A long time ago we got a big laugh out of an equipment journalist who sent a powered concrete trowel shooting off the edge of a slab. This is much worse.
Autoblog.com reports that British automotive writer Mark Hales borrowed a vintage Porsche 917 for a magazine article and tapped the gas a tad too hard, sending the tac to 8,200 rpm and blowing the engine. (7,000 rpm was the redline.)
Now Hales has been asked to pay $174,000 in damages and is facing bankruptcy. Details, including link to a website that’s trying to raise money for Hales, can be found here.
Be careful what you let journalists operate. We’re dangerous around machinery.
If you’re not familiar with the Porsche 917, it played a big role in what’s arguably the best racing movie ever.
