Wisconsin students take home Ford/AAA Auto Skills national title
Crossing the finish line in 73 minutes and 40 seconds, aspiring auto technicians Paul Bretl and Chris Cheek, 2008 graduates of Grafton High School, in Grafton, Wis., drove their fully repaired 2008 Ford Focus to victory in the 59th annual Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills national finals.
In addition to thousands of dollars in scholarships, the winning duo earned the opportunity to “job shadow” the Roush Fenway Racing No. 6 AAA Ford Fusion team for a week at their race shop in Concord, N.C., and serve as honorary members of the pit crew at the July 12 Sprint Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway.
The contest gives the “best of the best” an opportunity to showcase their knowledge and capabilities by resolving the same types of automotive challenges they would encounter in the real world. As an incentive to students to pursue automotive careers, Ford and AAA awarded $7 million in scholarships at this year’s state and national competitions — a $1 million increase over 2007.
“Paul and Chris demonstrated they are the preeminent high school auto technicians in the country,” says John Morse, manager of Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills. “All 100 finalists proved their expertise, which should develop even more as they continue their education and embark on careers, perhaps in automotive technology. They are the future of the automotive industry, and the skilled technicians who will keep America’s vehicles safe and properly operating.”
Zachary Bryant and Cory Zamenski, rising seniors at Eastern Technical High School in Baltimore, Md., captured second place at the challenge, held June 24. Third place went to Kevin Podvin and Taylor Morehouse, 2008 graduates of Sheyenne Valley Career & Tech in Valley City, N.D.
The top-10 teams in the Auto Skills contest received general education scholarships valued from $2,500 to $400 from Ford Motor Co. and AAA.
Some of the leading automotive technology institutions in the country, including Lincoln College of Technology, University of Northwestern Ohio, Universal Technical Institute, Ohio Technical College, Nashville Auto-Diesel School and Baran Institute of Technology, also provided full and partial scholarships.
“The scholarships awarded at the state and national level will help many of these young competitors hone their skill and expertise and embark on careers in the automotive industry as well as other fields,” says John Nielsen, AAA Approved Auto Repair and Auto Buying Network director. “The Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills competition plays an important role in steering young men and women toward becoming skilled auto technicians, who are in high demand nationwide.”
“This competition fulfills two important functions—allowing students to gain experience and earn education scholarships and also to recognize prospective career options,” says Steve DeAngelis, Global Manager of Technical Support Operations at Ford. “The Auto Skills sponsors offer these contestants and other talented young people unparalleled opportunities to enter a range of automotive professions, including Ford’s dealer network.”
Eleven Ford-certified Master Technicians from Ford dealerships across the country competed in the Ford Ultimate Master Technician challenge, a similar hands-on contest which ran concurrently with the Auto Skills competition, to win more than $50,000 in cash and prizes.