History

Wind, Current, Speed, Drag are all considerations a skilful driver needs to make while trying to make their name as they glide across the water skimming the crests of the wake from the other racers.

Windermere Motor Boat Racing Club (WMBRC) has a long racing history with many members carving out their names in the history books. Donald Campbell, Norman Buckley, Bert Redman, are just a few of our members who set the world’s three hour water speed record in Miss Windermere IV on April 25^th 1966 averaging 75.9 Mph

Sir Malcolm Campbell Donald’s father sought after both the land speed record and the water speed record he broke the world water speed record on Lake Maggiore in August 1937 setting it at 129.56 MPH, and is one of the only men in history to hold both records simultaneously.

On the 19^th August 1939 he increased his record to 141.74 MPH on Coniston Water, this began a long family history with both The Lake District and WMBRC.

Ideal conditions for water speed record attempts occur when the air is still just as dawn is breaking, the surface water is like glass and mirrors the light of the rising sun as it creeps over the tops of the mountains surrounding the lake. This lasts for about half an hour before the warmth of the sun, or a breeze causes the water to ripple.

On September 29^th 1952 John Cobb and supporting members trekked to loch ness in a record attempt which ended disastrously in John Cobb’s death after his boat lost control having completed his second run, bounced across a wave into the air and disintegrated as it landed on the unforgiving surface of loch ness.

Back on Coniston in 1956 225.63 mph was reached which resulted in another  member of ours Andrew Brown  being made team manager for an attempt on 7^th November 1957 where a record of 239.07 mph was set.

WMBRC became a familiar name at water speed record attempts and in 1960 Frank Lydall, Norman Buckley, Andrew Brown and Mrs Edna Brown ventured to Salt Lake Utah, where unfortunately they observed a crash where Donald Campbell had a miraculous escape.

On 4^th January 1967 in a bid to raise money in order to make an attempt at breaking the land speed record Donald Campbell attempted to be the first man to exceed 300 mph over the water. On his first run down the lake he managed a speed of 297 mph. In his haste he turned without refueling or allowing time for his wake to settle and began his second run back up the lake. As he gathered speed estimated to reach 328 mph bluebird began to bounce across the ripples remaining from his previous run, eventually leaving the water, flipping upside down and landing back in the water disintegrating upon impact. Donald Campbell died instantly.

The record was set soon afterwards at 285 mph by Lee Taylor on 30^th June 1967 on Lake Guntersville, Alabama.

Present Day

Undeterred from such an eventful and dramatic history every summer from April to September the Windermere Motor Boat Racing Club (WMBRC) run a series of race days at Broad Leys.

The twelve race days are usually made up of 4 or 5 races over two courses offering variety and plenty of chances to race.

  Size Doesn’t Matter!!

The club racing at Windermere is run on a handicap system with the slower boats setting off first and the faster ones following at later times. This gives all the boats a fair chance of winning and provides for interesting racing. In the last few years the most consistent boat that has scooped all the prizes has been a ski boat and not an out-and-out powerboat.

Motor Boat Racing is much cheaper than many motor sports and the format of racing on Windermere gives you plenty of racing  at a reasonable cost and you can still use your boat for recreation afterwards.

 If you would like more information on racing please write to:

 Club Racing, Broad Leys, Ghyll Head, Windermere, Cumbria, LA23 3LJ

WMBRC Members Records

Here at WMBRC we are proud to have a number of water speed records set and held by our members. A brief summary of records follows:

World and National Records