THREE green teams with a need for speed from Beaconsfield Upper Primary School have performed strongly at a major human powered vehicle competition, with one taking out a top prize.
Twenty-three students across Grades 4 to 6 and their families travelled to Maryborough for the 24th RACV Energy Breakthough last week, where team “Bam” won several stages including Design and Construction, the Endurance Race and the overall Primary Tryathlon competition.
It’s the other Tryathlon team, “Biff” that came fifth, while “Bang” finished 11th in the Pushcart competition.
Incredibly, the students raised $14,000 to enter teams and construct their respective vehicles, with the Pushcart team designing and building their vehicle from recycled materials.
The Tryathlon teams had to pass five elements to pass: scrutineering, design and construction; display and presentation; obstacle course trial; sprint race and an eight-hour endurance race including night time sessions.
Students also had to impress judges from the RACV, VicRoads and the Central Goldfields Shire, ensuring their vehicles were safe.
HPV co-ordinator Karine McGill said the obstacle course was very challenging for students.
“It’s a 600m circular track that is raced on as a relay event,” she said.
“Teams competed in heats of four to complete the circuit one at a time, safely, in the fastest possible time, avoiding obstacles such as witches hats, hay bales, barriers and navigating over a rumble strip, a bridge, and through a wall of streamers.”
The school has been competing at the Breakthrough every year since 1994, with kids training on bikes around the school oval for half an hour every Wednesday, and hourly sessions in their HPV carts at the Casey Fields Criterium on Sunday afternoons.
