Northside Middle School students recently saw their displays of creativity zip by in the blink of an eye.
More than a dozen students created custom pinewood dragster race cars within a nine-week period that were tested Dec. 17 on a 61-foot track at the school.
Vroom, vroom in the classroom produced plenty of smile and excitement.
The research and design project is part of students’ work in their industrial technology education class, an elective in which students complete different modules focusing on topics such as interior design and aerodynamics, industrial technology education teacher Christopher Chappell said.
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Students developed their race cars using a drill press and bandsaw to rough out their final designs, said Bruce Musial, an industrial technology education teacher who has been involved with the project since he started at Northside in 1982.
The race cars — which had carbon dioxide cartridges on the rear used to propel them down the track — were launched in individual heats, pitting two students against one another. One student’s dragster went as fast as 38 mph.
Musial said part of the key of having a fast race car is checking specifications such as any slopes and the wood body to ensure it will travel faster.
“They want to make it as light as they can,” Musial said.
Caylyn Pruitt, a seventh-grader who raced against classmate Ruth Federle, and was the winner of their race, said she looked at several models online to help develop her race car, which took about a week to complete.
Pruitt said she was pleased with the performance of her car, saying she enjoyed being able to build it.
“I learned how to make it aerodynamic and fast,” Pruitt said.
Federle said that if she could remake her car, she would make the middle portion of her race car skinnier and remove a portion of the back of it based on its performance, but noted she wasn’t disappointed overall.
She added that it was fun being able to compete against one of her good friends as part of the process, which she said also was a good learning experience for her.
Fellow seventh-grader Aditya Mohan said he developed his dragster by making it skinny in the middle and curved in the back, which resulted in being the 14th fastest car among his classmates at 25.48 mph.
Mohan plans to enter the technology field and hopes to focus on computer software development as a career. He said he enjoyed building his dragster and encouraged future students to keep in mind the principles of aerodynamics.
“You kind of have to experiment with design,” Mohan said. “Put some thought into it.”
Chappell, a former industrial engineer with Cummins Inc. before becoming a teacher with the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp., said projects such as developing a dragster race car are designed to get students interested in STEM-based classes.
Musial said the project is also designed to get students thinking about different courses they can take when they get to high school, such as design or graphic animation courses offered through the C4 program.
Students can consider potential careers such as drafting or choose to go into mechanical or industrial engineering in the future, Musial said.
“It’s an opportunity to see what’s available,” Musial said. “It kind of depends on what the kids are interested in.”
Chappell also said he sees the project leading into vocational classes students can take when they get to high school that will also help them as they get older.
“This definitely connects them to real world opportunities and jobs,” Chappell said. “It can help them later in life and in the real world. It does have a practical application.”
Chappell said students are also able to learn about do-it-yourself projects, such as plumbing and installing fixtures as part of their module coursework, which will benefit them as adults.
“It may not be something engineering intensive,” he said. “It stays with them.”
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These are the top 10 student finishers based on miles per hour their dragster race cars traveled on a 61-foot track:
1. Briana Cox, 38.40 mph
2. Tommy Morrill, 32.49 mph
3. Brandon Ferree, 31.82 mph
4. Ethan Walter, 29.31 mph
5. Kevin Ponce, 28.84 mph
6. Jacob Peeples, 26.95 mph
7. Chesney Totten, 26.64 mph
8. Chloe Binder, 26.40 mph
9. Michelle Caldwell, 26.37 mph
10. Nathan Phan, 26.27 mph
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