Middle schoolers from across Lane County gathered in Eugene Thursday to show off and race battery-powered cars.
Around 250 students attended the EWEB Electric Vehicle Challenge at the Lane County Fairgrounds, competing in categories of art, science, or speed.
A group from Monroe Middle School created a miniature house with a propeller and helium balloons. Another vehicle was designed to crawl across ice.
Camdyn Thalhamer, an 8th Grader from the Arts and Technology Academy in Eugene, participated in the races. He said he enjoyed seeing what other designs other students came up with.
“There's a lot of different types of cars. Some of them are really thin, really thick," said Thalhamer. "You may think one's really fast, and it doesn't go as fast. I saw this little, small car that beat everyone in a race.”
Tana Shepard—a K-12 Climate, Energy, and Conservation specialist with Eugene 4J—said this event provides students a different way to engage with science and technology.
"This is kind of a rare moment," said Shepard. "A lot of kids even say this is the first hands-on experience they've had all year, and they were really glad to get away from the paperwork of science."
At the same time, Shepard said this experience could help get students excited for career and technical training in high school.
The event was supported by grant money the Eugene Water and Electric Board.
