World Records
Blue Bird in the USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell broke nine speed records between 1924 and 1935, with three at Pendine Sands and five at Daytona Beach. His first two records were driving a racing car built by Sunbeam.
On 4 February 1927, Sir Malcolm set the land speed record at Pendine Sands, covering the Flying Kilometre (in an average of two runs) at 174.883 mph and the Flying Mile in 174.224 mph , in the Napier-Campbell Blue Bird.
He set his final land speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on 3 September 1935, and was the first person to officially drive an automobile over 150 mph and 300 mph.
- First Record
- 4th February 1927
- Top Speed
- 301.37 mph
- Venues
- Daytona Beach,
Bonneville,
Lake Mead - Total
- 6 Land Records
1 Water Record
Land Records USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell set his final land speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on 3 September 1935, and was the first person to officially drive over 300 mph.
19th February 1928, 206.956 mph
Daytona Beach, USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell
Napier-Campbell Bluebird
5th February 1931, 246.09 mph
Daytona Beach, USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell
Campbell-Napier-Railton Bluebird
24th February 1932, 253.97 mph
Daytona Beach, USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell
Campbell-Napier-Railton Bluebird
22nd February 1933, 272.46 mph
Daytona Beach, USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell
Campbell-Railton Bluebird
7th March 1935, 276.816 mph
Daytona Beach, USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell
Campbell-Railton Bluebird
3rd September 1935, 301.129 mph
Bonneville Salt Flats, USA
Sir Malcolm Campbell
Campbell-Railton Bluebird
Water Speed Record
16th Nov 1955 - 216.20 mph
Lake Mead, USA
Donald Campbell OBE Bluebird K7
In the years between 1955 and 1964, Bluebird K7 underwent a series of gradual modifications unlocking significant speed increases, beginning with a record of 216 mph at Lake Mead and continuing annually through the late 1950s.
Bluebird CN7 Crash
Bonneville Salt Flats, 1960
Following the low-speed tests at Goodwood, CN7 was taken by Donald to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA. Gina waved Donald and Tonia off from London airport – accompanied by the ubiquitous Mr Whoppit.
The Bonneville attempt however, which was heavily sponsored by BP and Dunlop was unsuccessful. Donald's American Dream was just not to be: there had also been an unsuccessful attempt at the water speed record in 1957 at Canandaigua in New York state, which failed due to unsuitable conditions.
Donald's hopes in America seemed jinxed: Bluebird CN7 was written off following a high-speed crash on the 16th of September and as you can see from the tyre marks in the accompanying photo, Donald veered dramatically off course.
Suffering a fracture to his lower skull and a broken ear drum, as well as cuts and bruises (he was extremely lucky to survive this crash), Donald convalesced in California until November 1960. Meanwhile, plans had been put in motion to rebuild CN7 for a further attempt.
On The Road To Recovery
His confidence was severely shaken, he was suffering mild panic attacks, and for some time he doubted whether he would ever return to record breaking. As part of his recuperation he learned to fly light aircraft; this new interest contributed greatly to his recovery. In fact, his love of piloting ensured Donald soon bought his own light aircraft (which proved useful when camped in the middle of nowhere, when attempting a new land speed record in Australia!) By 1961, he was on the road to recovery and planning the rebuild of CN7.
Donald's hopes in America seemed jinxed: Bluebird CN7 was written off following a high-speed crash on the 16th of September.
Next:
Australia & CN7
