The Formula SAE team at NC State University has completed their 2022 competition season after returning from the Pittsburgh Shootout competition at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex over the weekend.
While the Pittsburgh Shootout differs from the other two SAE-hosted competitions in which the team participated earlier this Summer in Michigan, and it is not an “official” SAE competition, it offers them an opportunity to connect with other teams from across the country and put their cars to the test one final time before beginning preparations for next year’s competition circuit. Similar to the two previous competitions this year, the team secured another top ten spot in Pittsburgh
Unlike the 2022 May Michigan and 2022 June Michigan FSAE competitions at the Michigan International Speedway, the Shootout only features an Autocross event, rather than pitting teams against each other in multiple categories like Skidpad, Endurance and Acceleration. The Pack Motorsports Formula SAE team placed 7th out of 25 teams at the Shootout that raced.
According to Formula SAE Co-Captain JP Cantonwine, the team passed their tech and brakes inspections first thing Saturday morning, and were the first team to run the course. The team was able to complete 11 runs with five drivers, Cantonwine said.
“It’s quite a bit of drive time,” Cantonwine said. “At a normal competition we might have 4 runs max of autocross.”
The Shootout caps off another successful season for the Pack Motorsports Formula Team. In May, the team won 9th place overall out of nearly 100 teams from all over the world. Additionally, they won 6th in Skidpad, 17th in Acceleration, 44th in Autocross, 8th in Endurance, 14th in Efficiency, 8th in Design, 25 in Cost, and 1st Place in the Cummins Innovation Award. Additionally, in June, they placed 6th overall out of 48 teams from all over the world, but also placed 2nd in Autocross, 5th in Design, 5th in Acceleration, 9th in Skidpad and 17th in Endurance.