The nation’s best young automotive mindsfrom coast to coast are gearing up for the 64th annual 2013 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Challenge State Hands-On Competitions, which kick off Tuesday, April 16 with events in Birmingham, Ala. and Jackson, Miss.
Competitions continue across the country through May 14, with the top team from each state advancing to the National Finals at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn, Mich., June 9-11. At the finals, champions from all 50 states will compete against one another for the right to call themselves the top young auto technicians in America and take home millions of dollars in scholarships.
Below are the dates and locations of all 50 2013 Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Challenge State Hands-On Competitions:
Birmingham, Ala. – Tuesday, April 16
Jackson, Miss. – Tuesday, April 16
Lexington, Ky. – Wednesday, April 17
Alexandria, La. – Thursday, April 18
Sioux Falls, S.D. – Thursday, April 18
Sanford, Fla. – Friday, April 19
Pearl City, Hawaii – Saturday, April 20
Warren, Mich. – Wednesday, April 24
Warminster, Pa. – Wednesday, April 24
Milford, Neb. – Thursday, April 25
Okmulgee, Okla. – Thursday, April 25
Anchorage, Alaska – Friday, April 26
Little Rock, Ark. – Friday, April 26
Atlanta, Ga. – Friday, April 26
Indianapolis, Ind. – Friday, April 26
La Porte, Texas – Friday, April, 26
Baltimore, Md. – Saturday, April 27
Brooklyn Park, Minn. – Wednesday, May 1
Atco, N.J. – Wednesday, May 1
Bridgeport, W.Va. – Wednesday, May 1
Helena, Mont. – Thursday, May 2
Nashville, Tenn. – Thursday, May 2
Sandy, Utah – Thursday, May 2
Warwick, R.I. – Thursday, May 2
Cheyenne, Wyo. – Thursday, May 2
Glendale, Ariz. – Friday, May 3
Danville, Calif. – Friday, May 3
Pomona, Calif. – Friday, May 3
Nampa, Idaho – Friday, May 3
Charlotte, N.C./S.C. – Saturday, May 4
Albuquerque, N.M. – Saturday, May 4
Virginia Beach, Va. – Saturday, May 4
Renton, Wash. – Tuesday, May 7
Ankeny, Iowa – Tuesday, May 7
Dover, Del. – Wednesday, May 8
Norwood, Mass. – Wednesday, May 8
Mequon, Wis. – Wednesday, May 8
North Haven, Conn. – Thursday, May 9
Sparks, Nev. – Thursday, May 9
Fargo, N.D. – Thursday, May 9
Kansas City, Mo./Kan. – Thursday, May 9
Toledo, Ohio – Friday, May 10
Champaign, Ill. – Friday, May 10
Gresham, Ore. – Friday, May 10
Denver, Colo. – Saturday, May 11
Epping, N.H./Maine/Vt. – Saturday, May 11
Morrisville, N.Y. – Tuesday, May 14
At the State Hands-On Competitions, teams will race against the clock to correctly diagnose and repair a deliberately bugged 2013 Ford Focus SE. A combination of the online written exam and hands-on competition scores will determine each state’s championship team that will then compete in the National Finals. For additional details on 2013 State Hands-On Competition locations and dates, visit Autoskills.AAA.com.
The Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Challenge is open to 11th and 12th grade students in secondary schools and in colleges across the country that offer courses in automotive technology. Schools may enter one two-student team per instructor. Teams competing in the State Hands-On competitions represent the 10 teams that scored highest on a statewide online written exam, administered in January.
The Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Challenge enables many of its participants to embark on promising careers in the automotive repair industry to help fuel the rising demand for well-trained technicians who can repair both computer and mechanical components in today’s advanced vehicles. Both the national and state-wide competitions are organized with the support of AAA and Ford personnel, local automotive instructors and the AAA Approved Auto Repair program, a free public service AAA performs to identify quality repair facilities throughout the country.
