BBC_Top_Gear_South_Africa_June_2017
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BLUEBIRD K7<br />
“The water is<br />
still, the lake<br />
beautiful but<br />
hauntingly quiet”<br />
helmetandmascot,ateddynamedMrWhoppit.<br />
AsIgazeout,thewaterisawfullystill,thelake<br />
beautifulbuthauntinglyquiet.TryasImight,Ican’t<br />
begintoimaginethefuryofBluebirdatits“ruddyfast”<br />
best on Coniston’s surface. But, if it’s a happy ending you<br />
seek,Imayhavesomethingtooffer.Whiletheboatand<br />
itsskipperlayatthebottomofthelakeforover30years,<br />
acontroversialrecoveryeffortin2001(whichsaw<br />
Donald Campbell laid to rest in his spiritual hometown<br />
intheLakes)couldseeK7returnedclose to its former<br />
glory,andoutonthelakeagain.<br />
Ourtriptoseeitscurrentstateofreassemblytakes us<br />
177kilometresfromEngland’snorth-westtoits<br />
north-east,whichisalltheexcuseneededforonelast<br />
blastintheF-Type.TheHartsidePassliesconveniently<br />
between us and K7’s Tyneside base, and as it wends its<br />
wayoverthePennineslikealeafierStelvioPass,Irealise<br />
I’mquiteafanoftheE-type’smodern-dayequivalent.<br />
WhilenotasenergeticastheV8,thisoneisstill<br />
bloomingquick,anditremainsacarinwhichyoucan’t<br />
resistcrankingthewindowdownaninchortwoasyou<br />
blarepasttheBritishcountryside’sdrystonewalls.On<br />
theoutside,it’spureclass,butthemechanicalsbeneath<br />
incite your most immature behaviour. I can see why<br />
Donald loved Jaguars. And I can’t wait to see the boat he<br />
was so much in love with.<br />
K7’s most notorious photo.<br />
Little came to the surface<br />
on the day it sank<br />
Not much is blue,<br />
yetit’sobviously<br />
Bluebird<br />
Smith’s work<br />
relies on donations<br />
and volunteers<br />
ON A MISSION TO BRING BLUEBIRD BACK<br />
ConistonlocalsalwaysknewroughlywhereCampbellandBluebirdlay,andit<br />
seemedthepairhadbeenintentionallylefttorest.Butin2001,hobbyistdiverBill<br />
Smithfollowedhisowndream,headingintothelaketosuccessfullyfindK7.<br />
Whenthelocationoftheskipperandhisboatbecamepublic,therewaslittle<br />
choicebuttobringthemtoshore,forthesafetyofwannabeexplorers,andto<br />
avoid Bluebird being stripped by trophy hunters. The controversy behind the whole<br />
thingstillupsetssomepeopleclosetotheCampbells,butuponvisitingBill’sNorth<br />
Shields workshop, it’s impossible to stay completely objective. Seeing a large chunk<br />
of K7 is a moving experience.<br />
WhileaspacehasbeenmadeforK7inConiston’sRuskinMuseum,Billandhis<br />
volunteers want the boat back in working order for a run on the lake, at up to<br />
150mph (240km/h). TG visitedfiveyearsagoandwhilethings have visibly<br />
progressed, Bluebird won’t return to the water soon.<br />
“Whattakesthetime?”saysBill.“I’vegottolearneverything.I’veneverdone<br />
anythinglikethisbefore.Wegooffphotos;nothingwaswrittenorrecordedwhen<br />
theyweredevelopingit.Wefoundoutthewholeframewasahalf-inchcock-eyed<br />
fromthefrontfromnew,sowehadtobuilditwonkytogetitstraight.”<br />
Whenmistakesaredeliberatelyengineeredin,youknowtherestorationis<br />
meticulous.Theengineisamongatinyhandfulofunoriginalparts.Andwhere<br />
new labels were needed for the cockpit’s gauges, Gina helped source her dad’s<br />
machine,stillwithhisrolloftapeinit.<br />
WhyisgettingK7functioningagainsokey?“Bluebirdisrememberedforitsone<br />
spectacularfailure,yetit’sthemostsuccessfulcontender in history,” says Bill. “It<br />
held the water-speed record seven times.”<br />
70 JUNE <strong>2017</strong>
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