Speed Machines tells the story of eight battles to design and build the fastest car, ship, plane, boat and train. It seems that as soon as we were able to build these vehicles, there was someone who wanted theirs to go faster than anyone else's. In these stories we meet the people who tried everything they knew to beat the competition and we re-live their successes and failures. Above all, we meet the winners – the people who designed, built and then raced the fastest speed machines of their time.

• Read about the build-up to these races. What drove the contenders to become the fastest. Find out what actually happened – who won and who lost.
• Follow the twists and turns of each race with our timelines of the crucial events.
• Get behind the scenes to learn about the design and technology used in each race. Find out why the winner was the fastest.