After moving to Toronto from Belgrade in the 1970s, sculptor Georgi Georgiev found inspiration in a Popular Mechanics article he read about the Human-Powered Speed Championship, a competition that pitted the fastest pedal-powered vehicles against each other. Since then he's been trying to design his own version, taking cues from the world around him to shape the aerodynamic carbon fiber and Kevlar shell built around a low-profile recumbent bicycle. "I looked at nature and the shapes of the things that moved efficiently through fluids, air or water, with a dolphin being a good example," he says.
Each year Georgiev takes the latest version of his Varna human-powered vehicle to Nevada, where Canadian cyclist Sam Whittingham squeezes himself into the shell to make an attempt on the speed record. In September, Whittingham broke his own mark, pedaling the Varna Tempest to a top speed of 82.819 mph. Underscoring the effectiveness of his aerodynamic bicycle design, Georgiev says, "we're using a half horsepower to move over 80 mph."
Each year Georgiev takes the latest version of his Varna human-powered vehicle to Nevada, where Canadian cyclist Sam Whittingham squeezes himself into the shell to make an attempt on the speed record. In September, Whittingham broke his own mark, pedaling the Varna Tempest to a top speed of 82.819 mph. Underscoring the effectiveness of his aerodynamic bicycle design, Georgiev says, "we're using a half horsepower to move over 80 mph."
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