Some people have the need: the need for speed. Here we look at four drivers who have driven five very different modes of transport in attempts to enter the record books
Mobility scooter
Colin Furze, a British plumber, spent three months converting his machine to go nine times faster than the average mobility scooter, which is 13kph. The petrol-powered scooter has a 125cc motorbike engine, five gears and twin exhausts. He is now looking to formally enter the speedy scooter into the record books: "I was told by Guinness that I could modify the engine but I wasn't allowed to change the appearance in any way, so I couldn't give it bigger wheels or make it more stable." Guinness told Furze he has to exceed 100kph.
Lawnmower
When you are the grandson of Sir Malcolm Campbell, who broke the world land-speed record driving a car, driving fast is in your blood. In fact, Don Wales set a new world record on the same beach in West Wales that Campbell set his record in 1924; the only difference was Wales was on a souped-up lawnmower. To enter the machine, Wales had to prove it has the ability to cut grass. The team set the record at 87.833mph (141.354kph). The team have set their sights on breaking the 100mph barrier.
Semi truck
Some people might want to have a quiet, relaxed day on their 59th birthday. Not Boije Ovebrink, who broke the semi truck land-speed record in June. Ovebrink took his specially built Volvo semi to Hultsfred Airport in Sweden and drove it for an average of 81.32 mph (130.87kph) for 500 metres and 103.58 mph (166.7kph) for the full kilometre. Due to the slow acceleration of semi trucks, their speed run is measured as an average over an entire course. So, the actual top speed of Ovebrink's truck was more than 155 mph (250kph).
Electric car
Don Wales, the lawnmower record holder, also set the UK land-speed record for an electric car 10 years ago. The Bluebird Electric Team set the current record of 139mph (224kph) in August 2000. But Wales feels the record is under threat and will attempt to set a new record in spring: "I want to set the UK record well beyond 150mph, the speed Sir Malcolm clocked in 1925. Ideally I'd like to match his record of 1927 - 175mph." Looking further ahead, in 2012, Wales is aiming to break the 500mph (800kph) barrier.
ThrustSSC
ThrustSSC holds the world land speed record, set on October 15, 1997, when it achieved a speed of 1,228kph and became the first car to officially break the sound barrier. Two teams are now competing to best this record: Bloodhound SSC, comprising many of the ThrustSSC team, including pilot/driver Andy Green; and the North American Eagle Project, a team of US and Canadian engineers, pilots and mechanics. The Bloodhound team declared last month it is on track to attempt the record in 2012.
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Korean Film Festival 2019 line-up
Innocent Witness, June 26 at 7pm
On Your Wedding Day, June 27 at 7pm
The Great Battle, June 27 at 9pm
The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion, June 28 at 4pm
Romang, June 28 at 6pm
Mal Mo E: The Secret Mission, June 28 at 8pm
Underdog, June 29 at 2pm
Nearby Sky, June 29 at 4pm
A Resistance, June 29 at 6pm
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Kill%20
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