It is not going to be the sand and the sun for these 38 university student teams. They are not going to be relaxing and enjoying those days off from school. Instead, they would be taking the time off from studying to put on the last minute changes and additions to their prototype cars.

38 teams from all across the United States, Mexico, and Canada joined the 2008 Shell Eco-marathon Americas challenge. This event is a challenge for student teams to create vehicles that could go long distances and yet use a few amounts of fuel. These teams have gone through all the stages and the difficulties of planning, designing, and creating the vehicles.

David Ulrich is the team lead for the Cal Poly team and he said, “We realize the future of transportation ultimately depends on alternative energy sources. And as an engineering student, being given the opportunity to design and build fuel-efficient vehicles is an important part of gaining practical experience for the future.”

You go teams!