| Posted by on July 21, 2012 | |
Of course it had custom-fitted 86" diameter drivers for the record run. They extended above the running board level! Not much of the original locomotive that ran at that time exists here, but it's certainly the legendary 999--at least in spirit.
|
The record is most likely not true and the locomotive you see would not be much good for more than 45MPH. But this locomotive is the result of a 1920's rebuilding with much smaller drivers. See the following for when No. 999 was a magnificent greyhound with 84" drivers and you will believe. http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~dickbolt/RREngine999.jpg
|
"The record is most likely not true"..that's not true..the record is absolutely true! completely verified..There is no doubt that it is true.
|
I want to believe it. However, there has been too much dispute about this record. No one in an official, qualified position was on that run. The only people timing it were the railroads public relations men and newspaper reporters. Neither group did this on a daily basis, so how qualified were they? Both also would stand to benefit by an inflated figure. I would guess to settle the issue, qualified independent research has to be done and that published. If you can point to such verification, please do.
|
| Posted by FSWood on August 5, 2012 | |
Re: "The only people timing it were the railroads public relations men and newspaper reporters."
Yeah, you are right, reporters such as those who were there from The Buffalo Evening News and others, are not, never have been, and never will be, qualified to observe mileposts and use a stopwatch, they are just reporters, not watchmakers with professional training in proper use of stopwatches:
" The speed was recorded by train officials and newspaper reporters who clocked off mile posts using hand-held stop watches."
Source, the Genesee County, NY, Government's website, history page.
Now, that part, "... the first thing on wheels to go over 100 miles per hour ..." is a bit on the difficult side to prove without reliably documented records of everything else which had ever been on wheels.
|
Whatever happened in 1893, this is a beautiful reconstruction. I cannot wait to see it when I get to Chicago. Thanks for posting this.
|
|