[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/solar_team_finishes.jpg” caption=”McMaster’s Solar Car team crosses the finish line in Calgary, Alberta. Click here for FULL Size. Photo credit: Bob Daemmrich of Daemmrich Photography in Austin, Texas.”]They faced severe thunderstorms, more than 12-hour days on the road, steep hills and regular car problems, including cut electrical circuits, and diminished power in the solar collection system. And even though they were forced to trailer the car to some daily checkpoints, the drive of McMaster's Solar Car team remained strong during the 11-day North American Solar Car Challenge (NASCC).

“That was a pretty hard 11 days,” admitted Avery Yuen, project manager of the McMaster Solar Car Project, a day after his team crossed the finish line in seventeenth place in Calgary, Alberta. They came in second last in a race that began with 28 cars, but ended with 18 after 10 either didn't qualify or had to be removed from the race due to technical problems. “I think under the circumstances we did pretty well.”

Qualifying for the race was a feat in itself. This was the first time a McMaster team has entered the NASCC, which includes teams with million-dollar budgets.

Yuen admits they weren't expecting to win. “We weren't aiming for the top 10,” he said. “A lot of the cars in the race have a lot more money than us and many of them have competed in the race a few times before. But the race experience itself is something we will take with us forever.”

In just under a year the team designed and built Phoenix, the team's third generation solar car that the team designed, manufactured and fundraised for. The car features a redesigned aerodynamic shell, a three-wheel chassis system for reduced road resistance, a more efficient solar array with 479 solar cells, and new suspension, steering and braking systems for improved performance and handling.

Sometimes during the NASCC, it wasn't about racing teams from Texas to Alberta, but it was about racing the clouds, Yuen says. Driving a car powered entirely by the sun for 4,023 kilometres, they developed an appreciation of what nature can bring. And they learned a thing or two about how to improve on their next car for the 2007 NASCC.

But for now, after 11 days on the road, getting up each day at 5:30 a.m. and eating food and doing laundry on the road, the 14 McMaster team members are looking forward to getting a little rest and relaxation. “We're all looking forward to winding down and coming home.”

Four other Canadian university teams (Queen's University, the University of Calgary, the University of Waterloo and Red River College) also competed in the race. The University of Waterloo was the most successful Canadian team, having placed fifth.

The race began in Austin, Texas, on July 17, with competitors starting off on U.S. Highway 75, and ended in Calgary, Alberta, on July 27, on the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 1).

For more information about the McMaster Solar Car Team visit http://www.solarcar.mcmaster.ca/index.php.