Wawasee Super Mileage Team Is Parade Grand Marshal; Lori Mark Person Of The Year
Wawasee Super Mileage Team Is Parade Grand Marshal; Lori Mark Person Of The Year
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David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
Wawasee Super Mileage Team Is Parade Grand Marshal; Lori Mark Person Of The YearNORTH WEBSTER - The 2023 Mermaid Festival Parade grand marshal is a team from Wawasee High School that has competed across the country, while the person of the year is known for her positive impact to the community.
Super Mileage Team
The WHS Super Mileage program was started in 1999 by instructor Allen Coblentz to compete in the Indiana Super Mileage Engineering Challenge, according to information provided.
After several years of competing in the ISMEC contest, the team decide to also compete in the Shell Eco Marathon in 2010 in Houston, Texas.
The program is self-funded with sponsors and donations from the community.
After witnessing greatest competition in Texas, the WHS team began to move away from fiberglass bodies and to make their cars out of carbon fiber. They explored different engines and energy types for the Shell Eco Marathon contests.
Wawasee has had the traditional gas engine, an ethanol-powered engine, a diesel engine, a hydrogen-generated electric motor and battery-generated motors. They build their own cars with some help from local industries for special processes, the information provided states.
Over the years, Wawasee’s Super Mileage team has competed in Houston; Detroit, Sonoma and in Indianapolis at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
They’ve seen success in the Shell Eco Marathon the last 13 years with cars exceeding 1,000 miles per gallon. In 2019, at the Sonoma event, the team qualified to compete in a World Championship in London, England, with their diesel urban concept car where they competed against teams for Europe and Asia.
This year, at the Shell contest, the team built two cars - a battery-operated electric motor prototype car and a 35cc gas urban concept car. The first car placed first in its category with 676 miles per KWh and the urban concept placed second in its category with 535 miles per gallon. The urban concept also placed third in a regional qualifying race that qualified them to go to Bangalore, India, for a world competition Oct. 10-12.
Lori Mark
An unsung hero in the community, Lori Mark was named the Person of the Year for 2023.
Chamber President Emily Shipley said Mark’s outstanding character and dedication to her community were made on the first impression, according to information provided.
Mark received three nominations for the honor, a testament to the positive impact she has on the lives of others. Despite her accomplishments, Mark remains “humble and prefers to avoid the stoplight.” With the help of Mark’s family, Shipley was able to piece together a list of Mark’s community involvements.
Mark is involved in the North Webster Community Center, North Webster Food Pantry, Shoop Board and Shepherd by the Lakes Lutheran Church.
According to the information provided, Mark is “a selfless giver, she consistently works until a project or task is completed, always putting her community first. Her tireless efforts in various community organizations and unwavering commitment to making a difference have earned her this well-deserved recognition as Person of the Year.”
