Yorkshire May Not Be the Obvious Choice for Speed Records, But Ellington Airfield is Proving to be a Hotbed of Innovation
Ellington airfield, located in Yorkshire, may not be the most obvious place to go chasing speed records, but it's home to a two-mile landing strip that was once converted for emergency space shuttle landings. This unique setup has been leveraged by Drayson Racing and its driver, Grayson English, as they attempt to break the 200 mile an hour barrier in a converted LeMond prototype racer. The goal is not only to shatter this record but also to showcase the capabilities of electric vehicle technology.
According to English, "it's really important to us. We're here to try and set this new world record to show what electric vehicle technology can do. Prove that there's no reason why an electric car can't do everything takes an internal-combustion can do." The team has been working tirelessly to fine-tune their prototype, which is equipped with an impressive 850 brake horsepower on tap.
The Electric Motor Performance: A Key Factor in Breaking the Record
English explained that the car's electric motor delivers incredible performance. With a 0-60 miles an hour dispatch time of just three seconds and a 0-100 mile per hour time of 5.1 seconds, this is no ordinary vehicle. However, English also cautioned about the potential downfalls of such a powerful machine. "It's a real handful," he said. "Momentum builds in testing." Despite these challenges, English has reported that his car bucked and moved wildly at high speeds, but today was different.
The First Run: A New World Record
English took to the runway for the first run, reaching an incredible 203.26 miles an hour. This speed not only put the team on track for its record but also exceeded expectations. With the clock ticking down, English and his team knew they had to move quickly to cool the motors, top up the battery, and get the car ready to run again before the sun went down.
A Racing Against Time
As the minutes ticked away, the pressure mounted. The team knew that if they didn't complete the second run within the hour, they would be disqualified. English's voice came through the radio, calm and collected despite the urgency of the situation. "Tell me that's okay," he said. "We're driving 3205 205 every third way. Okay, here we go 5-0." The team held their breath as English took to the runway once more.
A Hairy Run
The second run was a wild ride for both English and his audience. "That was hairy," he exclaimed after completing the run. "That last run was absolutely brilliant," Grayson added, still trying to process the events of the past few minutes. English had been warned that he might not be able to lift off during this run due to the car's unpredictable behavior.
Sigh Relief
As Grayson approached the timing beacon, his foot instinctively found its way onto the brake pedal. "Sigh relief," he said with a chuckle. English continued to push the limits of his machine, showcasing incredible agility and control. After completing the second run, Grayson's final average speed was an astonishing 214.185 miles an hour – a new world record.
Breaking Records: The Future of Electric Cars
With this groundbreaking achievement, Grayson English has not only set a new world record but also proven that electric vehicles can rival internal-combustion engines in terms of performance. As he plans to evolve the technology developed for this bid, it's clear that the future of electric cars is bright and full of possibilities.
"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enYorkshire it may not be the most obvious place to go chasing speed records but this is Ellington airfield home to a two-mile landing strip that was once converted for emergency space shuttle landings the goal for Drayson racing in its drive the Lord pulled racin was to break the 200 mile an hour barrier in a converted LeMond prototype racer and in doing so break a record for sub thousand kilo electric cars that had stood for 39 years it's really important to us we're really here to try and set this new world record to show what electric vehicle technology can do to prove that there's no reason why an electric car can't do everything takes an internal-combustion can do and and we're here to really to to break this record regulations meant the team would need to run twice in opposite directions up and down the runway and all within an hour time English's earlier in the day men that like was fading fast and the pressure was on the electric motors deliver 850 brake horsepower on tap and naught to 60 miles an hour is dispatched in just three seconds naught to 100 in 5.1 seconds but with the car Sean of downfalls to help it slip through the air it's a real handfuls momentum builds in testing Drayson had span out at 178 miles an hour but even with the car bucking wildly as speed builds he has no such problems today the first run speed is two hundred and three point two six three miles an hour more than enough to put the team on track for its record now it's a race against the clock to cool the motors top up the battery and get the car ready to run again before the Sun Goes Down tell me that's okay we driving 3205 205 every third way okay here we go 5-0 really brilliant gosh that was hairy that last run that was absolutely I said to myself at the beginning I was not going to lift off whatever happened and coming up to here just as I was going past you the car was moving about so much that could hardly see where the beacon was I could just sort of see where we were on the on the runway and just trying to keep it straight keeping my foot in sigh relief when I went past that timing beacon I just could lift off and hit the brakes Grayson's final average was 214 185 miles an hour a new world record and having made the headlines he now plans to evolve some of the technology he developed for the bid for use in future electric carsYorkshire it may not be the most obvious place to go chasing speed records but this is Ellington airfield home to a two-mile landing strip that was once converted for emergency space shuttle landings the goal for Drayson racing in its drive the Lord pulled racin was to break the 200 mile an hour barrier in a converted LeMond prototype racer and in doing so break a record for sub thousand kilo electric cars that had stood for 39 years it's really important to us we're really here to try and set this new world record to show what electric vehicle technology can do to prove that there's no reason why an electric car can't do everything takes an internal-combustion can do and and we're here to really to to break this record regulations meant the team would need to run twice in opposite directions up and down the runway and all within an hour time English's earlier in the day men that like was fading fast and the pressure was on the electric motors deliver 850 brake horsepower on tap and naught to 60 miles an hour is dispatched in just three seconds naught to 100 in 5.1 seconds but with the car Sean of downfalls to help it slip through the air it's a real handfuls momentum builds in testing Drayson had span out at 178 miles an hour but even with the car bucking wildly as speed builds he has no such problems today the first run speed is two hundred and three point two six three miles an hour more than enough to put the team on track for its record now it's a race against the clock to cool the motors top up the battery and get the car ready to run again before the Sun Goes Down tell me that's okay we driving 3205 205 every third way okay here we go 5-0 really brilliant gosh that was hairy that last run that was absolutely I said to myself at the beginning I was not going to lift off whatever happened and coming up to here just as I was going past you the car was moving about so much that could hardly see where the beacon was I could just sort of see where we were on the on the runway and just trying to keep it straight keeping my foot in sigh relief when I went past that timing beacon I just could lift off and hit the brakes Grayson's final average was 214 185 miles an hour a new world record and having made the headlines he now plans to evolve some of the technology he developed for the bid for use in future electric cars\n"
