This is James.
He has two passions in life: wildlife and speed.
Random, I know, but to each his own…
Right now, James is warming up to combine these two passions in one epic challenge!
He wants to outrun as many creatures on Earth as he can.
How far through the animal kingdom do you think he’ll get?
Let’s find out!
Sorry, Jimmy, but the chances don’t look good.
Humans aren’t that fast.
Like anyone else, James walks at a humble average speed of 3 mph.
Good news, though – he’s already faster than a lot of other land-inhabiting creatures.
For example, insects and other bugs are fast only for their tiny sizes.
Our competitive friend here can easily outpace almost every one of them!
Really?
Even house centipedes?
Those little monsters move nightmarishly fast!
Yeck…
Other animals with more comparable sizes to humans, like sloths, koalas, and giant tortoises,
are also left far behind.
Sloths live in places where it’s too risky to move fast because predators will see them.
So, they move at a sluggish 0.15 mph.
And giant tortoises clock out at a max of 0.3 mph.
But these animals are among the slowest on our planet.
So, it’s finally time for Jimbo to put on his running shoes...
James is really fit, and he’s been preparing for this day his whole life.
That’s why 15 mph is just a jog for him, even if it’s the average speed other people
run at.
Yet this pace is good enough for us because we can outrun all pesky vermin like rats and
mice, as well as all spiders and snakes in the world!
The leading competitor here is the Six-lined Racerunner – a great name for a lizard that
can show James how he won’t keep up.
Uh-oh!
Hurry up, fella!
James wants to go for high league levels of animal running.
So, he kicks it up to Olympic speeds.
28 mph – the fastest running speed ever recorded for a human being.
Animals like elephants, squirrels, and even polar bears are stopping to catch their breath
behind our speedy friend’s back.
This is a strange point where a human can outrun a polar bear, but he won’t hold for
long against a grizzly bear.
Better throw some honey to distract it!
This is also the point where Slim Jim decides to face the truth – speed is not humankind’s
strongest attribute.
But intelligence and ingenuity are!
With this thought, James jumps on a bike...
40 mph – that’s about the top speed he can reach on a bicycle without the help of
a motor.
It’s just enough to escape from all bears and canines like jackals, dogs, and wolves.
But he still can’t catch up with a brown hare – they can clock at 48 mph.
But, hey, at least James wins the race against a simple house cat.
What about their big cousins that rule the African grasslands?...
Lions can run at a staggering 50 mph.
That’s about the same as their favorite food source: The Blue Wildebeest.
Tigers are even faster with a speed of 60 mph.
And, of course, the absolute champ of top speeds on this planet – the cheetah.
Sprinting through prairies at 75 mph, it’s crucial for these predators as they chase
down extremely fast pronghorn antelopes.
These horned creatures can easily beat a lion on a race track!
To match the speed of a cheetah, James can’t keep relying solely on his own body’s strength
and endurance.
This time, he hops in a car.
Nothing too flashy or fast – a simple sedan that can handle typical highway speeds with
no problem.
But we humans have come up with some unbeatable land machines.
Powerful racecars and even jet cars capable of breaking the sound barrier with a top speed
of 765 mph!
I guess we technically win the battle on ground.
But what if Jimmie Boy challenges some animals from the marine world?...
Again, there’s no way he can do it without one of humanity’s fancy inventions.
It’s much harder for us humans to move underwater as it’s denser than air and requires a much
more streamlined body shape for speed.
With our bulky torsos and lanky arms and legs, we just don’t have what it takes!
Nevermind all the hair covering us…
Well, buddy, what are you waiting for?
Dive in!
The maximum speed James can hope to achieve without flippers is just 3 mph.
That’s barely enough to swim past eels.
But he’s easily moving past crabs and starfish.
Well, yeah, duh – these bottom dwellers don’t even need to move for most of their
lives.
Not the mightiest contestants out there…
But wait, what’s that behind you in the distance?
Something triangular sticking up out of the water.
Is that…a shark?
Hurry, Jim, put on a diving suit!
You better swim for your life!!!
With that wet suit covering his mammalian hair and those flippers on his feet, James
can now swim a lot faster: 8 mph.
He’s on-par with most land animals’ swimming skills, and he could outswim most penguins
and sea otters.
But those Great Whites are catching up fast!
And it’s no wonder – they’re moving 30 mph!
They’re right at his feet!
It’s only seconds before they open their wide jaws and…oh, I can’t look!
James?
Are you…ok?
Well, aren’t you a sly one?!?
Or lucky…
You jumped into that sailboat at the last minute!
He’s now sailing smooth at 18 mph.
Granted, those Great Whites can swim way faster than that, but only in short bursts.
See?
They’re already tired now.
The boat is faster than humpback whales, sea lions, and small fish.
But Jimmy Crack Corn is already wanting to up the ante.
This time, he hops on a giant cruise liner.
Its deafeningly roaring engines can accelerate this metal hulk up to 35 mph, leaving behind
barracudas, dolphins, and octopuses.
Yeah, those eight-legged creatures can swim surprisingly fast at 25 mph!
Looks like it’s time to take this challenge to a whole new level.
James finds a speed boat and whips around on the water at 90 mph.
Careful, buddy!
Don’t crash!
And congratulations!
You’re moving way faster than a marlin, which can only go up to 50 mph.
Oh yeah, and you’ve passed the world’s fastest fish: the sailfish, which clocks out
at 68 mph.
The only thing that’s left for our champ to conquer is the skies.
To talk about human capabilities in flying is not even a joke.
By the way, do you prefer zooming through the water, the skies, or on land in some hot-rod
car?
Let me know down below!
Anyway, right from the get-go, James needs something to lift him up.
Looks like he’s opted for a jetpack because, who wouldn’t when given a choice?
Up in the sky, poking holes in clouds at 65 mph, Jimmy Boy is already among the flying
record breakers.
All the pigeons, sparrows and blackbirds are too slow to keep up.
He’s now flying with falcons!
The Peregrine Falcon to be exact, which can fly horizontally at an average speed of 56
mph but can bump it up to 69 mph.
There are even quicker feathered beings, like the Bald Eagle soaring through the air at
75 mph and topping at 99 when it really tries.
Some recent studies showed that our flying mammal relatives bats can reach an astonishing
100 mph and still be beat by the White-Throated Needletail’s 105 mph.
That all would be just enough to ruin James’ day for good if not for a small plane he rented
for this occasion.
Now flying 124 mph, it seems like nothing can stop him!
Yet it’s Jim’s old rival the Peregrine Falcon that swoops in to retake the crown.
Watching as James zooms ahead, the bird only smirks as it dives towards the ground at 240
mph!
It must be swooping down for some lunch!
Well, it’s all over then.
Give it up, dude.
Just pack your stuff and fly back home… on a jumbo jet!
He’s only cruising, yet the speedometer reads 600 mph!
And we have a champion, folks!
Not a personal record to be fair, but a victory nonetheless!
Maybe one person can’t be the fastest being in the world, but humanity can reach speeds
that are simply unimaginable for any other living creature.
And today we thank James for proving that!
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