Loara High School Wins Their Third Straight National Championship Title
Team MOTIVE GEAR – Loara High School from Anaheim CA. won the 4th Annual "Showdown at SEMA" their third straight, with the average time of 21:24 minutes. The top three teams were so competitive that they all ended up less than a minute apart! All thirteen teams competing this year did fantastically well with the 13th placed team average being only 33:46!
Event Winners and Wildcard Teams Compete
The thirteen teams earned their way to the "Showdown at SEMA" national championship. Eight teams by winning their events straight out and five additional teams that had the next best qualifying times in the Nation were invited to compete.
Time Averaged Playoff Format
During the normal event competitions through the year, all teams compete once. The best time wins the event and that team has the opportunity to compete at SEMA. But during the national championship "Showdown at SEMA" all the teams competed a total of 4 times during the SEMA show starting Monday. At the end of the fourth day each team’s highest time was thrown out and the remaining three times were averaged.
The National Champion for 2012 – Team MOTIVE GEAR (Loara High School from Anaheim CA.) was determined the winner with the best average time of 21:24. Trophies and scholarships were given out on Friday morning at the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow award presentation.
Second Place – Team ENERGY SUSPENSION – Eastern Oklahoma County Tech Ctr., Choctaw, OK – Average Time – 21:54
Third Place – Team MR. GASKET – East Ridge High School from Chattanooga, TN – Average Time – 22:19
Fourth Place – Team AEROMOTIVE – Burton Center for Arts & Technology, Salem, VA – Average Time – 24:46
Fifth Place – Team MAGNAFLOW – North Orange County ROP, Anaheim, CA – Average Time – 25:35
Sixth Place – Team ROYAL PURPLE – Elkhart Area Career Center #1 – Average Time – 25:50
Seventh Place – Team ARP- Elkhart Area Career Center #2- Average Time – 25:53
Eighth Place – Team PROFORM – Peach County High School Fort Valley, GA – Average Time – 26:14
Ninth Place – Team THERMO-TEC –Thomas County Central High School, Thomasville, GA – Average Time – 27:40
Tenth Place – Team EDELBROCK – Fremd High School, Palatine, IL – Average Time – 28:50
Eleventh Place – Team HEDMAN HEDDERS – Belvidere North High School, Belvidere, IL – Average Time – 31:04
Twelfth Place – Team MSD – Joliet Central High School, Joliet, IL – Average Time – 32:31
Thirteenth Place – Team PAINLESS PERFORMANCE – Sequoyah High School, Soddy Daisy, TN – Average Time – 33:46
1.2 Million Dollars Awarded To The Participants In Scholarship Money
Three Auto Technological Colleges: Ohio Technical College (OTC), University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) and School of Automotive Machinists (SAM) are presenting all the High School students participating scholarship money.
Each college is awarding the following:
– $10,000 to each first place team member;
– $9,000 to each second place team member;
– $8,000 to each third place team member;
– $7,000 to each fourth place team member;
– $6,000 to each fifth place team member; and
– $5,000 to each sixth thru thirteenth place team member.
Students must properly disassemble the engine down to just crank, cam, and block using hand tools only with proper detorque and disassembly procedure. The team then returns behind their work bench, and when approved by the judges, teams begin working to reassemble once again with correct assembly procedure and torque specs, all while being viewed by judges and spectators. Time added penalties are assessed for dropped components, improper disassembly/assembly, poor sportsmanship, etc.
Started at the inaugural Race & Performance Expo in 2008, The Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge has quickly grown into a nationwide engine challenge with more schools and sponsors supporting this exciting event each year.
For more information and photos of the event, visit www.hotroddersoftomorrow.com.
