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Greenpower Electric Racing Team
16th July Race Day! We met at school at 6.30 to depart for Croft Racing Circuit in North Yorkshire. Any excitement was hard to spot as most were still yawning after the uncomfortably early start. Everything was loaded and we hit the road for the long haul North. After 3 tedious hours we arrived and we were very pleased to be allocated a pit garage just like the ones in Formula 1, it even had a pit wall that we could stand on to watch the racing. We didn’t have time to get comfortable as we had to prepare the car as quickly as we could for scrutineering before the test session, luckily we were familiar with the procedure from our day at Darley Moor and we passed easily and applied the large round stickers to our car to show we were ready. The first couple of laps went very well but then the old problem of the thermal trip showed up and the car cut out on the other side of the track as we stood in our pits looking on helplessly. Race control had some spare parts and it didn’t take too long to swap the faulty component and test it so we would be ready for the race. It was interesting to see the Goblin event for Primary Schools and the Formula 24+ for older pupils. We were especially keen to see team Bentley as they claim that the car has cost the equivalent of £80 000 to develop! It was good to cheer on our new friends in team “Brian” as they sped around and lapped the Bentley team, they have been racing a long time and have developed a formidable vehicle that we aspire to beat one day. The BBQ was organised by Mr Payne and provide a welcome treat and distraction as we prepared for the gruelling 4 hour event that we had come for. In what seemed like no time at all we were on the grid and waiting for the chequered flag to drop. The first few laps were very promising as the car seemed to be going faster and faster and we quickly picked up places and overtook a number of cars. Then disaster struck and as the car pulled in for the first scheduled pit stop it was clear that we had serious overheating problems as the smell of burning filled the pit lane. Lots of water was splashed onto the motor but the temperature remained very high and we feared that the motor would be damaged beyond repair. After 15 minutes it was still too hot to hold but the time had been spent wisely adding an improvised water-cooling system using an old duster, a water bottle and a few cable ties. We swapped the battery pack and pushed the car back into the race for a couple of laps to see how things would go. Steady driving seemed to help and the temperature started to drop to safe levels, even though the laps were a little slower it meant that we were still in the race! Pit stops became a regular feature of the event for us, we had to replenish the water supply and monitor the motor temperature. At least it gave us a good chance to hone our pit skills and opportunity to try out all the drivers to give them experience. The time seemed to go quickly and we didn’t have any more major problems but it was clear that the batteries were getting flat and it was a concern when we had to declare one set flat with half an hour of racing still to go. Somehow the little car kept running and crossed the line after four hours of racing having covered 60 laps and a distance of almost 70 miles. This was well beyond Mr Bird’s target figure of 60 miles and everyone was pleased to have done so well. The race control figures showed that we had finished in 9th place in a field of 22 runners. An excellent result for our first event, we had beaten several teams that have been racing for far longer. Team “Brian” won the day, especially impressive as they had taken part in two races and driven for nearly 6 hours! At the presentation ceremony all of the teams crowded around race control to applaud the winners and we were surprised and delighted to be awarded a special prize for the best pit team. They awarded us a large box of Scalextric and we cheered louder than the winners had when they received their trophy! It was a long journey home and everyone was tired but pleased with the result. We were close to doing even better and the experience has given us many clues that should help improve our performance even more. The next race is in September and is closer to home. By then we should have the new bodywork and implemented a few tricks to help keep everything cooler and more reliable. This will be our last chance to qualify for the final at Goodwood for this year. It would be great if we can manage it but the competition is very fierce and we will have to work hard and be lucky. In any event today was a great success and a just reward for all of the hard work we have done so far. Roll on the next event!
14th July
Little minor changes tonight to make sure we are ready for Wednesday. A new brake disc has been fitted as one had warped and was causing serious drag. We also fitted a speedometer to see how quickly (or slowly!), we are travelling. Sadly the new GRP body will not be ready for this event but we spent time in preparing the mould so it will be ready for Newark. That race seems a long way off but we only have a couple of school weeks to prepare and complete the fitting of the shell. We did find time to have some laps around the car park but the speed bumps, kerbs and cars make it hard to get close to full speed and really try it out.  Our testing did arouse interest from staff who seemed more interested in the safety of their cars than the performance of ours but the Head came to have a closer look and wish us well on Thursday. Sadly he was too tall to fit below the roll bar……




7th July
At last the mould has been made and after a struggle it parted from the plug so we can start working on the tricky task of making the final shell. Before we do that it will need a lot of work to make the surface really smooth and many hands set to with silicon carbide to remove blemishes. There is no way it will be ready tonight but it is a significant step forward and we have a list of volunteers to carry on the work at lunchtimes.  We also managed to complete the axle stand, not a very glamorous job but it will be handy in the pits on race day. Tom and Alice have also started to make some wheel covers to reduce the drag caused by the spokes, it won’t make a huge difference but every little helps in our quest for speed. The most important thing tonight was the belt test. After a lot of work on the lathe we have managed to make the pulley fit the motor and completed a new motor tensioning system to keep it tight and running true.  Amazingly it worked first time and the increase in speed was dramatic, even with Mr Bird at the controls, and he could loose a pound or two! It really is much faster and far quieter. It really does “swoosh” past now compared to the rattles and clanks that embarrassed us at the sprint event at Darley Moor.  We might not beat Brian but we should make better pace than the standard Seagull kits that left us in the dust.



30th June
After a lot of thinking and the consumption of enormous quantities of biscuits we have decided that the chain drive will have to go as it is the cause of most of our problems. There have been a lot of arguments and discussions and nobody, not even the teachers, really understands or can explain why it has had such a dramatic effect. We have looked at a lot of tables and checked ever other part of the car and it keeps coming back to the drive train. We have made a big decision to go for an expensive HTD belt and pulley system and we are keeping our fingers crossed that it will do the trick. We can’t find exactly the sizes that we need so it will require a bit of careful work on the lathe to make it work and get it all to line up. The cost of the pieces is enough to make sure that we measure everything twice and make cuts very carefully. The parts are ordered so it is just a matter of waiting for them to arrive and removing the old components.