Issue link: http://digital.nexsitepublishing.com/i/990962
JUNE 2018 6 Our Club hosted a fun driving tour to Western Washington University on May 5th. The tour started at the I-5 Smokey Point rest stop and followed winding roads to Arlington on Highway 9 through Sedro Woolley and up to Lake Whatcom, where we proceeded along the west shore. The weather was fantastic and the countryside was spectacular. It's always nice to drive a road you haven't been on for 30 years. The real reason for our tour to WWU was to tour the VRI, Vehicle Research Institute and to see this year's Formula FSAE race car, the Viking 59. Every year the students build a new car to compete with teams from all over the world. The competition this year will be held in Lincoln, Nebraska. I was most impressed with the team's processes for building the new car. They have divided up all aspects of construction, i.e. electrical, aerodynamics, chassis, drive train, and suspension, with team leaders in each division. The project manager is a college senior, Michael Konig, who has participated in previous builds. With computer- aided design driven by the CATIA V5 program, the teams can build each section independently, then bring them all together to fit perfectly. A tubular frame construction was used, which has proved less difficult and time consuming than last year's carbon build. Even more impressive, the team has brought in students from the business and marketing departments to help manage the team financially. This is just like the real world! Each student puts in 20 to 40 hours a week, which is outside their core engineering and business curriculums. The students gave a very professional presentation on this year's car project to the audience and we all felt like proud parents. The day ended with the unveiling of the actual car that will travel to Nebraska in June for the national college competition. We wish them every success. Now, we can all see why our club has financially supported WWU's impressive FSAE program since 2006. Oh, did I mention that a few of last year's students obtained jobs at Space X and other engineering and hi-tech companies? Congratulations earned. Special recognition to three women who attended all our Women's track DE events and worked hard to improve their driving skills. On our last DE at Pacific Raceways, all three of these women were signed off to solo on the track, and they advanced to the next level driving group. My hat is off to Virginie Grange, Auste Aiesulas, and Shari Waibel. Nice work! FROM THE PRESIDENT Ed Jenkins Photography by Ed Jenkins 6 JUNE 2018