About
The Museum of Land Speed at Pendine, Carmarthenshire, commemorates one of the most remarkable chapters in early motoring history, the era when the long, flat expanse of Pendine Sands became the world's foremost venue for attempts on the world land speed record during the 1920s. The seven-mile stretch of firm, level sand at Pendine offered racing drivers of the period an unrivalled natural surface long enough and smooth enough to attempt speeds that were simply impossible on the purpose-built but comparatively short racing circuits of the day, and the beach hosted a succession of internationally significant record attempts that captured public imagination across Britain and beyond.
The museum's central figures are the Welsh landowner and racing driver J.
G. Parry-Thomas, who set a new land speed record at Pendine in 1926 driving his purpose-built car "Babs," and Malcolm Campbell, who also set records on the sands driving various iterations of his famous "Blue Bird" cars during the same period, their rivalry and achievements together defining Pendine's brief but spectacular status as the epicentre of world land speed record attempts.
The museum's most poignant and dramatic story concerns Parry-Thomas's death at Pendine in 1927 while attempting to reclaim the record from Campbell, when "Babs" crashed at high speed, a tragedy that effectively ended the era of land speed record attempts at Pendine as attention shifted to longer courses such as Daytona Beach in Florida and later Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, capable of accommodating the ever-increasing speeds pursued by subsequent record holders.
Remarkably, the wreck of "Babs" was buried in the sands at Pendine following the fatal crash and remained there for over four decades before being excavated, painstakingly restored, and eventually returned to display, and the car's extraordinary story of tragedy, burial and restoration forms one of the most compelling individual exhibits connected to the museum's collection.
Beyond the core 1920s land speed record narrative, the museum situates Pendine's motoring history within the wider context of the beach's subsequent use for military testing, aircraft development trials and ongoing motorsport and record-attempt activity, including modern land speed record efforts that have continued to use the sands in more recent decades, connecting the pioneering 1920s era to Pendine's continuing significance in speed record and testing history.
The museum's coastal Carmarthenshire setting, directly overlooking the sands where these historic events actually took place, gives visitors a strong sense of place, allowing the dramatic scale and flatness of the beach itself to be appreciated as an integral part of the story rather than an abstract historical backdrop.
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Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
💡 Visitor Tips
- Walk out onto Pendine Sands itself after your museum visit to appreciate the scale of the beach where the historic record attempts took place.
- Check current opening days before travelling, particularly outside the main spring-to-autumn season.
- Allow time to see the restored wreck of Babs and read its remarkable story of crash, burial and restoration in full.
- Combine your visit with nearby Laugharne or Carmarthen for a fuller day out along the Carmarthenshire coast.
- Motoring and motorsport enthusiasts should allow extra time to appreciate the technical detail behind the Blue Bird and Babs displays.
- Check tide times if planning to walk on the beach itself, as conditions can vary.
- Bring a camera for both the museum displays and the dramatic sweep of the sands outside.
- Visit with an interest in early twentieth-century motoring innovation to get the most from the museum's technical and historical detail.
Highlights
J.G. Parry-Thomas and "Babs"
The museum's most significant figure is Welsh racing driver J.
G. Parry-Thomas, who set a new land speed record at Pendine in 1926 driving his purpose-built car "Babs," and whose story dominates the museum's central narrative.
Displays trace Parry-Thomas's engineering background, his development of "Babs" and his rivalry with Malcolm Campbell for the land speed record, situating Pendine's brief golden age of record attempts within the wider story of 1920s motoring innovation and daring.
The 1927 Fatal Crash and Burial of Babs
The museum's most poignant exhibit concerns Parry-Thomas's death at Pendine in 1927 while attempting to reclaim the land speed record from Malcolm Campbell, when "Babs" crashed at high speed on the sands.
Following the tragedy, the wreck was buried in the beach and remained there for over four decades before being excavated, painstakingly restored, and eventually returned to display, and this remarkable story of tragedy, burial and restoration is told in detail through the museum's interpretation.
Malcolm Campbell and Blue Bird
Displays cover Malcolm Campbell's own record-breaking attempts on Pendine Sands driving various iterations of his famous "Blue Bird" cars during the same period as Parry-Thomas's efforts, illustrating the intense rivalry between the two drivers that drove rapid advances in land speed record engineering during the mid-1920s and cemented Pendine's brief but spectacular status as the epicentre of world land speed attempts.
Pendine Sands as a Natural Racing Surface
Interpretation explains why Pendine's seven-mile stretch of firm, level sand offered racing drivers of the 1920s an unrivalled natural surface for record attempts, longer and smoother than the purpose-built but comparatively short racing circuits available at the time, and traces how the beach's unique geography briefly made this corner of Carmarthenshire the centre of the international motoring world.
Collections
The Museum of Land Speed's collection is built around the extraordinary story of Pendine Sands' brief but spectacular status as the world's foremost venue for land speed record attempts during the 1920s, centred on the rivalry between Welsh driver J. G. Parry-Thomas, whose car "Babs" is a key exhibit following its 1927 crash, burial and eventual restoration, and Malcolm Campbell, who set records on the sands in his famous "Blue Bird" cars.
The museum explains why Pendine's unique seven-mile stretch of firm, level sand offered an unrivalled natural racing surface for the period, and traces how the era ended following Parry-Thomas's fatal 1927 crash, as record attempts moved to longer courses at Daytona and Bonneville.
The collection extends beyond the 1920s to cover Pendine's subsequent military testing history and its continuing significance for modern land speed and motorsport record attempts, giving visitors a comprehensive picture of the beach's unusual and enduring connection to speed record history.
Parry-Thomas, Babs and the 1920s Land Speed Record
Core displays on J.G. Parry-Thomas, his car Babs, his rivalry with Malcolm Campbell, and the story of the 1927 crash, burial and restoration.
Pendine Sands: Testing and Record History
Displays covering Pendine's later military testing use and its continuing significance for modern land speed record attempts.
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.