As those of you who’ve read it know, the action in Extras is kick-started by a secret clique called the Sly Girls. The Girls have invented a highly illegal pastime called “maglev surfing,” which basically consists of riding on top of a magnetic levitation train, trying not to die.
Maglev surfing is not something I’ve done, for obvious reasons. But I did check out a few YouTube offerings to get some sense of what riding an ultra-high-speed train might be like. So I thought you guys might want to see them.
First, this video offers an educational look at how they work, with some pretty cool footage.
For the best shots of travel at speeds of 575kph (357mph), check out this video of a French TGV. The TGV is not actually maglev, because it runs on tires instead of levitating, but it’s still wicked fast. (Faster, in fact, than the trains in Aya’s world, whose engineers are more about energy efficiency than speed.)
And finally, this is the funniest of the videos. It’s just a bunch of kids hanging out near a maglev trial track, waiting for a train to go past. It gives you a really clear idea of how shockingly fast maglevs are as they bolt past, resulting in mild profanity.
Enjoy.
you lucky homeschooled fool.
i get up at 6:30. then i go to school and have to encounter all these people. it sucks.
i’m wearing a gumby shirt. it has gumby on it. i used to watch gumby all the time.
like the e. anti-darkling and styling french-style.
(said with outrageous french accent) why, thank you, mademoiselle!
and yes, homeschooling does rock!!
-Inconquerable Riderchilde-wa
hmm…i’m thinking more of an old english thing with the e. like “olde” or something. but that’s just my opinion, i take spanish in school, so i know nothing about the french language
don’t you just LVE how i totally jump into other peoples’ conversations. yeah. i love it too.
yeah sorry, i totally wasn’t thinking about that when i wrote it. and MAG-LEV TRAINS! WE GOT TO BUILD THOSE WHEN I WAS IN TECH CLASS IN 7TH GRADE! yeah. they were made out of styrofoam and acrylic, but that had real electric motors and stuff. me and my partner’s car won in the time trials (the teachers had a track that we could run them on)
so fawesome.
oh my gosh!! i just wrote a beautiful comment that was like really long and it just lost it!! 😡 urgh!!
neways, i like french accents and english accents. let me go ask flower-child-something-ah, warriorchild-wa, and ninjachild-wa for their advice. please hold…
hmm…it seems that english has won over…
Forever a loyal Westerfan,
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa (said with a nifty old english accent!)
alright, ninjachild has gotten angry with me for putting a -wa on the end, so i apologize publicly, ninjachild. i hope you will forgive me.
i…i can’t hold it any longer!! i’m sorry, ninjachild! 😥 😥 😥 😥 😥 😥
i hope you can forgive me!!
Forever a loyal Westerfan,
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa (said with a nifty old english accent!)
how many siblings do you have, riderchilde-wa?
i mean, there’s flowerchild, warriorchild, ninjachild…
*confuzzled-ness ensues*
that was fast… i dont wanna go maglev surfing anymore…
When i read extras and it talked about mag-lev i imagined this train going and going and people riding on it. And then i saw the video and i was like, uhhhhhhhhhh. And Aya did what? She did huh, i cant hear you? Wait what? MAG-LEV SURFING YOU BUTT NUGGET! Oh, wait what?
And to this day i ma still saying, wait what?
Uhhh, how long does it take you to write, Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa (said with a nifty old english accent!) Note to commenter: i copied and pasted that. I was NOT going to write it out.
Sa-Weet. I love it. Wow, they are DAREDEVILS!! That would be fun someday…I think.
Kadie-Wa
I was thinking that the trains (Megalev) were Shinkansen, those are the bullet trains in Japan. The feel really smooth while your riding them, but not really that different. >:
I guess they do get the there fast…
Darn JapanEAns
that is SOOO bubbly! i mean it! its like soooo cool. def. watchin those vids once my hws done (boooohissssgrowlllll)
Riderchild-wa! youre a homeschooler?! why didnt i no this?! hmmm…
-Lizzy-wa OUT! 💡
bran-la—huh? maketh no sense.
and i think the e on the end is frencher than english. though i do do a righteous british accent. not one of those boring intellectual ones though, i do a really great cockney accent. it’s pretty hardcore.
can’t do a french one. even if i take french.
vampire snowmen and all.
hey lizzy-wa, what’s up with that Graduation, dude?
heroes is on in one hour and 48 minutes.
just to let everyone know.
because you should really watch it.
for reasons that are far too numerous to write, although maybe serafina could, considering that monster post over at the HQ. btw, what was that song called anyway? i’ve heard it before. or at least i think i have. but anyway, i wanna search it on itunes so yeah. or i could do a full text search on sing365 (lyrics site. i use it for songs i don’t know the words to–memorizing–and random chorus stuff. yes i’m in chorus, dammit! leave me alone!)
heroes! i luv heroes.
hey, me! wait….is that an insult?
oh, the song on the HQ? that was Teddy Picker by the Arctic Minkeys, best band EVER.
was just talking about them with some people today. cuz of my fawesome arctic monkeys button. and then watching them preform live on Later. they did When the Sun Goes Down (AMAZING song) and From the Ritz to the Rubble (also AMAZING. luv the end part. actually, they’re all AMAZING songs. or at least all the ones on Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not. Favourite Worst Nightmare, not as much)
that song (Teddy Picker) is eternally stuck in my head. like, become the theme song to my life. had it stuck in my head earlier today, in fact.
and it’s the thousand time and it’s even bolder. don’t be suprised when you get bent over. i told you, but you were dying for it. then he had to grab it and it wasn’t what it seemed. the kids all dream of making it, whatever that means.
(typed from memory. i am a loser)
and heroes is awesome for one simple reasons.
Two Words—Invincible. Cheerleader.
and also, Thumb. Ring.
and Brain. Eating.
Super. Powers.
Fly. Ing.
lol i said “one reasons”
found it!
should’ve known, arctic monkeys from when it was a name-link. the itunes store is “temporarily unavailable” so my preview-surfing will have to wait. i really do have to check out the new version of “name” (goo goo dolls) though. i want it!
this is what i do in my spare time…random stuff, that is. usually involves itunes, or my stereo, or a book, but the internet comes into play sometimes.
oooohh…i want comment 70.
today was comic book day. i got the heroes graphic novels book (even though i’m a loser who reads them online every week)
and the new Umbrella Academy.
awww….didn’t get 70.
yeah. i love the arctic monkeys.
Teddy Picker’s getting released as a single December 3rd.
i know that, because i am a loser.
should still b available though. though what would i know? i don’t gots iTunes.
random stuff is fun. because i have social studies homework.
oops…i didn’t refresh before i commented, so i did’t see serafina’s comment…oh well.
and no it wasn’t an insult…i’m famous with my friends for my mile-long emails, which usually get 2- to 3-sentence responses, which will eternally irritate me.
Ok offically i’m down for attempting to maglev surf if anyone makes an effective hoverboard and is fully prepared to use the maglev scenes in extras as our guide to do this i’m down oooh we could be the sly girls but in real life.lol.
i made my own hero on nbc.com! he’s fawesome…
and i freaked out when i found out that a goo goo dolls greatest hits CD was coming out the day after my birthday (but johnny says that he wants to get back in the studio for a new album in january. i read the blog.), so thou art not alone. yeah, don’t know where the random bout of quaker-ness came from…
i do that too! i write reeeeaaally long emails and get short anserws. like, two word anserws.
always refresh. a lesson it takes me a long time to learn.
now i seriously go do homework.
well, it’s pathetic mainly because i already have the album, with the song, and i’m not intending to buy the single.
maybe i’ll do that. or social studies homework. *weighs with hands* well, the social studies IS due tommorrow….
i would never mag-lev surf. it would freak me out.
bnicki we could use my maglev car from tech class! of course, it isn’t a hoverboard, and i don’t think a 13-inch styrofoam-on acrylic structure would work that well. there are weight limits, you know.
Im eating candy (i said it like kon de) Im eating reeses and a mint batty thing. Yum! I must no go so i can get on later so ppl dont hog. you no. Ha, you no.
i want candy!
maglev surfing scares me.
now i really do homework.
woo comment 80!
one hour til Heroes!
still not really doing homework.
i have four siblings…flower-child-something-ah, warriorchild-wa, ninjachild (who prefers not to have the -wa/-la thing), and princesschild-wa. plus me.
dunno how long i take to type…dunno…depends on how long the post is…
oh my gosh! i hate it when i write like fifteen paragraph emails, then get like two words worth of reply. TWO WORDS!! it’s totally annoying!!
Forever a Westerfan,
(said with a nifty old english accent)
the
Inconqerable Mathemetician, Riderchilde-wa
hmmm…seems to be a universal sentiment here. everyone hates short replies to long emails.
wow, that’s a lot of siblings with a lot of long names.
no, serafina zane…those are not their real names!!!!! they’re nicknames!!
i have no homework, cause i’m homeschooled!!
i hate short replies to short emails!!
Forever a Westerfan,
(said with a nifty old english accent 🙂 )
the
Inconquerable Mathemitician, Riderchilde-wa
i assumed that.
*shivers at thought of hippie parents who would name someone flowerchild*
i would question the sanity of any parent who looked down at thier child and said “hmmm…looks like a ninjachild.”
once again, i hate you person who’s homeschooled. i drown in homework and classes adn losers and misery from school. school sux.
short replies are bogus.
okay, i do not think this, but my sis, flower-child-something-ah would like to tell you that she pities ne1 with a multi-gender name…
I DO NOT THINK THIS, DO NOT TAKE OFFENSE…TAKE OUT ALL UR WRATH ON FLOWER-CHILD-SOMETHING-AH!!!!
on a happier note (that is, for me), i say again, homeschool rox. then again, i do have to work, and sometimes i have to do like math at like 5pm…it’s sometimes annoying to have ur teacher be ur mom who is with u almost 24/7…she can pull you out to do work at almost ne instant.
on a happier note for both of us, umm…i forgot what i was about to say…URGH!! oh well…
umm…i haven’t changed at all today, but my mom says that next time i don’t change, i have to give her a buck! URGH!! i don’t have money coming out of my ears, u know??
well, i’ll be back in like five minutes…if not tomorrow…
Forever a Westerfan,
(said with a nifty olde english accent!!)
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa
come on dudes!! give us something interesting to talk about!!!! i have nothing to talk about and i’m getting bored!!! URGH!!
Forever a Westerfan,
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa :mregreen: (said with a nifty olde english accent!!)
HEROES!
omg, you are not seriously complaining because you have to pay a dollar because you’re STILL IN YOUR PAJAMAS! that is EVIL! you stink! homeschool.
yeah, maybe you have to do work, but still.
i can kinda see how a multi-gender name sucks. though it depends. i think guy’s names on girls are cool. but guys named jamie and stuff? kinda wierd.
URGH! i have to go to bed now…darn.
i was getting bored. i was just randomly going over my email settings…u guys need 2 talk more!! well, i gotta go…hopefully some1 will have talked by the time i get back 2morrow morning!!
Forever a Westerfan,
(said with a nifty olde english accent!!)
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa
hey! i’m not evil! i only have about 50cents out of the bank, and those were just lying around on the ground or i like found something and the reward was a quarter. neways, i just don’t want to let the money be lost.
(said with a nifty olde english accent!!)
plus i like the multi-gender thing…it’s cool.
kay, now i really have to go, or else i’m toast!!
forever a westerfan,
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa
now i watch Heroes and do homework! yeah Heroes! boo homework!
u know what’s sad? the past 10 comments have just been from serifina zane and me…hmm…we have way to much time on our hands!!
(said with a nifty olde english accent!!)
forever a westerfan,
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa
ps: okay! i’m leaving now!! goodbye!
URGH! u just had to comment and tempt me, didn’t u! 😡
well, let’s make it like fifteen or twnty cmmnts!
(no sig. this time. vry rushed!!)
You ave to go to bed? At my house it only 8:17. I’m glad im not home schooled. Ya no hw but i like my friends and i would hate to always be around my siblings all the time like always. But everything has pros and cons. wow im really dizzy. i keep loosing my concentration and i feel really dizzy I cant focus. Oh God, i need to lay down….
THAT WAS WICKED FAST!!!I WOULD REALLY WANT 2 KNOW WHAT IT”D BE LIKE TO RIDE THAT!
well i do comment all the time. like eighty million in a row.
not seeing friends would be unfortunate, but not having to deal with idiots might help balance it out.
it’s 9:32 here.
Lol. That is true. I could go with out the idiots in my daily life 2. now its 9:04 here. And im still awake.
hehe. i hate idiots. in fact, theres this one EXTREME idiot in ALL OF MY CLASSES! he thinks hes brilliant! and cool! but hes such an idiot! and he wears abercrombie! AND he walks like a girl! all swaying and hip-swinging and whatnot! its really creepy!
and Serafina-la…thas a lightbulb…
-Lizzy-wa OUT! 😡
in my time i went to bed around 9:15 or 9:30…almost 12 hours of sleep, cause i just woke up a couple minutes ago and its like 9am!! but i slept funny, so my neck hurts…youch!
well, right now, my mom is in the shower so i have like free time…so, once again, i’m bored. sigh…hmm…what are my options??
a) keep on randomly posting…
b) do independent work…NAH!
c) read an awesome westerbook
d) think of more options
hmm…dunno…i think i’ll go with a.
forever a westerfan,
(said with a nifty olde english accent!!)
the
Inconquerable Mathematician, Riderchilde-wa
umm…what now?? i think that by now everyone’s in school…i’m bored!
(no sig. this time, i’m not in the mood…look at my name to see my nifty name!)