B737-300 CREW EXCEEDED 250 KTS BELOW 10000 FT IN DEN CLASS B AIRSPACE.

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SPD ABOVE 250 KTS BELOW 10000 FT. VERY QUIET DAY COMING INTO DENVER. NO OTHER TFC IN FRONT OF US ON ARR OR BEHIND US. FLYING TO MSN ARR NO SPD RESTR GIVEN. I WAS PF. WAS GIVEN A DSCNT BELOW 10000 FT AND FAILED TO SLOW TO 250 KTS. FO DIDN'T CATCH IT AND NEITHER DID DEN ARR. I CAUGHT IT WHEN ABOUT 12 MI FROM FAF RWY 16R AT APPROX 8000 FT. HUMAN FACTORS: I KEPT WONDERING WHEN DEN WOULD GIVE US A SPD RESTR. FOR SOME REASON THAT STUCK IN MY MIND -- NOT THE DSCNT BELOW 10000 FT. I ALSO CONCENTRATED ON MAINTAINING A GLIDE PATH TO FAF SO WHEN I WAS GIVEN A RESTR I WOULD MAKE AN SOP APCH. WHEN I DID REALIZE THE MISTAKE I SLOWED AND MADE STABILIZED APCH. AT THAT POINT I POINTED OUT TO FO MY EXCESS AIRSPD BELOW 10000 FT AND SAID WE WOULD TALK ABOUT IT ON THE GND. APCH WAS COMPLETELY STABILIZED. I TAKE GREAT PRIDE IN FLYING BY THE BOOK AND THIS IS A MISTAKE I HAVE NEVER MADE IN 20 YRS OF FLYING. ON A CLR DAY; I WAS FIXATED ON GLIDE PATH TO THE FAF AND WAITING FOR APCH TO SLOW ME. THIS SHOWED ME THAT AT ANY POINT A PLT CAN BECOME FIXATED ON ONE ITEM TO THE DETRIMENT OF OTHER SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 534402: ON THE TOMSN ARR INTO DENVER; NO TFC IN FRONT OF US. WE WEREN'T GIVEN SPD RESTR. #1 FOR A VISUAL APCH; RWY 16. WE WERE GIVEN A DSCNT TO 8000 FT. CAPT REALIZED WE WERE BELOW 10000 FT AND HAD FAILED TO SLOW TO 250 KTS. WE IMMEDIATELY SLOWED AND MADE A NORMAL; STABILIZED APCH. BOTH THE CAPT AND I FAILED TO REALIZE THE MISTAKE UNTIL BELOW 10000 FT. I BELIEVE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS ON MY PART MAY BE THE FACT THAT I CAME FROM AN AIRPLANE (BE1900) IN WHICH THE 10000 FT/250 KT FAR WAS NEVER A CONSIDERATION AS WE WERE ALWAYS SLOWER THAN 250 KTS. ALSO; I WAS THINKING THE CAPT WAS GOING TO KEEP HIS SPD UP TO FLY THE MOST EFFICIENT APCH POSSIBLE; BUT NOT REALIZING WE WERE ALREADY BELOW 10000 FT.