The results are in and a new record has been set in a new category after a wind-powered vehicle officially traveled downwind faster than the wind.
Naysayers said it couldn't be done, but Rick Cavallaro and the crew at fasterthanthewind.org proved it could be by actually doing it. They made the record runs during the July 4th weekend at El Mirage, California. The North American Land Sailing Association made it official Tuesday when it ratified the results: The DWFTTW cart traveled directly downwind at 2.8 times the wind speed.
The achievement means the record books, physics texts and even that Christopher Cross song will all have to be rewritten. Barring the exposure of an international aerodynamicist conspiracy, the question has been settled once and for all. Not that we expect the fierce debate to end quietly.
The team did it with an innovative ultra-lightweight, aerodynamically sound cart with a 17-foot propeller that's driven by the vehicle's wheels. The wheels turn the prop, while the prop turns the wheels -- possible thanks to an incredibly heavy-duty transmission -- with the wind acting as an external power source that propels the cart faster than the wind itself. (More on the tech here.)
If you don't believe it, you'll have another chance to see it. The team set out to prove such a feat was possible, but now that they've set a record they've fixed their sights on breaking it. Cavallaro hopes to reach three times the speed of the wind within a few weeks.
Photo: Emilio Castaño Graff / fasterthanthewind.org
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