Usain Bolt should not run as fast as he does

[Darren Dirt]

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6760031/is-fastest-human-ever-already-alive

The one thing about sprinting we all understand is that speed comes from how hard the runner's foot hits the ground. Someone like Bolt is hitting the ground with 1,000 pounds of force, and we just don't how he does that. For example, we have a very accurate understanding of how much weight someone can lift ? we can take a person's frame and his muscle mass and accurately estimate how much weight he'll be able to bench press. But world-class sprinters deliver twice as much force as our estimates indicate, and we don't know why.

The idea that Bolt's height is his not-so-secret weapon makes sense geometrically, but not in practicality ? he seems to be the only person who somehow benefits from this "disadvantage." Francis Obikwelu (the 2004 Olympic silver medalist for Portugal) is almost 6-5 himself, and he once ran an impressive 9.86 ? but he simply can't turn his legs over2 as quickly as Bolt. His length gets in the way. For whatever the reason, Bolt is flat-out superior at every aspect of high-speed locomotion ? stride length, stride power, and the amount of time it takes to reach his top speed.

think about that next time you're chasing that !%#@ bus that has teased you by stopping at a the red light...