ISBN10: 1854109391, ISBN13: 9781854109392, [publisher: Aurum Press] Hardcover New
[Long Beach, CA, U.S.A.] [Publication Year: 2003]

ISBN10: 1854109391, ISBN13: 9781854109392, [publisher: Aurum Press, London] Hardcover First Edition This copy is in new, unmarked condition bound in blue cloth covered boards with bright gilt titling to the spine. This copy is bright, tight, white and square. The unclipped dust wrapper is in new condition. International postal rates are calculated on a book weighing 1 Kilo, in cases where the book weighs more than 1 Kilo increased postal rates will be quoted, where the book weighs less then postage will be reduced accordingly. In July 1938, the superbly streamlined A4 Pacific class steam locomotive "Mallard" set a world speed record on the East Coast main line of 126mph, a record which still stands. Now, some 65 years on, Don Hale tells the full story of how the record came to be broken. It's a tale that goes back to the late 19th century, when the rival railway companies first began to vie with one another to set speed records between London and Scotland. It charts the technological development of the steam engine through the early decades of the 20th century into a hugely powerful and truly locomotive machine. And above all, it focuses on the singular and larger-than-life character of Sir Nigel Gresley, Mallard's designer and one of the most gifted engineers Britain has ever produced. In an account that includes interviews with surviving crew members and their relatives, the book sets the scene for the big day itself, and follows hour by hour ...