CCHS Automotive class builds truck for competition
If one passed by Chester County High School Saturday evening, they may have wondered why a truck was racing around the school’s parking lot.
The CCHS Automotive class built a truck to burn some rubber at the 2020 Pro Touring Truck Shootout in Bowling Green, Kentucky this weekend. They will be participating in the Novice Class against 80 other entries. During the autocross competition, they will be the only high schoolers participating.
This group of guys (Lake Eskew, Riley Plunk, Mason Davidon, Trace Beaver, Eli Talbott, Hadyn Haltom and Jameson Carter) has been building the truck since April and finally finished their work. Additionally, those who were old enough to drive it, were able to put the truck into gear and race it around cones in the CCHS parking lot. The drivers are Eskew, Beaver, Plunk and Davidson.
“When I finally got into it, it was like amazing,” Riley Plunk said. I’ve never done anything like it.”
He continued to explain how it felt behind the wheel.
“It’s like your mind just tells you what to do. You really don’t know what you’re doing, but your brain tells you to do it. It goes by so fast. You do 25 or 30 seconds and it feels like 10.
Their teacher, James Carter, said that he enjoys the kids getting the all the different educational aspects and experience that building a truck can give them.
“Students learn to get along, work together, communicate together, and then they also pull the other skills in,” Carter said. “There was several instructions they had to read and comprehend, so there’s reading involved. So, that’s English/ language arts. Math in the geometry to get the suspension, and the science behind it all.”
His hope is that the program can help start up more autocross/ automobile programs in the area.
Lake Eskew, who graduated this year and is the oldest of the members, said he enjoyed the time Saturday because they were all able to push each other to get better times on the course in friendly competition.
“We’re all getting to push each other to the next limit and getting a faster time from each other and support each other,” he said.
To him, all the long days and nights they spent together along with their dedication to the truck is special.
“We’re like a family now,” Eskew said. “I probably spent more time here than at night sleeping than at work or with my parents, but it was all worth it in the end. I got some new friendships and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”
The team thanks the Chester County Board of Education and Chester County High School for allowing them to do this.
Mason Davidson and Eli Talbott make adjustments to their truck after autocross sessions Saturday.
Photo by Kendall Patterson, Independent
