By Malcolm Butler
It may not be the Indianapolis 500, but it was still quite the experience for Trenton Richard, Rylie Nutt and members of the Ruston High Eco-CAR teams.
Richard and Nutt, the two drivers for the RHS Prototype Eco-CAR team, and 24 of their Ruston schoolmates made the 10-hour plus bus ride to Indianapolis last week to participate in the Shell Eco Marathon Americas 2024 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indianapolis 500.
The Shell Eco-marathon is a platform for thousands of STEM students from around the world striving to develop future energy solutions to learn, adapt and create together. Teams from universities and high schools from across the United States, Canada and Mexico come together to compete with their ultra-energy efficient vehicles, which they designed and built themselves.
Ruston High’s team included 26 students and two advisors which made up the prototype team and the urban team. The group left early last week on a charter bus to make the more than 10-hour drive north where they competed Thursday through Sunday.
Richard, a junior at Ruston High, is no stranger to the competition or even being behind the wheel for the prototype team. This is his second year to experience the so-called rubber meeting the road at the Indy Speedway.
He said this year was a little less stressful then last year.
“I was very nervous the first time,” said Richard. “Last year was my first time I drove on it, and that was nerve wracking. This year I went in a little calmer, but it was still nerve-wracking on that first run trying to make all the turns.”
Richard said the group competed on the FIA Grade One infield road course. This course was built in 2000 and is different than the banked oval racing circuit that is home of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400.
Regardless, it’s still quite the experience for the participants.
“It felt surreal, especially at the starting line,” said Richard. “Another surreal moment is coming down the main straight away. There are grandstands on both sides of you crossing the main finish line.”
Nutt, a senior at Ruston High, was behind the wheel for the first time in this competition. She said the feel was a sense of pride knowing all the work that went into preparing for the competition.
“You feel accomplished,” said Nutt about the experience. “Because you are driving what you have been working on all year. It makes all your work all year long worth it.”
So are the competitors racing opponents or the clock?
“Both actually,” said Richard. “It’s not actually a true race. It’s more of a race to see who can be the most efficient on the track under a certain time period.”
According to Richard, the Ruston prototype team recorded 43 kilowatts per hour and finished 21st out of 29 teams, while the Urban team finished sixth out of 10 teams.
And regardless of finish, the memories for these competitors will be even more rewarding.
“It is so exciting,” said Richard. “It’s heart racing. We get to go out and prove it works on the Indy 500 track. When I passed (certain points on the course) I could hear my teammates in my headset cheering for me. That made me smile.
