Billy carts burn up Eastern Creek Raceway

A Mossy Posse, some Fast Flames and even a few Deadly Vipers were among the winners in the third annual KDC-NRMA TechnoPush Challenge billy cart race at Eastern Creek in August.

Around 50 NSW schools took part in the 2008 TechnoPush, and students spent months designing and building billy carts as part of their school curriculum.

A joint initiative between NRMA and the Department of Education and Training, the event seeks to teach both primary and high school students about road safety, as well as vehicle design and technology.

On the day, more than 2000 students flooded Eastern Creek Raceway to test out their vehicles and cheer on their classmates. Events included obstacle, sprint and endurance races, testing students’ skills and creative abilities.

Technopush 2008 The Mossy Posse (aka Moss Vale Public School) and the Fast Flames (aka Killarney Heights Public School) were joint winners in the Road Safety Award category. The Deadly Vipers (aka Balgowlah North Public School) took out the award for best overall performance. Other awards were presented for design, team spirit and identity, scientific investigation and more.

“The atmosphere at Eastern Creek raceway each year is electric, with schools screaming support for their teams – it’s a great day,” said NRMA Director Gary Punch.

“Schools are enthusiastic about the educational value of the day, which brings the classroom into the real world and ensures basic road safety concepts are learned from an early age.”

Jayde Tourner, a student from Casula Public School’s Blazing Stars team, said her class had learned a lot about road safety and the importance of give way and stop signs.

“I think this knowledge will help us when we get our licence when we get older,” she said.

For Jake Nosko from Currans Hill Public School, it was all about having fun with his mates from Aussie Lightning and being able to drive or swap his role in the team. “We made it in 25 seconds for 100 metres,” he said.

PERFORMANCE

Road Safety Award – Primary (joint winners)

Mossy Posse (Moss Vale Public School)
Fast Flames (Killarney Heights Public School)

Road Safety Award – Secondary

R2R Panther (SCEGGS Redlands)
Best Primary Team – Overall performance
Deadly Vipers (Balgowlah North Public School)
Best Secondary Team – Overall performance
Stingers (Guyra Central School)

DESIGN

Primary

Excellence in Design Process
G-Force (Greenwich Public School)
Team Spirit and Identity
Flaming Devils (St Christopher’s Panania)

Secondary

Excellence in Design: Brakes
Sheriff’s Angels (Ungarie Central School)
Excellence in Design: Steering
Flaming Bananas (Mt Annan High School)
Excellence in Design: Chassis
RevHeads (St Columbia’s High School)
Engineering Excellence
Stingers (Guyra Central School)