Endurance Over Speed in the Savannah

Thomson's gazelles can hit 65.7 miles per hour and hold that speed for 7 kilometers straight.

That's not a sprint, that's a marathon at highway speed. But here's the problem. East African cheetahs

clock in at 75 miles per hour, making them the fastest land animals on earth.

When a cheetah locks onto a gazelle, it's basically game over, right?

Wrong. The chase begins. The cheetah explodes off the line, tearing across the

savannah at full throttle. The gazelle is already moving, hitting top speed

within seconds. The distance between them starts closing fast. Ten seconds in,

the cheetah is gaining ground, muscles burning, heart rate spiking. Fifteen seconds,