The American Solar Challenge race made an overnight stop in McPherson last Tuesday on its five-day trek from Independence, Mo. to Las Vegas, Nevada. The race followed the route of the Santa Fe Trail in honor of the trail’s 200th anniversary. The American Solar Challenge is a multi-day, cross-country endurance rally across North America that is open to collegiate-level teams. The first race took place in 1990 and the competition is held every other year, but was postponed in 2020. This year’s Single Occupancy Vehicle (SOV) winner was the MIT team, which finished with an official time of 32:01:46 with an average speed of 32 mph. The MIT entry is a single passenger vehicle that measures about 42 inches at its tallest point and looks more like a boat than a car. The top is covered in a solar cell array that charges the battery. It tops out at around 62 MPH and can cover nearly 350 miles on a single charge on a cloudy day.
Source: McPherson Weekly News » Feed
