Henry Segrave Sir Henry O ' Neil de Hane Segrave ( 22 September 1896 – 13 June 1930 ) was famous for setting three land speed record s and the water speed record . He was the first person to hold both the land and water speed records simultaneously . He was the first person to travel at over 200 mph ( 320 km / h ) in a land vehicle . The Segrave Trophy was established in 1930 to commemorate his life . First World War . A British national , Segrave was born on 22 September 1896 in Baltimore , Maryland of an American mother and an Irish father . He was raised in Ireland and attended Eton College in England . He was commissioned into the Royal Warwickshire Regiment in 1914 and served as a fighter pilot with the Royal Flying Corps from January 1916 ( although he retained his commission in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment ) . He was wounded twice , in 1915 and 1916 . In July 1916 he became a flight commander as a temporary captain . In 1919 he transferred to the Royal Air Force Administrative Branch , but soon resigned his commission due to his wounds . Segrave bragged that he would drive a car at over 200 miles per hour ( 320 km / h ) . Motor racing career . In 1921 the 200 - Mile Race at Brooklands was organised by the Junior Car Club , the first long - distance race to be run in Britain . The race , a contest for 1 , 500 c . c . light cars , was won by Segrave in a Talbot - Darracq . He was the first Briton to win a Grand Prix in a British car . He won the 1923 French Grand Prix and the 1924 San Sebastian Grand Prix at Circuito Lasarte ( Spain ) in a Sunbeam automobile . After a further win at Miramas in France , he retired from racing to concentrate on speed records . Land speed record . On 21 March 1926 , he set his first land speed record in his 4 - litre Sunbeam Tiger " Ladybird " on the sands at Southport , England at 152 . 33 mph ( 245 . 149 km / h ) . This record lasted for just over a month , until broken by J . G . Parry - Thomas driving Babs He regained the land speed record in 29 March 1927 in his 1000 HP Sunbeam " Mystery " ( also known as ' the Slug ' ) at the Daytona Beach Road Course at 203 . 79 mph ( 327 . 97 km / h ) , becoming the first person to travel over 200 mph ( 320 km / h ) . Segrave set his final land speed record at 231 . 45 mph ( 372 . 46 km / h ) in his new car , the beautiful " Golden Arrow " , at Daytona Beach on 11 March 1929 . This car had only 18 . 74 miles ( 30 . 16 km ) on it , which is the least used car to set the record . After being the first person on the scene of Lee Bible ' s death , Segrave began concentrating on the water speed record . " Golden Arrow " has never been used since . The Golden Arrow is on display along with the Sunbeam 350HP and the Sunbeam 1000HP at the National Motor Museum , Beaulieu . Water speed record and death . Segrave was also an avid motorboat racer . After his 1929 land speed record , he immediately went to Miami for a motorboat race against Garfield Wood , multiple water speed record holder and the first man to travel over 100 miles per hour on water . Segrave won , causing Wood ' s first defeat in nine years . After Segrave returned to Great Britain , he was knighted for his many accomplishments . A few months after receiving his knighthood , on Friday 13 June 1930 , Sir Henry Segrave unknowingly captured the water speed record driving " Miss England II " on England ' s largest natural lake , Windermere . In a follow - up run the boat presumably hit a log and capsized , killing " Miss England " ' s mechanic , Victor Halliwell . Segrave ' s unconscious body was recovered , and taken to a hospital . He regained consciousness for a moment , was informed that he had indeed broken the record , then died a few moments later of lung haemorrhage s . Kaye Don subsequently broke two more world water speed records in " Miss England II " . Aircraft designer . When Segrave ' s interest in flying returned in the late 1920s he designed an aircraft for luxury touring . The aircraft was a wooden twin - engined monoplane built as the Saro Segrave Meteor , three metal versions being built as the Blackburn Segrave .