On Sunday, the Greenpower International Final returned to Goodwood Motor Circuit. The national winners went head-to-head in the ultimate showdown, including several all-female teams from Truro High School. The school, a three-time recipient of the Spirit of Greenpower award, recently collaborated with Girls on Track UK and is the only school in the country to be recognised as an official club by Motorsport UK.

As part of its extra-curriculum programme, the girls would attend hour-long workshops every week to put classroom learnings into practice while also having the opportunity to gain hands-on experience and delve deeper into the heart of engineering. Promoting STEM subjects and a diverse range of engineering careers available in motorsport, the girls learned how to plot gear ratios and wire key components together, in addition to applying the Pythagoras theorem and algebra to decipher the best angle for their racing seat.

On Sunday, 80 electric cars, built by the students, took to the iconic track to compete in the flagship IET F24 and IET F24+ events. The day had a challenging start as the team picked up a bent wishbone and tyre in practice, but it was a quick turnaround to fix it and start preparations for qualifying and the race. Ten-time 24 Hour of Le Mans Competitor Johnny Mowlem joined the Truro High pit crew, offering driving tips to the girls and insight into defining the best racing line or getting the performance out of their cars.

All three Truro High School teams competed in the IET F24 class. From 29 cars, the #49 Green Goddess team finished 18th overall with a total mileage of 28.34, closely followed by a total mileage of 24.36 was the #274 Green Gladiator in 24th place #241 Kernow Kittz team finishing 29th.

Alongside forming solid friendships with like-minded young women, the programme has also provided the girls with practical everyday skills, such as learning how to change a tyre. A number of the students have also become motorsport ambassadors, inspiring younger girls to participant in the Greenpower Challenge.

At the Greenpower International Final, Southleigh Racing topped the leaderboard in the IET F24+ category. The Weald School were crowned champions in IET F24, and Ashfield Farm took home the honours in the Kit Car class.

Motorsport UK Chairman David Richards CBE is a Patron for the Greenpower Education Trust. Find out more about its annual challenge to design and build an electric car to race at events, here.

[Images courtesy of James Lynch and Adam Pigott at Spacesuit Media]