Part 1 - The Great MoonBuggy Race 2013 - A Gallery of Photos and Video

From start to finish, failed first run to successful 2nd run, this was an extraordinary year for the AACT Moonbuggy Team.  It was all capped off on awards night with the winning of the Neil Armstrong Best Design Award (see pictures below).  Final stats:

4 second setup time
3:41 completion of the course
Total:  3:45 to complete the course.

7th place in the High School division
8th place overall against all 93 of the high school, university, and international teams.

Most impressive achievements:  the way the team came together (and never got down) after the failed first run to reinforce the design, the excellent presentation to the engineers that garnered the Neil Armstrong award, and the excellent way they represented the Academy of Arts, Careers, and Technology.   Here's to an extraordinarily successful year!

CHECKING OUT THE COURSE

FIRST RACE DAY!

The above clip is short and sweet.  Part of the competition is "setup" time.  Check out how fast the students are ready to ride!

Getting set for the start!

THE FRAME BUCKLES

The goal was to lighten the buggy but keep it structurally strong enough to withstand the rigors of the course.  The first run showed that the team erred on the side of too light.  A few pics of the buggy frame failure and the team springing into action to get it ready for the next day's successful run.

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The above video has footage of the first failed run of the AACT Moonbuggy starting around 35:30.


Below...a couple of team pictures.  STAY TUNED FOR PART TWO...THE SUCCESSFUL SECOND DAY AND THE NEIL ARMSTRONG AWARD!

  

In what could be an epic turnaround for team AACT the first day of the NASA moonbuggy race began with anxious excitement and mechanical failure, and turned into extraordinary teamwork and resolute determination as we look ahead to tomorrow's second running of the race.


Things started off well with the new buggy weighing in at under 80 pounds and a set up time under 5 seconds. The riders looked fast and determined at the start line but the hopes of the team were halted when an obstacle on the course proved too much for the ultralight frame as it bent about a third of the way through the course.







Teamwork, improvisation, and hours in the NASA support "pit" have brought the moonbuggy back to life, stronger than ever. Tomorrow's race has the potential to be an amazing comeback for a team that looked to be on the ropes. As one of the faculty advisors put it, "this has provided the team with a teachable moment and it has passed the test with flying colors."




Reinforcements! Above image.

The only dark cloud on the horizon is the 80% chance of thunderstorms forecast for tomorrow. Rain is no problem for the event but lightning will cause the race to be scrubbed and without a successful second run team AACT will be left to dream of what could have been and work even harder for next year's event.

Below...ready to go for tomorrow's race!


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Location:A Day at the Races and an epic comeback?!

Bent frame!

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Race day...moonbuggy race begins

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A Thank You to a Few of Our Sponsors and Community Partners!

Crating Up!

The 2013 Moonbuggy was crated and shipped today for next week's NASA Moonbuggy Race!

We Have Lift Off!

The first rides of the new buggy and a few (hopefully) minor tweaks to make sure everything is running smoothly.

Final Drawings

Moonbuggy Transformer!

Ready to Roll!

Drive Train Updates

It Even Looks Faster

Almost there!  Side by side with last year's moonbuggy the new one even looks faster.  I just hope it handles the rigors of the course!

Wheel Meets Scissor Lift

During practice today our team was taking the old moonbuggy through it's paces for training and the pilot clipped the Scissor Lift with a wheel.  The scissor lift won.