To the editor:

When racer Linda Irvine was heard saying “When the sun comes out, I’m going to beat you,” it was just one of many voices of excited expectations heard on Solar Saturday, June 19, at the first annual Langley solar car drag race.

Thanks to all who attended and raced on this first overcast, then sunny, finally cloudy, almost-summer day.

The fastest student dragster award went to Lola, Bailey and Courtney.

The fastest adult car was entered by Mike Close.

The fastest student-adult combination and fastest (and lightest) overall racer was the Dickerson family, Paul, Rowan and Clowey.

The fastest high school team was Dean Freudlich and Eli Fowler.

The engineering award went to the team of Ezra and John Shinneman and Jim Scullin; craftsmanship went to Ryan and Eric Keene; Joel, Hanna and Emily won the Most Beautiful car award; Antoine and Richard LaLonde won the Sportsmanship award; and Linda Irvine and Peter Oakley won Most Exotic Car.

Thanks go out to all who attended the technical classes given at the middle school by Paul Mathews, Paul Dickerson and Kelly Keilwitz, and Western Washington University. I know the students at WWU were very excited showing our builders the insides of their racing machines and their X-prize capable car.

Thanks also to the South Whidbey Schools Foundation for the grant to buy the solar car kits, and Fred McCarthy and South Whidbey School District for providing class space. Kudos to Tom Sage for granting shop access, and Jay Freudlich for class space for our dragster builders.

Thanks go to Linda Irvine and Peter Oakley and Jim Scullin for “paving the way” for our race, and Alice Sterling, Sally Thompson, Tucker Stevens, Simon Fraser and Sharon Heath for making race day fun and accurate.

Thanks to all the racers who put their cars on the drag strip including Russell, Michael, Annika, Heidi and Josiah Colby; Melisa, Joshua and Jason Hun, and Becky Foote. Thanks and good vibrations go out to the adults who stepped up to help students: Ross Godwin, Joel Kennedy, and Skip Stevens, who helped whoever, whenever, however they could.

Also to the great city of Langley for its support: Thanks to Mayor Paul Samuelson, Chief Hertzberg and the kind Langley police for setting up and removing the street barricades for our race.

We had a great year. Jay and I had a ball putting this together. If we find funding, we can do it again next year. Take care and have a great summer.

Jay Freundlich, Tim Economu

Organizers

Langley solar car race