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By Richard King
U.S. Department of Energy |
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BURLINGTON, WIS., July 11, 2003 - What an exciting day! The University of Pennsylvania team finished their 61st lap to qualify with just two minutes to spare. The students were ecstatic. They had to drive the last 10 laps with a broken right front shock, which made the finish all the more dramatic.
The day was full of ups and downs. It started with the University of Michigan, the defending champions, and École Polytechnique de Montréal (EPM) failing to pass scrutineering. Michigan's steering wouldn't pass, and EPM's car had poor brakes. Both teams were heart-broken to have come so close but not reach their goal.
Qualifying was equally disappointing to some teams. The test track was grueling and wore down many tires and suspensions. Five teams failed to qualify: Northwestern University, Yale University, the University of Kentucky, McMaster University and the University of Western Ontario.
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| Photo contributed by Richard King |
| Teams make adjustments to their solar cars in the "pits" at the test track as they try to complete 140 miles in a day to qualify for the 2003 American Solar Challenge. |
Pole position should be held by Kansas State University. They completed the most laps. Both Missouri teams and the University of Minnesota also did very well. Queens and McGill from Canada also have very fast cars.
The 2003 race will be a small but competitive field. From an original starting field of 30 teams, five failed scrutineering and five failed to qualify, leaving a field of 20 teams. Even so, the teams that make up the 2003 ASC are very fast and well organized. Their designs and components are significantly better than two years ago. I anticipate one of the most exciting races ever.
Here is the starting field: Auburn, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal Sol (Berkeley), Iowa State, Kansas State, McGill, North Dakota, Principia, Purdue, Queens, Stanford, Texas A&M, Arizona, Minnesota, Missouri-Columbia, Missouri-Rolla, Pennsylvania, Toronto, Waterloo, and Western Michigan.
Tomorrow we display the cars in front of the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry and BP Solar is sponsoring a dinner for everyone. It should be a nice day of festivities before the start on Sunday.
REPORTS FROM THE ROAD
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