High School Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Finalists Receive $250,000 in Scholarships

Nov. 11, 2009 - PRLog -- Las Vegas, NV. - Ohio Technical College (OTC) and the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) have each donated $125,000  toward scholarships to the high school students who participated in the first ever Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge National Championship during the 2009 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show, Nov. 3-6, 2009, in Las Vegas, Nev.

   The five members of Team Fel-Pro®, from Joliet Central High School (Joliet, Ill.), each earned $10,000 scholarships from OTC and UNOH for their victory in “The Showdown at SEMA” championship, taking just 44:22 to take apart and reassemble a high-performance Chevy 350 engine.  Their championship opponents, Team MSD®, from Elkhart Area Career Center (Elkhart, Ind.), took only 56:54 and were awarded individual $7,500 scholarships.

   “The Showdown at SEMA was a stellar event, it went well beyond our expectations” said Tim Freeman the founder of the exciting High School event.” It was so well received by the auto aftermarket industry that SEMA has committed to doing it again next year. This competition helps the students, teachers, schools and the future of the Performance Aftermarket industry”.

   To qualify for the championship round, Team Fel-Pro and Team MSD eliminated teams Hedman Hedders®, from Loara High School (Anaheim, Calif.), and Team Edelbrock®, from Van Buren Tech Center (Lawrence, Mich.), respectively.  Team Hedman Hedders won third place and its members each earned $5,000 scholarships and Team Edelbrock received $2,500 each.

   Students must properly disassemble the engine using only hand tools, utilizing proper detorque and disassembly procedure. The air cleaner, carb, distributor, plug wires, spark plugs, manifold, headers, heads, lifters, rocker arms, push rods, timing chain and cover.
Then the oil filter, oil pan, oil pump, plus all eight pistons are then removed. The cam and crank remain in the block. The team then returns behind their bench and wait for the judges to call them back, teams then begin working to reassemble once again with correct assembly
procedure and torque specs, all while being viewed by judges and spectators. Time added penalties for dropped components, improper disassembly, assembly, sportsmanship, etc. will be added to ensure correct assembly. All procedure penalties are in the rule book provided
to the schools at the start of the school year. The engines when reassembled would fire up and run if gas, water, and oil were added. The team with the fastest time including penalty minutes wins.

    The teams are made up of invited auto technology classes from local high schools. Each team consists of five students and the instructor/coach. The individual schools set standards and guidelines for involvement. Grades, attendance and skill are all part of the making of a team. Through this event these students get an opportunity to showcase their talents and knowledge gained during classroom sessions and workshops. It provides opportunities for students to develop and build teamwork, demonstrate their skills,
enthusiasm, and ingenuity, build their confidence and commitment to excellence. The key part is the instructor/coach making this a learning experience as well as an exciting and fun event the students can look back on with pride.
   
More information about the competition is available at www.hotroddersoftomorrow.com.

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Hot Rodders of Tomorrow is an educational program aimed at auto technology high school students that pits them against other schools in a head-to-head engine build competition. Each team is made up of five students where they will have identical high performance 350 cubic inch Chevys “Dressed Out” with all the goodies. These are real high performance engines that you will find in powerful muscle cars and hotrods at shows and race events across the country. Tick-tick-tick, the clock is ticking as each team disassembles and reassembles their engine with hand tools. The adrenaline really starts flowing as you realize you’re being judged by officials and cheered by a live audience. The fastest team wins – but be careful – as you will be penalized for violations, which will add to your overall score!