Rosco Puts His Foot Down
The Sun Herald
Sunday December 12, 1993
ON the dry salt of Lake Gairdner, out past Iron Knob in South Australia, they've been warming up at 500km/h and testing the parachutes.
A Perth drag racer, in a car powered by a 30,000 horsepower Mirage jet engine, is poised to break Donald Campbell's 30-year-old Australian land speed record.
The car is Aussie Invader II, the driver, Rosco McGlashan.
Their target is the other side of 647km/h - 403 miles per hour - a mark Campbell set amid great fanfare in the Bluebird in 1964.
McGlashan obviously has a sense of history. His car is painted blue and carries the same major sponsor, Ampol, on its tailplane.
The attempt on Campbell's record is but one step along a path to the world record - 1017km/h, close to mach I - the McGlashan team is planning for November next year.
Last Wednesday Aussie Invader II warmed up on the salt, hitting speeds of around 500km/h in readiness for a record run on Thursday.
Strong north-easterly winds aborted the first real attempt, blowing the car off the marked centre-line on the course and placing extra load on wheel bearings.
So sophisticated is the car that on-board telemetry showed a rise in temperature from the wheel bearings as the crosswind hit the car's flanks.
McGlashan pulled the parachutes at less than 250km/h.
On Friday the crew was checking the car and readying it for another attempt, although strong winds made it likely McGlashan will go for the record today, wind and weather allowing.
So far the attempt has taken almost 10 years to mount and cost close to $6 million, a good part of it going on the construction of the kevlar-bodied car
It carries advanced Formula 1 style telemetry and tyreless alloy wheels. The engine is good for maximum power for only 45 seconds.
Backing the attempt are 22 crew and 12 truckloads of equipment with a mini-town springing up on the salt complete with hangar, workshop, fuel depots, satellite phones, live television antennas and crew quarters.
Four parallel 20km courses have been meticulously laid out on the salt and swept clean.
© 1993 The Sun Herald