Page 15 - the story of motoring

Mention must be made of two other great record breakers, George Eyston and John
Cobb. Their attempts on the land speed records thrilled the world. Their cars
- were streamlined and looked like something out of space. By 1947 they had pushed
the record up to 394mph.

Donald Campbell followed in his father's footsteps by building a 'Bluebird' car
. for an attempt on the world record. This advanced car cost £1 million to build
and a further million pounds to get the record.
The site' chosen was a dry salt
: lake in South Australia where it had not rained for seven years. Campbell then
began a spell of bad luck - it rained, there were technical problems and sponsors
lost interest. Finally, after a year of frustration the-Bluebird broke the rec-
ord at 403mph.

Bluebird 19-

The record jumped to a fantastic 526mph only three months after Campbell's effort.
Today
The new holder was Craig Breedlove in the jet powered 'Spirit of America'.
rocket cars compete for the record; they are simply missiles laid down on three
wheels. in 1980 the land speed record stood at 622mph, set by Gary Gabelich in
'Blue Flame'.

BLUE FLAME
' SPIRIT OF AMERICA'~,-L-. G. GABELICH 622mph
C. BREEDLOVE 1965

C. Breedlove 1963-196