Assembled, ready and waiting!
This is not meant to be a professional video release, but should hopefully give you a few seconds of background stuff today, in advance of our proper film crew who arrive next week. No shots of craft running as yet as the water on the lake is still giving us hassle. The Greenbird team back in UK tell me that this clip made the rounds on Sky News and BBC!
Country Guardian turned up yet to tell you you’re industrialising the lake bed?
Comment by Bob Irving — August 20, 2008 @ 3:45 pm
It will be good to bring another record to Britain to remind the world of our engineering capabilities. Good luck with it!
Comment by Steve Deeming — August 20, 2008 @ 5:15 pm
And the carbon footprint for flying ‘the team’ to Australia along with all the equipment?
I can see this is an entirely practical craft, see it in your local traffic queue any day now.
Boys and their toys! Time to grow up chaps, climate change is about facing up to non-viability, and it seems to me you’re all part of the problem.
Comment by Peter Simmons — August 20, 2008 @ 8:40 pm
Just a message to let you know the helmets have been painted and are on their way to Simon at BHP!
The GreenBird looks amazing – Good luck from everyone at JLF Designs.
Comment by Jason Fowler — August 20, 2008 @ 10:05 pm
peter, get over yourself, its better then flying a drag car out from the usa to compete at the motorplex ……this is just about a land speed record and a way to get puplic support for goverments to change.
have a nice day.
Comment by sprockket2cog — August 21, 2008 @ 12:35 am
How does the aerofoil on the sail work when the wind is blowing from the Port (left hand) side, surely it would make the car go backwards?
Comment by Andy Barbour — August 21, 2008 @ 8:36 am
Re
eter Simspon (Homer) comment. That’s okay then Peter you just keep driving your comfy 3.5 L Audi V8 to work in denial, with the AC on. and let these guys or your kids worry about the mess.
Comment by Andy Barbour — August 21, 2008 @ 12:24 pm
Why not ditch the wing and just fly a big ram air kite? and sail like a kite buggy,thus saving a lot of weight.
Good luck anyway,will be watching your progress.
Comment by Adrian Hodge — August 21, 2008 @ 12:38 pm
I hear this is capable of going “much faster” than the wind, using wind power.
Can someone explain the clever tecnology that makes this possible ??
Comment by Brian James — August 21, 2008 @ 8:18 pm
Aaah… I found your page on How it Works.
If I understand it right, it needs to be moving sideways to the wind…
Like a slippery wedge of soap, on a smooth surface, will move sideways faster than your finger moves down…there we have it, LOL !!!
Comment by Brian James — August 21, 2008 @ 9:25 pm
I came on board with you guys a few years back. I think it was possiby at Goodwood F.O.S. Back then I made a small donation and had my ugly mug stuck on your sail!
I’m glad to see you’r back and trying once again.
Whilst I have to agree with some of Mr Simmons comments, I have to congratulate you on trying a radicaly different approach to the land speed record.
Perhaps you should consider employing Mr Simmons, on your wind powered craft. As a fuel cell!!!!!!!!
Keep up the good work.
Comment by Dave Andrews — August 24, 2008 @ 11:52 am
Best wishes from the staff at the National Motor Museum Beaulieu custodians of Michael and Donald Campbells’ Bluebirds.
Comment by Jon Richardson — August 24, 2008 @ 10:23 pm
How does this LSR by wind power stack up against ice boats? Are you counting on the fact that ice even if frozen is still water? does a land speed record have to be a wheeled vehicle? I’m not knocking the effort, just curious.
Nice that the team had to come to Oz to go for it, perhaps we can strike another gold medal for you to make up for Beijing!
Good luck
Comment by Ian Anderson — August 26, 2008 @ 9:04 am
OK, I should have read through the site in more depth before asking the dumb Q’s above. I wonder if we have got time to resurrect ol Yellow Pages/ Macquarie Innovation, bung some wheels on it and get it over West to give you a run for your money ?
Nah, I think you might have it in the bag. Go nail the yanks. Good luck with the conditions.
Comment by Ian Anderson — August 26, 2008 @ 9:22 am
Hi all, Richard Jenkins here with a few answers & some thanks!
@Adrian Hodge
A wing is (currently) infinitely more efficient than a kite. Also a kite pulls you off the ground, whereas a vertical wing’s force is parallel to the ground.
@Brian James
Yes, I suppose the soap analogy is a very good way to explain how a force in one direction (down) can translate to a sideways movement as the soap slip away. Here, a side force from the wing is resisted by the tyres and the vehicle moves forward instead.
@Jon Richardson
Many Thanks Jon. Lord Montagu has been a great supporter of the project in the past and it is wonderful that you guys are following our progress. It would be a huge honour if the Greenbird was to one day sit along side the great Bluebird vehicles.
Comment by Richard — August 27, 2008 @ 9:24 am
I did not realise you were filming the assembling on Lake Lefroy or I might have put on my sunday best. Congratulations on the record. We have started recording some for various classes(class 5 and mini so far)on Lefroy and the best last weekend was mine of 75.1kmh. We will get ther yet.
Comment by Wayne Thomas — October 3, 2009 @ 4:25 pm