You never know who — or what — will show up at the Human Power Challenge; but I guarantee you it will be interesting. See more photos below to get an idea of what to expect.
(Photos © J. Maus)
(Photos © J. Maus)
The 2011 Human Power Challenge happens this weekend at Portland International Raceway. The event (put on by the Oregon Human Powered Vehicle Association) is part test of speed and part social gathering for the human powered vehicle “clan.”
I checked it out a few years ago and was very impressed with the machines and the folks I met. PIR is just a few miles north of downtown Portland, it’s easy to bike to, and I’d highly recommend pedaling over this weekend if you can. Check out a few photos from the 2006 event below…
More details on the Human Power Challenge here.
Thanks for reading.
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Not all of those vehicles were human powered, some were Electrathon racers that share the track time with the HP vehicles. And for the previous 2 years and this one there will be Human-electric hybrids racing, up to 750 Watts of electric assist with limited battery capacity. As a “does it move” geek that loves all kinds of racing vehicles I find them all fascinating.
Yes! Went for my first time last year, just dropped in to watch and felt completely welcomed by a mix of hardcore gearheads and families out for wholesome fun. Saw a great duel between a racing tandem upright and a fully-faired ‘bent (guess who got the better draft 😉 and in the very same hour-long heat two guys were having their own slow race. That heat was mostly ‘bents but it was open to anything and several conventional bikes ran in it. Run what you brung was never more true!
I hope to see the electrics race this year, as well as more of the “car” type HPVs. Hope y’all get some breaks in the weather this weekend.
A few pictures from last year:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohpv/sets/72157624178872608/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohpv/sets/72157624178859414/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohpv/sets/72157624178741700/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohpv/sets/72157624163160982/
It’s always a hoot, and spectating is free!
Awesome. I remember watching a myth-busters where they put dimples on a ford taurus and it got increased mpg…something along the lines of 4 mpg more on top of a 25 mpg car. I’m wondering if dimples would work on velo-mobiles to better aerodynamics.
Here are some photos from Saturday’s Electrathon. The weather was perfect on Saturday afternoon. Fun was had by all.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/samchurchill/sets/72157626706039995/show/