The All-out Speed Record
Over the last several years, Battle Mountain, Nevada, has hosted the World Human Powered Speed Challenge. The site is good for several reasons. It's
elevation is roughly 1000 metres, which makes the air thin and therefore fast. Also, it's usually still warm there in October, when the competition usually runs. More importantly, it has a very special highway, the SR 305: a dead-flat stretch of speedbike heaven. And last but not least, the people of Battle Mountain, and all the volunteers who run the event, are some of the nicest people on Earth.
On this stretch of highway, riders get several kilometres to get up to speed before they hit the timing traps: a 200 metre section towards the end of the course.
The time it takes for a rider to cover the 200 metres translates into their MPH (or KPH) measurement; luckily, the timing equipment is reliable and accurate, down to one one-thousandth of a second. As a redundant speedometer, most riders use their own on-board timing devices, usually modified bike computers. Knowing their velocity helps the athletes time their efforts to the maximum through the speed traps.
Riders are also timed at set points along their run-up to the traps; this is why a rider may break several records in one attempt. An average ride usually takes five to seven minutes, depending of course on how fast the bike is. Machines are lined up and launched at roughly five-minute intervals.
Since the Battle Mountain event is five days long, pilots get several attempts to go their fastest.
To see a great Discovery Channel video of the Battle Mountain event, click here. Or read some great coverage of the 2003 and 2004 events here.
The Hour Record
The hour record is entirely different from the sprint event. Here, the goal is to see how far a rider can go in one hour. For this event, a perfectly flat stretch of road is required as well, but more of it. Since nobody in the HPV world has ever found a straight course or highway long enough, riders use huge oval tracks, like the Opel car-testing track Sam set the hour record on in 2003 and upped it again in 2007 at the Nissan Testing track in Mesa, Arizona.
For the hour record, the physical challenges are slightly different than the sprint attempts. Since the HPV rules strictly prohibit any mechanical or biomechanical aids (like water!), riders like Sam push themselves to melting point. With very little airflow to cool him off, Sam describes the experince as "riding a stationary bike in sleeping bag for an hour."
Riders are followed by a chase car, just as they are for the sprint record, to offer the athlete a quick hand, should the need arise, and to ensure they have a clean and legal run. Learn more about the hour record here.
Some of Sam's Records
As of 2004, Sam Whittingham holds the following records under the sanction of the International Human Powered Vehicle Association :
The hour record: 86 km in April, 2007.
The 200 m flying start (single rider): 130.36 km/h (81.00 mph) on 2002-10-05.
The 500 m flying start (single rider): 100.32 km/h (62.34 mph) on 1999-07-30. (Note: this record was surely broken during Whittingham and other riders' attempts on the 1000 m record.)
The 1000 m flying start (single rider): 128.40 km/h (79.79 mph) on 2001-10-06.
The 1 mile flying start (single rider): 126.55 km/h (78.64 mph) on 2001-10-06.
In 1993 he also held the record for the 200 m flying start (multiple rider).
To learn more about Sam's records, and anything else on the rules of HPV, please got to the IHPVA website.
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The speedbike course for the last several years. Riders never see it this bright as their runs happen in the evenings, when the wind dies down on the high Nevada plateau.
Riders drive out to the end of the course in their vehicles, unload their gear, and warm up for at least an hour. Here, Andrea Blaseckie, former world record holder, stares down the course to gain focus.
Every millimetre of the bike is inspected before a run. Here, another tireless lackey helps Sam (r) find his thumb.
Riders are then launched by trusted handlers. Here, Damjan Zabovnik's Eivie II is turned loose. In Damjan's bike the pilot faces backward; the pilot views the course through a mirror.
Soon, the riders hit the speed traps for their maximum effort over 200 metres.
After they pass out of the traps, the ride is nearly over. The machines take a few miles to slow down before they hit the catch area.
Here, Sam enters the catch area after another speedy run. Even with all the vests and signs, some riders overshoot the catch zone, or "come in hot," and end up riding through the group--exhaustion and the low light-levels are usually to blame.
Here, Sam shows the effort of a record-setting run. Usually, he can't get up by himself afterwards. Despite their crushing fatigue, riders have to get off the course immediately to avoid incoming bikes.
Once the rider is safely off the course, more tireless lackeys load the bikes onto nearby carrier vehicles, then it's off to the local Mexican diner for tails of daring do.
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