Siblings receive honor for model car

WINTERPORT – Home-schooled youngsters from Winterport saw their handcrafted model car, the “Shisk-Ka-Bob,” take second place for innovation at the Northeast Regional Junior Solar Spring championship on June 11 in Springfield, Mass.

ALAD Home Learning students Albert M. Lowe, 14, and Dezirae Lowe, 12, were invited to attend the regional championship after receiving second place in both Technical Merit and “Kids’ Choice” at the Maine area qualifier. They are the children of Albert E. Lowe and Lesli Lowe of Winterport.

The “Shisk-Ka-Bob” was so named because of its five propellers strung on an axle through the center of the car. Most of the other cars used gears or pulleys.

Many people attending the event asked Albert about his design and took photos of him with the car.

This year, the Junior Solar Sprint Championship, run by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association, drew more than 250 top-performing middle school students from across the Northeast.

Students raced their model solar cars – up to 2-feet long – down a 20-meter track in a competition of speed. They competed for three design awards – craftsmanship, innovation and technical merit.

Throughout the day, students and parents viewed exhibits that included student-built, one-person electric vehicles; a solar ice cream cooler; a model fuel cell car demonstration; hybrid-electric cars; and cars that run on bio-diesel, a plant-based diesel fuel.

“With today’s high gas prices, alternative fuels are in the news,” said Chris Mason, the association’s education director.

“In the Junior Solar Sprint program, students build alternative-fuel cars that run on a free local energy source, the sun, and produce no pollution. “They don’t even have tailpipes,” said Susan Reyes, science educator and Junior Solar Sprint coordinator said.

“This is a teacher’s dream – having students design and build a model solar car for competition is highly engaging and challenges kids to put their learning to practical use,” she said.

“Kids develop teamwork and problem solving abilities, investigate environmental issues, learn theoretical and hands-on engineering skills, and use principals of science and math to get the fastest, most interesting, and best crafted vehicle possible.”

The Northeast Junior Solar Sprint program is sponsored by the U.S. Army and is run by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association, which provides workshops for educators, subsidies for area events and runs the Northeast Championship. For information, visit www.nesea.org/education/jss.