A wrenching competition

Published 9:00 am Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Nathan Reed and Bryan Larsen are headed to a state competition to discover if they can outthink other mechanical whizzes in a timed automotive technology contest.

The Oak Harbor High School juniors will compete in the state finals this month at Renton Technical College.

Tinkering with autos comes naturally to these Oak Harbor teens.

Bryan, 16, works with his dad at home on family vehicles.

“I’ve been wrenchin’ since I was born,” he said with a chuckle.

When Bryan isn’t prepping for the auto competition he works on his 1982 Ford Bronco, which he’s in the process of modifying to suit his taste.

Nathan, 17, is a Chevy fan, so there’s some friendly rivalry between the two teammates.

Nathan is passionate about cars. He’s got four or five, which he and his brother work on and sometimes sell.

Nathan and Bryan are in the advanced auto shop class at the high school. They prepared for the state competition with a vehicle loaned by Whidbey Island Ford. They practice after school and weekends, but their teacher Macs McDonald is on the job, too.

Before a practice session begins, McDonald spends about an hour installing bad electrical, fuel and ignition components.

Nathan and Bryan start with a work order that states the vehicle won’t run. They pulse through a logical sequence of checks and try to isolate the problem while the clock is running.

If they place first at state this week, they will advance to the national competition. Even placement in the top tier can bring scholarships to pursue their dreams. Both guys want to work as mechanics and one day own their own automotive repair shops. They are the kind of people that cosponsors AAA and the Ford Motor Co. want to encourage to enter the automotive trade to improve customer service.

Here is how the competition works:

Top 11th and 12th grade automotive students take a written exam. The highest score of the top two students from each high school becomes the team or the school’s score and counts for 40 percent of the grade in the state finals. The student teams then advance to the hands-on part of the contest.

This is the phase Nathan and Bryan are prepping for. At the state finals in Renton, they will race other teams to identify malfunctions in identically “bugged” 2006 Ford Escape. The team that returns its vehicle to top running order in the shortest amount of time, combined with written scores, is the winner.

There are lots of benefits for participants.

Students, instructors and schools can win savings bonds, scholarships, trophies, jackets, certificates, shop manuals, trips and automotive equipment for their schools. And all contestants’ names are submitted to Ford dealers and other sponsoring organizations that have need for auto service specialists.

The students in the advanced class at Oak Harbor High School get plenty of practical experience. They repair cars that belong to community members, and the money earned goes into the program. The $4,000 students earned last year paid for new equipment.

This is the second year Oak Harbor High School students have been contenders in the state finals.

Last year, Jason Miller and Thomas Wright placed third and won scholarships.

Participation would not be possible without community support. The students and McDonald are thankful to Zane Wyll and Ronald Montalbano at Whidbey Island Ford, Cynthia Shelton of the Carrier and Technology Committee, Whidbey Auto Parts and Parts Plus.