About Pedalcars

Pedalcar Racing is a sport in which groups of people cycle pedalcars round a track. It is a very competitive sport with teams of all ages competing against each other with the sole aim of beating each other, and having great fun in the bargain.

A pedalcar is a basically a bicycle with four wheels, powered purely by a driver pedalling. There are many different designs of pedalcars with many teams designing and building their own cars. The style of cars range from the basic single wheel drive, with just a simple chassis to hold everything together, to the more competitive two wheel drive cars with body shells which are still light enough to be picked up by a single team member.

Teams generally consist of 4-6 racers, with races ranging between 1 and 24 hours at some of the best racing locations across Britain. Of course, like all activities, there is a large amount that goes on behind the scenes. The majority of teams include a couple of people manning the pits as well, enabling those not quite as well suited to racing to still take part in an exciting and mentally stimulating role. As there is little point entering a 24hour race without planning to eat anything while there, or assuming the car will work perfectly, as this would be the perfect recipe for failure, though could result in a few laughs.

These teams can be formed from anywhere, all you need is a group of friends, the ability to follow this link to arrange the hire or purchase of a car, or to discuss the best methods of production and design of your own model, also required is a smile. This results in teams being formed from many groups, such as scout groups, cycle clubs and groups of students with a lot of free time on their hands and a healthy university budget.

With good team work, racing can be a most enjoyable experience for all involved, especially when you and your rival are making that final run on the final straight. All events are also very sociable with a lot of communication between the different teams, forming friendships, resulting in when a teams car falls apart halfway through, many different people can descend upon their pits, wanting nothing more but to get them back on the track.

About The 24hr

It's 5am, you've been up and running for 17 hours, desperate to lose that tail. You're tired, hungry, in pain from the endless chase, soaking wet from the continuous torrent of rain pummelling the ground around you, making each turn a desperately controlled slide. You briefly look to see how far behind they are and are horrified to see them slowly gaining. Suddenly you realise that through the tiredness you'd not seen the man standing over you. He leans over, opens his mouth and you hear the words you'd been waiting for; "It's your turn in the car again, get your helmet." You turn away from the scoreboard knowing only one thing, it's going to be fun. Now it's your turn to rule the track.

The Shenington 24hr race takes place at the Shenington kart track just outside Banbury. It is one of the races in the British Pedal Car Championship (BPCC). It also happens to be one of the best tracks in the championship, challenging drivers to both build up the best speeds possible in the straights, but then to be able to navigate the twisting corners, and power through the chicanes.

All this track flows through a smooth grassy area, so when you feel you have done your best and need to relax you can lie down comfortably in the middle of the field, with only the slight rattle from the passing cars to disturb you (occasionally coupled with "Look out! You're about to be run over!").

Sorry, there's no prizes for guessing how long this race is, but for those of you who are still unsure it runs for 24 hours. This great length gives the entire team the chance they need to prove how well they can work together, and if you've still got smiles at the end then you've got it right, if not then it's not the end, you can try again next year.

After you've pushed yourself for those 24 hours, you won't feel like doing much for a bit, and you've deserved it, so to cater for this, in a rather literal sense, you can go along to the 24 hour cafe and buy yourself a drink or some food with which to relax.

This race really is a test of character and teamwork, lets face it, after 23 hours of racing if your wheel breaks off you don't want to be unable to complete the race due to a disagreement with your pit crew. You also have to push yourself to keep going for the entire race, and pick your fellow racers up when they don't quite feel up to it. However, with all these challenges to overcome, the feeling you get out of it compares to nothing on this earth and you can walk away proud, knowing that you have succeeded.

We hope to see you there next year!

Other Information

Rules can be found on the main BPCC website.