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September 17, 2009
For Immediate Release
For more information: Todd Low (801) 863-6434, Katreena Davis (801) 863-7022
University Marketing & Communications: Erin Spurgeon, (801) 863-6807
Written by: Alex Strickland (801) 863-6351
Normally, an old Chevrolet El Camino isn’t worth a second look. But more than 300 local high school students and plenty of speed fiends will be watching closely this week as the Utah Valley University Wolverine Race Team’s 1969 El Camino roars across the Bonneville Salt Flats at 200 miles per hour.
"We went 194 miles per hour last year," said associate professor of automotive technology Todd Low. "We’re really trying for 200 this year."
And, according to Low, that seems well within the realm of possibility after students dissected the computer-recorded telemetry from last year’s top run and determined the classic car should have been going 212 mph, but wheel spin on the slippery salt kept it below the team’s magic number.
The UVU-themed El Camino held the speed record in the classic coupe classification in 2006 and 2007 before being beaten by a Camaro built up by a crew from Hot Rod Magazine. And with the new record sitting around 240 mph, Low knows it’s out of reach for his team’s rig.
"They just flat have more money," he said. "But we went 194 and were happy."
Low is the actual owner of the El Camino - and its driver across the flats - but it’s the students at UVU and local high schools that get the most out of the breakneck runs. Low said more than 300 high school students from the Orem and Provo areas had committed to coming out to watch the car run this week, learn a few things and let UVU treat them to a barbecue on Thursday afternoon.
"We’ll have a telemetry presentation we’ll give them and hopefully we can run the car and put that data right on the monitor," Low said. "But we’ll also feed them lunch."
Since 2006, about 100 students from various departments at UVU have worked on the El Camino project. Recently, collision repair students did body work and paint, custom street rod students engineered a roll bar and engine students helped tune the 572-cubic inch monster under the hood. And even on race day, students will be tweaking the car’s setup and testing out different combinations of parts.
"This year we’ve got a couple of different exhaust setups we want to try to see which one goes faster," Low said.
The World of Speed event was postponed a day due to heavy rains on the salt flats on Monday, but is expected to run from Thursday through Saturday or Sunday provided the weather stays nice. The event is sponsored by the Utah Salt Flats Racing Association, which is also benefiting from UVU’s participation in the week of racing.
Low volunteered to help with technical inspections before the races started and he said that he and his students were donating their time to help tear down and clean up after the event on Sunday, anything to spend a bit more time out on the legendary salt.
"As a kid I read about speed racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats," Low said. "There’s all kinds of neat stuff going on out here and we’re learning."
For more information about the World of Speed races, visit the Utah Salt Flats Racing Association Web site at http://www.saltflats.com.
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