University Advancement

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NEWS RELEASE

Matador Motorsports Creates Formula For A Race-Winning Vehicle

(NORTHRIDGE, Calif., Aug. 8, 2007) — Cal State Northridge sped past the competition this summer, placing seventh out of 80 universities from around the world taking part in an open-wheeled, formula-style race car challenge.

The competition, Formula SAE West, was put on by the Society of Automotive Engineers from June 13 through 16 at the California Speedway in Fontana. Northridge was the only CSU campus to make the top ten, which included such schools as Texas A&M University, Purdue University and Auburn University.

"The Formula SAE program is recognized by many prestigious businesses in the automotive industry," said Pablo Olmedo, this year’s team captain who graduated in June with a degree in mechanical engineering. "Many students known to compete in Formula are swiftly recruited for jobs."

Olmedo, who recently landed a position at Toyota, said the competition offers many rewards to students wanting to get a step ahead. "It gives students an educational opportunity they can’t get anywhere else."

Olmedo said the FSAE experience creates a hands-on advantage, surpassing an internship by emulating what happens in the automotive industry. Teams are required to follow corporate style management, adhere to a budget and rigid deadlines, and present a business proposal, marketing the profitability of the vehicle to a fictional panel of judges.

Automotive professionals judge vehicles based on design, performance, innovation and budget.

Victory was particularly meaningful for this year’s FSAE group because of the tragic death of their team member, Greg Holden, who died of heart failure midway through the project.

Holden was a graduate student in the engineering department and maintained the role of power train engineer. An older student, Holden drew from prior experience to help manage the team.

Olmedo said Holden’s death left a void in the team.

"We all spent so much time working together on the same goal. Eventually Formula becomes family. We suffered a pretty bad loss," he said. "We really had to ask ourselves what he would want and focus on doing our best to produce a winning car."

The team dedicated the race in Holden’s memory.

The Formula SAE team was advised by Stewart Prince, professor of mechanical engineering. "He doesn’t want to stifle creativity so he gives us a lot of flexibility with the project, so long as we can prove productivity," Olmedo said.

Olmedo said CSUN’s faculty are the reason the university has been so consistently involved in the Formula SAE challenge. "Every year we build a car for the competition, [and the faculty] keep it on a progressive track. The goal is to prepare students to optimize previous designs.

"To place seventh among all of these prestigious schools who are known for their engineering programs really puts CSUN on the map," said Olmedo. "We are a force to be reckoned with. We are making a name for ourselves."