The 8 Fastest Boats Ever Built

We humans really have a need for speed. We always want our cars, planes, and internet to evolve to become faster and faster, even if it means paying a lot more or even risking our own lives. But some people aren't content with reaching previously unfathomable speeds on land and in the air. Instead, they've focused their efforts on creating the fastest vehicles ever to move on the water.

We've seen before that technology has enabled us to create some truly amazing (and seriously speedy) vehicles. I would have never guessed that the fastest planes in history would be able to achieve such high velocities! Watching the world's fastest boats take to the water is equally incredible, though, especially when you imagine what it must be like to ride them as they make all those waves. Anyone who gets on these super fast boats needs to have a serious adrenaline addiction, just like the people who choose to ride the world's longest and fastest zipline.

Check out some of the fastest boats ever to hit the water, and ponder if you'd dare to take a ride on any of them. Number 4 looks like so much fun, but I don't know if I'd actually have the courage to sit on it as it reached its top speed!

Fifty-one mph might not seem very fast, but it sure is for a submarine. The K-222 (originally the K-162) was a Soviet vessel designed to attack aircraft carriers. However, it could only hold one missile at a time and had to be reloaded in the port. Originally put to use in 1963, the K-222 was eventually scrapped in 2010.

Hanging out on a sailboat might seem like a leisurely activity for fans of the sea, but hitting the water on the Vestas Sailrocket 2 will give you more of an adrenaline rush than anything else. At 74.55 mph, it set the record for the fastest sailboat with pilot Paul Larsen controlling it. The video of him achieving the feat is really something to behold.

Most people don't think of speed when they think of yachts, but that's because they've never taken a ride on The World Is Not Enough. This "superyacht" is capable of reaching speeds of up to 58 mph, taking luxury to a whole new level of fast.

The fastest electric boat on the planet can reach speeds of up to 106 mph. Not only is it environmentally friendly, but it also uses a whopping twelve electric engines to pack 2,220 hp into a single speedy machine.

Most of us might wonder why you'd want to get a pontoon boat to reach speeds of up to 114 mph, but Brad Rowland wondered, "Why not?" The result was a record-setting water cruiser that looks like way too much fun to ride on.

This catamaran packs 9,000 HP, enabling it to reach almost unbelievable speeds of 244 mph. If you've ever wondered what it might be like to travel that fast on the water, check out this video — just watching it will make you want to grip your seat for dear life!

Most people are familiar with drag racing on the street, but the boats that do it on the water are quite possibly even cooler than the cars. The record-setting drag boat Problem Child hit 262 mph in 3.5 seconds, and watching it achieve the feat is truly a spectacular sight to behold.

Between 1955 and 1964, this incredible hydroplane set not just one, but seven water speed records, eventually topping out at 276 mph. Its pilot, Donald Campbell, was eventually killed in an accident while trying to bring a modified version of the vehicle to 300 mph, but his legacy lives on through his incredible achievements with this blue bullet.

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