Fred Marriott

For the Australian politician, see Fred Marriott (politician).
Fred Marriott and the Stanley Rocket
The demolished "Rocket" Stanley Steamer (1907)

Fred Marriott (31 December 1872, Needham, Massachusetts - 28 April 1956[1]) was an American race car driver. In 1906, he set the world land speed record at 127.659 mph (205.5 km/h) at the Daytona Beach Road Course, while driving the Stanley Steamer.[2][3] This garnered him the Dewar Trophy in the process.

He attempted to break his record at Daytona in 1907 using an improved version of the car but hit a rut at an estimated speed of 140-150 mph. The car sailed in the air, breaking in half upon impact: Marriott was injured and did not make another attempt to break the record after he recovered.[2]

Marriott's mark for the steam land speed record, which had become the longest-standing such record, was finally broken more than 100 years later in August 2009 when Charles Burnett III of the British "Inspiration" team recorded an average speed of 139.843 mph (225.06 km/h) at Edwards Air Force Base in California.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Stanley Land Speed Record Centennial 1906-2006 (PDF)
  2. 1 2 Biography at the Birthplace of Speed, Retrieved March 15, 2007
  3. ↑ steamcar.co.uk, Retrieved March 15, 2007
  4. ↑ "UK team breaks steam car record". BBC News. 25 August 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2009.


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