Ancient Matters | Daytona World Land Speed Records

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“America is a country that doesn’t know where it is going but is determined to set a speed record getting there.”

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–Laurence J. Peter

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Circa 1940, Daytona Beach, FL — Postcard showing the famous speed record autos (from top) the Jim White Triplex, Major Henry Segrave’s Mystery S (Sunbeam, also called “The Slug”) & Golden Arrow, and Donald Malcolm Campbell’s Bluebird IV & Bluebird V.  — Image by © Lake County Museum/CORBIS

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Circa 1927, Daytona Beach, FL — “THE MYSTERY S.” WORLD RECORD CAR. (207 MILES PER HOUR), DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. — Image by © Lake County Museum/CORBIS

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Circa 1927, Daytona Beach, FL — MAJOR SEGRAVE DRIVING WORLD RECORD CAR MAKES 207 MI. PER HOUR, DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. MAR. 29, 1927 — Image by © Lake County Museum/CORBIS

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Circa 1929, Daytona Beach, FL — THE “GOLDEN ARROW,” WORLD’S FASTEST CAR (231 MI. PER HOUR), DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. — Image by © Lake County Museum/CORBIS

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Circa 1935, Daytona Beach, FL — D-139. BLUEBIRD DRIVEN TO A WORLD’S SPEED RECORD BY SIR MALCOLM CAMPBELL, DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. The great beach constitutes the most unique drive in the world. From above Ormond Beach to the Inlet it is a “tide packed pavement”, 500 feet wide and over 33 miles in length. It is unbelievably smooth and directly at sea level. Thousands visit Daytona Beach just for the breathtaking thrill of a spin down the length of this greatest of all speedways. The International Speed Trials are a great feature of the Winter seasons. — Image by © Lake County Museum/CORBIS

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More HERE

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Life in Los Angeles, circa 1938 | It’s always been about the car…

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“They say in L.A. there are only two methods of transportation-

car and ambulance.”

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–Unknown

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Auto traffic on Wilshire Boulevard during rush hour with sign for the WESTLAKE THEATRE looming in the background --ca. 1938.

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Service attendant pumping gasoline into Ford sedan as woman watches at gas pumps covered by the wing of a large permanently parked airplane, on Wilshire Boulevard --circa 1938.

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Motorist in his car making a transaction at the drive up window of a bank --ca. 1938.

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Muller Brothers Service Station's white uniformed attendents pumping gas & inflating tires on a fancy convertible while their uniformed African-Amer. conterparts wield rags as they polish the windshield & chrome --ca. 1938.

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Sports Illustrated Vintage 1966 | Steve McQueen Reviews the Hottest New GT’s

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“I still get goose pimples.”

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–Steve McQueen

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Steve McQueen | What’ll it be today… Jaguar XKSS or AC Cobra

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“Racing is life.  Anything before or after is just waiting.”

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–Steve McQueen

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Steve McQueen hopping in his Jaguar XKSS-- 1963.

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Steve McQueen tinkering between shooting scenes for Wanted dead or Alive.

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Steve McQueen showing director John Sturges his Jaguar XKSS on the MGM studio lot.

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Land Rover- Not just a vehicle, an Institution.

The last pic is of the Land Rover specially equipped for the film Tomb Raider.  

Land Rover is not just a vehicle, it is an institution. Conceived as nothing more than a short-term stop-gap, it went on to break records worldwide and to become the definitive 4WD brand.  Production of the model now known as the Defender began in 1983 as the Land Rover One Ten, a simple name which reflected the 110 inch (2.794 m) length of the wheelbase. The Land Rover Ninety, with 93 inch (2.362 m) wheelbase, and Land Rover 127, with 127 in (3.226 m) wheelbase, soon followed.  Outwardly, there is little to distinguish the post-1983 vehicles from the Series III Land Rover. A full-length bonnet, revised grille, plus the fitting of wheel arch extensions to cover wider-track axles are the most noticeable changes.  Mechanically the Ninety and One Ten were a complete modernisation of the former Series platform.  

Land Rover Defender vehicles have been used extensively by many of the world’s militaries, including the US in some limited capacity, following experience with the vehicle during the first Gulf War, where US forces found the British Army’s vehicles to be more capable and better suited to operation in urban areas and for air-lifting than the Humvee. The British Army has used Land Rovers since the 1950s, as have many countries in the Commonwealth of Nations.  

The Defender is still largely hand assembled, and unlike most modern cars and trucks, all the major body panels and sub-assemblies simply bolt together. A Defender can literally be broken down to its chassis with simple hand tools — there is no unibody structure.  At present, the Defender does not reach the safety requirement for the USA, and only small batches of specially modified (and very expensive) vehicles have been sold there in the past.   

Link to Land Rover History

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