On the correct date there will be an event at Brooklands to remember the first leg of the "double" from 50 years ago - 17th July. This will also see the launch of a book on Malcolm & Donald compiled and created by David de Lara.
There is a dinner at the National Motor Museum Beaulieu on the 19th. with Tonia Bern-Campbell.
In Australia there are events up to 31st December, when Donald broke the water speed record to take the FIA wheeldriven record (they had no thrust powered class until '65) and the UIM Outright water record.
Donald was not 'rich' in the sense of having abundant personal funds but he did get British industry to back the creation of Bluebird CN7 (designed by Ken Norris), much as Ricjhard Noble has done with the various Thrust and SSC projects.
Having crashed at Bonneville in '60 Donald had no interest in returning to the US salt so went to Australia in '63 and '64 and found water on Lake Eyre hence speeds even a year later well below the potential of CN7 (500 mph).
Was Donald a hot rodder? I think he and Mickey T got along comparing backgrounds, he was an engineer after all not a fur trader or insurance broker.
Let's not waste some band width trying to define a 'hot rodder' when talking about land speed racing and outright land speed records? How would you describe Mike Akatiff and Denis Manning and Danny Thompson and Ron Main and .......