CORPORATE CHALLENGE REPORT..........

Well it's been a while, but the blog is back! I know many thousands of you have been waiting anxiously for the next post to appear since last October's national final, but we've been a bit busy, sorry. Below is the report published on the new Richard Lander School website - www.richardlander.co.uk

We aim to keep the blog a little more up to date from now on, promise...

Cold, wet and smiling..

Storming performance by Richard Lander Greenpower at Silverstone as School car beats entries from Jaguar Land Rover and Peugeot Citroen!

It was very, very, very, very, very wet...

On Sunday 29th April, the Richard Lander Greenpower team defied treacherous weather conditions to place 8th out of 37 competitors in the Corporate Challenge at Silverstone. This was a particularly fine achievement in light of the fact that they were competing against the likes of Jaguar Land Rover and Peugeot Citroen Academy who placed 13th and 28th respectively. Richard Lander entered a car which is made entirely in after- school sessions, in a DT workshop, by a dedicated team of staff and students. The team qualified for the Corporate Challenge through their hugely successful season last year when they reached the Goodwood final.

Push start in extreme rain! After the Season Opener, we had to drill holes in the floor of the car to let the water out!

The Corporate Challenge has grown massively in its popularity since it began in 2008. The Greenpower technical regulations dictate that each team can only use six 12 volt batteries throughout the four hour endurance race and must use a minimum of three drivers. The Richard Lander car, named RLR1, uses drivers from all year groups who happily compete against adult teams from other schools and businesses from across Europe. 

On Sunday, the RLR1 team competed first in the Season Opener, a fun warm up race, where new drivers had their first opportunity to compete and placed 5th! They then moved onto the Corporate Challenge 2012 where they placed 8th. Their performance won the attention of the competition Director who described himself as “impressed” by the team.  Team Richard Lander Racing will now compete in the regional heats in a bid to reach the Goodwood Final once again this year.

No, not being lapped, keeping up with some really great cars (the ones on the right, not the ones on the left!!)

Mr Ben Lloyd-King (Science Teacher)
“The team were absolutely fantastic on the day, completing fast pit stops and managing their strategy brilliantly. The weekly Greenpower sessions after school are the bread and butter of what this project is all about, inspiring engineers for the future. The races are really the icing on the cake -  to take part is a brilliant opportunity but to also be successful is hugely rewarding for the students and for the staff who all put in hours of work on top of their timetabled lessons. We are looking forward to the rest of the Greenpower F24 racing season.”

This shot from the giant of news media - The Towcester News.

The team had a great weekend racing at Silverstone, and to finish off, a celebratory team meal out!

This is what Richard Lander Racing is all about - Team Spirit!! (and soft drinks for the students...)

Next event is the South West Regional Heat at the mighty RAF St Mawgan circuit, can't wait!