds; and cars have to use the traction of their wheels to propel themselves. Six national or regional automobile clubs (like AAAand the SCTA of Southern California) had to become members of the international association to ensure their records were recognized. This international association became the FIA ​​in 1947. The controversy arose in 1963: the Spirit of America record was not recognized by the FIA ​​because it was a three-wheeled vehicle (leading to the International Motorcycle Federation to certify it as a registration of a three-wheeled motorcycle once it was rejected by the FIA) and without wheel drive. Soon after, the FIA ​​introduced a special category for traction-wheel vehicles.  No absolute registration holder since then has been a vehicle of the latter type.

Until 1935, world land speed records were mainly set on beaches or in deserts, until the Bonneville Salt Flats in the United States became the chosen location.

Spanning more than 30,000 acres (260 km2) near the Utah-Nevada border, the Salar de Bonneville is an arid landscape made up of thick, crunchy saline soils - which look like a blanket of snow - and host to almost all records set, up to 1970.

The current land speed record for a car was set in the Black Rock Desert in the US in the late 1990s and remains intact more than 20 years later.

Land Speed Record Cars

Womens:

In 1906 Dorothy Levitt broke the world record for female speed, traveling the kilometer at an average speed of 91 mph (146.25 km / h), receiving the nickname of the "Fastest Girl on Earth". He drove a Napier with a 100 hp (74.6 kW) six-cylinder engine, developing the K5, in a speed test conducted in Blackpool .  9 October November A later mark was achieved by Lee Breedlove (wife of Craig Breedlove ), who piloted the Spirit of America-Sonic one of her husband at a speed of 308.506 mph (496.492 km / h) in 1965, which makes her fastest woman alive as of 1974. According to writer Rachel Kushner, Craig Breedlove had spoken to Lee so that his record attempt would prevent one of her husband's competitors from making a record attempt, thus monopolizing the test circuit on the lake's salt bed.

The female speed record on land is still held by Kitty O'Neil , a stuntman who in 1976 drove a jet vehicle called the SMI Motivator 14 reaching a mark of 512,710 mph (825,127 km / h) in the Alvord Desert. During his stunt career, he had met Bill Fredrick, a special effects and high-speed vehicle design technician, who built the Motivator. A $ 20,000 contract provided O'Neil with the ability to drive the car in an attempt to exclusively break the female record: Kitty O'Neil was contractually obligated not to attempt to break the absolute speed record, so the film director and specialistHal Needham could try it with the same vehicle.

Mens:

Since the 1960s there have been attempts to break the speed record for land vehicles, even exceeding the speed of sound.

They are aerodynamic, they are powered by jet engines from airplanes and carry the pilot inside.

 

Wingfoot Express (1964)

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He was proclaimed king of land vehicles by reaching 664.7 km / h powered by a Westinghouse J46 reactor. Its pilot Tom Green was one of the project engineers and had never exceeded 210 km / h. However, a last minute injury to the hand of the chosen pilot forced him to take control of the Wingfoot Express.

 

Green Monster Land Speed ​​Record Car (1964)

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This vehicle broke the speed record three times, between 1964 and 1965, reaching 698, 863 and 927 km / h. It was powered by a General Electric J79 reactor that had once belonged to an F-104 Starfighter. Interestingly, its creator, racing driver Art Fons, bought it from a junkyard for $ 600 and repaired it himself.

 

Spirit of America Sonic 1 (1965)

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Powered by one of the GE J79 jet engines from the F-4 Phantom II fighter, it was capable of reaching 966.574 km / h on November 15, 1965. Today this vehicle rests in the hall of fame at the Indianapolis Circuit.

Blue Flame (1970)

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Built by the North American company Reaction Dynamics, in addition to its proportions, this vehicle drew attention for the fuel it used. It consisted of high-concentration hydrogen peroxide and liquefied natural gas (LNG), pressurized with helium. With Gary Gabelich at the wheel he managed to become the fastest land vehicle, in the Bonneville desert (USA) reaching 1,014.511 km / h of maximum speed.

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