Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Man races world's fastest cat

It sounded like a joke from the start -- an almost primeval joke. Come watch a 100-meter race on a grass track pitting the world's fastest land mammal, the cheetah, against one of Africa's fastest human beings. The cheetah goes from zero to 60 mph in three seconds, the Ferrari of animals. It can reach a top speed of 70 mph. By contrast, the fastest human has been clocked at around 9:76 seconds in the 100-meter dash. Looking at the stats, common sense says there's no way man can compete with this big cat in any race. But don't tell that to Bryan Habana. The 23-year-old is one of South Africa's most famous rugby players, a speedy winger who's been credited with some of the most memorable moments in the sport's history. Habana runs the 100 meters in about 11 seconds. For this race, Habana was chosen by the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust, a conservation group involved in cheetah awareness programs in South Africa for 35 years. (Watch raw video of the big cat overtake Habana Video)

1 comment:

Jan said...

Can I place a bet on the race?