Inertia is captivated by Aerovelo’s need for speed. Aerovelo, a small but mighty Canadian company of engineers and trailblazers have set a new human powered land speed record of 89.59 mph/144.18 kph with their bullet shaped beast, aptly named “Eta”. Competing at the World Human Powered Speed Challenge in Battle Mountain Nevada, this record breaks the previous world record, also held by Aerovelo’s Eta of 86.65mph / 139.45kph, set on September 18th, 2015.
According to Aerovelo co-founder Cameron Robertson “The efficiency of this vehicle seems impossibly high: it’s a powerful example of the massive change we can achieve with existing technology in the near future. Eta’s performance is a testament to the passion and engineering the team devoted to this endeavour, and showcases what can be achieved when we seek to do more with less.”
Analysis of the vehicle performance showed that Eta requires less than 198 watts of pedal power at 90 km/h, which translates to a 9,544 MPGe highway fuel efficiency. This is the highest per-passenger MPGe of any existing transportation technology at this speed.
Aerovelo co-founder Todd Reichert states “It’s an unbelievable feeling to be riding in something that efficient. It cuts through the air with such little resistance, and before you know it, you’re cruising at highway speeds on nothing more than your own power. When you realize that this is the same amount of power it takes to light up a few light bulbs, it’s truly mind blowing.”
Here’s a link to Aerovelo’s blog post about their incredible accomplishment.
