INTERVIEW
Bloodhound is back on the trail to Hakskeen Pan
Mark Smyth spoke with Richard Noble about the latest developments in the land speed record project
So I’m sitting at my desk planning this issue of Motor News, when the phone rings. The number says it’s in the UK. I answer it and a well-spoken voice says: "Hi Mark, this is Richard Noble." Noble is the man who in 1983 broke the world land speed record in Thrust 2 in Black Rock, Nevada by travelling at a speed of 1,019km/h. He oversaw the Thrust SSC (supersonic car) project that later saw Andy Green break Noble’s record by travelling at 1,221km/h. He’s phoning to provide an update on Bloodhound SSC, his current project to break the record which will take place here in SA. We have been following the project since its inception, visiting the project offices in Bristol in the UK and the site of the record attempt at Hakskeen Pan in the Northern Cape. The project has been plagued by problems and delays, but these are not surprising when you consider the sheer scale of it all and the budget. Noble explains that Thrust SSC cost £1m at a time when one of its rivals for the record attempt,...
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