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Steamin Ain’t Easy: Brits in Space-age Steam Racer Still Not Able to Claim Record


Steamin Ain’t Easy: Brits in Space-age Steam Racer Still Not Able to Claim Record

Somewhere the Stanley Brothers are smiling. Their more than 100-year-old land speed record for a steam-powered vehicle still stands as this piece is being written, even though a well funded, highly educated team of Brits is assaulting it. Or maybe it’s assaulting them.

The Stanley Brothers record of 127.659 mph was set in 1907 when they ran their race car, named The Rocket, on Daytona Beach. At that point it was the fastest car in the world and was until 1911 when the speed record was broken by a gasoline powered car. It is beyond amazing that the wild, streamlined, computer engineered creation that today’s British team is running has not officially broken the record yet. We say officially because the car did go 131 mph a couple of weeks ago, but the FIA was not present to certify the run.

The current team has been beset by problems of both the annoying ordinary type and the weirdly creepy (think flat tire). The report we have linked below seems to point to a situation where panic and frustration are rapidly setting in. These guys are on a time table and the meter is running. We trolled for the most resent reports and still, the record stands.

Could this be the highest profile 130 mph fail of all time? Stay tuned.

Click Here to read the London Times take on the story.


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