Not relevent I know, but I couldn't resist as this train is in a huge photo in my living room.
Mrs A challenged me to find a picture I really liked so I did I got this
Including the 1940s "chap" in his hat having a "personal moment" contemplating the engineering miracle before him.
The train is called "Mallard" - LNER class A4 - and it holds the world record for speed for steam trains in 1938, 126 MPH. A record not bettered since, although I am sure someone in China is working on a better one as I tap. The record is not without challenge but it stands so far, designed by this other "chap", Sir Nigel Gresley - from the days when we in Blighty used to actually give honours to people who deserved them - unlike now where we hand them out to useless footballers for having a new hairstyle...
Sign on the tracks where it was done.
In ecomodder (rather the Colonel Blimp) mode I have wondered how much of this was just down to power and efficiency of the boilers vs actual aero. I did contemplate working out the front end pressure vs the old Flying Scotsman (below) but the sums hurt my head - I have, or had, a fairly massive spreadsheet with attempts.
There is a valid challenge from the Germans (of all people
) who did a 125.4 MPH run the year before. Of course that was done in darker days with a different leader, so we don't mention that one.