Top Speed

About Top Speed

Using the world’s largest film format and breathtakingly immersive IMAX® theatre technology, Top Speed explores what goes into the making of speed – and what drives certain individuals to go to new extremes in their pursuit of human excellence. By capturing some of the world’s fastest men and women on film, Top Speed literally surrounds the audience with the adrenaline-inducing sensations of speed. From the drama of competitors pushing through pain and fear to attain victory, to the fascinating facts of how friction and acceleration help lead to awe-inspiring world records, Top Speed reveals everything it takes to achieve speeds that once seemed impossible.

Says film director Greg MacGillivray: “Top Speed explores the science of speed, but in so doing the film also becomes a stirring and inspirational story about the passionate pursuit of dreams and human excellence. At the heart of the film are four amazing personalities who have pushed the desire for speed beyond anything most people can imagine. Each one reveals how imagination, spirit and courage have helped humans race past all conceivable limits to continually expand our potential.”

To probe the creation of acceleration, Top Speed looks at the relationship between science and speed and breaks it down into three categories: Body, Mind, and Heart. It is only when all three elements come together that truly unprecedented speeds result. As Marion Jones says: “My body is my instrument, my mind is the pilot, and my heart is the engine.”

Top Speed profiles four world class speedsters and reveals specific principles of speed through their individual stories:


	Sprinter Marion Jones explains the principals behind the three physical phases of a runner’s start: the Response (the initial reaction when the gun goes off), the Drive (when Marion pushes off the ground with a force of more than 300 pounds) and the Transition (when Marion rises to an upright stance and takes off for the finish line).

	Racecar driver Lucas Luhr demonstrates how he endures heat and “g" forces during a race that make his body react as if it weighs twice as much.

	Mountain biker Marla Streb reveals how her bike's suspension system helps keep her tires on the ground, even when she is riding as close to out-of-control as she possibly can.

	High-performance car designer Stephen Murkett shows how savvy engineering can create the perfect aerodynamics for a car driving down the world’s most demanding roads.

Still, when it comes to athletic performance, there comes a point where it is not just a science, but an art. No matter how many adjustments a racer has made to cut down on drag or hone her aerodynamics, she still has to go out there and bring her own style and drive to each performance, factors that can push an athlete past even physiology and technology.

For a listing of IMAX® theatres and other large format cinemas exhibiting Top Speed, click here.

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