Saint Thomas Academy Experimental Vehicle Team Wins the Dell-Winston School Solar Car Challenge
Posted on: Monday, 24 July 2006, 21:00 CDT
With gasoline prices at an all-time high, industry leaders and consumers are interested in high-mileage, fuel-efficient vehicles, as well as alternative fuel sources. The students at Saint Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights have been ahead of the curve for nine years, developing alternative-powered vehicles that are functional and award winning.
For the second year in a row, the high school engineering club from Saint Thomas Academy won the Dell-Winston School Solar Car Challenge. Racing in the more competitive Classic Division, the Cadets and their one-person solar car finished 230 miles ahead of the next car in their class. The Classic Division restricts the teams to less expensive motors and solar cells. The student-built car performed so well that it beat all but one of the more technologically advanced Open Division vehicles.
Racing at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, the 12-member team worked together to complete as many laps as possible of the 1.5-mile oval in the time allotted. Traveling at speeds up to 50 mph, the team completed a total of 598 miles. The students dealt with one flat tire, a broken drive gear, and a faltering horn on their way to the championship; each time showing engineering resourcefulness as they repaired the problems.
The Dell-Winston School Solar Car Challenge is the largest solar car competition in the United States. In the challenge, teams of high school students from around the world design, build, and race cars powered exclusively by sunlight. Dell, Inc. is the title sponsor of the annual competition. The challenge has taught more than 3,000 participating students about technology, teamwork, problem solving, and commitment-skills they will need to compete in the 21st century economy-and has inspired thousands of others to get involved in long-term science projects.
About the Saint Thomas Academy Experimental Vehicle Team:
Moderator and physics instructor Mark Westlake supervised a team of 12 students - captain Derek Beilke '06, Matthew DeMay '06, Adam Gentner '06, Andrew Johnson '06, Benjamin Johnson '06, Thomas Lenertz '08, John Moran '08, Rex Pearce '06, David Riehm '07, Thomas Schaefer '07, Kyle Simonson '07, and Matthew Tredinnick '07. Since the team's inception in 1998, students have built supermileage cars, solar cars, electric cars, and ice bikes, have won 11 national titles, and set four national and one international record.
Source: Business Wire
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