Pedaling to victory in foreshore enduro

Slick racing machines pounding around the circuit in a test of engineering skill and human endurance. No, it’s not the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it’s the 2023 Busselton Pedal Prix.

The Geographe Foreshore played host to 38 teams, some traveling interstate to compete in the Australian Human Powered Vehicle Super Series.

They take a recumbent bicycle – one of the funky looking three wheelers where the rider is almost lying down – build an aerodynamic shell around it, and race it around a closed circuit non-stop for six hours. Most laps wins.

The competition is for both school and community teams, with a strong contingent of WA teams represented including Hale School, Wesley College, Armadale SHS and Duncraig to name a few. Reigning schools champion, Pembroke made the trek from Adelaide.

The sport began in Adelaide in 1985, and the series has been coming to Busselton since 2014.

The race made a successful post COVID return last year. This year saw a 28 per cent increase in entries, with teams coming from Victoria, South Australia and WA.

“We love coming to Busselton. The location is ideal, there’s a great mix of teams, and the community is always supportive,” Super Series CEO Marcus Lacey said.

“Coming back to Busselton is a real highlight of the calendar.”

Running alongside it was the WA Pedal Prix Championship, where teams from up and down the state competed alongside the national series in in the final round of WA’s 2023 season.

The day was owned by Trump Trikes Factory Racing. The Adelaide outfit took a commanding overall win. Their number 601 entry finished four laps ahead of their second trike, securing a one-two finish and the shield for the best WA trike over the three race WA Pedal Prix series.

Denmark Senior High School made an impressive Pedal Prix debut, finishing 14th overall, and a clear second place in their S2 Middle School category.

They were outmatched by the Hale School team. The Perth boys school entered four trikes, and three of them finished on the podium in their classes. Hale’s top S2 entry, named Dell’orean, took the class win by 10 laps, while ‘You Beut’ came home 7th. Their S3 Senior School class entries finished second and third behind reigning school champions Pembroke.

“We are thrilled to be part of the Busselton event as it is the climax to our three round Series here in Western Australia,” Pedal Prix WA Chairperson Ben Clayton said.

The national series heads east to Murray Bridge, South Australia, for a monster 24 hour race to decide the championship. 150 points are up for grabs in a fight where the top three teams in every class are separated by 10 points or less.