Ten teams of the Southland’s top high school auto technology students, the automotive technicians of the future, will repair uniformly bugged and disabled Ford Escapes at the 2008 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Competition state finals 10 a.m. on Friday, May 9, at Irwindale Speedway, 500 Speedway Drive, 91706.
This auto skills competition originated in Southern California in 1949 and auto dealers often “scout” the competition for future automotive service specialists because the annual demand for auto technicians exceeds supply and the auto repair industry is growing. The event tests knowledge and mechanical abilities and requires under-the-hood repairs made with the highest quality workmanship in the shortest time. The winning team will represent California at the national finals in June at Ford Motor Company World Headquarters in Dearborn, MI. Trained automotive technicians are highly sought after in today’s job market, but many California high schools have scaled back or eliminated automotive educational programs.
This year’s competitors from twenty of the Southland’s top future auto techs include:
School/Instructor Competitors
Agoura/John Andersen Patterson, Matthew Bezkrovny
Arvin/George White Huriel Perez, Aurelio Guzman
Lompoc/Michael Johnson Joshua Tainowitz, Alberto Vasquez
Jurupa Valley/Donn Cushing Wyatt Christie, Andrew Smith
Ontario/George Root David Loza, David Gutierrez
Ramona/Michael Jordan Ian Bablewski, Trevor Calton
Ramona/Michael Saavedra Craig Tiegs, Troy Thompson
San Clemente/Josh Wish Erick Jagosz, Jeremy Stauceanu
San Luis Obispo/Jeff Lehmkuhl Cyrus Dalal, Gordon Freirich (2007 National Winner)
So. Calif. ROC/David Kay Alex Castro, Piotr Slusarz
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