DEATH TRAMP

NZ Truth, Issue 1188, 6 September 1928, Page 15

DEATH TRAMP

Why Frank Lockhart Penshed The extraordinary phenomenon known as wheel tramp was the cause of Frank Lockhart's death m his fatal dash on the Daytona Beach while endeavoring to capture the world's speed record from Captain Campbell. THIS has been made clear by the ■■*• evidence of an expert eye-witness of the disaster. Subsequent experiments have proved that the design and weight of Lockhart's car were such that 200 m.p.h. was a critical speed for his suspension, so that the slightest shock would set up wheel tramp, a phenomenon that may be described as a criss-cross vibration of the axles causing the wheels to move up and down alternately, leaving the road m severe cases. The eye-witness referred to said the car sped towards him steadily as an arrow with every detail clearly defined. Suddenly it became blurred and commenced to behave .< like an elephant with a rolling gait. In his own words, "the car^seemed to begin to WALK m a fashion horrible to witness instead of roll- x ing along. This motion became more violent until the car rolled over." ' An examination . of the vtracks showed that the wheels on either side had been alternately leaving the track m giant strides of 30ft. or more, rendering the car utterly uncontrollable. So perished Lockhart. It is more than likely that this terrible motion, rendered him unconscious before the final crash.

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