i just got back home (iowa) this friday from the formula sun grand prix (fsgp) in topeka, kansas. i was with the mit solar electric vehicle team; we were racing nimbus, our solar car, against other universities across north america. it was one of those experiences that you have no way of preparing for, and that sweeps you away into its overwhelming flow while it happens.
flying into kansas
i woke up early in the morning (three hours after posting the previous blog; i probably shouldn’t have stayed up so late) and took an uber to the airport. i met up with some other team members who were on the same flight, and then we took off for kansas.
after landing at kansas city international airport (sidenote: this airport was so strangely structured—look it up on google maps), we got rental cars and met up with the rest of the team who had driven there from cambridge. the airport group got bbq at scott’s kitchen (it was very good; apparently kansas is known for its bbq). we then drove to the motorsports park, our home for the next week+.
immediately after arriving, we got to work unpacking our tools and setting up our garage. each team was assigned a garage in a row of several long buildings. the interiors of the garages were separated by tall chain link fences, so that we could see other teams. we also set up tents and sleeping bags in our camping area.
after a team meeting going over our strategy for the next few days, everyone went to bed. i felt very awkward about sharing a tent, so i opted to sleep in one of the suvs the team had rented.
scrutineering
before any solar cars could compete in fsgp, they have to pass all the regulations. thus, scrutineering: a four day period where we had to bring nimbus to a variety of stations (mechanical, electrical, lights & vision, driver registration, etc.) and prove that the car met regulations to the event officials.
the next few days were super hectic. every morning, we got up at the crack of dawn to prepare nimbus and rush to be first to the scrutineering stations to avoid waiting. there was a ton of work to do: bringing tools to the stations, towing around the safety cart, lifting up nimbus’s upper body so people could access the inside, securing the upper body by applying tape, and a myriad of other tasks.
in addition, i also completed a some other small meche fixes: applying velcro to the car with epoxy, fixing the seat back cushioning, redoing safety wire, and changing tires.
our team was struggling to change tires (the whole thing: taking the rubber tire off of the rim and replacing it with a new one); i.e. it took several hours to do just one tire. i joined in to help one day. we had borrowed another team’s tire unbeading rig. for some reason, i was able to help unbead the tire in a matter of minutes. we ended up buying our own unbeading rig from a nearby harbor freight. i eventually managed to unbead tires on my own (previously it had taken multiple people and even other members of other teams). this whole situation was pretty incredulous because i had no idea what i was doing differently. regardless, it helped save a lot of time since we had to change tires a lot.
i also went on a trip outside the motorsports park into topeka. we stopped by a harbor freight, home depot, and a best buy. topeka was very strange to me, because while all the typical “american” stores were there, everything was super sparse and spread out. in general, kansas was very flat; i have never seen the sky be so big anywhere else.
it was also extremely hot; after a few cool days (around 80 degrees), the temperature soon started to average around 95 to 100. everyone constantly drank gatorade and water (blue gatorade had never tasted so good) because everyone was constantly sweating buckets. some nights the temperature didn’t drop below 80—i would wake up in my car sweating. i also got many, many bug bites.
our team captain’s parents were volunteering to handle meals for team. they prepared three meals a day and also brought snacks. i’m very grateful for all of their help; the food was very good ^-^
at the end of scrutineering, our team had to pass dynamics, a series of driving tests. these started with doing a u-turn within a certain area, and progressed to get crazier and crazier: driving a figure-8 within a certain time, braking on wet ground in a certain time, and slalom. in slalom, the driver had to weave the car in between a line of cones within a certain time. it was frightening how fast the cars had to go. one team’s car tipped over onto its side at the end of the line. no one was hurt, but it was a very scary moment.
we were able to pass dynamics without any issues, and then it was time to race.
formula sun grand prix
fsgp was a track race around the motorsports park’s 2.5 mile course. the car that completed the most laps during the three day period would win.
during this time, i mostly helped out set up and take down our pit. there were no major issues with the car, so there was a lot of down time while the drivers completed the laps. i mostly hung out in our tent and chatted with other team members.
i also helped take pictures for the media team and did two corner working shifts: staying at a corner of the racetrack to report to the race controllers and wave flags. when our team was not racing, we talked with other teams. it was cool to meet other students passionate about engineering and to see all the different solar cars.
fsgp was definitely more chill than scrutineering; however, there was still a lot of work to do on the car, and i stayed up fixing things on several nights. our hard paid off though, and we won second place!
for my last night in kansas, the team stayed in a hotel since we had to leave the motorsports park, and i flew back home to iowa the next morning. the rest of the team is now continuing on to compete in the american solar challenge across the oregon trail.
home
living at the motorsports park was very uncomfortable, so it’s nice to be back home. the hot kansas weather made the 80 degree weather in iowa seem cool by comparison. fsgp was one of the most intense experiences in my life so far, but i enjoyed it a lot and i’m happy i chose to go. i grew more close to the team as we bonded over getting nimbus to run and surviving kansas.
the experience also made me think more about my future with the team. from watching the subteam leads, i realized that i would never be able to develop a substantial understanding of the solar car if i was not a course 2 (mechanical engineering) student. i would also lack autonomy over my work on the car, since an actual meche would need to guide me.
i considered switching to the electrical engineering subteam, but i don’t actually know anything about circuits either. i could possibly help more with software related projects, such as strategy.
another thing is that i enjoy making things and working with fabrication tools (i want to learn how to weld!). staying with mechanical engineering would give me more opportunities to do this.
these are mostly all questions for the fall; i’m currently resting and recovering from fsgp. my internship starts up again tomorrow; i’m looking forward to taking it easy and spending more time with family for the next few weeks!
lyricist 
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