TEN MILE SPEED RECORD BROKEN

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 132, 27 January 1932, Page 5

TEN MILE SPEED RECORD BROKEN

5 (Press. Assn.-

smith's success enter^rise at^ains over 168 miles an hour unofFicial ANNOUNCEMENT coDrse very wet

— By Telegraph — Copyright)

Nil^ETt-illiife BEACH, last night Mr. "Wizard" Smith this afternoop broke jthe 10 mile world land^sjpeed ^reqord held by Mar.cha.rd, at 137 "21 miles per bour, with. an average speed of l 64-008 miles ,p^er .hour. He covered the distance jp 3jtnin., 39.40 sec. I.t jis unofficially announced that Smitb has brpkep the , record. Thq official results will he announced later. Sipifh .tfiis tinornirig deterniipec oPQp doing , sp.metliing, and „pr eparafiori's were early in ,hand gettirig the course flagged, .As the beacb was bad at Ihp^portherfi. ,epd, postal offi,c{ak arranged an extra riiile of pegs ori the sautherri, end , so that the measpred 1(| ,iniles. could ,be .moved , furthei dowm ... The, first r.un was made frorii the Nprth, Smith taking about foui miles .to, . gqt up sp e e d. • jaftp, 5.1,8. p.m, the powerfp] Napier-Liop,,.engine was started and, wriggling into the , seat?, Smith set out ip breach the record. The, beach. wa? w.et oyer most oi thei course arid. vipibility was npt toc good. Hri. app'rpached the course at a speed, of 80 "and 90 miles per hour, entering the time stretch and tearing through the wet sand sent up showers of spray, which covered the wind screen arid c.aused .him to slow down .near the ceptre of the course. Ho-^ever, the engjne was running bearitifu,llyrarid.he reached 200 miles per hour, and held the speed for some distance., pHver Slowes Dowri The last, stretc.h of -the course was vpry- wet, and, the driver decellerted, causing the engine to splutter and miss. ,If;e slowed down to 100 miles per libur, passing the final stage swit.ch and then gradually eased up and.ran slpwly to the dump, four miles further on, . The racing tyres were inspected by an expert, and no wear was found in the front pair, but the back showeri signs of cuts from toheroa shells, apd were changed. The radiator was npt, heated above normal on the run, ajid it .was not found, necessary to use more water, on the whole journey. Getting the" car ready for the retijirri dash did not take more than 4p minutes and Smith set out once again, the engine spluttering badly and .flames bursting from the exhausts. The track switch at about 100 miles sent up a eloud of spray and smoke obseur,ed the track for some distance, and the machine soon disappeared into, the haze. "I am very satisfied with the car's performance," said Mr. Smith on returning. "I am eonfident of the land speed recprd, although I will not trj anything more with the beach in such a conditiQn,'.' . The drivpr was c.overed with sand froin head t,o foot and wet through, while the Enterprise was coated with slush. .... . The effieiency of the gearless transmissiori .arid the Raysona ignition pleased the driver immensely, and he statpd that fhey in.no small measure accounted, for ..his success.