A group of budding engineers and mechanics from Glenrothes High School have headed stateside to take part in the Hydrogen Grand Prix World Championships in Southern California.

Samuel Myles, Drew Hamilton, Jayson Dearden, Jack Cooper, and Cameron McMillan are representing their school, Scotland and the UK at the international event. They’ll join teams from around the world to design, engineer, build and race their own hydrogen powered, radio-controlled cars in a four-hour endurance race around an indoor track.

The Hydrogen Grand Prix (H2GP) is a STEM initiative (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) backed by Horizon Hobby, a multinational radio control products manufacturer. The H2GP programme provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the engineering principles behind the future of a Green - renewable energy society and provides them with an opportunity to work in a team with individual responsibilities whilst working towards a common goal.

Avril McNeill, headteacher, said: “This is an amazing experience for them and a chance to show off their engineering skills. They have all worked so hard on this project, with the help of their teachers, and this trip will give them the chance to interact with students from across the world, share ideas, share learning and just have fun.

The team is heading to America for H2GP finals (Pic: Submitted)

placeholder image — The team is heading to America for H2GP finals (Pic: Submitted)

“We can’t thank Fife College enough for their support, alongside Andrew Sealey, teacher of technologies, who will support our team at the international event and to Stacey Bradshaw, teacher of physics. who supported the team to their UK success.”

The school hosted and won the UK championship in June with teams from Scotland and England competing. Glenrothes won the race by a considerable margin: 634 laps, almost 60 laps ahead of the closest competition. Winning gave it the opportunity to compete at the H2GP World Championship.

Teams are competing from Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Singapore, Slovakia, Switzerland and the United States. The races are taking place at Anaheim Convention Centre, where the 20th RE+ renewable energy event - the largest clean energy event in North America - is taking place. It has a focus on the business of solar, energy storage, hydrogen, wind, microgrids, and electric vehicles. Exhibitors and delegates are attending from all over the world.