How fast can a bionic man run? Well, if Patrick Michael Sullivan of Nanaimo, BC, Canada has his way the speed will be unlimited.
"February 8th, 2008, is the day!", says a smiling Sullivan. "We will try to break the 70 MPH speed record for a man running on two bionic legs."
It all sounds farfetched, like some silly "Steve Austin Bionic Man" TV show. But working for years in his basement on MT. Benson Street in Nanaimo, Sullivan has created what he believes are the best working surgically implanted bionic legs created anywhere in the world today.
Sullivan says, "I had been working on 2 different prototypes in the past 10 years. Both of them failed. One pair failed when they were exposed to salt water and suffered from galvanic corrosion. That's what happens when you have two dissimilar metals in salt water. I've learned a lot since that time. And now I just use titanium metals from recycled helicopter parts. And I stay away from the ocean. But these new legs are the best. So far, they seem unbreakable."
Sullivan feels pressed for time these days. He says he's trying to juggle so many things at once. Sullivan says, "It's been a hell of a chore trying to get my ideas out there to the media, as well as managing my two businesses as a hairdresser and a candle stick maker. But it's finally all falling together. It's been a lot of work"
Sullivan says he is sure he will make the deadline of February 8th and put on a good show for the media and for potential buyers of his bionic products.
When asked how much these legs will retail for, Sullivan stated, "It just depends. If I break the 70 MPH speed record if only for a moment, then I am a multi-millionaire. And I can sell these for any price I want. If I fall flat on my face, well, I am probably going to die and I won't have to worry about any of this stuff ever again."