EPHS Teams Score High with Supermileage Cars

The EPHS Supermileage Team created high performing cars that placed third in the electric and stock classes of competition at the 25th Annual Minnesota Technology Engineering Education Association Supermileage Challenge at the Brainerd International Raceway, May 13-15. About 60 schools from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Canada entered 102 cars to compete in one of the largest mileage competitions in the country. Mileages at this competition are often higher than college competitions.

“I am so proud of the immense amount of work and dedication these students put into these cars,” said Leigh Hartert, the Supermileage Team advisor. “The manner in which these students represented EPHS would make you all proud.”

Design work on the cars begins in January, with students often working before and after school, during open periods, and on Saturdays. The cars each use a 2.4 hp Briggs and Stratton gas powered engine and are built with donations from businesses and members of the community. A “competition run” consists of starting with a pre-weighed amount of fuel, traveling 6 miles in under 24 minutes, then re-weighing the fuel and converting the amount used into miles per gallon. The cars may not exceed 30 mph but must maintain an average speed of at least 15 mph during the competition. Places in each class are awarded based on the average of six runs, and there must be six runs to get an official mileage.

Here is a rundown on how the EP teams’ cars performed and the members of each team:

Electric Class – Entry placed third and went six miles on 58 watt hours of electricity. A kilowatt hour costs about 8 cents, meaning it went six miles on about one-half cent of electricity. Team members: Spencer Drach, Andy Gallman, Jack Holmes, Haiming Lou, Rob Neiburg, Alexa Nettell, Aaron Overby, Kevin Severtson, Teal Trom, and Juan Tuz.

Stock Engine – Entry placed third with 494 mpg. Team members: Blake Burger, Ryan Fechner, Quinn Holtan, Tyler Leddy, Grady Riegert, and Evan Ronnei.

Modified Class – The first entry in this class overcame engine issues to achieve 295 mpg. Team members: Andrew Bugbee, Spencer Christensen, DJ Dufrene, Aaron Halpin, Chris Hurst, Zane Liu, Ben Schleiss, and Tanner Weisser.

Modified Class -- The second entry worked diligently to make several attempts but was unable to finish a run. Team members: Ethan Fancher, Xiong Fredericks, Adam Heppelmann, Zac Mills, Tony Peacock, Ryan Tarras, and Ben Williams.

E-85 Class – This team also worked hard and made several attempts at runs but was unable to complete a run. Team members: Chris Becklund, Chandler Dykes, Aidan Hicks, Hailey Reichow, Thomas Richter, Max Smith, Russell Thompson, Katie Vlasic, and Michael Zubkov.