GEAR UP Students Race Ahead with STEM-Ed

The starting line-up of F24 electric car included schools from Logan to Gunnison Utah.

Students work in teams guided by teachers to design, build, and race their single-seat electric cars.

Manti High School was the Golden Wheel Traveling Trophy and overall winner for the second year.

This year 17 teams from 9 schools competed in the Goblin and F24 electric car divisions.

Teams of students, mentors, and educational partners arrived at the track near Tooele, UT, excited for the race to start. Groups made up of elementary, middle, and high school-aged students built single-seat race cars from kits, working to improve performance and reliability. Coming together at the speedway allows everyone to race and see whose car is the fastest and can go the most laps.

“The event is so much more than racing,” said Joni Slater, director of STARS! GEAR UP grant three. “These cars are built and engineered according to strict specifications. Each student's STEM skills are challenged. This culminating event allows them to showcase their abilities and celebrate that hard work. It's truly remarkable!"

Students work in teams, guided by teachers or mentors, to design and build their cars. This project-based approach leads them to apply what they are learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) classes as they solve real problems with their cars. The result is that students explore new interests and foster potential future educational and career goals.

The overall winner of the 2023 Mountain West Grand Prix golden wheel traveling trophy based on total score was Manti High School for the second year in a row. Teams are evaluated based on their presentation and the number of laps completed during the event. Below are the race results by category:

F24 Advanced Modified:

1. Manti High School #147 (and overall winner)
2. Gunnison Valley High School #78
3. East High School #45

F24 Advanced Stock:

1. Cottonwood High School #717
2. Cottonwood High School #141
3. Hunter High School #544

Goblin Car Results:

1. Salt Lake Arts Academy #314
2. Edith Bowen Laboratory School #37
3. Salt Lake Arts Academy #55
4. Edith Bowen Laboratory School #63
5. Edith Bowen Laboratory School #51

F24 Intermediate Stock:

1. North Sanpete Middle School #96
2. Edith Bowen Laboratory School #93
3. Edith Bowen Laboratory School #71

F24 Intermediate Modified:

1. Edith Bowen Laboratory School #32

While USU STARS! GEAR UP programs offer many educational experiences for students starting in 7th grade, this one is unique. It started as part of the first USU STARS! GEAR UP grant in 2015 when electric car kits from GreenpowerUSA were purchased for partner schools to use for classroom projects or afterschool.

"An important part of our mission at GEAR UP is to engage students in hands-on learning experiences that are relevant to their interests, which in turn can motivate them to pursue post-secondary education," said Slater. "We appreciate the support of the community. Multiple partners contribute to this event to make it a success.  It's an honor to work with them and share a vested interest for student success in STEM and other fields."

For those interested in starting a team or learning new skills, free design courses are available online at GEAR UP University. These courses are self-paced and cover a wide variety of topics such as creating the F24 car body, and 3D CAD modeling. Siemens also offers tutorials and resources and free Solid Edge Software for students. Greenpower challenges like this one take place all over the country, and the world for students ages of 9 to 25.

Thank you to all of the schools, teams, and partners that participated this year and in previous years. This year’s race was made possible by the generous support of the GreenpowerUSA, Utah Motorsports Campus, R-Plus Energies, Texas Instruments, and Post Consumer Brands, along with GEAR UP staff and site coordinators at each school.

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