SVP Race Updates

Back Home Again

2009-06-07T00:39:18Z

The race crew returned to the shop this evening, exhausted but still excited about our victory. Most of our team had never raced a solar car before, and seeing Centaurus perform has fired them up even more about the project.

A big thank you to all of the teams who showed up, the spirit, enthusiasm, and sportsmanship that every displayed was amazing.

Keep an eye on our website in the coming months for updates and news about our next car!

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

]]> The race crew returned to the shop this evening, exhausted but still excited about our victory. Most of our team had never raced a solar car before, and seeing Centaurus perform has fired them up even more about the project.

A big thank you to all of the teams who showed up, the spirit, enthusiasm, and sportsmanship that every displayed was amazing.

Keep an eye on our website in the coming months for updates and news about our next car!

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

Victory

2009-06-06T02:35:10Z

Today, the University of Minnesota took home the gold at the 2009 Formula Sun Grand Prix with 487 total laps. The University of Kentucky finished in 2nd, followed by Northwestern. The spirit shown here by all of the teams was incredible, and we hope to show up again next year!

I apologize for the brief post, but we've been busy packing, and we've been informed that if we want to stay the night, we need to move our camp elsewhere on the grounds; we're just going to pack everthing and head home tonight.

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

]]> Today, the University of Minnesota took home the gold at the 2009 Formula Sun Grand Prix with 487 total laps. The University of Kentucky finished in 2nd, followed by Northwestern. The spirit shown here by all of the teams was incredible, and we hope to show up again next year!

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

End of Race Day Two

2009-06-05T04:00:05Z

After our last post, the team encountered some minor electrical issues. Just before 3pm, the car encountered an issue with the power trackers requiring a short stop, and a few laps later, the motor controller began overheating. These two issues cost us about 40 minutes, but we were able to get the controller cooled down and the car back out on the track. We finished the rest of the day running slightly slower laps in order to keep stress off of the electrical system.

The second day of racing is over; we completed 152 laps today, bringing our total to 321. Our closest competitor is now University of Kentucky, who we believe are about 70 laps back. Kentucky is the model of "slow and steady", as although they are not as fast on the track as several other teams, they have spent well under an hour off the track over the past two days and just keep racking up the laps. Waterloo is in third behind them, and we believe that Northwestern is in fourth.

Both Iowa and CalSol made it out to the track for the first time today, although Iowa has been having issues with their motor, and CalSol only drove 24 laps before suffering a tire blowout right at the end of the day.

We've made some modifications to the ventilation systems in the rear of the car, and our battery is in a very comfortable state. We hope to drive a fast, clean last day tomorrow.

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

]]> After our last post, the team encountered some minor electrical issues. Just before 3pm, the car encountered an issue with the power trackers requiring a short stop, and a few laps later, the motor controller began overheating. These two issues cost us about 40 minutes, but we were able to get the controller cooled down and the car back out on the track. We finished the rest of the day running slightly slower laps in order to keep stress off of the electrical system.

We've made some modifications to the ventilation systems in the rear of the car, and our battery is in a very comfortable state. We hope to drive a fast, clean last day tomorrow.

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

Race Day 2

2009-06-04T15:59:18Z

The weather is nice, and we have photos!

]]> Race day two has been nice and easy. The sky is 100% clear, and the weather is cool enough that some of us are actually wearing jackets. Everything is working smoothly as we are approaching our first tire change of the day. As always, check twitter for for more recent updates from the trackside.

Also, we've finally gotten some pictures up! See them here on our Flickr.

End of First Day

2009-06-04T02:43:22Z

Minnesota ended the first day of racing with 169 laps on the official count. All four drivers were able to get some time in the car, and all three of our tire changes went quickly and relatively smoothly. We were well in the lead, with an estimated 40 laps on our nearest competitors, Waterloo and Northwestern. However, both of them were running near or at our pace for much of the day; a single incident could easily place either or both of them ahead of us.

It's not over yet folks, we've got two more days to go!

It's time for us to pack up for the night, as we've got to wake up early and charge in the morning.

Remember to check out our twitter during the race day for more frequent updates!

- Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

]]> Minnesota ended the first day of racing with 169 laps on the official count. All four drivers were able to get some time in the car, and all three of our tire changes went quickly and relatively smoothly. We were well in the lead, with an estimated 40 laps on our nearest competitors, Waterloo and Northwestern. However, both of them were running near or at our pace for much of the day; a single incident could easily place either or both of them ahead of us.

It's not over yet folks, we've got two more days to go!

It's time for us to pack up for the night, as we've got to wake up early and charge in the morning.

Remember to check out our twitter during the race day for more frequent updates!

- Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

Racing: Day 1.5

2009-06-03T19:06:31Z

All systems go, running 3-4 minute laps with Northwestern and Waterloo hot on our trail. Waterloo flipped on its side and landed on its wheels - no injuries and some cosmetic and little array damage. They are now dynamic testing to get back on the track. Currently leading by 6 laps over Northwestern and 20 over Waterloo.

]]> All systems go, running 3-4 minute laps with Northwestern and Waterloo hot on our trail. Waterloo flipped on its side and landed on its wheels - no injuries and some cosmetic and little array damage. They are now dynamic testing to get back on the track. Currently leading by 6 laps over Northwestern and 20 over Waterloo.

Racing: Day 1

2009-06-03T16:54:04Z

Hey solar fans;

]]> Hey solar fans;

Day 1 of raycing is progressing well. Eight cars made it to the track today. Besides us, University of Kentucky, Illinois State, Northwestern, and UT Austin, SUNY, and Waterloo have all been on the track. Iowa's battery protection suffered a major last night; they believe a lightening strike sent a surge through their generator while they were equalizing. Illinois has been on and off the track all day and is currently off in the cold pits.

At the moment, we are approximately 70 laps into the event, are are in the lead, although Waterloo is trailing us closely about a lap back.

Updates/Internet

2009-06-03T03:45:11Z

All qualified and ready to go for raycing tomorrow morning!

]]> Hey, all qualified and ready to go for raycing tomorrow morning starting at 8am sharp. We have the pole position and will be running as soon as possible despite any rain that wants to stop us. Supposedly we will be dumped on starting at 4am and going all day. We have currently 6 teams qualified with a possibility of a total of 9 (2 of the 11 can't qualify) Good luck to us all! Sorry for the lack of quick updates, the internet here is sketchy, will do the best we can.

We will be posting frequent updates to Twitter (http://twitter.com/umnsvp), so make sure to follow us there!

Final Preparations

2009-06-03T03:21:40Z

Watchwords of the day were "keep cool, keep hydrated, keep out of trouble". With the car all finished with inspection, many team members were under the impression that there wouldn't be much to do today...

]]> Watchwords of the day were "keep cool, keep hydrated, keep out of trouble". With the car all finished with inspection, many team members were under the impression that there wouldn't be much to do today. They were quite mistaken! There was still a lot of work still waiting to be done, such as re-packing and organizing all of our tools in preparation for tomorrow. This afternoon, we were able to get a quick tour of the track, followed by a few slow practice laps for each of the three drivers. As of 8pm this afternoon, Us, University of Kentucky, Illinois State, Iowa State, Northwestern, and UT Austin were the only six teams fully qualified for the event. Kansas State is apparently out of the event due to an irreparable battery protection failure. SUNY and Waterloo were seen in dynamic testing earlier this evening, and we hope to see them out on the track tomorrow.

Tomorrow is supposed to be cloudy ad rainy with a chance of thunderstorms, so we may be driving rather slowly, but we're hoping for sun later in the week.

- Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

Texas Weather

2009-06-02T13:31:46Z

Thunderstorms roll through the area, more rain predicted...

]]> Late last evening, some thunderstorms began moving through the area. The worst passed significantly north of us, and several of our members had fun playing frisbee in the rain. The weather cleared up by nightfall, and we were treated to a spectacular sunset.

This morning, we were woken up in our tents by flashes of lightening and crashes of thunder. The tents we rented from the university's Center for Outdoor Exploration appear to be holding up fine, but the rain is certainly going to hinder the inspection process for the rest of the teams, as well as our final preparations for the track on Wednesday. Scattered thunderstorms are now predicted through Wednesday evening, so we're going to be double checking all of our waterproofing.

Through Scrutineering

2009-06-01T21:09:30Z

Minnesota is now fully inspected, we also have set up a Twitter!

]]> Hey solar fans;

Today the University of Minnesota Solar Vehicle Project continued the tradition of being prepared for the scrutineering process by being the first team through a little after 4:00pm today, earning us the pole position on the starting grid when we get on the track on Wednesday. The entire process went very smoothly; the only major problem we had was with the rear vision test. After many hours of head scratching, the team finally figured out how to adjust the focus on the rear view camera and we passed easily.

We're going take it easy tomorrow while the rest of the teams get inspected, and help out those who need it.

For those who are interested, we have set up a Twitter! Although there is not much on it yet, we plan to be updating it regularly when we hit the track on Wednesday. You can find it at http://twitter.com/umnsvp

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

At the Rayce

2009-05-31T22:24:36Z

We are at the Rayce track in Cresson Tx and waiting for the Motorcycle people to finish up. Soon camp will be made and we will be registered.

]]> We are at the Rayce track in Cresson Tx and waiting for the Motorcycle people to finish up. Soon camp will be made and we will be registered.

Departure for FSGP 2009

2009-05-30T14:53:04Z

After a long night of final preparations and packing, the team departed this morning on our trip down to the 2009 Formula Sun Grand Prix. Tonight we will be camping at the KOA campground near Sallisaw, OK.

The electrical team has done a great job of chasing down every last little electrical gremlin, and the car is in better shape than it ever has been before. Spirits are high, and we are going to do our very best to take home the gold.

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

]]> After a long night of final preparations and packing, the team departed this morning on our trip down to the 2009 Formula Sun Grand Prix. Tonight we will be camping at the KOA campground near Sallisaw, OK.

-Adem Rudin
Crew Chief

We're Home!

2008-07-25T20:28:05Z

Everyone is safely back in the Twin Cities.

]]> After way more driving than anyone on the team wanted to do after the race, we're finally home, safe and sound and in one piece. Everything has been unloaded to the shop and we are ready for a few weeks of well-deserved rest and relaxation before school starts again.

There are numerous media pieces in the "News" section of the site; there's plenty of material to read and watch. We should be posting more stories as we become aware of them.

Awards Reception

2008-07-24T05:23:49Z

UMNSVP Recieves three more awards for their hard work.

]]> We *finally* got to sleep in this morning! With no morning charge, the team was able to sleep until 9:00 AM or later. After a liesurely breakfast, we checked out of the hotel and headed over to the Calgary Zoo for an awards luncheon and reception.

First, the race observers (the volunteers that ride along with the teams during the day) gave out humorous awards to each team. We were awarded jars of unique-flavored peanut butter and jelly for the "sandwich" award, due to the 60 or so peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that we made each day of the race to feed our crew (and observer). The joke was, you could have peanut butter and jelly, jelly and peanut butter, white bread, wheat bread, both kinds of bread, squished... you get the idea.

After the observer awards, the inspector awards were given out. They are given to honor special achievement in certian categories, such as safety, design, and teamwork. We were awarded the "best workmanship" award for our clean manufacturing of the car. It really validated the work we did to make sure no detail on the car went on without attention to the "correct" way to do it.

We were also awarded "Excellence in Mechanical Design" for our work on the suspension and chassis of the car. We continue to pursue only the highest standards in this aspect of the car--after nearly 200 miles of driving in high crosswinds yesterday, the tires still had most of the rubber tufts on them!

Another award was Electrical Team Leader Adam Shea getting the individual Espirit de Corps award for all of the help he gave to other teams to get their electrical systems up and running, usually the most challenging aspect of making a solar car. As I have said before, this truly represents what solar car racing is all about.

After the award reception, we departed Calgary for Great Falls, Montana, where we will spend the night and continue our journey home. We will stop in Fargo/Moorhead tomorrow night, and hope to arrive in the Twin Cities sometime early Friday afternoon.

--David Towey
Crew Chief