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Tracks: Electricity in the air at Irwindale Speedway Sunday, June 4

25 May 2000

Irwindale, Calif. - - Check your kilowatts and get ready to make some sparks! 
 (Just kidding!).  But seriously …On Sunday, June 4, Irwindale Speedway will 
be the site of the very unique and very "high tech" ZEV 2000 Solar/Electric Challenge 
sponsored by the South Coast AQMD, the ISAAQ, and the Speedway itself.  

(Before we go much further maybe we should decipher the above "alphabet soup". 
 ZEV stands for "Zero Emission Vehicle",  AQMD stands for Air Quality Management 
District, and ISAAQ stands for Innovative Schools Advancing Air Quality, that 
said, we'll get on with the news.)

This event will pit teams of young students from surrounding high schools who 
have put together ZEV vehicles as class projects and who will compete with each 
other on the ½-Mile banked track at Irwindale Speedway.  The object is to promote 
clean air transportation through engineering teamwork and innovation.  

Competition between the schools is as natural on this level as it is in other 
sports.  Each school's entry is built to a strict set of rules and regulations 
as to size, weight, and the total amount of batteries that it is allowed to carry. 
 

Designing, engineering, and building the vehicle to run faster and longer on 
exactly the same amount of electricity as the other team has is the challenge. 
 Making it just that little bit better than the other team's vehicle and driving 
just a little bit smarter than the other team's driver is the key to Victory 
Lane … Hey, isn't that what we do every Saturday night at the Speedway?  

The races will take place from 10 am until 4 pm on Sunday, June 4.  Admission 
to the event is free as is parking at the Speedway for this educational event.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS SPECIFIC EVENT PLEASE CALL:
BOB FRANZ @ The Los Altos High School Academy of Engineering (626) 330-1096