The Golden Arrow
Henry Segrave's shimmering speed machine
Alex Q. Arbuckle
1929
Henry Segrave had a need for speed.After serving as a British fighter pilot in World War I, he won numerous car races in the 1920s before retiring to concentrate exclusively at smashing speed records.He set his first land speed record in 1926, pushing a car named Ladybird to a speed of 152.33 miles per hour. That record was broken just a month later. Segrave regained the top spot in spectacular fashion in 1927, when he hit 203.79 miles per hour in the Sunbeam 1000 HP Mystery, making him the first person to exceed 200 miles per hour. His brakes melted as he raced down the sands of Daytona Beach, Florida, forcing him to stop by veering into the shallow waters of the Atlantic Ocean.That record was broken twice in 1928, with American Ray Keech hitting 207.55 miles per hour. Meanwhile, Segrave was developing a car that would leave his rivals in the dust.
The Golden Arrow carried a 925 horsepower Napier Lion VIIA engine wrapped inside a streamlined aluminum body designed by J.S. Irving, featuring an advanced cooling system and a telescopic sight to keep the car running straight. The car’s sophisticated aerodynamics generated 450 pounds of downforce to keep the vehicle firmly planted on the ground at high speeds.On March 29, 1929, Segrave returned to Daytona Beach with the Golden Arrow. Before a crowd of 100,000 spectators, Segrave shattered the previous record, reaching a speed of 231.56 miles per hour, a record that would remain unbroken for almost two years.Segrave was knighted for his achievements, and set his sights on breaking speed records on the water. In 1930, he crashed his boat while going for a speed record on lake Windermere in England. In the hospital, he regained consciousness just long enough to learn that he had broken the record. He then succumbed to his injuries and died.
Last time I came here, you were good enough to let me take over to Britain the world’s land speed record. Later — like friendly neighbors — you borrowed it back! - Henry Segrave, arriving in New York, 1929
