Two mechanics from the Isle of Man—that island in Great Britain known for motorcycle speedsters—decided to go for the fastest mobility scooter world record after hearing about another modified scooter that hit 71.59 mph on television. The world record at the time was actually a tad higher at 82.67 mph, a mark set by Klaus Nissen Petersen of Denmark in 2012. But the engineering pair just blew both of those marks away.
David Anderson and Mathew Hine spent six months designing and building their mobility scooter—the kind you'll often find in a supermarket—and set a new world record of 107.6 mph this week. Hine took the handlebars of the modified scooter and raced to glory at the Jurby Motodrome in the Isle of Man where the speed record was measured as an average over a quarter of a mile.
To build their green machine, Anderson and Hine started with a Days Strider mobility scooter designed to top out at 8 mph and started tweaking. The chassis of the end product is actually modified from a racing go-kart frame, with a Suzuki 600cc Bandit motorcycle engine sitting inside. The wheels and tires from the go-kart were used as well, as the original wheels could never stand up to the speeds this mobility scooter was destined for.
So yes, most of the important parts of the scooter were replaced, but the Guinness World Records website lays down some pretty generous terms as to what counts as a scooter:
"Guinness World Records guidelines state that the scooter has to be based on an existing, commercially available mobility aid. The engine may be modified or replaced in a way that seems suitable to gain a higher speed - but from the outside the vehicle must appear like a traditional motorscooter."
Unfortunately you won't see Hine or Anderson riding their modified mobility scooter out on the roads—no front brakes means no vehicle registration. Still, imagine the look on a semi driver's face when you passed him on this thing.
Source: Guinness World Records
Jay Bennett is the associate editor of PopularMechanics.com. He has also written for Smithsonian, Popular Science and Outside Magazine.
