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Can’t afford to watch racing live: come out to the 9th Annual Texas Autocross Weekend for free

Written by Johnathan Silver, The Shorthorn staff

Tuesday, 21 July 2009 05:53 PM

Formula SAE race cars line up in Lot 49 during last year’s annual Texas Autocross Weekend. UTA’s Formula SAE will host 13 other teams Saturday. (The Shorthorn: File Photo)

UTA’s Formula SAE team hosts 13 other teams Saturday at the 9th Annual Texas Autocross Weekend.

The teams will race on two forms of track, the Sports Car Club of America style and the Formula SAE style. The difference in tracks dictate how cars can turn and at what speed, team adviser Bob Woods said. UT-Austin, Louisiana State University and Texas A&M are among the schools expected. The annual Texas Autocross Weekend was created to provide visiting schools a race without scoring stresses, Woods said.

“This gives UTA a lot of publicity,” he said. “It also gives a whole lot of universities a relaxed atmosphere and a place to trade [driving styles] and secrets.”

Mechanical engineering junior Jason Radford was on the university’s 2008 team, took a break and plans on returning to the 2010 team. He said his favorite part of the 2008 competition was watching UTA drivers, an alumnus and a new driver, compete head-to-head.

“The older guy won by two-tenths of a second,” Radford said. “It was good to see the two guys battle it out.”

When & Where

When: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday

Where: Lot 49

The University of Kansas, an expected competitor, has a good team and a fast car, Radford said. He said he wants to see how they will perform this weekend.

“The main strives of the Texas Autocross Weekend are to just compete and have fun with each other, and within UTA it is to see how the old car compares to the new car,” Radford said.

The race team reorganized this year and was reflected in the car’s quality, Radford said. He said he’s unsure if this year’s car is as good as last year’s, which will also race. They won’t be able to compare the old and new car until Saturday, he said.

“People get burned out or want to do other things,” Radford said. “The team, not only the car, changes year to year.”

The University of New Mexico began participating in 2003 and will do so again, said John Russell, a team adviser and UNM mechanical engineering professor. The upcoming race at UTA will be special to Russell and his students because many are graduating and couldn’t participate in a recent competition, Russell said.

“We blew out an engine one week before competition,” Russell said. “This is our team’s only chance to compete before graduating.”

The autocross is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in Lot 49, or until the teams get tired, Woods said.

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Last Updated ( Thursday, 20 August 2009 10:28 AM )

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