I somehow missed this when it was posted but have caught up now.
The author has done some impressive research with one crucial (given the headline) mistake.
So why don?t we know that, on March 31, 1904, Louis Rigolly was the first person to break 100 mph in a Gobron-Brilli??
is unfortunately not correct. Yes Rigolly was probably the first to officially set a 100+mph record, but not on that date.
In an event in Nice, France on March 31, 1904, Louis Rigolly set a record of "only" 94.78mph.
This was soon beaten. Then on July 20, 1904, Rigolly set his 103.56mph record in Ostend. So we can celebrate the 120th anniversary in a couple of months time.
Why do I say Rigolly was *probably* the first to officially set a 100+mph record? Well, Paul Baras (Darracq Gordon Bennett) made a two-way run at 101.68mph to be placed second at the same event in Ostend. I have been unable to establish the order of runs so there is a possibility that Baras was first to 100mph by a few minutes or an hour or so. Unless someone in Belgium is sitting on the detailed results of the 1904 Ostend Motor Week, we will probably never know.
If you like anniversaries, there are quite a few centenaries coming up. 1924 was a busy year in the land speed record business.