Speed | |
---|---|
Directed by | Greg MacGillivray |
Written by | Greg MacGillivray Steven Henschel James Foster |
Produced by | Greg MacGillivray |
Narrated by | James Burke |
Cinematography | Greg MacGillivray |
Edited by | Stephen Judson |
Music by | Steve Wood |
Distributed by | MacGillivray Freeman Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 29 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Speed is a 1984 documentary film directed by Greg MacGillivray that examines humanity's obsession with speed across various domains, including auto racing and aerospace. [1] It features thrilling visuals and highlights the achievements of notable speed enthusiasts. The film presents an exploration of speed's impact on culture and technology. [2]
The film begins with a primitive hunter-gatherer attempting to kill a deer to no avail, and then being chased by a tiger; he then jumps to the sea. The narrator, historian James Burke, remarks that humans have always desired to move faster than the status quo, even at the risk of one's life; this film examines that desire. Henceforth, it is divided into five parts: "The Daen of Original Thinking", "The Engine Revolution", "The Sky Has No Limit", "Faster than Man", and "We Have Just Begun to Crawl".
In 1839, Kirkpatrick Macmillan modified the wheel and invented the first self-propelled bicycle using the principle of leverage, which could travel at approximately 10 miles per hour (16 km/h). Later improvements allow for bicycles to go up to 40 miles per hour (64 km/h), despite various factors like gravity, friction, and wind resistance. The film then depicts the velomobile, whose streamlined enclosure allows for less wind resistance, hence moving six times as fast as the bicycle. The 1900s saw the invention of the Stanley Steamer, breaking a world record of 127 miles per hour (204 km/h). With the creation of the internal combustion engine, cars began to travel at faster speeds, inadvertently increasing the risk of accidents, prevalent with hot rods. The film demonstrates this by depicting Billy Vukovich, who would win the Indianapolis 500 in 1953 and 1954, before being killed in 1955. The introduction of auto racing further increased the top speed of cars, culminating with jet dragsters at 320 miles per hour (510 km/h).
Although airplanes are significant as vehicles free from ground constraints, attempts to break the sound barrier failed fatally, leading to the invention of the rocket-powered Bell X-1 in 1947, with Chuck Yeager flying it at 700 miles per hour (1,100 km/h). This launched a series of supersonic aircraft production; the fastest bring the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, with a top speed of 3,400 miles per hour (5,500 km/h). It then depicts the Blue Angels, whose movements are equated to auto racing. In 1969, astronauts of the Apollo 10 as were returning to Earth from the Moon, reaching up to 24,791 miles per hour (39,897 km/h).
Burke reveals that humans travel more than three billion miles (4.8×109 km) a year. Speed becomes an important element in every aspect of human life, such as communications. While some opine that this fast-paced society only causes fatal stress, the film also highlights stress-relieving and recreational manifestations of speed, such as ultralight aviation, surfing, hiking in sailing, skiing, and roller coasters. While the top speed humans can achieve will increase dramatically in the near future, it will not compare to the fastest speed according to Albert Einstein, the speed of light. However, scientists have begun to wonder if the true achievable top speed are only limited by one's imagination. The film ends with a surreal visualization of the speed of light progressively going faster towards the Sun.
The film received positive reviews [1] for its stunning cinematography and engaging storytelling, appealing to both motorsport enthusiasts and general audiences. [3]
Speed remains an influential work in the documentary genre, often referenced in discussions about speed and innovation in sports.
An open-wheel car is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have their wheels below the body or inside fenders. Open-wheel cars are built both for road racing and oval track racing. Open-wheel cars licensed for use on public roads, such as the Ariel Atom, are uncommon, as they are often impractical for everyday use.
In kinematics, the speed of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a non-negative scalar quantity. The average speed of an object in an interval of time is the distance travelled by the object divided by the duration of the interval; the instantaneous speed is the limit of the average speed as the duration of the time interval approaches zero. Speed is the magnitude of velocity, which indicates additionally the direction of motion.
Berna Eli "Barney" Oldfield was a pioneer American racing driver. His name was "synonymous with speed in the first two decades of the 20th century". He was the winner of the inaugural AAA National Championship in 1905.
Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling sports include artistic cycling, cycle polo, freestyle BMX, mountain bike trials, hardcourt bike polo and cycleball. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is the world governing body for cycling and international competitive cycling events. The International Human Powered Vehicle Association is the governing body for human-powered vehicles that imposes far fewer restrictions on their design than does the UCI. The UltraMarathon Cycling Association is the governing body for many ultra-distance cycling races.
Santa Pod Raceway is Europe's first permanent drag racing venue for 1⁄4 mile and 1⁄8 mile racing. Located in Podington, Bedfordshire, England, the drag strip was built on a disused Second World War Royal Air Force (RAF) airbase, known as RAF Podington; once used by the USAAF's 92nd Bomb Group. The drag racing venue opened at Easter in 1966, and it is now the home of European drag racing and hosts both the first and last round of the FIA and FIM / UEM European Drag Racing Championship, along with the British National Drag Racing Championships. It has also been the venue for the annual Volkswagen Beetle Bug Jam weekend since 1987.
Piero Taruffi was an Italian racing driver, motorcycle road racer, motorsport executive and engineer, who competed in Formula One from 1950 to 1956. Taruffi won the 1952 Swiss Grand Prix with Ferrari. In endurance racing, Taruffi won the Mille Miglia in 1957, also with Ferrari. In Grand Prix motorcycle racing, Taruffi won the 1932 European Championship in the premier 500cc class with Norton.
Bonneville Speedway is an area of the Bonneville Salt Flats northeast of Wendover, Utah, that is marked out for motor sports. It is particularly noted as the venue for numerous land speed records. The Bonneville Salt Flats Race Track is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Many countries have enacted electric vehicle laws to regulate the use of electric bicycles, also termed e-bikes. Some jurisdictions have regulations governing safety requirements and standards of manufacture. The members of the European Union and other regions have wider-ranging legislation covering use and safety.
Frederick Samuel Duesenberg was a German-born American automobile and engine designer, manufacturer and sportsman who was internationally known as a designer of racecars and racing engines. Duesenberg's engineering expertise influenced the development of the automobile, especially during the 1910s and 1920s. He is credited with introducing an eight-cylinder engine, also known as the Duesenberg Straight-8 engine, and four-wheel hydraulic brakes, a first for American cars, in addition to other mechanical innovations. Duesenberg was also patentholder of his designs for a four-wheel hydraulic brake, an early automatic transmission, and a cooling system, among others. Fred and his younger brother, August "Augie" Duesenberg, shared the patents, filed in 1913 and renewed in 1918, for their "walking beam" four-cylinder engine and the Duesenberg Straight 8.
Louis Frank Schneider was an American racing driver. He won the 1931 Indianapolis 500.
Bicycle performance is measurable performance such as energy efficiency that affect how effective a bicycle is. Bicycles are extraordinarily efficient machines; in terms of the amount of energy a person must expend to travel a given distance, cycling is calculated to be the most efficient self-powered means of transportation.
Electric motorcycles and scooters are plug-in electric vehicles with two or three wheels. Power is supplied by a rechargeable battery that drives one or more electric motors. Electric scooters are distinguished from motorcycles by having a step-through frame, instead of being straddled. Electric bicycles are similar vehicles, distinguished by retaining the ability to be propelled by the rider pedaling in addition to battery propulsion.
The 2007 Auto Club 500 was the second stock car race of the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series and the 11th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, February 25, 2007, before an audience of 87,000 in Fontana, California, at California Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway. The race took the scheduled 250 laps to complete. At race's end, Roush Fenway Racing driver Matt Kenseth would manage to dominate a majority of the race to take his 15th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, both drivers for Hendrick Motorsports, would finish second and third, respectively.
Eddie Hill is an American retired drag racer who won numerous drag racing championships on land and water. Hill had the first run in the four second range (4.990 seconds), which earned him the nickname "Four Father of Drag Racing." His other nicknames include "The Thrill", "Holeshot Hill", and "Fast Eddie". In 1960, he set the NHRA record for the largest improvement in the elapsed time (e.t.) when he drove the quarter mile in 8.84 seconds to break the previous 9.40-second record.
Motor-paced racing and motor-paced cycling refer to cycling behind a pacer in a car or more usually on a motorcycle. The cyclist follows as close as they can to benefit from the slipstream of their pacer. The first paced races were behind other cyclists, sometimes as many as five riders on the same tandem. Bordeaux-Paris and record attempts have been ridden behind cars. More usually races or training are behind motorcycles.
The Winston-Salem Fairgrounds was a dirt oval track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km) in addition to its primary purpose as a fairground. During the times of the year that it wasn't expected to host a stock car race, this fairground was the home of the annual Winston-Salem Fair/Dixie Classic Fair for Northwest North Carolina along with other events related to the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina. The annual fair would traditionally take place in the first week of October. On December 1, 1969, the Winston-Salem Foundation gave the Fairgrounds, the Memorial Coliseum, and $75,000 to the City of Winston-Salem.
The hour record is the record for the longest distance cycled in one hour on a bicycle from a stationary start. Cyclists attempt this record alone on the track without other competitors present. It is considered perhaps the most prestigious record in all of cycling. Over history, various cyclists ranging from unknown amateurs to well-known professionals have held the record, adding to its prestige and allure. There are several records, one of which is the record for streamlined human powered vehicles, also known as recumbent bicycles.
Denise Mueller-Korenek is an American cyclist. As of September 2018, she holds the world record for paced bicycle land speed and is considered "the fastest cyclist on earth". She set the record on September 16, 2018, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, by traveling an average of 183.932 mph (296.009 km/h) on a custom-built carbon KHS bicycle behind a custom-built vehicle to minimize air resistance. The previous record, 167 miles per hour (269 km/h), was set in 1995 by Dutchman Fred Rompelberg. Two years earlier she set the women's bicycle land speed record, pedaling 147.7 mph (237.7 km/h). She is the first and only woman in history to hold the world record, which was first established in 1899.
The 2017 Service King 300 was the fifth stock car race of the 2017 NASCAR Xfinity Series season and the 19th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, March 25, 2017, in Fontana, California, at Auto Club Speedway, a 2 miles (3.2 km) permanent D-shaped oval racetrack. The race took the scheduled 150 laps to complete. At race's end, Kyle Larson, driving for Chip Ganassi Racing, would defend against eventual second-place finisher, Team Penske driver Joey Logano, on the final restart with four to go to win his sixth career NASCAR Xfinity Series win and his first of the season. To fill out the podium, Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing finished third.