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Ken Warby standing on SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA
Ken Warby standing on SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA

Ken Warby standing on SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA

Photographer
Datec 1977
Object numberANMS1163[267]
NamePhotograph
MediumSilver gelatin print
Copyright© Graeme Andrews
ClassificationsPhotographs
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Graeme Andrews
Collections
DescriptionKen Warby, screw driver in hand, standing on SPIRIT OF AUSTRALIA watching while another driver is at the controls in the cockpit. There is fuel hose attached to the boat and the still waters of Blowering Dam can be seen in the backgroundHistoryWarby 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.SignificanceKen 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.