Human-powered helicopter

The idea of a pedal-powered helicopter sounds about as air-worthy as attaching a bunch of helium balloons to a paddle-boat (not to mention bringing to mind weird images of that crappy Around the World in 80 Days movie). But on Tuesday a group of students and engineers from the University of British Columbia are going to test the "Thunderbird", an attempt to capture the $20,000 prize established by the American Helicopter Association in 1980 (which was way more money back then than it is now). The test is to use a human-powered helicopter to hover in a ten meter zone, at the height of three meters for one minute. Maybe it doesn't sound that hard, but over the past decade over twenty unsuccessful attempts have been made. We're hoping they grab their victory this year by using a device with two rotors (which rotate in opposite directions) in order to lift the 302 pound copter weight. We'll get back to you with the triumphant or utterly failed results.