ETNZ have just completed a successful week of testing, hitting 87mph (140 kmph)
We are talking here of their land yacht project . . . ‘Horonuku’ with which they are attempting to set a new wind powered Land Speed World Record.
Piloted by Glenn Ashby, the craft has begin its New Zealand based testing phase at the RNZAF base at Whenuapai in West Auckland where Horonuku is being put through a series of structural and systems tests over the next few weeks.
Out of the box Horonuku has worked extremely well and ‘sailing’ in 15 – 30 knots and they have seen in excess of 140kmph (87mph)!
The attempts at the World Record is expected to be in July / early August on one of Australia’s vast salt lakes with Lake Gairdner in South Australia or Lake Lefroy in Western Australia as potential locations.
The target is the World Wind powered Land speed record currently held by Britain’s Richard Jenkins, whose ‘Greenbird’ land yacht hit 202.9kmph (125mph) in 2009.
‘Horonuku’ means gliding swiftly across land. Horo means fast or swift movement and nuku is connected to over earth or land.
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