21 replies to this topic

[27neil]

Does anyone know of any websites detailing the history of the Land Speed Record, with details of drivers and cars concerned?

[Vitesse2]

Darren Galpin's working on it:

http://www.thegaffer...ort/lsr/lsr.php

Some links at the bottom of the page.

[eldridge]

This is quite a good site.

http://www.peterrenn....net/l.s.r.html

But this site is very interesting.

http://www.landracing.com

[dolomite]

There's a bit of potted history on the ThrustSSC site

http://www.thrustssc...ry/history.html

[Magee]

Here's a website showing the Cooper's engaged in speed records in the US and Europe in the 50's and 60's. You'll see my former car in this bunch.
http://www.ugofadini...operstory2.html

[Alexey Rogachev]

Does anyone know exactly when the 250-cc class was included into the FIA land speed record cars classification? In an old book on motor racing in the USSR which I got recently there is a following phrase:

"From May 1, 1952 the new cars classification by cylinders volume has been introduced; it agrees with the international classification in general, except for the nationally added 250-cc class."

The book was published in 1954, so there was still no 250-cc class in the international classification at that moment. The oldest records in this class being on the present-day FIA records list date as far back as 1957. Thus we have the three-year interval but the exact moment is unknown to me.

Edited by Alexey Rogachev, 03 April 2011 - 06:56.

[David McKinney]

I'm pretty sure you'll find International Class J (up to 250cc) dates from much earlier - 1930s or perhaps even 1920s

[tbolt]

I have a list of cars and drivers on my site Visit My Website if anyone can fill in some of the blanks please let me know.
I also have a "where are they now" page, again if you have any information contact me through the site.
Just tried link on the first post for thegaffer.com and get a 404 not found is the link correct.

[f1steveuk]

Not a website, and not self promotion (honest!!).

In the back of Leap Into Legend, there is a list of outright land speed cars (and water speed record boats) which gives details of vehicle power, weight, designers, constructors etc etc if that is of any help.

Can I ask what it's for, as I do have a copy of the manuscript on my laptop and may be able to send the list I have.

[Tim Murray]

Just tried link on the first post for thegaffer.com and get a 404 not found is the link correct.

I think this is where it now lives:

http://www.dlg.speed...ve/lsr/lsr.html

[David McKinney]

I have a list of cars and drivers on my site Visit My Website if anyone can fill in some of the blanks please let me know.

A good start, but you've got a long way to go if you want to include national records, in all the classes
In the meantime, you might care to correct the spellings of Hornsted, Segrave and Carroll Shelby

[tbolt]

A good start, but you've got a long way to go if you want to include national records, in all the classes
In the meantime, you might care to correct the spellings of Hornsted, Segrave and Carroll Shelby

Thanks for pointing that out, as for the national records I am only adding cars that I know have had a model made, that narrows it down a bit.

[Vitesse2]

A good start, but you've got a long way to go if you want to include national records, in all the classes
In the meantime, you might care to correct the spellings of Hornsted, Segrave and Carroll Shelby

... and Duesenberg

[Vitesse2]

I'm pretty sure you'll find International Class J (up to 250cc) dates from much earlier - 1930s or perhaps even 1920s

International Class J was for cars up to 350cc - pre-war at least. At the beginning of 1939 the flying mile and kilometre records still stood to Gush's Vitesse and the standing equivalents to Walters' Jappic, indicating it probably wasn't that competitive a class. I think those might even have been the records Lurani went for with Nibbio 2 in 1955?

[Alexey Rogachev]

I'm pretty sure you'll find International Class J (up to 250cc) dates from much earlier - 1930s or perhaps even 1920s

Thank you David but Richard is right, as the 250-cc international class is called Class K...

[David McKinney]

...only one out

I knew Class I was 500, but was forgetting about a 350 between that and the 250s

That's my excuse, anyway

[Alexey Rogachev]

So the issue still remains open

[David McKinney]

Yes, sorry it does, Alexey

Somewhere I've got the 1931 AIACR yearboook, which should have the answer. If you can tell me where I've filed it...

Boddy's Brooklands book mentions international Class J records in 1933 (and possibly before) but I couldn't find any reference to Class K

[Vitesse2]

Motor Sport's annual round-up of speed records in the January 1939 issue makes no mention of Class K, which seems to have come under sustained assault by various Italians with Moto Guzzi powered machines from the late 50s: Lurani with Nibbio 2 (again), Cavanna's Cobra and Campanella's Colibri. I suspect that Alexey's date of 1957 may well be when the class was established.

http://books.google....RIw..."&f=false

[Geoff Smedley]

Does anyone know of any websites detailing the history of the Land Speed Record, with details of drivers and cars concerned?

All information required go to: chairman@speedrecordsclub.com its all there....Smed.

[Alexey Rogachev]

Motor Sport's annual round-up of speed records in the January 1939 issue makes no mention of Class K, which seems to have come under sustained assault by various Italians with Moto Guzzi powered machines from the late 50s: Lurani with Nibbio 2 (again), Cavanna's Cobra and Campanella's Colibri. I suspect that Alexey's date of 1957 may well be when the class was established.

Perhaps Eduard Lorent with his Kharkov L2 and Alexey Ambrosenkov with the Zvezda 6 also played their role in it.

[Alexey Rogachev]

I'm now ordering my data on the history of the land speed records in the USSR for the purpose of giving a massive update to my web site (see the full tables from 1946 to 1984 soon  ). This means also matching them with the history of the international records using some documents downloaded from FIA web page (http://www.fia.com/l...record-archives). Everything seems to be all right and matching perfectly well... except the only episode. As it is known, in 1956 Jean Hébert on the Renault Étoile Filante established an international record for turbine-powered cars (500-1000 kg) on 1-km flying start distance - 306.9 km/h. Later, in 1963, Soviet driver Ilya Tikhomirov on the Pioner 2 reached in the same class and on the same distance 310.9 km/h. This is more than by 1 percent faster and would have been confirmed by FIA as a new international record, since the record runs on Lake Baskunchak were held strictly according to the international rules, and many other results by Tikhomirov and Lorent in 1960-1963 got an international status. However, the official record list published by FIA in October 1964 (http://www.fia.com/f...?token=b5cfyY6g) includes Hébert's record. I looked through some old Soviet magazines but found only mentionings that the speed of 310.9 km/h reached by Tikhomirov had been registered as a new national record, not an international one. Neither details nor explanations were given, so I'm at my wit's end. Is there anyone to know the history of land speed records enough to explain me the reason of this discrepancy and thus clarify the matter? Being slightly a perfectionist, I hate leaving something about my historic research wrong or unfinished, even if it's a trifle 

Edited by Alexey Rogachev, 16 June 2017 - 17:40.