Three names dominated the record books in the first half of this century - Seagrave, Campbell and Cobb.
Sir Henry Seagrave drove a Sunbeam and in 1927 raised the world land speed record to 203.9 mph (about 320.27 kph).
Sir Malcolm Campbell drove his own car, Bluebird, and broke the record nine times - finally raising it over the magic figure of 300 mph (500 kph) in 1935.
John Cobb grew up near Brooklands, the famous race track. Fast cars were his obsession. His first race was in an immense pre-war Fiat in 1925. But he broke world records over the next twelve years in a Delage and in a Napier-Railton.
As the speed of these super-cars increased, it became more difficult to find somewhere to race them. Since the thirties the favourite venue has been the Bonneville Salt Flats in the U.S.A. Cobb's speed there in 1938 was 585 kph. But in 1970 Gary Gabelich, an American, raised it to a staggering 1050 kph.
John Cobb died on Loch Ness in 1952 - seconds after raising the water-speed record to 200 mph.
Sir Malcom Campell's son, Donald, died on Derwent Water in the Lake District fifteen years later-seconds after raising that record to 328 mph.
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