Nobody expected Yale to finish first.
But on May 2, the Bulldogs Racing team won the 2013 Formula Hybrid International at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway with a gas-electric racecar built over the last two years. The victory against teams from across the world helps establish Bulldogs Racing in a field often dominated by more technical schools, according to team member Chinmay Jaju ’15.
“Our goals definitely weren’t to place first, and I think all of us were a little surprised at how well we did,” he said. “I don’t think anybody at the competition expected Yale to show up and take first.”
Apart from the first place prize in overall best hybrid, the team brought home first place awards for most efficient hybrid system and innovation, as well as the second place award for best engineered hybrid. The group headed into the event with the more modest goals of having the car pass technical inspections and finishing all three events in acceleration, autocross and endurance, Jaju said.
Bulldogs Racing has begun formulating plans for next year to produce an even more “competitive” racecar, Jaju said, thanks in part to continued support from the Yale School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
This past year, Yale engineering student groups have also won competitions in robotics and rocketry.