THE DRIVING force behind success for a driver on any Formula One track is the team of highly skilled individuals off it.
The annual competition, F1 in Schools, challenges students across the world to see if they have what it takes to put together a successful Formula One team.
And one team from the Al Raha International School is looking to race to victory in the competition, which is a non-profit educational programme associated with The Formula One Group, with their eyes on the ultimate prize – the Bernie Ecclestone World Champions trophy and a Motorsport and Automotive Engineering Scholarship for the City University, London.
The teams are challenged to build an F1 team from start to finish, testing their engineering, marketing, sponsorship and design and technology skills along the way.
The car will, of course not be an actual F1 car, but a miniature compressed air-powered balsa wood F1 car.
The Al Raha International School team is entering for the first time, but is hoping to be inspired by their choice of team name – The Peregrine Autos.
“We wanted to create a team that’s reflective of our roots here in the UAE. We were looking at falcons which are the fastest animal; that’s why we were attracted to it, for its speed and elegance,” says Athena Thomas, the team’s manager.
The international challenge aims to make learning Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) exciting and fun, and the six-strong team of 15 and 16 year-olds, including Thomas, Lukas Hiel, Rohan Toor, Christian Sauceda, Ali Siddiqui and Lisa Zimmermann, is already busy designing a 3D model of their car before it will be put to the test in a virtual wind tunnel.
“We want to get our name out there so we can reach out to sponsors,” says Thomas. “Everything else is ready to go.”
Billed as the largest and most successful school-based STEM programme in the world, F1 in Schools now incorporates 40 countries and 20 million students. Following national competitions, the top three teams make it to the global final, which will this year be held at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi just in time for the 2014 F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
If you wish to sponsor Peregrine Autos, email: [email protected]
