Racing on Solar Energy — ROSE's racing team

Name: Dan Blakeley ’15 ’18
Hometown: Olympia, Washington
Degrees: M.S. in engineering physics and M.S. in technology
Team Role: Executive faculty director

Dan Blakeley is the founder and executive faculty director of Team Sunergy. Before his time at Appalachian, Blakeley spent six years serving in the 2nd Ranger Battalion of the U.S. Army Special Operations, in which he completed three tours to Iraq and three tours to Afghanistan.

Blakeley found his inspiration to start Team Sunergy through his passion for sustainability and love for racing.

“Solar car racing takes two passions of mine — sustainability and racing — and blends them into a project that applies content I’ve learned in the classroom as well as real-world experiences in engineering, design, fabrication and leadership,” he said.

Name: Kali Smith
Hometown: Connelly Springs, North Carolina
Year: Junior
Major: Environmental economics and policy, sustainable technology minor
Team Role: Operations director

Kali Smith is driven by sustainability, she said, and ensuring she does everything she can to reduce her negative environmental impact.

Smith takes on many roles within Team Sunergy, but one of her favorites, she said, is being the point of communication with other teams and talking to different members around the world each week. Smith said she can’t wait to continue to travel with the team and expand its reach over the next few years.

“I want to be a part of the beginning of the future,” she said. “What we are doing is important. We are forcing people to rethink the way they use transportation so that one day we can achieve a more sustainable world.”

Name: Wyatt Bailey
Hometown: Burlington, North Carolina
Year: Sophomore
Major: Sustainable technology
Team Role: Assistant mechanical director

Wyatt Bailey is a sustainable technology major with an interest in all things sustainable. Being on Team Sunergy has given him experience with technology and ideas he will likely use after he graduates, he said, and begins seeking a career in sustainable building and renewable energy installation.

While it is partly Bailey’s passion for sustainability that drives his involvement with Team Sunergy, it hardly ever feels like work to him, he said, because he’s always learning and doing something new every day.

“Having a successful solar car team here at Appalachian, I think, proves that sustainable transportation technology is not just for engineers. All it takes is a group of determined individuals with a desire to learn and a passion for sustainability,” he said.

Name: Cody Waters
Hometown: Pineville, North Carolina
Year: Graduate student
Major: Engineering physics
Team Role: Mechanical director

Cody Waters received his undergraduate degree at Appalachian in applied physics in 2016. He joined Team Sunergy the same year — as he began pursuing a master’s degree in engineering physics — in order to expand on what he would learn in the classroom. Waters switched between the electrical and mechanical team leading up to the design of the second-generation vehicle.

He said he enjoys biking, building and 3D design. Most of Waters’ hobbies revolve around finding alternative modes of transporting himself to campus, he said.

“The solar vehicle team offered me a chance to learn practical electronics and gain mechanical experience,” Waters said.

Name: Austin VanderMeer Shaw
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Year: Graduate student
Major: Engineering physics
Team Role: Electrical director

Austin VanderMeer Shaw began his academic career at Appalachian in 2012, switching through a few majors before landing on physics when he discovered his interest in working with electronics.

When he is not working with Team Sunergy or working toward his master’s degree, Shaw said he enjoys playing guitar and reading nonfiction, and is currently training to run in a marathon.

“We’re trying to get people excited about innovation and sustainability, all while giving students experience they could never get in a traditional classroom setting,” Shaw said. “It’s a really cool thing to have helped build a car as a student.”

Name: Diego Lewis
Hometown: Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Year: Senior
Major: Finance and banking
Team Role: Business director

Diego Lewis began his career at Appalachian in 2014, eventually deciding on finance and banking as his major. He joined Team Sunergy in October 2016.

Since taking over the business director position in May 2017, Lewis said he has been working to make sure the team has the appropriate funding, media representation and online presence necessary for success. Outside of his time with the team, he said he likes building computers, running in the woods with his dog, Xavi, and cooking.

“This project has provided me with endless opportunities for meaningful contribution to a worthwhile cause while teaching me innumerable lessons I will carry with me throughout the rest of my professional career,” Lewis said.

Name: John T. Lalevee
Hometown: Raleigh, North Carolina
Year: Junior
Major: Industrial design
Team Role: Aerodynamics and body design

John Lalevee designed the body of ROSE — Team Sunergy’s second solar car. Lalevee is an industrial design major with a concentration in furniture design, and he hopes to run his own studio someday, he said.

“Through the solar vehicle team, I’m able to work on an interdisciplinary team as a designer and learn new skills like aerodynamic analysis — an experience I can’t get anywhere else,” he said.

Name: Mike Montalvo
Hometown: Cary, North Carolina
Year: Sophomore
Major: Mathematics with a concentration in physical sciences
Team Role: Mechanical team

Mike Montalvo is an honors mathematics student at Appalachian with a passion for innovative technology. He said he is “committed to making a more sustainable future to preserve the beautiful planet we live on.”

“Being on Team Sunergy allowed me to work with other students and gain tremendous mechanical experience,” he said. “The opportunity to design and build a car as an undergraduate student was something I could not pass up.”

Name: Brandon Schwartz
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Year: Junior
Major: Physics
Team Role: Mechanical team

Brandon Schwartz is impassioned to speak out on injustices against the planet. He said he believes that true sustainability includes acknowledging the damage fossil fuels have done to the environment and actively changing lifestyles to reduce waste.

In Schwartz’s free time, he said he finds peace in writing poetry, playing chess and exploring Appalachia.

“Climate change is real, and solar vehicles are the next technological step in the environmentalist movement. I joined (Team Sunergy) to keep true to our promise of sustainability,” he said.

Name: Andrew Pobrica
Hometown: Four Oaks, North Carolina
Year: Sophomore
Major: Computer science
Team Role: Telemetry systems

Andrew Pobrica transferred to Appalachian from Johnston Community College after earning an Associate of Applied Science in networking technologies.

When he is not working with Team Sunergy or working toward his degree, Pobrica said he enjoys working on personal programming projects (currently he’s working on an automated weather forecasting system) and reading sci-fi adventure novels, and he is currently training for a Super Tux Kart competition.

“The team looked interesting and allowed me to combine my interest in computer science and electronics design all in one place,” Pobrica said.

Name: Lucas Tax
Hometown: Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Year: Junior
Major: Physics
Team Role: Electrical team

Lucas Tax is a physics major with an electronics concentration at Appalachian. He originally intended to pursue a degree in electrical engineering, but, for various reasons, Tax said he decided to come to Appalachian and couldn’t be happier with the decision.

Tax said when he’s not working on the electrical systems for ROSE, he likes to play and write music, cook and read about cars and motorcycles. Tax hopes to combine his passion for electronics with these interests in his future career, he said.

“Team Sunergy has given me the opportunity to apply concepts from both my major and my own personal passions in a hands-on way, while also being aligned with my values,” he said. “I couldn’t ask for a better project to be involved in.”

Name: Matthew Alicea
Hometown: Concord, North Carolina
Year: Senior
Major: Computer science
Team Role: Telemetry and design

Coming to Appalachian, Matthew Alicea had already decided on computer science as his major, he said, but he also has a passion for design. During his time here, Alicea expressed he has taken an interest in user interface and user experience design.

As a Team Sunergy member, Alicea said he’s been able to challenge and develop his user interface and user experience skills through designing and building interfaces for telemetry systems.

“It was my final year at Appalachian, and I wanted to get involved with something on campus. Team Sunergy turned out to be an amazing experience and opportunity. My only regret is not having joined earlier,” he said.

Name: Hunter Bristow
Hometown: Chapin, South Carolina
Year: Freshman
Major: Sustainable technology, sustainable business minor
Team Role: Electrical team

Hunter Bristow said he has been interested in sustainable transportation since converting his GMC Sonoma to a fully electric vehicle when he was in 10th grade.

Being a part of Team Sunergy allows Bristow to learn from other individuals and contribute his skills to the team, he said. Once he learns how something works, Bristow said he enjoys working on ways to improve it; he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty to get the job done.

“When I first toured Appalachian, I knew I wanted to be a part of the solar vehicle team,” he said. “There are plenty of dreamers in the world, but the doers change the planet.”

Name: James Furr
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Year: Senior
Major: Sustainable technology and physics
Team Role: Mechanical and dynamics

James Furr joined Team Sunergy in 2015 and has been along for the ride ever since. The team has driven him to be a hardworking student, he said, and has taught him a lot about what it means to troubleshoot and actively problem-solve.

Furr said he always wanted to do something with renewable energy, and the team has been a gateway to many opportunities that he wouldn’t normally have had otherwise.

“This project is proof that people from all walks of life can come together, solve problems and move toward a more sustainable future,” he said.

Name: Johnny Bumgardner
Hometown: Havelock, North Carolina
Year: Senior
Major: Sustainable technology
Team Role: Operations team

Johnny Bumgardner is a nontraditional student and a 14-year veteran of the North Carolina Army National Guard. He bounced around careers and traveled but struggled to find something to believe in, he said.

Bumgardner’s unwavering passion for the environment and his desire to do his part to protect it, he said, is what led him to Appalachian’s sustainable technology program and the solar vehicle team.

“Solar racing is an exciting way to show the world the viability and power of solar energy through transportation, which is part of many of our everyday lives,” Bumgardner said.

Name: Bree Hensley
Hometown: Conover, North Carolina
Year: Sophomore
Major: Nutrition and foods
Team Role: Social media and nutrition planning

This is Bree Hensley’s first year on Team Sunergy, and she said she appreciates that being part of the team pushes her to try new things and expand her existing skill set.

Hensley said doing what she can to avoid having a negative environmental impact has always been important to her, and the team offers her new and exciting ways to make that happen. The solar vehicle team allows Hensley to dedicate her time and efforts to something she believes in, she said.

“Programs like this allow the public to see how possible and accessible sustainable options, like solar vehicles, can be; it pushes and inspires people, including myself, to work toward a more sustainable future,” Hensley said.

Name: Chase Reynolds ’17
Hometown: Taylorsville, North Carolina
Degree: B.S. in commercial photography
Team Role: Photographer

Chase Reynolds is a member of University Communications at Appalachian and has a background in commercial photography. He has been photographing Team Sunergy as it designs and builds the new car, ROSE, and will be joining the team on the trip to Nebraska for the Formula Sun Grand Prix and the American Solar Challenge.

Name: Brad Johnson
Title: Senior lecturer, graduate program director
Team Role: Advisor

Brad Johnson is a senior lecturer and graduate program director in Appalachian’s Department of Physics and Astronomy. He advises Team Sunergy on electronics and automation. Johnson joined the team as a faculty advisor in 2015.

Name: Chris Tolbert
Title: Adjunct instructor
Team Role: Advisor

Chris Tolbert is an adjunct instructor in Appalachian’s Department of Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment, as well as a technology and engineering instructor and electric vehicle team coach at West Wilkes High School in Millers Creek, North Carolina.

Dan Blakeley described Tolbert as a motivator, crediting him with inspiring the creation of the solar vehicle team when, in 2013, he asked his Transportation Systems class to come up with a major project to complete for the course. Then-student Blakeley suggested forming a solar car racing team.

Name: Dr. Lee F. Ball Jr.
Title: Appalachian’s chief sustainability officer
Team Role: Advisor

Lee F. Ball Jr. holds a doctorate in sustainability education, a master’s degree in environmental education and a Bachelor of Science degree in natural science.

He has spent the past 16 years teaching sustainability-related content in Appalachian’s Department of Sustainable Technology and the Built Environment.

Ball’s primary research is focused on sustainability literacy, the valuation of green building, biophilic/ecophilic design and change agency related to community engagement.