UA Students Win National Formula One Competition

Akron, Ohio, May 27, 1999 — In a come-from-behind victory, University of Akron students won the 1999 Society of Automotive Engineers Formula One-style race competition in Pontiac, Mich., last weekend. They are the first Ohio students to win this internationally recognized engineering design competition.

Akron beat 99 other teams, including competitors from such well-known engineering schools as the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Texas - Arlington (UTA) and Purdue, Cornell and Ohio State universities. Teams from Great Britain, Puerto Rico and Canada also participated in the race.

The open-wheeled vehicles are precision-engineered, scaled-down versions of Formula One race cars, weighing close to 500 lbs. and capable of 70 mph runs. The cars are designed, built and raced by undergraduate students.

The first events were static competitions, in which judges evaluated designs, cost analyses and the teams' presentations. The Akron team finished these events nearly 40 points behind first place. They overcame that margin during the subsequent dynamic events. Akron placed first in the 24-lap endurance race, second in a dragstrip-style acceleration test, third in a skid-pad test, and fifth in an autocross event.

Akron received a total score of 852.9, followed closely by the Rochester Institute of Technology team with 847.9 points.

In addition to winning the overall competition, the Akron team also received the Roush Industries Value Engineering Award for best engineering design for high performance and low cost, and the U.S. Department of Energy Award. The team received a first-place trophy and will have their names inscribed on the SAE Foundation Cup, a silver traveling trophy that will be displayed in the College of Engineering trophy case in the Auburn Science and Engineering Center lobby.

The Akron team received approximately $6,000 in prize money and assorted racing products. Three team members also will attend three days of instruction at the Russell Racing School. The team's captain and MVP, Andy Vrenko of Richmond Heights, will attend the Winston Cup race as a guest of one of the participating teams.

“The students did everything they could to put themselves in a position to win,” says faculty advisor Dr. Richard Gross, associate professor of mechanical engineering. After finishing third in last year's competition, the team began an almost-obsessive nine-month drive to win, says Gross. Each student dedicated approximately 700 hours to the project.

Six northeast Ohio counties are represented by the 13 members of the 1999 SAE Formula One team. The members and their hometowns are:



Tom Avalon, Middlefield

Steve Miller, Louisville

Joe Cerri, Boston Heights

Jim Reeder, Brunswick

Ryan Cmich, Hinckley

Jennifer Rossbach, Tallmadge

Jared Cowan, Massillon

Marko Saric, Willoughby

Rob Slocum, Lorain

Andy Vrenko, Richmond Heights

Nick Gullata, Garfield Heights

Chris Wittel, Canton

Chris Lehman, Munroe Falls



Advisors

Dr. Richard Gross, Akron

Richard Henry, mechanical engineering machinist, Massillon

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