Donald Campbell - 50 years on

I'm not sure if I knew who he was prior to his last fatal attempt to break the water speed record but I certainly recall hearing about him then.

I have photos of his Dad, Malcolm taken at Brooklands. My Dad used to race there in his Amilcar.

As a teenager I actually saw some of his practice runs on Coniston Water, though not the fatal one.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4087226/Speed-hero-Donald-Campbell-s-daughter-lays-flowers-Coniston-Water-50-years-died-trying-smash-record-jet-boat-Bluebird.html

... I didn't know that they only found his body in 2001.

More information here. The actual funeral service went almost unnoticed as it was the day after 9/11.

Recovery of Bluebird K7 and the body of Donald Campbell

The wreckage of Campbell's craft was recovered by the Bluebird Project between October 2000, when the first sections were raised, and May 2001, when Campbell's body was recovered. The largest section comprising approximately two thirds of the centre hull was raised on 8 March 2001. The project began when diver Bill Smith was inspired to look for the wreck after hearing the Marillion song "Out of this World" (from the album Afraid of Sunlight), which was written about Campbell and Bluebird.[13]
The recovered wreck revealed that the water brake had deployed after the accident as a result of stored accumulator pressure; Campbell would not have had time to deploy the relatively slow-moving brake as the boat flipped out of control. The boat still contained fuel in the engine fuel lines, discounting the fuel-starvation theory. The wreckage all evidenced an impact from left to right, wiping the whole front of the boat off in that direction. Campbell's lower harness mounts had failed and were found to be effectively useless. Further dives recovered various parts of K7, which had separated from the main hull when it broke up on impact.
Campbell's body was finally located just over two months later and recovered from the lake on 28 May 2001, still wearing his blue nylon overalls. His head has not yet (2015) been recovered.

Campbell was buried in Coniston Cemetery on 12 September 2001 after his coffin was carried down the lake, and through the measured kilometre, on a launch, one last time. A funeral service was then held at St Andrew's Church in Coniston, after an earlier, and positive DNA examination had been carried out.[14] The funeral was attended by his widow Tonia, daughter Gina, other members of his family, members of his former team and admirers. The funeral was overshadowed in the media due to coverage of the 9/11 attacks in the United States. Campbell's sister Jean Wales had, however, been against the recovery of her brother's body out of respect for his stated wish that, in the event of something going wrong, "Skipper and boat stay together". Jean Wales did, however, remain in daily telephone contact with project leader Bill Smith during the recovery operation in anticipation of any news of her brother's remains. When Campbell was buried in Coniston Cemetery on 12 September 2001 she did not attend the service. Steve Hogarth, lead singer for Marillion, was also present at the funeral and performed the song "Out of this World" solo.

Steve Hogarth is a legend!

Not surprising the belts failed; God alone knows what kind of G's are generated, crashing into water at that speed.

Froggy, you must be quite a bit older than I had assumed....