>> over 64 kilometers per hour/The Drive
Dylan Phillips has a sense of humor, a thirst for speed, and is now officially the driver of the fastest car in the world. It's a must-see!
As quoted in a BBC article, The Drive writes: “Everyone loves it – it's so silly. You can't help but smile when you see it.” This is the kind of energy motorsport needs.
Land speed records tend to conjure up images of salt flats, dried-up lakes, or a random beach in the American wilderness with one man behind the wheel of a vehicle that looks part cigarette, part fighter jet, part fanny car, part rocket. The most famous and most used location for such records is the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. The most common vehicle is the jet car.
But maybe you find it boring. What if we changed the location to Yorkshire in Northern England and the vehicle was a wheelbarrow? And will you break the land speed record, accelerating to an insane 83.6 kilometers per hour?
That doesn't sound particularly fast when you think in car terms, given the safety of the windshield and airbags. Ride a motorcycle and 83.6 kilometers per hour will seem faster. Sit on a 999cc lawnmower and it will seem ridiculous.
But it's worth it. And we think Phillips, who drives a wheelbarrow, would agree. A 35-year-old mechanic from a rural area in south-west Wales assembled this wheelbarrow/scooter mix in his shed and now holds the speed record.
But dear Jeebus, why? “I've always built crazy things,”Phillips said in an interview with the BBC. And he was really just playing around with the thing. The idea of a world record only came when he reached 59.5 kilometers per hour (and after a few drinks in the pub). Phillips – And then decide to do something with this idiotic thing I built.” alt=”The British man broke the record by accelerating wheelbarrows to crazy speed” />
He went to Straightliners Speed Week. Straightliners run a number of one and two day events throughout the year across Europe and the UK, providing affordability and access to competition in straight line racing, drag racing, motorsport and basically anything that can go fast on wheels. That obviously includes wheelbarrows.
Amidst a crowd of supercars, superbikes and the super-curious, Phillips broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest motorized wheelbarrow. His official speed was 84.627 kilometers/hour, which he developed in the final run. The previous record was set at a speed of 74 kilometers per hour.
I feel on top of the world, said Phillips. – I mean, it's absolute nonsense, really, but it feels pretty good.” And adds: “Everybody loves it – it's so silly. You can't help but smile when you see this.
It's funny and almost silly, but when the silliness is done right, it can be a lot of fun.