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They say the first car race occurred shortly after the second car was built. Speed junkies have long created races around just about every form of transportation out there, so it comes as no surprise that electric scooter racing would eventually pop up.

What is surprising though is just how freaking fast these racing scooters actually are, capable of exceeding 60 mph (100 km/h) on what looks like an overgrown kid’s toy.

But these are far from any children’s toy I’ve seen. Weighing in at 77 lb (35 kg), the YCOM S1-X electric scooters were custom-built for the eSkootr Championship (eSC).

The eSC is the first and only high-speed standing electric scooter racing league, and it’s as bonkers as it sounds. We first covered the league over a year ago when it announced its intentions and began looking for teams.

Fortunately for everyone who has ever wanted to see dudes on small-wheeled scooters take turns at highway speeds, enough teams signed up that the league was able to get off the ground and rolling.

Earlier this year eSC unveiled its S1-X electric scooter, and now we’re getting our closest look yet at the new scooters, along with an inside scoop on how they were tested ahead of next year’s racing commencement.

Racing will start in 2022 on specially-designed circuits ranging in length from 400 to 800 meters (1,300 to 2,600 feet).

To minimize costs for racing teams and lower the barriers to entry, the eSC decided to standardize around a single scooter design. Motorsport engineering company YCOM was chosen as the designer, ultimately producing the high-power S1-X electric scooter for the league.

The 12 kW (16 hp) electric scooters split their power between two in-wheel hub motors, and a special boost button will be available to dump an extra 20% power on straightaways. Stored energy comes from a 1.5 kWh battery under the deck of the scooter.

We’ve seen other electric scooters achieve ranges of over 60 miles (100 km) with a battery of that size, but at much more reasonable speeds of around 25 mph (40 km/h). At the speeds and power levels that the eSC will see, don’t expect anywhere near that range. A dozen or so laps of a less-than-half-mile track could be all she wrote for such small batteries.

The scooter’s carbon fiber chassis is described by YCOM as being clad in bodywork that is “aerodynamic and environmentally-friendly,” though it’s not clear how they earned the latter part of that designator. Between the carbon fiber chassis and machined aluminum components, the scooter is actually fairly lightweight for such a high-power ride.

We’ve tested other electric scooters that achieved speeds nearly this fast yet weighed around 25% more.

So far, YCOM has delivered 10 electric scooters and has another 20 more in the works to be delivered before racing begins.

The first 10 units began trials with a group of 16 riders, but the first tests were run with the scooters limited to 40% power.

As testing progressed, the power was incrementally increased up to 70%. By that point, riders reported feeling “fatigued by the physical demands of such speeds and lean angles of up to 55 degrees.”

YCOM explained that “with improved physical conditioning and additional practice in October testing, it is hoped that the riders will be able to use 100% power as well as the additional 20% temporary boost function in the first race.”

Electrek’s Take

People are always going to ride fast, powerful, and sometimes crazy-looking contraptions as long as they exist. At least this way it can be done in a somewhat regulated, presumably supervised fashion and with paramedics standing by.

And at least we can all watch.

While this does sound extreme (and it is), I will say I’m glad to see that the riders are outfitted with full motorcycle racing suits and helmets, and it looks like they are serious about safety. Creating custom-designed race tracks is also a good step in the right direction. Some of the worst automotive racing disasters in history have come about from vehicles racing on tracks that weren’t designed for them (the 1955 Le Mans disaster springs to mind).

So, if people are going to take small-wheeled, overpowered, and unstable vehicles up to breakneck speeds, at least they’re going to do it in a controlled and entertaining fashion. What more can you ask for?

You better believe we’ll be following up to see how these daredevils fare when the power is cranked to the max. Stick around for more coverage in the future, and let us know your thoughts on the eSC’s racing plans in the comment section below.


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BST Hyde Park’s final day cancelled as Jeff Lynne’s ELO pulls out of headline slot

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BST Hyde Park's final day cancelled as Jeff Lynne's ELO pulls out of headline slot

BST Hyde Park festival has cancelled its final night after Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra pulled out of the headline slot.

Lynne, 77, was due to play alongside his band on Sunday but has been forced to withdraw from the event following a “systemic infection”.

The London show was supposed to be a “final goodbye” from ELO following their farewell US tour.

Organisers said on Saturday that Lynne was “heartbroken” at being unable to perform.

A statement read: “Jeff has been battling a systemic infection and is currently in the care of a team of doctors who have advised him that performing is simply not possible at this time nor will he be able to reschedule.

“The legacy of the band and his longtime fans are foremost in Jeff’s mind today – and while he is so sorry that he cannot perform, he knows that he must focus on his health and rehabilitation at this time.”

They later confirmed the whole of Sunday’s event would be cancelled.

“Ticket holders will be refunded and contacted directly by their ticket agent with further details,” another statement said.

Stevie Wonder played the festival on Saturday – now its final event of 2025.

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US rock band The Doobie Brothers and blues rock singer Steve Winwood were among those who had been due to perform to before ELO’s headline performance.

The cancellation comes after the band, best known for their hit Mr Blue Sky, pulled out of a performance due to take place at Manchester’s Co-Op Live Arena on Thursday.

ELO was formed in Birmingham in 1970 by Lynne, multi-instrumentalist Roy Wood and drummer Bev Bevan.

They first split in 1986, before frontman Lynne resurrected the band in 2014.

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Donald Trump threatens to revoke Rosie O’Donnell’s US citizenship

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Donald Trump threatens to revoke Rosie O'Donnell's US citizenship

Donald Trump has said he is considering “taking away” the US citizenship of actress and comedian Rosie O’Donnell, despite a Supreme Court ruling that expressly prohibits a government from doing so.

In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, the US president said: “Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship.”

He also labelled O’Donnell, who has moved to Ireland, as a “threat to humanity” and said she should “remain in the wonderful country of Ireland, if they want her”.

O’Donnell responded on Instagram by posting a photograph of Mr Trump with Jeffrey Epstein.

“You are everything that is wrong with America and I’m everything you hate about what’s still right with it,” she wrote in the caption.

“I’m not yours to silence. I never was.”

Rosie O'Donnell arrives at the ELLE Women in Hollywood celebration on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
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Rosie O’Donnell moved to Ireland after Donald Trump secured a second term. Pic: AP

O’Donnell moved to Ireland with her 12-year-old son in January after Mr Trump had secured a second term.

She has said she’s in the process of obtaining Irish citizenship based on family lineage and that she would only return to the US “when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America”.

O’Donnell and the US president have criticised each other publicly for years, in an often-bitter back-and-forth that predates Mr Trump’s move into politics.

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Will Trump address parliament on UK state visit?

This is just the latest threat by the president to revoke the citizenship of someone he has disagreed with, most recently his former ally Elon Musk.

But the two situations are different as while Musk was born in South Africa, O’Donnell was born in the US and has a constitutional right to American citizenship.

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Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, said the Supreme Court ruled in a 1967 case that the fourteenth amendment of the constitution prevents the government from taking away citizenship.

“The president has no authority to take away the citizenship of a native-born US citizen,” he added.

“In short, we are nation founded on the principle that the people choose the government; the government cannot choose the people.”

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The Salt Path author Raynor Winn’s fourth book delayed

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The Salt Path author Raynor Winn's fourth book delayed

The Salt Path author Raynor Winn’s fourth book has been delayed by her publisher.

It comes amid claims that the author lied about her story in her hit first book. Winn previously described the claims as “highly misleading” and called suggestions that her husband had Moth made up his illness “utterly vile”.

In a statement, Penguin Michael Joseph, said it had delayed the publication of Winn’s latest book On Winter Hill – which had been set for release 23 October.

The publisher said the decision had been made in light of “recent events, in particular intrusive conjecture around Moth’s health”, which it said had caused “considerable distress” to the author and her family.

“It is our priority to support the author at this time,” the publisher said.

“With this in mind, Penguin Michael Joseph, together with the author, has made the decision to delay the publication of On Winter Hill from this October.”

A new release date will be announced in due course, the publisher added.

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Winn’s first book, released in 2018, detailed the journey she and husband took along the South West Coast Path – familiarly known as The Salt Path – after they lost their family farm and Moth received a terminal health diagnosis of Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD).

But a report in The Observer disputed key aspects of the 2018 “true” story – which was recently turned into a film starring Jason Isaacs and Gillian Anderson.

Pic: Steve Tanner/Black Bear
Image:
Raynor and husband Moth (centre) with actors Jason Isaacs (L) and Gillian Anderson (R). Pic: Steve Tanner/Black Bear

Experts ‘sceptical of health claims’

As part of the article, published last weekend, The Observer claimed to have spoken to experts who were “sceptical” about elements of Moth’s terminal diagnosis, such as a “lack of acute symptoms and his apparent ability to reverse them”.

In the ensuing controversy, PSPA, a charity that supports people with CBD, cut ties with the couple.

The Observer article also claimed the portrayal of a failed investment in a friend’s business wasn’t true, but said the couple – whose names are Sally and Tim Walker – lost their home after Raynor Winn embezzled money from her employer and had to borrow to pay it back and avoid police action.

Pic: Steve Tanner/Black Bear
Image:
Anderson played Winn in a movie about the couple’s journey. Pic: Steve Tanner/Black Bear

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It also said that, rather than being homeless, the couple had owned a house in France since 2007.

Winn’s statement said the dispute with her employer wasn’t the reason the couple lost their home – but admitted she may have made “mistakes” while in the job.

“For me it was a pressured time,” she wrote. “It was also a time when mistakes were being made in the business. Any mistakes I made during the years in that office, I deeply regret, and I am truly sorry.”

She admitted being questioned by police but said she wasn’t charged.

The author also said accusations that Moth lied about having CBD/CBS were false and had “emotionally devastated” him.

“I have charted Moth’s condition with such a level of honesty, that this is the most unbearable of the allegations,” Winn wrote on her website.

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