Friday October 5th Racing Reports

All 6 records set this week for single and multi rider vehicles were just broken once again as an incredible showdown is developing for the last night

Sam Whittingham upped his 200M record to 77.59 mph
Matt Weaver broke Sam's kilo and mile records with 76.44 and 75.51 respectively
Matt's 200m time was a hair slower than Sam Whittingham at 77.40 mph
The Double Gold Rush broke their 200M(68.36 mph) and Bearacuda's records with a 1Kilo(68.91mph)and mile (68.51mph). This was after a 5 minute delay at the start due to a chain derailment.

The Blueyonder Challenge upped their performance with a 63.05 mph in the 200.

Bearacuda suffered a chain derailment in after the 2 mile mark and finished in the low 50's with just one rider pedaling.

Matt says that he will go faster.

More to come after I get some supper. I must celebrate this incredible night with the teams. This has been the greatest night of the greatest event in HPV racing history.

Saturday night is going to be a real showdown in the high desert of Nevada. Sam Whittingham's and Varnas dominance is in serious Jeopardy. Friday night he lost 2 world records to Matt Weaver in the Kyle Edge and almost lost the most important one the 200M.

Matt is on cloud nine right now. He has his first world records and is carrying momentum into Saturday's attempt. He said he followed the routine where he hits particular speeds at certain mile markers, only he found that the speeds were starting to exceed his expectations. He backed off a little at one point to conserve power, but it was poorly timed and he feels that he could have finished faster. I expect that he will have his routine optimized for a 80 mph attempt Saturday night. This photo shows Matt geting taped into the Kyle Edge on Friday night. Click on the photo for a higher resolution image.
	Another picture of Matt getting taped in. Note the launch dolly at the back of the bike.
A front view of the Kyle Edge, with the Double Gold Rush in the background.
	As darkness falls, Matt Weaver is launched on a record breaking run in the Kyle Edge.

After Friday night's events, The Varna guys left the course immediately, had supper and had Sam in bed by 9:30 pm. I talked with Neil Carson, Sam's close friend and launcher, about the run Friday night. He says that Sam has more to give. He put on a smaller 12 Tooth cog for Friday night's run to lower his cadence and it worked. Unfortunately he waited too long to give his final push and found himself near 79mph exiting the traps. Sam's demeanor has changed 180 degrees. He has a determined and focused appearance quite different from his usual jovial nature. Matt Weaver has lit a fire under Sam, and Neil Carson says they are adjusting their run up routine to hit the traps at 80 MPH.

Blueyonder feels that they have nearly topped out, admitting that the bike is just too large. Still, it is the 6th fastest single rider HPV in history after last nights attempt. The Blueyonder team has had a rather nice change in attitude since arriving. At first they were very suspicious of the other HPV teams, but it was hard to resist the good natured charm of the experienced HPV teams. Sam Whittingham and Jason Queally have hit it off quite well and spend a lot of time talking about track racing. This photo shows he Blueyonder Challenge being launched on Friday night. Click on the photo for a higher resolution image.
	The Blueyonder team prepares to launch Jason. Note Jason's head to canopy clearance (a couple inches!), and the white gloves on the launchers.
Jason gets launched for his 63MPH Friday night run.

It seems to me that the BBC may have changed the focus of their documentary from the mighty Blueyonder team with Olympic Medalist Jason Queally in the Reynard machine to the 4 Canadians in a borrowed pickup truck. This is a huge coup for the Varna guys.

It seems almost inevitable that the blame game will soon begin for the Blueyonder team. Sad, because they really did do a great job of building a streamliner without any experience or seeking help from more experienced people. I really hope they can convince their sponsors that they can come back with a strong contender. The Blueyonder entry is great for the sport and though they have been humbled by their competition, they have learned so much from this experience that I think they could come back and win.

The Double Gold Rush guys are celebrating. Despite a chain derailment at the start they gave the effort of a lifetime to break world records at all 3 distances. In this photo, Freddy Markham steels himself for his final run in this year's WHPSC.
	When they opened the vehicle, Chris Springer gasped for breath like he was about to die. Freddy slumped over on the handlebars and didn't move for a long time. I heard Freddy say that he is ready to retire, but a half hour later he recanted. Friday night they will let Tanya get their starting spot, so the event is over for them. This photo shows Freddy collapsed in frustration.

Bearacuda Details

Bearacuda front drive detail, front wheel missing.
	Bearacuda independant rear drivetrain, rear wheel missing.
Bearacuda ventilation tubes, rear view.

Sean Costin
WHPSC Organizer

Saturday Results