“WIZARD” SMITH

Hokitika Guardian, 27 January 1932, Page 6

“WIZARD” SMITH

MAKING THE FIRST RECORD. HOW THE CAR WENT. (By Telegraph —Per Press Association) NINETY MILK TEACH, Jan. 27. Hurtling along Ninety Mile Beach yesterday afternoon, Wizard Smath raised the world's ten mile speed by a substantial margin, beating March ant! s time by just on 30 miles an hour. Smith’s average speed was 161.8'! miles an hour, the average time lor the .two runs being 0 minutes 38.101 seconds. He did the first run in 3 min. 59.945.5ec5. and the second in 3min 18.858st'cs. Conditions were not of the best for the attempt as most of the beach was very wet and slow. There was only a slight westerly breeze, but visibility, especially on the wet sand, was not good. Although [smith did not favour driving in wet sand he decided .to make the ten mile attempt, but be stated afterwards he would not undertake a further speed attempt with the beach so welt.

The course was flagged on the shore side, a stretch af about 18 miles, unrt the car was towed to the northern end ready to run south. After a final inspection of the beach, (Smith climbed in to the sinali seat, (he engine was .started and with cries of ‘-g .if 1 hick’': ringing ill bis ears, inset out to beat Mart-hand's 137.2 miles an hour, in an incredibly short time he bad passed , the first track switch and was on the track prop-.r with bis foot hard down on the accelerator. The car screamed pa&t the centre post travelling near 200 miles an hour and hill): led on towards the last switch sending up huge showers of spray. The first run over, Smith travelled easily to a dump well down the beach where an inspection showed the rear tyres had been cut by toheroj sh ils. The damage was not sevu-e, but on an expert’s advice the- wheels were changed, and the car reloaded with petrol for the return trip, which wa.s soon commenced.

- . Flying past the track switches a second time, the engine was spluttering as it lie car vanished in a cloud of spray and smoke. The spluttering could he heard long after the Enterprise was ova of sight. That wa s not the fault of the engine, Smith explained later, but was due to (the fact that every now and then he was forced to slow down, to he found it difficult to see through the sand sprayed windscreen, and he added that he would not attempt further -records..on the beach.

One experience was enough he said, and his drenched oloi-.iies and sand bespattered face were a silent witness of that fact. He wa s more than satisfied •with the car's performance and expressed confidence that he could travel last -enough' do annex the record for tinflying mile. Everything went perfectly, he isaid, and there was not a hitch in the whole race. The efficiency ot the gearlcss transmission system pleased him immensely. He predicted it would he the rule for all cars sold shortly. The Raysola ignition system, he said, also contributed largely to the efficiency of the car. Although it was unofficially known that he hud broken the record at about 8 o’clock, no definite times were worked out until nearly midnight. Sm-illi sat up with the officials engaged in calculating, while Mrs Smith spoilt the time with friends in a lent near the garage. Smith was a happy man when the offidafl 'tLinos -were known and the strain of wafting was over. He was more pleased than ever knowing he had broken the record by such a large margin on a beach which must have slowed him up considerably, and lie is looking forward to assaulting L'nmpbeil s tune for the mile