MONTPELLIER, France, May 11 (AFP) - Sixteen jet-setters competing in an illegal road race across France, Spain and Morocco, have been fined for speeding in southern France, and five of them lost their licences, police said Tuesday. The drivers in the "Gum Ball 3000" - known for drawing film stars, singers and world-class athletes - were clocked at speeds from 151 to 191 kilometres (95-120 miles) per hour, well above the 130-kilometre per hour speed limit.
| The bastards stole our race! |
Some 160 participants left Paris on May 5 in their Lamborghinis, Bentleys, Ferraris, Porsches and Maseratis for a jaunt through Spain and Morocco before ending up in Cannes on Wednesday for the start of the film festival. Among the thrill-seekers are Oscar-winning US actor Adrien Brody, British supermodel Jodie Kidd and a nephew of Saudi Arabia's King Fahd.
| Shit, that was the plot of Gum Ball Rally, actors, super models and rich arab playboy racing across America. |
"The first bunch arrived in Cannes this morning. They seem to have calmed down a bit as compared with last year," a French police commander told AFP. "If there had been a serious violation, we would have impounded their vehicles, but we haven't had to do that thus far."
| "Besides, they tip very well." |
Five multi-millionaire participants - described as men from Belgium, Britain and Canada - were arrested at the weekend in northeastern Spain for speeding.
| Guess the Spanish cops take speeding more seriously. |
According to the Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia, the drivers of the 2004 event travelled from Paris to Madrid to pay a visit on Real Madrid footballer David Beckham. They then sped down the Costa del Sol, skipped over to Casablanca and Marrakesh where they were the guests of Morocco's King Mohammed VI, and headed back to the French Riviera for the start of the Cannes film fest.
| Damm, now that's a road trip. |
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