Day 6 of the American Solar Challenge continues the run towards Scotts Bluff National Monument:
After the Homestead National Monument checkpoint, the route enters the mountains, which will be a challenge. There is a climb of about 920 m (3000 ft) between Homestead N.M. and Scotts Bluff:
The weather looks like it will be mostly sunny in Kansas, though perhaps with some rain in Nebraska. The Principia team noted a beautiful sunrise in Holton, KS – a morning with promise!
There has been some news coverage of yesterday’s leg of the race:
- Topeka Capital-Journal, interviewing Michigan
- Daily Journal, interviewing Principia
- News-Leader, with multiple photographs
- Ozarks First, with video of several interviews
Update 1: Here are early GPS positions (missing Michigan, Toronto, and Dunwoody, who seem to have nonfunctional GPS units). However, Michigan is already at the Homestead checkpoint.
| No | Team | Speed | Distance | Media |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 42 | Missouri S&T | 81 km/h (50 mph) | 94 km (58 mi) to Homestead |    |
| 32 | Principia | 82 km/h (51 mph) | 116 km (72 mi) to Homestead | |
| 828 | Appalachian State (Sunergy) | 60 km/h (37 mph) | 127 km (79 mi) to Homestead | |
| 6 | Berkeley (CalSol) | 56 km/h (35 mph) | 141 km (88 mi) to Homestead | |
| 17 | Illinois State | 55 km/h (34 mph) | 194 km (121 mi) to Homestead | |
| 35 | Minnesota | 69 km/h (43 mph) | 199 km (124 mi) to Homestead | |
| 9 | Iowa State (PrISUm) | 74 km/h (46 mph) | 208 km (129 mi) to Homestead | |
| 92 | ETS Quebec (Eclipse) | 46 km/h (28 mph) | 223 km (138 mi) to Homestead | |
| 55 | Poly Montreal (Esteban) | – | 230 km (143 mi) to Homestead | |
Speeds here are taken directly from the GPS feed, so may be unreliable. Distances are measured along the route.
Update 2: First arrivals into Homestead were Michigan (2) at 09:15:27, Toronto (77) at 10:29:03, and Dunwoody (51) at 10:37:52.
Update 3: The timing board is as follows:
| Team | Start | Topeka In | Topeka Out | Homestead In | Homestead Out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Michigan | 09:00 | 14:30:31 | 15:15:31 | 09:15:27 | 10:00:27 |
| 6 Berkeley | 09:08 | 16:07:35 | 16:52:35 | 12:07:14 | 12:52:14 |
| 9 Iowa State | 09:07 | 17:13:45 | 17:58:45 | 12:57:33 | 13:42:33 |
| 17 Illinois State | 09:07 | 16:46:45 | 17:31:45 | 13:09:35 | 13:53:50 |
| 32 Principia | 09:01 | 15:55:32 | 16:40:32 | 11:24:24 | 12:09:24 |
| 35 Minnesota | 09:03 | 17:00:42 | 17:45:42 | 13:09:35 | 13:54:35 |
| 42 Missouri S&T | 09:02 | 15:41:25 | 16:26:25 | 10:56:10 | 11:41:10 |
| 51 Dunwoody | 09:02 | 15:25:54 | 16:10:54 | 10:37:52 | 11:22:52 |
| 55 Poly Montreal | 09:09 | 17:22:51 | 18:07:51 | – | – |
| 77 Toronto | 09:01 | 15:20:26 | 16:05:26 | 10:29:03 | 11:14:03 |
| 92 ETS Quebec | 09:08 | 17:25:52 | 18:10:52 | 13:17:37 | 14:02:37 |
| 828 App State | 09:05 | 16:00:51 | 16:45:51 | 11:35:11 | 12:20:11 |
Since Nebraska is apparently a dead zone for cellular coverage, and GPS feeds have therefore failed, here are estimated end-of-day positions using average speeds from the table above:
Here is the Homestead checkpoint:
And here is Michigan rolling through the Nebraska Sandhills, still in the lead:
Poly Montreal (55) has apparently trailered due to battery issues. Here is a summary of other team reports (in descending order of distance travelled):
- Toronto (77) is, I have heard, near Halsey, NE.
- Missouri S&T (42) appear to be in the same general area.
- Dunwoody (51) appear to be just a little behind.
- Principia (32) say that they are at Broken Bow, NE.
- Appalachian State (828) also say that they are at Broken Bow, NE, having had a driver injury from barbed wire.
- Iowa State (9) is, I have heard, just past Grand Island, NE.
- Illinois State (17) is, I have heard, approaching Grand Island, NE.
- Minnesota (35) say that they are in York, NE.
- ETS Quebec (92) say that they are in Geneva, NE, having had various problems.
I’m not sure about Berkeley (team 6).
Update 4: Here are those reported positions on the map:
