Menu
Where racers are born
Herald-Tribune
A group of Nevada High School students are out to show everyone it's not the size of your motor that counts, but how much fun you have building it.
Adam Nunn's auto technology classes at the Nevada Regional Technical Center are entering a car in the 2008 High School Race Car Build Off Challenge at the I-70 Speedway in Odessa, Mo. The class has been working on their car -- a 1990 Chevrolet Cavalier -- for two to three months preparing it for race day, May 17.
The competition features 10 high schools and technical centers in Kansas and Missouri, all of which began with a four-cylinder, front wheel drive car to be modified for the race track. Modification rules are strict. If teams alter their engines to increase speed they will be placed farther back from the starting line on race day. Teams mostly try to strip down their car to boost performance.
"We take all the inner door skins out and it's going to be just like a shell of a car," Nunn said. "We can lighten it up as much as possible and we're putting a full roll cage in it. That's about the only modifications we do, is lightening it up and putting the roll cage in it."
Senior Robert Shreier debated with other students in the garage about how much had been gutted from the Cavalier.
"We took out quite a bit," he said. "I don't think quite 1,000 pounds, but I think we took 700 out, easy. It ran when we got it, it's drive-able. If you tie the hood down you could take it on the road right now."
Ideally, the cars will be close to "road legal" on May 17. Nunn said his team is aiming to produce an Enduro class car. Aside from stripping the vehicle, Nunn's classes have repaired the back passenger side of the car, where it apparently was involved in a wreck.
Without any major setbacks, Nevada Vo-Tech has been ahead of schedule and other teams, judging from pictures online.
"We're probably over half way done," senior Shawn Zoglmann said in the garage. "This is a brand new thing for us, it's the first time the school has ever done it and we're having fun with it. We've been waiting on Impact (Motorsports) to get us the roll cage and seat so we could get started, that took forever."
When the final product is rolled out of the garage and onto the speedway the emphasis won't all be on winning the race. This competition is as much about education and teamwork as it is about putting the best car on the track. Dennis Shrout, the event's organizer has signed up several corporate sponsors to finance prizes not just for the race winners, but craftsmanship and teamwork.
"Snap-On has donated some prizes, $10,000 worth of prizes to this thing," Shrout said. "It's good to get the schools -- especially the vo-tech part of the schools -- a little exposure and do some team building. We'll get them some recognition they don't normally get in the vo-tech part of the schools.
"The stuff from Snap-On and the other prizes we'll give away are more based on just the ability of the team and not really on who wins the race. It's based on how they built the car, attention to detail, stuff like that."
Shrout said the teams will bring their cars to the speedway a week before the race for an inspection and test run by their chosen driver. For liability reasons the driver must be the inspector or a professional; this could include the class instructor if he wishes to drive.
When the car is deemed ready to race there will be a heat race to determine the starting order and any last-minute repairs will be made to the car. Then the teams will wait until race day to finally put their car to the test in a five or six lap contest, whichever organizers decide.
Each school's instructor, driver and seven-man pit crew will be introduced on Metro Sports television and the green flag will wave. At the end of the day the emphasis won't be on the winning car but the educational opportunity afforded the teams.
Nunn said, "They're going to try to make it as equal as possible, so everybody's got a shot at getting something for participating."