After making a last-second switch, two Oak Harbor High School students performed well enough at a state competition to move onto nationals that start Tuesday in Michigan.

Joel Koorn and David Peterson placed first in the state competition held last month at Renton Technical College.

Peterson was a last-minute replacement for the competition when Koorn’s original partner had to drop out.

“It was a real shock when we found we took first,” Koorn said. The only formal preparation he made for the state competition was to scan through a manual and a wiring diagram of a 2009 Ford Focus.

Koorn and Peterson teamed up at the state competition to diagnose the bugs deliberately worked into the Ford Focus.

With the first place award in hand, they are ready for the national competition that takes place June 14 through 17, in Dearborn, Mich.

Auto shop teacher Macs McDonald said Koorn and Peterson will compete with the first place winners representing each state. The national winner will have quite a ride in store. They will be part of a pit crew in a NASCAR race. Students finishing near the top of the competition will also receive scholarships.

The duo spent a lot of their free time preparing for the competition, which is different from state. Instead of working on a Ford Focus, they will be be learning about the 2009 Ford Escape. Koorn and Peterson will be given a work order outlining what’s wrong with the car and then dig in under the hood.

They practiced during class and after school to cram as much time as possible before the competition.

“The whole competition is stressed on the quality of work,” McDonald said, adding students can get docked points if they finish too quickly and don’t properly complete repairs.