Another Record-Breaking Year for Falcon EV

The FWCD Solar Car Team, Falcon EV, had yet another record-breaking year, taking part in the Solar Car Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway, July 19-23. Competing in the Advanced Classic Division, Falcon EV completed 284 laps, totaling 426 miles around the track, breaking last year’s record of 260 laps totaling 390 miles. This is the third year FWCD has participated in the event.

Andrew Lobo ’26 and Jason Pham ’25 led the Falcon EV team, which consisted of Sean Hong ’27, Miles Brown ’27, Charlie Cady ’27, Zaiya Collins ’26, Maya Marques ’26, Price Carter ’26, Zayn Alame ’27, Ty Williams ’27, Beckett Kiseljack ’26, William Marlow ’26, Paxtyn McPeak ’26, Blake Wood ’27, Jianna Turner ’25, Henry Murphey ’26, Samantha Saade ’26, Parker Pullin ’27, Fox Burton ’26, Blake Dickey ’26 and Ryan Braden ’26. The team was supported by multiple faculty and staff members, including Head of School Eric Lombardi, Assistant Head of School for Operations and Security Chelsy Beninate, Director of Technology Dr. Steve Uhr, Director of Security and Safety Chad Peacock, Plant Operations employee Randy Show, and Technical Director Eric Tysinger. The Falcon EV team also had support from Anthony Beninate, Chelsy’s husband, who served as an advisor with Lombardi on the project. 

The team’s journey began in August 2024, when they registered their intent to race. They quickly got to work fundraising and securing sponsors with strong connections to FWCD. By January, Falcon EV attended a two-day in-depth workshop at the Marriott near Texas Motor Speedway.

Throughout the school year, the team dedicated many weekends to building the car. “Mr. Lombardi gave us constant support and great advice throughout the year,” said Lobo. “We were extremely fortunate when Mr. Beninate joined our team as advisor. He taught us so many skills, and we are so grateful for his dedication.”

As summer arrived, the work intensified to prepare the car for competition. On July 16, Falcon EV checked in for the 2025 Solar Car Challenge, beginning with three days of scrutineering.

“This [scrutineering] is the most challenging phase as the car needs to pass six difficult inspection stations, including electrical, mechanical, endurance, tilt and turn, braking and slalom,” said Lobo. “Teams come from all over the country, and it is a competitive but very collaborative environment. We borrowed and lent tools and car parts, shared advice, and made new friends. We were thrilled to pass on the third and final day of scrutineering.”

A bonus to this year’s race was connecting with three former Falcons who had served on previous Falcon EV teams, Richard Souchick ’24, Walker Gaines ’24 and Arjun Vasudavean ’24. They were serving as Solar Challenge Interns, so they took part in the scruitineering approval process. 

By the time race day arrived, the team was ready to ride. Throughout the four-day event, FWCD faculty and staff came out to the speedway to cheer on the team. Among the supporters were Head of Upper School Abby Abbott, CEO Tom Mitchell, Upper School Science Teacher and past Solar Car Advisor Dr. John Cordell, and Upper School Science Teacher Stephen Dickey.

“We were excited when faculty, sponsors, family and friends came to see us race,” said Lobo. “Our race team finished in fifth place in one of the most competitive years to date, and we broke the school record on the final race day! Overall, this year was a huge success for Falcon EV!”