New record set in student solar car race
By Kevin Kelley
Westlake
Published June 6, 2007

The three-man team of Kevin Dempsey, Josh Loede and Alec Raymond set a new course record at the fourth annual Junior Solar Sprint race at Parkside Intermediate School May 31.

As part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Junior Solar Sprint program, about half of Parkside’s sixth-graders designed and built solar-powered vehicles and raced them on a 20-meter course.

Alec Raymond, center, releases his team’s solar-powered car during a heat May 31 outside Parkside Intermediate School. (West Life photo by Larry Bennet)

According to math and science teacher Patty Seljan, the students are given the three-volt solar panel and motor. Students also have the option of using provided tires and gears in their vehicles.

The sixth-graders must draw up blueprints for the vehicle and use math skills to determine the optimal gear ratios.

“It’s pretty complex,” Seljan said.

Students spend three weeks working on the project. All the work is done at school, Seljan said, so no parents can give their kids extra assistance.

“This (project) fits in with our forces and motion standard,” said science and social studies teacher John Gast. “It’s very hands on and high interest.”

The projects forces students to apply the scientific method and problem solving skills, teacher Pat McMorrow said.

About a quarter of the vehicles finished the course. Some failed to get beyond the starting line. Those that did the best were lightweight cars with a low center of gravity.

Gast said he advises students to keep their vehicles lightweight. However, some students get carried away with their designs, Seljan said.

Josh Loede, Alec Raymond and Kevin Dempsey display their vehicle and trophy. (West Life photo by Kevin Kelley)

Raymond said his team’s car won “because of our gears and foam core.”

“It’s light and it’s sturdy,” Dempsey said of the vehicle’s chassis.

The group originally tried a triangular frame, but that proved to heavy, they said.

The biggest mistake students made, Loede said, was putting the wheels to close to the body, causing friction.

More information about the Junior Solar Sprint competition can be found online at http://www.nrel.gov/education/jss_hfc.html.