7.30 -31 - Finish

July 30th was the last day of the race. We left the pleasant town of Twentynine Palms for Los Angeles which is 150 miles away. We soaked up a couple hours of sun rays before parading out of the lovely park. The solar car was then trailered to LA. We had to be there before 1:00PM and then drive 26 miles through Los Angeles from Citrus College in Glendora, to the end of the race at the  Los Angeles Coliseum.

Mr. Smith consults with Jim, our judge for the last leg of the race, about the race route.

The canopy was propped up facing east until it was time to depart.

While we were waiting for the race to start, I took a walk through the community park. Under a stand of pine trees I found a big pine cone. One of the park employees told me that the pine trees are stone pine. They are not native to the area but a common tree used by landscapers. They originate from North Africa and the Mediterranean area.

The park has a grove of siberian elm. I was told that the park contains one of the highest concentrations of  siberian elm in California and that they are forty years old. In the photo below you can see that they produce broad shade.

Here are two washingtonia palm trees.

Group shot left to right: Jim our judge, Tyler, Nick, Brittany, Myles, Joe, and Chris

If you are interested in watching a few of the cars depart on their last leg of the race, there is a video below.

Because we only drove a short while before trailering the car (had to be in LA at the very latest 1:00), I was unable to take photos of the landscape. The route took us from the high desert to the low desert and through the Yucca Valley region. When we neared the LA area we saw dozens of wind turbines. The photos do not capture it, but they were quite beautiful— elegant, slender and white against rough brown rock. 

We drove first to the Citrus Community College in Glendora, California. Here we found a few fast food restaurants for lunch and then departed for a drive past Los Angeles City Hall and the end of the race at the Los Angeles Coliseum. The weather was in the low 70's and the breeze was refreshing. It was a comfort to be out of the dry desert heat. 

Myles ready to drive the 26 miles to the center of Los Angeles

Because we were driving through LA traffic, the order of our caravan was changed. Mr. Harris was to ride in front of the solar car so that if needed, the car could easily be pushed up into the trailer. I was to drive behind the solar car with the judge. My job was to protect the solar car from other cars. Looking at the route we were taking made me quite nervous because we had many stop lights to go through. Myles did a great job of being the eyes for both of us. If he did not think the light would be long enough for both of us to safely make it through, he stopped. Often Mr. Smith and Mr. Harris would have to slowly inch their way forward waiting for us when we were stopped at a light. I asked the judge to take a video of the car being driven.

When we were stopped at a light, people would take pictures and videos. The man on the park bench had a conversation with Myles.

As we approached city hall, our judge was told that we had to drive around awhile and kill 15 -20 minutes. Evidently the cars were backed up near city hall. We found a place to pull over until the congestion eased. 

Dr. Cassel and Ms. Smith were at city hall to greet us. It was nice to see familiar faces.

At city hall we were allowed to briefly gather around the car to be photographed. Thank you, Ms. Smith for taking a video of us as we arrived at city hall.

This  following photo is lifted off the solar car challenge website http://www.solarcarchallenge.org/challenge/photos.shtml . When each team arrived at city hall, the solar car was ushered curbside and the other cars circled the block. By the time they returned there was available parking and the teams lined up in front of their cars for a photograph to be taken.

We then continued driving to the Los Angeles Coliseum which was the end of the race. The cars were parked and on display to the public.

Into the setting sun went the Volt-Tech team; they were escorting the car onto its final trailer ride to Ulster BOCES Career and Tech Center. 

In the evening a rewards banquet was held. It was nice to not have to eat fast food.

Myles sat at the head table with the other team captains. You can see in the slide show above him a photo of our team.

A local high school's jazz trio played for us.

Each team captain made an impromptu speech. 

Dr. Rani Wesson, an American Astronautics Systems Engineer focusing on planetary exploration, an employee of the California Institute of Technology Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and a Senior Technical staff member of NASA, made a fascinating presentation on what NASA has done and is planning on doing in the future. He briefly highlighted our solar system in succession. For example, he mentioned that Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, has a frozen surface. Scientists believe that under its surface is frozen water. NASA wants to penetrate the ice and explore the water below. 

Team captain, Myles Harris, on behalf of the Volt-Tech team, accepts the trophy for the winner of the advanced division. Congratulations to all the Ulster BOCES students who were involved in making the solar car challenge a reality!

Team Volt-Tech was presented with three trophies: winner of the advanced division, winner for most miles covered during the last leg of the race, and overall winner of the highest level of technical achievement. Well done everyone!

The next day we had a couple of free hours before having to leave for home. We stopped at the Santa Monica pier.

Here is where you can get your kicks.

LA International is a great example of Googie architecture. Many buildings look like sets for the Jetsons. Thankfully, our flight was uneventful.  Thank you to Rhoda for picking us up in Newark and returning us safely to Ulster BOCES.

The completion of the solar car race will be memorable to all the many students from around the country who were involved. Friendships were made, and troubleshooting and team work became the norm. I am certain that many students will be inspired to set high goals.

For me it was a pleasure to be a part of the solar car challenge. Although driving through desert landscapes at 20 mph and seeing beauty around me was soothing, serenity emerged more subtly than through the senses. It happened unnoticed when the shell of adulthood was broken by the simplicity of youth. Adults are preoccupied with the past and the future; the present is unnoticed. The dozens of youth that I encountered daily focused only on their immediate task, whether that be maintaining at least 15 mph up an incline, analyzing voltage use, soldering, contemplating menu choices, or finding another pair of clean socks. They did not worry about how much time they might have when returning home to paint a bedroom, or what to remember not to forget, or  whether obligations could be met. They only focused on the moment. In between the moment at hand were smaller moments of naps, laughter, or music from earbuds. Being on the fringe of that mindset allowed my fifty one year old self an escape. I was shocked to discover that I was seriously defending my position that a silverback gorilla could defeat a klondike bear. During occasions such as that, I too was focusing only on the moment. It was a privilege to be allowed these brief moments of relapse into youth.

7.29- Twentynine Palms, California

The day began with a pancake breakfast at the Wickenburg Civic Center. A few of the ladies helping with the breakfast told me how the community was saddened last month when nineteen firefighters lost their lives in the now infamous fire. The hill where the young men lost their lives is not far from the town of Wickenburg. Having experienced the unpredictable winds, I can understand how an already large fire might grow into deadly chaos.

While awaiting the batteries to charge in the civic center parking lot, I took the opportunity to go for a short walk. I noticed in the landscaped plantings honeybees and butterflies. The honeybee below has quite a reach to the nectar within this flower.

Although this resembles a monarch, it is not. It is a viceroy.

When we entered Arizona, everyone wanted to see a saguaro cactus. It took an hour or so of driving before we began to spot them on the hillsides. Saguaros grow naturally only in the Sonoran Desert. A tall saguaro may be well over fifty years old. I noticed that many of these cacti have large holes in them. The holes are created by gila woodpeckers. Woodpeckers common to us make large holes in dead trees for nesting and small holes to burrow for insects. The gila woodpecker makes a hole in the saguaro cactus for nesting purposes. Each year they make a new hole and their prior nesting hole becomes a home for other birds. The holes do not harm the tree; most saguaro die from being uprooted by wind or flooding. In the photo below you can see  numerous holes in the cactus.

The group shot below includes our judge for the day and Ulster BOCES district superintendent, Dr. Khoury. It was interesting for all of us to meet a new judge everyday. Most of them were from Texas, Arizona, or California. Some were young and some were retired educators or from fields related to renewable energy. They not only helped us daily to understand rules and regulations, but they all were conversationalists with stories to tell of past solar car races or knowledge to share about the desert environment. Dr. Khoury proved to be invaluable during the arduous task of navigating through downtown Los Angeles. Left to right: judge for the day, Tyler Wenzel, Chris Reffelt, Nick Mastorano, Myles Harris, Brittany Fatum, Dr. Khoury, Mr. Harris, Mr. Smith, and Joe Cramer.

During the 8:00 AM meeting, Brittany and Myles accepted the trophy on behalf of the team.  The trophy was for winner of the advanced division for the previous days race. 

Here is a photo of the car after being unloaded from the trailer. It sat in the sun for a couple of hours in order to recharge the batteries. 

While the car was recharging, Chris checked the amperage of each array of solar cells. Brittany and Joe covered the frame of the car with duct tape. Any exposed metal can become so hot in the desert heat that it may burn flesh. 

Chris shares some shade with an electrical consultant. This man has been volunteering at the solar car challenge for  a number of years. 

Once battery charging and troubleshooting were completed, it was time to race. It was decided to  trailer the car for the first 51 miles of the day's race. This was to avoid using too much energy while climbing steep inclines in the beginning of the race course. Joe was the first driver of the day. He clambered into the drivers' seat in the open wilderness. 

The required rest spot was in Salome, Arizona. Chris hopped into the drivers' seat.

Not far after departing Salome we entered California. The Sanoran Desert sand began to change from crusty and flat to sand that you might find on sand dunes. It took on a tan hue and was quite soft. At one point Mr. Harris struggled with his truck on a soft shoulder. I was fearful he would get stuck and could not imagine where a tow would be available. Luckily, the struggle was momentary and he was able to resume to a level position. The solar car has thin wheels; they are not much thicker than bicycle tires. In order to load it on the trailer, straps were used and most of the team pulled from inside the trailer while Myles, Dr. Khoury, Mr. Smith, and Tyler pushed.  

Not only was the sand different, but the plants were as well. Here is what I believe is a whitethorn acacia. The soft needled plant I have been unable to identify.

It was not uncommon to see a name or phrase made out of rocks.

Here is another long road. You can see the road is visible to the horizon line.

Today's race ended in Twentynine Palms, California. 

The people of Twentynine Palms, California welcomed us in their city park. People cheered as we pulled into the park. It was a pleasant surprise after many hours in the hot desert. A local radio station was doing a live broadcast and in between songs would talk about the solar car challenge or interview its participants. Signs were made by local school children, people came to ask questions about the car,  and we were treated to a dinner of pizza and chicken.

The local press stopped by to take pictures and ask questions. The photographer got Joe to take on a muscle man pose. 

The warm welcome we received put everyone in a good mood. 

This brave hula dancer has been mounted on the back of another solar car since we began our journey in Fort Worth.

An astronomer had a solar telescope. It showed solar flares and suns spots. I took a photo of a solar flare. If you look in the upper right portion of the sun you will see the flare, it is 30 earth diameters long. 

As the setting sun rays were blocked by a building, the team guided the car back to the trailer.