An aerial shot of Quantum. Thank you to Carl Walker who gave our media members this once in a lifetime opportunity to take amazing photos and video.

The team has just arrived back into Ann Arbor after our Mock Race journey around Michigan. Mock Race has been an excellent opportunity for us to be able to find any problems with our vehicle and simulate how we will race in Australia.  We’ve discovered a few issues with the car and are excited to be back at the workspace where we will be able to work through what we have learned.

But first, we want to extend a thank you to everyone who showed their support, offered us places to camp, and cheered us on throughout Mock Race.  It was amazing to see all the beauty that Michigan has to offer and we have enjoyed the opportunity to drive Quantum through Pure Michigan.  We hope to continue the tradition of hosting our Mock Race through the state.  Thank you Michigan, GO BLUE!

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Crew Chief, Gerald Chang repairs part of Quantum (Photo by Marcin Szczepanski)

After the minor problems we encountered yesterday morning, the team worked diligently throughout the day within a garage owned by Mechanical Engineer, Cole Witte‘s parents.  In addition, two of embedded reporters from the College of Engineering: Matt Nixon and Marcin Szczepanski met up with us to provide coverage of our race today. Please check out their posts from the College of Engineering’s twitter, tumblr, and facebook as well as our social media sites for frequent updates of tomorrows driving.  Again, the route carries on as normal as we will be stopping in Mackinaw City for a control stop and potentially camping around the Alpena area.

We would like to extend a thank you to the Witte family for allowing us to utilize their garage for repairs and office space to camp for the night.

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Ryan Mazur driving Quantum in Traverse City along the coastline.

After packing up and leaving our campsite in Traverse City, the team left at its schedule time of 8:00 a.m.  After driving along the route for about an hour, the car hit a pothole and is in need of some minor repairs.  The team has decided it would be best to take the day off and work on the minor repairs in Elk Rapids, home of Mechanical Engineer, Cole Witte.  We will use the extra day to fix any problems and rest, allowing us to continue on schedule and on route tomorrow morning.  Please check back for any updates, and we apologize for any inconveniences that were caused by this minor situation.

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The sign at the Best Western in Ludington where we had our Control Stop

After our night in Douglas, MI the team woke up early to charge the battery and left the campsite on time at 8:00 a.m  We traveled through Holland, Ludington, Manistee, and ended up in Traverse City.  The car’s performance was much better than it was on day one’s, as we were able to reach the Ludington and Traverse City control stops.  Yesterday night we camped near the Tamarack Lodge just off the coast and a few minutes down the road from our Traverse City control stop.  Please follow us again for Day 3, as we travel through Mackinaw City and hopefully camp near or within Alpena.

Quantum at Crystal Lake

For updates check on our location: www.umsolar.com/mockrace
Also check our Twitter for approximate half an hour photo or video updates: http://www.twitter.com/umsolarcarteam

The car charging at the Traverse City Control Stop

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The crew performing roadside procedures

Starting the day out on time at 8:30 a.m., we have traveled from the Wilson Center in Ann Arbor to Douglas, about 10 minutes outside of Holland.  We would like to extend a thank you to all of our fans that came out to support us at such an early time on a Saturday morning as we took off.

Although there were a few minor problems along the way, the team was able to practice roadside procedures and performed them well.  It was great to see the people stop, show enthusiasm, and cheer us on from the sides of the road and at any stops we made. At 4:00 p.m., the team arrived at St. Joe and performed a scheduled control stop at Lookout Park.  There was a lot of support from the community, giving us a reason to continue and help us to enjoy our journey around Michigan.

Quantum pulling into the St. Joe control stop.

We have successfully found a campsite in Douglas near a small antiques shop, where we have performed all necessary checks on the car and fixed any minor problems.  Please follow us again today as we hope to make it through Holland, Muskegon, and camp out in or near Traverse City. Again, please check out the sites listed below for updates, especially our Twitter and Mock Race pages.  Thank you again for all our fans, check back tomorrow for another update on Day 2!

Enjoy this video produced by our Videographer and Head of New Media, Evan Dougherty for a visual recap of yesterday’s events:

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It’s finally here: Mock Race.  The umsolar blog has featured the event within the past few weeks and now today marks the start of our journey. Leaving the workspace at 8:30 a.m., you can follow it all at with live chatting, tracking, and tweeting at:

Also, please be sure to check out the coverage of umsolar from yesterday’s Fox 2 News. We’d like to extend another thank you to Robin Schwartz of Fox 2 for coming out last week to get the story.

UM Solar Car’s 1,000 Mile ‘Ultimate Road Test’: MyFoxDETROIT.com

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Mechanical Engineers Karl Nagengast and Cole Witte prepare for Mock Race.

Tomorrow marks the beginning of our Mock Race around the border of the lower peninsula of Michigan.  With less than 100 days until the World Solar Challenge, the team needs to prepare in every way possible and Mock Race is one of the best ways to do so. Currently, we have planned control stops within St. Joseph, Ludington, Traverse City, Mackinaw City, and Tawas City.  In the listed cities, the team will be stopping for about half an hour to charge the array and fix any problems with the car.  The caravan will be passing through the other cities marked on the map, potentially becoming night stops were we will be able to set up camp, as described in yesterday’s post.

The past few days have served as preparation for this weekend’s journey, as the team starts to pack any supplies needed and practice driving within our caravan.  The team is treating Mock Race just like ASC and WSC where we have to keep an accurate inventory on all the items we bring along, a process that helps us when we are pressed for time and require certain tools.

Meteorologist, Jordan Feight taking a look at Rachel's car to make any modifications necessary for the Weather vehicle.

Please follow us during our adventure around Michigan as we are one step closer to winning the World Solar Challenge.  There will be frequent twitter, facebook, blog, and YouTube updates throughout the weekend. In addition, there will also be a livestream available to view at various times throughout the weekend – so check back for updates, photos, videos, and more.

Also, if you haven’t already, please enjoy this video by Videographer and Head of New Media, Evan Dougherty:

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With our Win the World campaign launched, the Solar Car Team is now in full swing to prepare for Mock Race. For our frequent followers of the umsolar blog, you may recall the route survey post written a few weeks ago by Mechanical Engineer, Cole Witte. Now, the route that Cole had discussed is becoming a reality as Mock Race: an approximate four-day journey along the border of Michigan’s lower peninsula – starting July 16, 2011.  Mock Race will provide the team with a chance to practice testing on open roads and in a similar fashion to the process of the World Solar Challenge.

For example, during WSC, there are mandatory controls stops that require the team to take a break to rest, swap drivers, charge the car, etc.  This means, in order to get the best simulation possible, the team will be temporarily stopping in various cities (marked on this map) that will serve as control stops. Some of the stops featured on the map are night stops, where the team will be able to rest and recharge before another full day of racing. We will also be holding events in a few of the stops that are designated on the map, check back later for finalized details!

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In addition, the team will be able to practice using the various vehicles involved in our caravan such as Lead, Chase, Scout, Media, and Weather.  This allows the team to have a full idea of what to expect during the race and how things will operate.

We would also like to extend a thank you to Fox 2 News reporter, Robin Schwartz, who will be featuring the team and Mock Race the day before it begins (stay tuned for the video).

For more information please watch this video made by our Head of New Media and Videographer, Evan Dougherty.

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Since the team returned from Mock Race, many preparations have taken place to make Infinium a better car and our team perform better.

Yesterday Infinium was driven around campus to test some modifications and caravan procedures.  Today Infinium drove on the highway to practice driving at freeway speeds with traffic.  While engineers have been busy working on Infinium, the operations division has been outfitting carvan vehicles.

Ford Motor Company was kind enough to loan the team 2 F-150′s and 2 Flex’s to use as support vehicles during the race. To make them more Michigan themed, a wrap provided by Monroe Vinyl Graphics resembling the Michigan winged helmet was applied to the hood of all four vehicles.   Decals provided by Signs in 1 Day were applied to the sides and rear of the vehicles to make them look more official.  The vehicle made for some great pictures.

What a week! Mock race was really cool experience. Driving the solar car on open roads and trying to hone my skills at maintaining speed on hills and turns was so much fun. As a member of the electrical division, it was really amazing seeing how well the electrical system performed over the 4 days of racing, and it really made me realize how great of a job the last team did in designing it. I think the mock race gave the team members, new and old, a good idea of what we will be expecting in terms of problems such as troublesome “just before the top of the hill” red lights / stop si… i mean RED signs (haha) and swapping out spares quickly to save time.

Also, looking back, I feel like I joined the team at the right time. I joined while the team was still racing Infinium in Australia and now I will be racing Infinium in ASC2010. Racing a car you didn’t build may seem less fun, but I think this will help us to design our next car. I feel that having a good sense of what kind of obstacles the car will face in a race is absolutely essential when designing the car. The process of the team preparing itself and Infinium for ASC gives us the opportunity to generally get familiar with what our next car will need to overcome.

Overall this week was tons of fun, even though we all probably felt disgusting from the blistering heat and 2 days of Base-X with no shower.