http://youtu.be/IVUz5PjYUHs

It’s easy to take the speeds of our modern cars and motorcycles for granted, in fact bags of BHP is something we absolutely EXPECT as standard these days.

But it’s pioneers like Richard Noble and the Thrust2 Jet Propelled car that really push boundaries and test the limits of man and machine.

This short film documents the long and sometimes soul-destroying journey that started back in 1977 with a £175 budget and the Thrust1, the launch of Thrust2 on September 8th 1981 and the subsequent successful land speed record attempt on October 8th 1983 in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert.

Money, timing, people, places and weather were just some of the challenges the Thrust2 team needed to overcome in to reach a staggering top speed of 650.88mph (1,047.49 km/h). Powered by a single Rolls-Royce Avon jet engine sourced from an English Electric Lightning Fighter Jet, this ‘Green monster’ ran on 4” thick aluminum wheels due to it being too fast to run on tires!

Well worth 48 minutes of your life, so give it a watch!