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By Richard King
U.S. Department of Energy |
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BARSTOW, CALIF., July 21, 2003 -- Heat endurance was the name of the game today. The temperature was 102 degrees in Kingman and 108 in Barstow at 5 p.m. this afternoon. Crossing the Mojave Desert was stifling hot. Some of the vans with thermometers in them read 117 degrees in the heart of the desert areas. It is incredible how the solar car drivers can withstand 120-degree heat inside the cars for hours. When they arrived at Barstow this afternoon the drivers were wet from perspiration. The trick these days is to fill water bladders and water bottles with ice. Some drivers drape them around their necks, while others hold them on their lap. Who says they don't have air conditioning.
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| Photo contributed by Richard King |
| Waterloo came in second at Barstow after starting the morning in eighth place (for the leg) and over an hour behind the leaders.
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With the toughest part of the route completed, the teams were very relieved and happy when they arrived in Barstow. They were high-fiving and hugging each other as if the race was over. They all took off for a plunge in the nearest hotel pool.
As expected, the University of Missouri- Rolla team arrived first. They drove 435 miles yesterday from Albuquerque through Flagstaff and beyond. The only thing slowing them down was the chase van that needed to stop to refuel. Today they drove another 286 miles in six hours to reach Barstow at 2:31 p.m. Their 517-pound car (339 lbs without driver) can fly with 1,500 watts of solar power.
Another team that was flying today was the University of Waterloo. They came in second at Barstow after starting the morning in eighth place (for the leg) and over an hour behind the leaders. Waterloo finally has their motor and solar array working as designed. I believe we would have a much different outcome if we turned around and raced back now that most of the cars are fine-tuned.
Here are the times into the Kingman checkpoint this morning and afternoon, 165 miles from Flagstaff.
| Rolla | 9:36 a.m.
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| WMU | 9:53 a.m. |
| Columbia | 10:34 a.m. |
| Principia | 10:47 a.m. |
| Queens | 10:52 a.m. |
| Minnesota | 11:07 a.m. |
| Waterloo | 11:31 a.m. |
| Arizona | 11:43 a.m. |
| McGill | 12:10 p.m. |
| Kansas State | 12:21 p.m. |
Here are the times at Barstow, California this afternoon, 393 miles from Flagstaff.
| Rolla | 2:32 p.m. |
| Waterloo | 4:31 p.m. |
| Minnesota | 4:32 p.m. |
| WMU | 4:37 p.m. |
| Principia | 4:40 p.m. |
| Queens | 5:51 p.m. |
| Columbia | 5:52 p.m. |
Principia would have been in third, but they had a flat just outside Barstow that allowed Minnesota and Western Michigan University to pass them.
A USA Today reporter called today to see how the race was going and to download some photos from the Web page. They called me just when I was driving in the middle of the Mojave Desert. Only today's communication technology allows one to have an interview from the middle of nowhere 2,000 miles away from an office on the east coast. Did you know that photovoltaic solar cells power virtually all the telecommunication satellites and remote ground-based repeater stations today - the same technology powering many of the solar cars? Another reminder of the power of photovoltaics. The article should be in the Life section of tomorrow's paper.
There are 13 teams spending the night in the middle of the Mojave Desert. I hear the stars are spectacular.
REPORTS FROM THE ROAD
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