Newquay south-west qualification race.
On Thursday 21st of June I was part of the engineering club from Penair School that travelled to Newquay Airport to compete in the south-west Greenpower electric car regional race. Our aim was to qualify for the National final at Goodwood in October. We turned up in perfect racing weather (not too cold or not too hot) but, being Cornwall, that didn’t last very long and soon after it started raining. Despite this we rolled our three cars up and waited for the scrutineering team to test them. We didn’t have to wait long before our cars were scrutineered and all three passed the tests fine. Our new car, built entirely out of wood apart from the electronics, had up-to-date technology installed such as a speed controller and a tablet screen that told you if you were going too fast or too slow. Although it was the first time the car had raced the team and I had high hopes for our car.
The engineering club had built three cars so consequently we had to split into three teams. The three cars were called Raptor Fusion, Blue Raptor and Eco Raptor so they were also the names for the three teams. The teams were each assigned a different colour; red for Raptor Fusion, blue for Blue Raptor and green for Eco Raptor. We decided that because in the heat of the race people could get mixed up we would give each team hats the colour of their team. So because I was driving for Blue Raptor I got a blue hat.
Once we had been scrutineered our first drivers got in the car and drove a couple of practice laps. The other drivers would then have a couple of practice laps in race order. Because of a shortage of batteries Eco Raptor and Blue Raptor had to share batteries in the practice laps, this meant that the drivers didn’t get as much practice time as they wanted. But it wasn’t just shortage of batteries that cut down the amount of time drivers got in practicing, well not in Eco Raptor at least. On the second lap the treacherous surface of Newquay took its toll on Eco Raptor. The Airway had rough sections in it and some potholes and it was one of these potholes that spelled the end of Eco Raptor’s practice session. The car did not approve of the two inch hole it went into at over 18 mph and was pulled off the track by Greenpower officials. After examining the car the team drew the conclusion that the floor beneath the batteries had given way and had caused the batteries to be pulled out. After 40 minutes of furious work the team, with the help of Mr.Erents, Ron and other adults that are included in the club, managed to get the car onto the grid to race albeit in 21st and last place. The starting order on the grid for the Penair cars was: Raptor Fusion in 18th, Blue Raptor in 19th and Eco Raptor in 21st. Not the best starting points for one of the first teams to arrive.
The cars were sent to go row by row and it was clearly apparent that there was something wrong with Blue Raptor when it pushed off and sure enough minutes later it was pulled into the pits by the Greenpower officials. Not knowing quite what the problem was but knowing that it was something to do with the electronics , the team pulled off the cover off the bottom of the car and tried to find the problem. Within ten minutes we had, with the help of Ron and Jason, discovered that it was a problem with the circuit-breaker. In a further 5 minutes we had found a loose bolt connected to part of the circuit-breaker. Quickly we tightened the bolt and tested the car and we were ecstatic to find that the car was fixed and able to run in the race again. By this point we had dropped all positions and were in last place but we were just happy to see the car rolling fine back in the race and already making a mark on the Greenpower race, gaining on the opposition quickly and getting back the laps we had lost. We were back in business.
Raptor Fusion didn’t encounter a problem as it shot round the 0.74 mile track in less than 2 minutes, the fastest lap time being 1 minute 49 seconds. It was not long, though, before Eco Raptor came in with a problem in the electronics. Keeping their cool the Eco Raptor team sorted the problem quickly although the stop cost them positions and they dropped back near the bottom. At the time it looked like Richard Lander team were going to win but we wouldn’t have that. Raptor Fusion was running top 5 within the first 1 hour 20 and then it had a problem as well! This wasn’t as serious as the problems on the other cars but was a problem with the positioning of the wiring. But the team soon had the wire replaced and the car entered the race again in 4th place.
As is well known the Greenpower race is all about endurance and to last the full 4 hours you need to have good battery management. We had a small problem with battery organisation but other than that the cars didn't encounter any more serious problems.
Penair school had started with all three cars in the bottom 4 but they finished in these positions; Raptor Fusion in 1st!, Blue Raptor in 5th!, Eco Raptor in 12th! Richard Lander had started looking like they were going to win but part way through the race they had problems. This was the start of a downward spiral for them and they finished in 6th place. Your position is judged on how many miles you’ve covered and only 5 cars lasted to cross the finish line. I’m happy to say that all three of the Penair cars crossed the line.
The awards ceremony announced Raptor Fusion as the winner of the Greenpower south-west regional race and therefore qualifiers for the national Greenpower race at Goodwood. Our work on Eco Raptor was recognised by the judges who awarded it the Engineering innovation award. With medals around our necks and smiles on our faces we returned home and looked forward to the challenge of upcoming races.
Despite the award Eco Raptor did not qualify so it and Blue Raptor will both be going up to Somerset to try to qualify in another race. Raptor Fusion will also be attending the Somerset race as the position you get on the grid in the national Formula 24 race depends on how any miles you’ve covered in previous races. So Fusion will be racing to gain miles and therefore positions in the Goodwood race.
I hope Penair Engineering do well in the Somerset race and I will keep you up to date in future races.
Written by,
Josh Fann
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