London Land Speed Record up for grabs!

Autocar magazine announced Wednesday that it is sponsoring a bid to set a "London Land Speed Record" this July, in conjunction with the British International Motor Show.

The event will feature a gaggle of supercars attempting to set a London speed record on a mile-long runway at London City Airport (shown above). Although speed is the object, braking will be rather important, too. In a masterpiece of understatement, Autocar editor Rob Aherne says, "It's as much a test of braking performance; not least because the runway ends in a dock." (The airport is located in London's "Docklands" area)

Could this be the start of city vs. city speed contests? Why not? We at Autoblog think the logical site for the next urban speedfest would be none other than London's sister city, New York. After all, NYC already has the New York International Auto Show, so all we need to do is get some track time at JFK or LaGuardia. Little help, FAA? (The Port Authority of New York's helpful website points out that LaGuardia has 7,000 foot runways...)

[Sources: Autocar, London City Airport, Port Authority of New York]