Crawford Auto Students Get Rev’ved Up 4 Kids

Students work on the engine.

For the second year in a row, Crawford High School automotive students competed in the Annual Edelbrock Rev’ved Up 4 Kids charity car event by participating in the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge Regional competition.

"The kids had to learn the inner workings of a small-block Chevy engine and practice as a five-person team to get fast enough to compete in the competition," said Carl Kingsbury, Crawford IDEA Automotive Technology instructor. The team had four students working on the engine, while the fifth kept the tools moving.

Events such as this stress teamwork and help the students understand the pressure that professionals sometimes feel when a customer "needs a repair yesterday."

"The event teaches the kids about paying attention to detail in building engines, team work, interacting with automotive professionals, and the spirit of competition," said Kingsbury.

The top teams from each region will earn their spot to compete at the National Finals in Las Vegas at the "Showdown at SEMA" in early November. Crawford's team again fell short, but the students learned from the experience.

"The experience was great," said Jose Barrios, the IDEA team's captain. "We did a lot better than last year and we are going to be better next year."

The top teams are honored with scholarships from Ohio Technical College, University of Northwestern Ohio and the School of Automotive Machinists. Crawford students took seventh place this year.

For more information, contact Kingsbury at 619-583-2500, ext. 4608.