8
F.SAE
T
wo thousand students from thirteen different
countries, four days of racing, challenges, and
hard-fought competition, but also fun, sharing
and sportsmanship. Four days to remember, and an
experience that will prove invaluable in the future for
anyone in a position of responsibility in the
engineering field, and in particular in the motorsports
sector. The eighth edition of Formula SAE Italy and
Formula Electric Italy, which was held at Varano de’
Melegari again this year, was a success, featuring
record numbers and results that underlined the
importance of the event promoted by the Associazione
Tecnica dell’Automobile, with the active support of
Dallara in the person of Engineer Gian Paolo. The
competition is open, but not limited, to undergraduate
and recently graduated engineering students from all
over the world, who are required to design, build,
promote and race prototype cars that represent their
first real challenge from both a technical and a
managerial point of view. The competition was first
held in the USA twenty years ago, between students
from Austin and Arlington universities in Texas, and
has now become a worldwide event.
The event in Varano was divided into two categories,
1
C, for vehicles with combustion engines, and 1E, for
electric powered vehicles. The 1C category went to the
Rennteam from the University of Stuttgart, with the
runners-up spot going to Cat-Racing from the
University of Coburg and third place to the Aristotle
Racing Team from the homonymous University in
Salonika in Greece: demonstrating that, even in times
of economic crisis, there is no limit to the preparation
and creativity of European students.
Germany also prevailed in the 1E category, where the
WHZ Racing Team from the University of Zwickau
finished ahead of the Darmstadt Racing Team, but
there was also an Italian presence, thanks to the Turin
Polytechnic Racing Team, who took third place.
The team from Piedmont, racing with the “diabolical”
number 666, gave a very good account of themselves
both during the Static Events (design, cost analysis and
vehicle presentation categories) and the Dynamic
Events (where the teams compete against each other
in various track trials). In fact, the Racing Team came
first in the 1E category Presentation Event, completing
an Italian double thanks to the winning performance
of the team from the University of Rome La Sapienza
in the 1C category, while finishing third in the 1E
category Design and Cost Events. The latter event in
the 1C category was won by another Italian team, from
the University of Calabria. The team from Turin
Polytechnic also did well in the Dynamic Events,
winning the Autocross trial, and finishing third in
Acceleration. The SAE cup for the best team in the
dynamic events was presented the director of Formula
SAE Italy Paolo Coeli, but there was a host of other
acknowledgements on offer for the future “wizards” of
world motorsports. Among the trophies presented by
Dallara, perhaps the most keenly contested was the
one awarded to the fastest drivers in the Autocross
trial: the incredible chance to take part in a test drive
session on the world famous Dallara Simulator, which
is used by the top drivers from a wide range of
championships. The following students were granted
the opportunity to sample this fantastic experience:
Norman Jersch, of the Hawks Racing Team from the
