Local pair compete in U.S. auto-skills contest
Two Flathead High School graduates competed against top students from across the country recently in the Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills National Finals.
Chance Borden and Colten Wiley places 41st out of 50 teams competing June 8-10 at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich.
The elite competition capped a whirlwind weekend for Wiley and Borden.
They had attended Flathead High commencement ceremonies June 6 and went to the popular Crosstown Craze graduation party for Flathead and Glacier high school graduates until 4 a.m. June 8.
The morning of June 8 they flew to Dearborn and attended national finals activities that night.
On June 9, the competition began with a written examination. The competition culminated June 10 with the automotive challenge.
Students had 90 minutes to solve complex automotive challenges. In today’s technological world, auto students worked with wrenches and computers alike to solve a number of purposefully placed mechanical, digital and electrical “bugs.”
At the sound of a shotgun, students raced to their vehicles to review a work order that challenged them to diagnose and repair the bugs. Once completed, students had to drive the car across a finish line.
Out of the 50 teams, only 19 made it past the finish line, according to Flathead industrial arts teacher Rob Hunter.
Although the Flathead team ran out of time, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be among other teams from across the country, Hunter said. The trip to nationals was a first for Borden, Wiley and Hunter.
During the week, teams were taken on tours of the plant where Ford F-150 trucks are made, and Henry Ford Museum and attended a career fair. The Flathead team also left the competition with roughly $500 in tools.
Wiley and Borden qualified for the national competition by winning the state competition in Helena earlier this year.
For their state win, they received professional tools from Snap-On and NAPA Auto Parts and more than $10,000 in scholarships to attend Universal Technical Institute.
For more information about the competition visit autoskills.aaa.com.