Although such a startling figure is partly down to coasting, it is also the result of scientific ingenuity, technological advance and driver talent.Being 11 (the minimum age allowed in the competition) is the best qualification for driving – but getting the racing line right, avoiding the merest ruffle in the tarmac that could amount to unnecessary friction, and specifically reaching the perfect mean of equilibrium separating momentum from inefficiency – well, that’s as difficult as most other forms of motor sport.As for the ingenuity, it’s not all scientific in the strictest sense, and the magic of this event is that it allows for very serious teams to compete alongside entry-level school teams where budget is so restricted that almost anything will do. This year, a total of 51 teams competed, of which approximately 40 were entries from schools.Take the Warriner School, Oxfordshire. They decided to enter late in the day, and came up with half a racing bike welded to half a go-kart in an unholy alliance of metal bits, driven by a fan attached to Honda G150 four-stroke engine rescued from a skip. Total budget, as evidenced by perished mountain bike tyres and the use of pipette tubing from the school lab to feed fuel, was £5.The prize for greatest ingenuity, however, goes to Trinity School, Croydon, whose TSR3 resulted from 500 hours of effort and 18 months’ preparation. Its chassis was fabricated partly from surplus helicopter floor from a closing factory, and partly from 4mm polycarbonate glazing material, attached to aluminium angle iron. Fourteen-year-old Josh Evans and his science teacher Gareth Evans fashioned roof insulation into a nose cone, covered shrink-wrapped bicycle wheel spokes with a thin plastic film for an aerodynamic advantage and, in a final stroke of genius, sourced a disused javelin to make a long, rakish steering column.There were, of course, some very serious entries – and most of them were French. Microjoule, one of the entries from the Britanny Institute of Technology, won the eco-marathon through a combination of aerodynamic design, top-flight components and competition experience.

The team’s choice of a £10,000, wind tunnel-proofed, carbon fibre monocoque shell reduced drag co-efficient to 0.1, one-third that of the most advanced car, while the weight of the entire vehicle is just 39 kg. The bespoke, carbon fibre wheels cost £700 each and are equipped with special bearings and shod with £80 Michelin Radial tyres designed to eliminate rolling resistance with a square profile.At the heart of the Microjoule is a thermally insulated, bespoke built one cylinder, four stroke, twin-spark engine with a single injector made by French company JPX. It has a displacement of 30 cubic centimeters and a fuel tank of just 30 ml. All that means 8,264mpg at 15mph.Or, as one of the team tells me, the ability “to travel three times around the equator on the same amount of fuel that Concorde needed to reach the end of the runway”. In other words, it can travel 10 miles on half a teaspoon of fuel.The obvious question is “Why aren’t we all driving cars that bear some relation to this?” It’s a little bit like asking the average Londoner, “Why don’t you cycle to work?” It may seem like a good idea, but on closer consideration the problemsinvolved quickly become apparent. One significant issue isthe fact that in an Eco-Marathon you don’t have to keep stopping at red lights. And as for passengers, you would be lucky to fit a ferret up your trousers in machines as small as these.Another important factor is the matter of alternative fuels.

The event allows for this with four fuel classes – petrol, diesel, hydrogen and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) – in the Eco-Marathon, and from next year they are hoping to integrate them. Integration will lead to an overall sense of competition, but providing a level playing field results in extraordinarily complex questions about the advantages and disadvantages of one fuel versus another for the environment, given for instance that hydrogen results from a chemical process requiring another source of energy, which differs from the refining of oil into petrol. But nonetheless, the future lies in alternatives, and their presence is set to make the Eco-Marathon even more interesting in future years.Shell, in case you hadn’t noticed, has rebranded itself as an energy company instead of an oil company. There’s much to doubt about this sleight of hand, but Koch, who like most of us is partly an idealist, is confident that the event will expand beyond its current extent of two French events and one British. There will probably be another leg added to Japan, and later this summer there will be a Scottish Eco-Marathon near Aberdeen.It’s a wonderful event even on a blustery, freezing English day where the rain comes down in sheets. One can only hope that the Shell Eco-Marathon expands tenfold and is properly supported by other car makers.

Then it would be really coasting.The Scottish Eco Marathon will be held at the Grampian Transport Museum near Aberdeen from 20-21 August. For more information, visit info gtm .uk. Sitting behind the wheel of a fast car has its own thrill, but there’s little to touch helming a yacht for an adrenalin rush. Scooting along at eight and a half knots, with the boat heeling at a heart-stopping 20 degrees and the sails flying at their aerodynamic best, beats anything you can achieve with four rubber wheels on Tarmac. Add to that the stunning views of the Elafiti islands, just off Dubrovnik, and you can be living out a dream.