There’s a new program in town and it’s not just for building cars; it also builds teamwork, self-confidence and more, according to Pius Kayiira, executive director and founder of the Winners Circle Project, a program that offers S.T.E.A.M. (science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics) project-based learning.
The Winners Circle Project, with funding from the Dyson Foundation and support from State Line Auto Auction in Waverly, N.Y., the Sportscar Vintage Racing Association, Six Mile Creek Vineyard and the Ithaca Beer Company, among others, is shifting into high gear – especially in rural America.
Two area schools, Waverly and Candor High, both located in Tioga County, N.Y., are participating in the program.
Stephen Lindridge, Technology Education Instructor at Candor High School, is pictured by the Mk4 Shelby Cobra replica, and is holding the book containing specifications for the car’s build. (Photo by Wendy Post)
Built with a kit from Factory 5, the company that supplies them, participating students were able to build, from the asphalt up, an Mk4 Shelby Cobra replica – complete with 5-point racing belts and all the muscle a V8 engine can offer under the hood. According to Pius, the Coyote Engine also comes from Factory 5 at a cost of approximately $17,000.
As for the kit, according to Stephen Lindridge, Technology Education Instructor at Candor High School, the cost is about $43,000. Chris Dyson of Dyson Racing, and the Dyson Foundation provided funding.
And the newly built car, according to both Jeff Barber, owner of State Line Auto Auction and Greg Zyla, syndicated auto columnist and author of Car Collector Corner, will pay for itself.
“It’s not just about building the car, the rest of it has to be marketing and making sure they will bring in the money, which I’m sure they will,” said Barber, who has joined the effort.
Greg Zyla attended a performance evaluation at State Line Auto Auction on April 30, and stated that the car built by the students will be well worth it, value-wise.
“When they auction the Cobras at State Line Auto Auction they will surely bring in more than the money it took to build them,” said Zyla, adding, “These are two very special Cobra replicas and I expect the bidders to acknowledge that fact with high bids that will give credence to the Winners Circle Project.”
Pictured is Pius Kayiira, executive director and founder of the Winners Circle Project and Tomy Drisi. Photo provided by Pius Kayiira.
In Candor, we visited Stephen Lindridge’s technology shop to take a look at their finished car.
With close to a dozen students on-hand, Lindridge, who also serves on the advisory board for the Winners Circle Project, talked about the car’s build and the time it took.
“[During the pandemic] we’ve all been treading water, these guys haven’t,” said Lindridge of the amount of time the students spent on the car during the lockdowns.
“They’ve been working on this on their own time,” said Lindridge, adding, “I’ve only had to tighten 10 bolts.”
One of the students took a photo of this writer’s short run in their newly built car at Candor High School last Monday.
Approximately 20 to 25 students worked on the project, which began in September of 2019. The students completed the build in May and will be preparing it for auction at State Line Auto Auction in Waverly, N.Y., planned for the morning hours on Sept. 17. The car from Waverly High School will also be auctioned.
For more information about the auction, you can email Pius at pius@winners-circle.org.
Prior to auction, the car needs to be evaluated for its performance; a check that took place at State Line Auto Auction on June 7, and was conducted by Alfred State Professors Andrew Smith and Caryl A. Koch.
Pictured are students at State Line Auto Auction on April 30, looking at the finished Cobra. (Greg Zyla Photo)
For Candor, and following their evaluation, an engine skip needed to be addressed and a torpedo belt had to be added, according to Lindridge.
On Sept. 10, at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, N.Y., Chris Dyson, Ford Mustang Champion and a Trans-Am Series Champion, will conduct a hands-on performance evaluation.
In fact, and through a chance meeting, Pius and Dyson, of Dyson Racing, came up with the idea for the Winners Circle Project.
“We need innovators and engineers,” said Pius of the project, adding, “Art, mathematics, engineering, and science and technology are all mixed in with racing. The program is about working together and finding your best skills.”
Barber from State Line Auto Auction decided to join in the effort because of the benefits of the program.
Paul Barber, co-owner and the son of State Line Auto Auction owner Jeff Barber, gives a tour of the facility to high school students on April 30. (Greg Zyla Photo)
“I am very impressed with the Winners Circle Project because it is exposing students to real life lessons and is requiring them to understand a variety of disciplines that make a business successful.”
And Barber knows how to make a business succeed. On Friday, June 18, State Line Auto Auction celebrated their 40th anniversary of doing business in Waverly, N.Y.
According to Jeff Barber, his father started the business in June of 1981, and then he moved back to Waverly from North Carolina to join the family business in 1983.
Back in Candor last Monday, Lucas Davis, a senior that worked on the project, said that he appreciated the experience, as well as the opportunity.
Dylan Austin liked the challenge whereas Zach Kline liked hearing the car run for the first time, a sound that undoubtedly lit a spark in all that worked on the manufacture of the replica.
Joey Marsh echoed Austin, stating that he liked the challenge of making something work.
Pictured at State Line Auto is Waverly High School’s Cobra as it was in the process of being built. State Line Auto has since painted the car white. (Dave Mareck Photo)
As an example, Lindridge explained, students had to work together to make adjustments and modifications to the car along the way.
“A clutch cable was too short, so we had to extend it,” said Lindridge, adding, “We also had to make a plate for the transmission and fix the steering wheel.”
“We didn’t have any instructions,” said Nick Benjamin, also a senior at Candor High, adding, “We just had a lot of boxes.”
Joel Dougherty and Jim Kline enjoyed building things with their fellow students and, of course, seeing the finished project.
As a treat, they allowed this writer to take a test run around the school’s lot. With experience in driving a car that has hard steering and manual brakes, namely a 1973 VW Beetle, Lindridge trusted me with the first spin.
The Mk4 Shelby Cobra replica is not for the faint of heart, and it’s definitely not your grandfather’s Ford.
Backing out of the shop, a hard push on the clutch made the engine rumble, a sound that caused the students nearby to instantly smile, and as they watched – nervously.
By the time I had the car in first gear it was ready to accelerate at a rate of speed that wasn’t conducive for the parking lot at the school, and brakes had to be applied to keep things under control for this little spin.
The steering ratio was a bit different, and a slight visual distance had to be added to compensate for the power coming from the engine on a simple turn.
The brief test run went well, however, with the power of the car evident once the engine started.
Both the Waverly build, now painted white, and the Candor build are pictured at State Line Auto Auction in Waverly, N.Y., and during a performance evaluation that took place on June 7. Photo provided by Pius Kayiira.
Later this month, this writer, along with Pius and Zyla, will be meeting in Owego as Owego is signed up to participate in the Winners Circle Project next school year, and he wants to familiarize himself with everything that the village has to offer.
Candor will be participating in the project in the fall and as for Waverly, Pius said that 54 students have already signed up for next year. He also talked of the teamwork on their project.
“I have never met an administration that is so supportive, and one that works so hard to provide for their students,” said Pius of the overall response to the project in both Waverly, and in Candor.
“The project really teaches students that they can achieve anything if they think it,” said Pius, adding, “I always say ‘mind your business,’ or in other words, ‘your mind is your business.’ Anything can be achieved if you believe it, and you think it.”
To learn more about the Winners Circle Project, visit www.winners-circle.org.
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