What was your first encounter with the Hydro Car project, and what did you think in the beginning?
Our physics teacher introduced me to it. I was thinking, okay, I'll do it because why not? I needed to have a club. And I did like cars before that. I liked Formula 1. I got into F1 at year 8. I started researching for fun about F1 in year 9 and then in year 10 I joined here. But I knew nothing about it. The teacher said - you're part of the future team. There was a team already, but they had no time because they had IB exams, they were in the last year of school. They said, okay, here's the car, do whatever you want with it. And I had no clue how to operate it, nothing. I just took it all apart and then I did not know how to put it back together.
In the beginning I thought the Hydrogen Car Racing was the same as everything else. But it turned out to be completely different. I like the whole concept of it. You improve, you can win. I like cars. I like building cars.
When did things shift for you, and what made you truly commit to the project?
When I had no clue how to put the car back together, when it was in pieces on the desk in the STEAM room. And then my physics teacher told me I have a race in one week and I have to put the car back together. I did somehow randomly put parts together. It worked. And then during the race, I saw we were behind, and I'm very competitive. I was thinking, no, we need to improve. And from that day on, I just started improving the car.
Tell us about the main challenges, and your motivation?
I motivate myself. If I like something I will continue to do it. I learned everything. How cars work mechanically, how setups for tracks work because every track needs a different setup to make the car operate at its limit for that track. I learned mechanics of the car. I also learned how to use a bunch of 3D software and 3D printing. And I bought a 3D printer for the car.
I feel like I have gained that trust in a bunch of the team members. The team works the best with people who are interested and dedicated. You have to integrate them into the process. This really helped me because now we have separate departments inside of the club. It makes the whole process of building a better car much faster and much more efficient.
Mechanically I am proud to master the chassis. The mechanical side of the car. And my biggest failure was when I tried to do like a custom brain, a custom motherboard for the fuel cell that would control the whole process of the fuel cell. But it didn't exactly work out. I burnt it a few times and it exploded as well. It did not work out very well because I don't know how to do electronics.
In what ways did the school help you grow?
As soon as the school saw what I could do with the car, they started helping a lot in every aspect, like supplying things, funding things. I'm very happy and grateful that the school supported me. For example, Mr. Lawlor. He also helped with funding, and he believed. He never told me anything negative. He always was there like, yeah, that's no problem, you're last now, but you will be first one day, don't worry.
What’s really good about our school is that we have what other schools don´t have. Lot of schools at the races are actual car schools. They build cars. Their teachers are specialized. But what's really good about our school is that we have a completely different approach. Our physics teacher organizes stuff and signs up to races, but she leaves all the development of the cars and everything to us. And it's good because I feel younger people have more aspirations and they have access to this new knowledge, new technology. And I feel like that's why we could climb the ranks quickly.
How have the club, competitions and connections shaped your path and future plans?
A good feeling was in our race here in PBIS in January 2026, seeing the very top team that dominates, sweat. They were worried that we were going to overtake them. Seeing our car perfectly neutral steering, behave perfectly in the corners exactly how I expected, being on the limit, that was probably the best feeling for me. I would see other teams’ cars. I would see what they're doing. At first I thought changing the fuel cell would be much more beneficial to us. But then I realized that it's so much research, impossible to do in a short amount of time. I decided to make a whole new chassis. And I learned that from local teams. Czech teams are one of the best in the world.
I also made a connection with one Slovakian team. They helped me a lot with the fuel cell. Probably the most influence connection-wise was reaching out to companies internationally. I know the owner of this one chassis company in Italy. And I made a connection with somebody who has a CNC machine and mills out carbon fibre. And that's how we get our custom chassis done.
Also, before I joined, I wasn't really thinking about the university. But now after hydrogen car I want to go to a university that does student Formula. And I only actually found out about it through the hydrogen car. I think there is a lot to take from the Hydrogen Car club at PBIS for people who have the dedication and drive.
Final Thought
Anastas' journey demonstrates what can happen when curiosity meets opportunity. Through dedication, perseverance and a willingness to keep learning, he has helped transform a school club into a pathway that inspires other students. His journey has taken him from local competitions to the global stage.
Most recently, the PBIS Hydrogen Car student team returned from the H2GP World Finals in Switzerland, where they achieved an outstanding third place in the Modified Cars category. As Anastas enters his final year at PBIS, we look forward to seeing what comes next for him and the team, and to continuing this remarkable story of innovation, engineering and student-led success
