IT’S fast-paced, requires dedication and plenty of precision – and it’s also one of Australia’s newest and fastest growing sports.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Drone racing has rapidly increased in popularity in recent years, and one of the country’s top competitors hails from Bridgewater.
Michael Webb finished second at the Australian Drone Nationals on the Gold Coast earlier this month, beating more than 60 others.
Mr Webb, who completed his electrician apprenticeship in Bendigo, will now head to the world championships in Hawaii in October.
He said it would be an opportunity to exchange skills and knowledge with the best in the world.
“There’s a lot of people from overseas that I’m really keen to meet there,” Mr Webb said.
It was the first time Australia has held a national drone racing championships, in which competitors guide the flying machines – known as Quadcopters – through an obstacle course reaching speeds of 150 kilometres per hour.
The competitor sits on the sidelines wearing a pair of goggles, which receive real-time video from cameras set up on the drones, giving them a first person view as they fly through the course.
Given the high speed, crashes are common. About half fail to finish the course.
But Mr Webb managed to navigate his way through two qualifying rounds, then an elimination round, the quarter-finals and semi-finals, before coming second in the final.
He started drone racing a couple of years ago after seeing a YouTube video.
“I thought, ‘I’ve got to do that’, it looked amazing,” Mr Webb said.
“I bought all of the equipment, but I crashed it a lot, and lost interest. But when first person view started, it really took off.
“You’ve really got to be prepared to be patient.”
Most of the equipment is bought online and Mr Webb assembles his drone himself. That way, when it crashes, it’s a relatively easy fix.
Buying and building a competition-standard drone can cost at least $2000, but as the popularity increases, that figure is expected to come down.
Only a handful of people in Bendigo practice drone racing.
Mr Webb moved to Melbourne this year for his university studies, where he found a much larger community.
“The community is a lot bigger, so they are able to organise meet-ups where we can practice,” he said.
“The main thing is to avoid annoying the neighbours.”
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority observes the official events which, until last year, were mainly held in secret.
The top five finishers from the championships were picked to represent Australia.
The World Drone Racing Championships, to be held at Kualoa Ranch in Hawaii, runs from October 17 to 22, with $100,000 up for grabs.