The best record for a 100m sprint in 1896 was 11.80 seconds, which is 2.22 higher than the current world record of 9.58. This gap is as big as the one between the first and the last runner today. Humans keep on breaking the records set by humans. And the desire to break records is also reflected in cars. Let’s see some unusual records of cars brought about by human aspirations!
In F1 races, where racers are obliged to change tires at least once, it’s fun to watch the pit stop in the middle of the race where the vehicle stops in the pits for new tires or refueling. Since the pit stop is also included in the racing time, it must be done as quickly as possible. It takes only about 2-4 seconds to replace all four tires and refuel. Amazing, isn’t it? So it’s interesting to watch how quickly this is done.
In the European F1 Grand Prix held in June in Baku of Azerbaijan, the Williams F1 team recorded a pit stop time of just 1.92 seconds. It was a true human victory to pull off a record time in under 2 seconds! It’s an incredible speed. It was so quick that even the cameras couldn’t identify when the tires were replaced. It’s amazing how the staff performed their own duties so quickly and without errors. We should give them a big hand, since this is directly linked to the driver’s safety!
A stunt we usually see only in films was actually pulled off in real life. In the Goodwood Festival of Speed held in West Sussex, England, there was a contest of cars driving the circuit on only two wheels, as shown in the image. British stuntman Terry Grant finished the 1.87km course in just 2 minutes and 10 seconds, which is 45 seconds quicker than the contest held in 2011. He became the world’s fastest driver on two wheels.
Stuntman Michele Pilia won the contest of racing the longest on two wheels. Pilia raced 370km nonstop on two wheels of the car at Stadio Comunale Sant'Elia in Cagliari, Italy in 2009. How amazing!
The sport of drifting is a driving style in which the driver slides on the road while leaving skid marks. Many men fantasize about this sport. A certain Japanese drift champion may happen to be their idol. Earlier this year, Masato Kawabata set an incredible drifting record at the drift test held by a Japanese car brand. He succeeded in a 30-degree drifting at the unbelievable speed of 304.96km/h on a tuning car with the output of a maximum 1,380-horsepower engine. It was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world’s quickest drift.
But don’t try this kind of drifting on ordinary roads. This extreme drift was made possible thanks to the optimized tuning for drifting as well as an expert racer’s know-how. Note that ordinary people will likely just end up getting into huge accidents if they try it!
How many people can a small hatchback hold? According to the record set in 2012, 28 people can get into a small hatchback. In Sussex, England, 28 female gymnasts piled themselves into the car using every possible space they could use, before the eyes of the Guinness Book judges. It took only 10 minutes for all of them to pile into the car! They stayed in the car for about 5 seconds with even the windows closed, setting a new world record. This bizarre and interesting record was even shown on ABC in the US.
So many new records have been set by cars and humans together! Many of them are truly bizarre and incredible. Let’s give a very big hand to the record breakers for their courage and confidence. Let’s see what new records will be set in the future!
