by Marie-Therese Maier, Valentina Lohr, Melissa Kautsch
From June 21 to 23, 2024, the Weasels team members left Graz for the first time. Their destination was the Formula Student Easter pre-competition in Hungary. There, the students were able to compete with their rival teams for the first time this season and present their work.
The aim of the event was to gain competitive experience and learn as much as possible for the next competitions. Despite the hot temperatures in Hungary, the rain test cooled things down for the whole team, as it did not succeed on the first attempt. After five attempts, the Weasels passed the test and the low point turned into a high point again. However, as the time for technical inspections had already expired, the team was unable to carry out the brake test. For testing purposes, they were allowed to carry out the last item on the inspection list outside of the scoring, and so they clocked up their first competitive metres with their car, the JR24.
“Given the challenges we faced this weekend, we are very proud of our fourth place and the successes that came with it. We learned a lot and these experiences are important preparation for the upcoming competitions,” said the team management of Joanneum Racing Graz.
As was the case last year, the Weasels’ season with the JR24 only kicked off with Formula Student Netherlands in Assen. This week in the Netherlands was eventful for the team and packed with team spirit, successes, but also defeats.
After a gruelling journey through rain and storms, the team arrived at the TT Circuit in Assen on Saturday morning. The weather followed the Weasels to the Netherlands and stayed with them for several days. The competition got underway on the day of arrival: on Saturday afternoon, the first scrutineering sticker was affixed to the JR24.
The success continued over the next few days: the JR24 was the first car to collect all the scrutineering stickers! This meant that the car was also the first to be ready to take part in the dynamic events. On the same day, the Weasels started their first skid pad run – in record time. As in the previous year, Joanneum Racing Graz brought home a world record from the Netherlands and is now the proud holder of the world record in the wet skid pad with 4.701 seconds!
The static competitions went just as well: the Weasels impressed the jury in both the business plan presentations and the engineering design, making them finalists.
Everyone’s expectations were high after the successful start. Unfortunately, the high of the first few days was followed by a low: the Weasels made a few mistakes in the acceleration competition and the JR24 was unable to show its full potential. In autocross, after a very successful first lap, there were a few problems during post-scrutineering and no one knew until the award ceremony whether this lap time would count. So it remained exciting until the very end.The first endurance race of the season was scheduled for the last day. But before the JR24 could finish the third lap, the car unfortunately had to be retired. Overheating brakes meant that the competition was over for the Weasels.
Despite the sobering last two days, the Weasels’ team spirit remained intact and they created a good atmosphere at the award ceremony. And rightly so: Joanneum Racing Graz finished 6th overall among all participating teams and took home five trophies. The Weasels even took first place in the skid pad and business plan presentation. In autocross, the jury ruled in favour of the Weasels, who took second place in this discipline, as well as in engineering design. The Weasels also took home a special award from the Netherlands: a golden stopwatch for the fastest driver egress scrutineering in eight minutes. Driver egress is about getting drivers out of the car as quickly as possible. They are strapped in and have three minutes per driver change to do so. In eight minutes, all five Weasels drivers successfully got in and out of the car.
Just a few days later, Joanneum Racing Graz competed in its home race. At Formula Student Austria at the Red Bull Ring, the team was once again put to the test. The Weasels suffered a few defeats – but were also able to celebrate even greater successes.
After successfully completing the scrutineering, during which the vehicle was thoroughly inspected, they made it to the finals in all three static disciplines (business plan presentation, cost & manufacturing, and engineering design).
Unfortunately, the technical difficulties that arose during the Acceleration Event in the Netherlands continued in Austria, meaning that the Weasels were unable to perform at their best here either and ended up in 6th place.
The first skid pad could not be completed, again due to technical difficulties. The problem was quickly identified and, despite all the setbacks, the team proved its strength in the subsequent autocross. On the last day of the competition, there was reason to celebrate again: the JR24 completed the demanding 22-kilometre endurance course without incident, which was also the first endurance race completed this season. The time was solid and earned the team 5th place in this category.
While the dynamic disciplines did not always go as the Weasels would have liked, the team shone all the more in the static disciplines. Two victories, one in the Cost & Manufacturing category and another in the Business Plan Presentation, created a festive mood. The team also put in an impressive performance in Engineering Design. In the end, it wasn’t quite enough for a trophy in the final, but they were only 2.7 points behind first place.At the award ceremony, the Weasels were able to celebrate a podium place in the overall standings. They prevailed against their 38 competitors – a result they were particularly proud of at their home competition.Joanneum Racing Graz will be competing in the Formula Student competitions in Czechia (FSCZ) and Italy (FSATA) in August. You can see how the Weasels fare in these competitions in regular updates on our social media channels and in the next pit stop post. Until then: Never Stop Pushing!
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