Click here to find out more about the 2010 Solar Drag Race.

When:
11:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Saturday, May 22, 2010

Where:

Welcome
Welcome to the web site dedicated solar drag racing. Unlike other solar races you may be familiar with, solar drag racing is different. Full-size solar drag racers use only sunlight captured by their vehicle over the straight 250 meter course. No batteries or other pre-charged energy devices are allowed to power the racers down the straight-a-way.

Build a solar dragster and race it at this year's Maker Faire.
Michael Conn from Los Angeles is organizing this year's solar drag race that will be held at the Maker Faire in San Mateo, California. Although May 22 is rapidly approaching, there is still time to put together a solar drag racer. Luckily, solar dragsters are relatively simple vehicles. Attach a seat to solar modules connected to an electric motor driving three or four wheels, flip the switch and away you go. No need to purchase expensive batteries or fuss with motor controllers.

Solar Drag Racing History
Solar drag racing originated in 2005 in Wenatchee, Washington. The event organized by Jim White was sponsored by REC Silicon, one of the world's largest producers of solar grade silicon of Moses Lake, Washington and the Port of Chelan County’s Advanced Vehicle Innovations in Wenatchee, Washington.
2009 Solar Drag Race
South Whidbey High School's solar dragster, with close to 2.0 kilowatts (2.6 HP) of solar modules, reached unofficial speeds in excess of 35 mph before suffering a gear failure that forced them to race in low gear. Even in first gear, South Whidbey's team was able to cover 250 meters 36.19 seconds. Wenatchee High School's solar dragster came in only slightly slower at 38.4 seconds with their 0.68 kilowatt (0.9 horsepower) solar array.

Seattle's King 5 TV produced an Evening Magazine episode that documented Whidbey's winning effort from preliminary design to the checkered flag in Wenatchee.
Watch the fastest team under the sun.

Cloudy weather did not stop the 2008 solar drag racers.
The Wenatchee World's headline news story covered the solar drag race in Wenatchee. Included with the news story is a 3 minute video of the 2008 event. It was unclear if there was even going to be a race due to the heavy cloud cover. Although the racers were slower last year, it turns out there was still enough sun to hold a competitive event.
This year's event was successful because of the hard work put in by South Whidbey High School, Republic Middle/High School, Wenatchee High School and Brook Solar's Photon Phantom teams. Chehalis High School had assembled a solar array using the solar cells donated by REC Silicon, but did not complete their race frame in time to compete in this year's event. Chehalis, Republic and Wenatchee high schools all plan to have new light-weight modules made from the REC silicon cells ready to go for the race in 2009.
Brook Solar's Team Photon Phantom, Wenatchee High School and Republic Middle and High School teams all put on a great show! South Whidbey Island won the unlimited division and Wenatchee High School won the high school division. Click here to see detailed results of the 2008 race.
Dr. Andy Frank, a distinguished professor from the University of California at Davis, was on hand to pass out the awards at the 2008 event. Dr. Frank is the world leader in the development of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. It was an honor having him on hand to officiate the 2008 Solar Drag Race. South Whidbey High School chose to compete in the unlimited division and successfully defended their title at the Fourth Annual Solar Drag Race that was held in 2008. Whidbey chose to compete in the unlimited division because their open circuit voltages were greater than 50 volts and their solar racer was worth more than $5,000. Brooks Solar's Team Photon Phantom placed second in the unlimited division. It would have been interesting to see if the race results would have been different had there been full sun. Wenatchee High School won the high school division. Republic Middle/High School competed well this year, overcoming technical difficulties with relays catching fire.

In 2007, Chad Yingling of South Whidbey set the world's fastest time of 29.5 seconds.
Check out the 2007 photos or see the 2006 and 2005 photos. The official solar drag race rules for the event can be found by going here.