Skip to main content
Advanced Search
Ken Warby with Robert Apathy
Ken Warby with Robert Apathy

Ken Warby with Robert Apathy

Photographer (deceased)
Date1978
Object numberANMS0532[122]
NameNegative
Copyright© Luke Watson
ClassificationsPhotographs
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Tumut and Adelong Times
DescriptionKen warby discusses conditions at Blowering dam with his project coordinator, Robert Apathy. Professor Tom Fink who assisted Warby with the aero dynamic testing of SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA, stands behind them. HistoryWarby had originally met Major Robert 'Bob' Apathy in Tumut when SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA set the Australian water speed record. Apathy was highly organised, having spent 17 years in the Army, and at that point was working with the St Johns Ambulance Brigade. He quickly came on board with Warby's project and became an integral part of team. Ken Warby, SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA's designer, builder and driver, achieved his world water-speed records on a shoestring budget. The boat was built over two years in the backyard of his suburban Sydney home, using stringers, brackets, stock bits of timber, plywood, screws and epoxy, and launched in 1974. Warby first claimed the world record in 1977, taking his home-made hydroplane to a speed of 464.44 km/h and breaking American Lee Taylor's ten-year-old record of 458.98 km/h. But where Lee Taylor's record had cost close to $1 million in 1967, Warby built his boat in a suburban backyard with a military-surplus jet engine that cost $65. In 1978 he returned to Blowering Dam in the southern highlands of New South Wales and pushed his record to 511.11 km/h (317.68 m/h), where it still stands. Warby was awarded an MBE (Member of the British Empire) in recognition of his achievement. More information about SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA's construction, configuration and condition can be found on the Australian Register of Historic Vessels www.anmm.gov.au/arhv. SignificanceAlthough Ken Warby had started his journey designing, building and envisioning the SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA story, he had a small team of loyal supporters with him. One of these was Bob Apathy. An early Warby advocate, Apathy was also an integral part of the Project 300 team, providing logistical expertise and practical support.