Other Speed Record Breakers Are Available!

[Renegadenemo]

As a slightly amusing aside to the BP story, I was talking to a member of the crew yesterday who told me the cockpit shipped so much water that the pilot often emerged looking like a 'drowned rat' to the point where they finally resorted to sealing him in with silicone before a run...

[malcolm uk]

According to magazine reports the British Pursuit team with Miss Alton Towers/K8 went to Coniston from the 8th November 1982. The weather prevented them from doing much running over the next two weeks or so. Any plans to remedy the faults with the craft over the winter did not happen after they had to leave Coniston. For whatever reasons Tony Fahey did not return to run again.

Donald had to contend with much the same conditions in 1966. But at least he could make on site improvements to K7 and get runs made that could prove the boat could plane with its Orpheus engine.

I would suggest that K8 did not have time to prove itself in the period available, but could not be described as a "failure". As they might say on Mythbreakers - "plausible", - but I would suggest that K8 was to mremain "unproven".

Later in the period that K8 had the RYA people present at Coniston, Chris Kaye brought Miss Britain IV - the diesel powered boat - to the lake and after ten days of waiting for the weather set a World record - using five runs - to reach an average of 124 mph (24/11). But that boat had been tested during the previous twelve months even on the sea near Poole beforehand (and crashed if my memory serves me right).

So what month may we wish to avoid trialling the rebuilt K7?

[polo]

Malcolm, Yes Chris did turn up in his boat and very cheekily asked to 'borrow' the lake when BP wasn't running.[I will post some photos later] He wasn't paying for the lake! He also used the measured kilo Tony Had paid for and then, and I stand to be corrected on this, became the first person to break a wwsr using laser measuring, all other records used a 'crocker' device.
To all the die hards who wear a shirt with BB's speed on it.. well you got it wrong. Tony had the kilo measured using lasers and not the geometry method and the distance was found to be 5m too long!!

I saw the surveyors scratching their heads for a very long time when they were doing it. I ferried them up and down the lake on a boat and it took them ages as they didn't appear to believe their own measurements.

[sheppane]

If the measured KM was 1005m rather than 1000m, then the speeds measured in 66/67 should be increased by 0.5% (the elapsed time taken to cover the distance is the same, but the distance is longer by 5m)

Therefore, if my calculations are correct, K7's first run speed of 297.6mph should in fact be 299.08mph...

Does that sound plausible?

A more intriguing prospect is that if the same measured distance was being used in the 50's, all DMC's Coniston records are out by between 1 and 1.5 mph?

[D.E.]

Noseying about on the web I found this:
waterspeedrecord
I have a hull that can be on the water in a few months. We have a proven outrigger design with current ihba and sdba et records as well as the fastest propeller driven pass @ 270.2mph. Set up with a gas turbine and twin prop gearbox this hull will run for both records,(propeller and outright). Currently seaking sponsor $. we do not need to design engineer and test as we have a proven safety record with 4+ years on the track passes @ 250+mph. I have current sponsors for most components but need funding for the record. I am a 1 man garage operation that has an actual hull that can be seen at http://www.ellisonraceconcepts.com Thanks, Dan

I didn't reply on the site and I couldn't access the photos. Site looks impressive.
I don't know if anyone has told Dan that the record is done over a kilo or mile, yet and that is a totally different prospect to driving a 1/4 mile flat out.
My info was that Craig Breedlove's boat was designed on the 'sprint' boat technology and we know what unfortunately happened there.

I am well aware it is a kilo. The kilo hull is different than the drag hull but share some of the same features. Longer, wider, and different front sponsons, (possibly) a rear shoe and no rear sponsons. Although ready to finish,this project may sit idle until more $$ and interest. I am currently working on a smaller version for an attempt at 200mph with a grean outboard. This hull is also ready to build with a few sponsor $$.

[malcolm uk]

Welcome to the BBP forum Dan.

The historical point was being made by Polo that Craig Arfons (not Breedlove) chose to modify a drag boat design and added a jet which did not achieve a record.

200mph with an outboard would certainly make its mark in the WWSR world and could open the wallets to an outright bid. Good Luck.

[D.E.]

Welcome to the BBP forum Dan.

The historical point was being made by Polo that Craig Arfons (not Breedlove) chose to modify a drag boat design and added a jet which did not achieve a record.

200mph with an outboard would certainly make its mark in the WWSR world and could open the wallets to an outright bid. Good Luck.

My design is an outrigger non air trapping hull. We have 5 yrs of data with 100+ runs 220to270mph with 3 different teams. We also have the best safety record in topfuel with the only hull design never to crash despite multipal parts failers such as broken proppellers, rudders, struts,ect. Safety and a forgiving hull at speeds in excess of 250 was my goal. I will build and drive the hull for any record attempts in the future, Thanks for allowing me to participate in this site, Dan Ellison

[Mike Bull]

You're very welcome, Dan.

[klingon]

Aye well -its Green and whining across the Bonneville flats!-thank God for Scottish nutters!-world would be a dull place without us!-latest speed attempt by a bunch of mad sweaty socks!

[malcolm uk]

A well proven US chassis (it has appeared on Wendover postcards since 1998) which became available last year. Licencing runs and a few technical problems have given the FoS team valuable information to come back to the salt in 2011 or 2012 to gain the 1 litre (61 cu in) record. It is renumbered 1133 and the results of runs are on the SCTA website for Speedweek 2010.