The 2006 World Solar Rally in Taiwan was a

solar vehicle A solar vehicle or solar electric vehicle is an electric vehicle powered completely or significantly by direct solar energy. Usually, photovoltaic (PV) cells contained in solar panels convert the sun's energy directly into electric energy. ...

auto race Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

held in September 2006 in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. Ten teams from five countries, most

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

-based, competed in a series of races around the island for the trophy.

Race

The race was preceded by a parade on September 16 through the city of

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

, followed by a circuit race at

Pingtung Airport Pingtung Airport () are two airports in Pingtung City, Pingtung County, Taiwan . The airport is currently home to the Republic of China Air Force 6th Tactical Mixed Wing, and formerly offered commercial flights. History Pingtung Airport was op ...

on September 17, with the actual rally taking place in three stages on the following three days. The total race was about long. Most of the race consisted of untimed transit stages, while the eight timed sections totaled up to about long. The route went past landmarks and cultural destinations including the Shueishang Tropic of Cancer Park in

Chiayi County Chiayi County (Mandarin pinyin: ''jiā yì xiàn''; Hokkien POJ: ''Ka-gī-koān'') is a county in southwestern Taiwan surrounding but not including Chiayi City. It is the sixth largest county in Taiwan. Name The former Chinese placename was ...

Lugang Mazu Temple The Lukang Tianhou Temple (, alternatively "Tienhou"), also known as the Lukang Mazu Temple,. is a Chinese temple dedicated to the Chinese Goddess Mazu, the Goddess of Sea and Patron Deity of fishermen, sailors and any occupations related to sea ...

Changhua County Changhua County (Mandarin Pinyin: ''Zhānghuà Xiàn''; Wade-Giles: ''Chang¹-hua⁴ Hsien⁴''; Hokkien POJ: ''Chiang-hòa-koān'' or ''Chiong-hòa-koān'') is the smallest county on the main island of Taiwan by area, and the fourth smallest ...

, Da-Jai as Jenlan Temple in

Taichung Taichung (, Wade–Giles: ''Tʻai²-chung¹'', pinyin: ''Táizhōng''), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality located in central Taiwan. Taichung has approximately 2.8 million residents and is the second most populous city of Taiw ...

, Chulu Pasture in Taitung, and Fong Kong in Pintong. The

terrain Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin word ...

on all three days of the rally was very diverse. Most of the first day was on gently curving two-lane roads, and was generally uphill. The first day concluded with a very steep hill climb. The second day's timed stages were on roller-coaster-like four-lane highways, while the third and last day's route was on flat, straight highway. Each day presented its own unique challenges for planning strategy.

Results

The awards ceremony was held on 21 September. The top three from the circuit race at

were Sky Ace TIGA from

Ashiya University is a private university in Ashiya, Hyōgo, Japan, founded in 1964. External links * in Japanese Guinness World Records - Fastest solar-powered vehicle
Private universities and colleges in Japan Educational institutions established in ...

in Ashiya, Japan, Apollo V from the

National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences (KUAS; ) was a university located in Yanchao District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. History *In 1963, Taiwan Provincial Government assigned funds to establish the Provincial Kaohsiung Institute of Tech ...

in Taiwan, and Tokai Falcon from

Tokai University is a private non-sectarian higher education institution located in Tokyo, Japan. It was founded by Dr. Shigeyoshi Matsumae. It was accredited under Japan's old educational system in 1946 and under the new system in 1950. In 2008, Tokai Un ...

in Japan. Six teams placed in the rally; the other five did not complete all of the rally and thus could not place. First place went to Ashiya University from Ashiya, Japan. Second place was Apollo V from the

; third place was the team from Southern Taiwan University of Technology.

Teams

Ten teams competed in the event. The National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences, who hosted the event, fielded two cars, bringing the total number of cars to eleven. A twelfth car, the #101 from Aurora Vehicle Association in Australia, entered the event but was not able to attend. They were forced to withdraw after their car was destroyed in an accident at the Tour del Sol in France in June. {, border="1" , -style="background:#99FF99;" !Team !Vehicle !Country !Ranking , -style="background:#99FF99;" ,

, Sky Ace TIGA , Japan , 1 , - style="background:#99FF99;" , Univ. of Applied Sciences , Apollo V , Taiwan , 2 , - style="background:#99FF99;" , Southern Univ. of Tech. , Phoenix , Taiwan , 3 , - style="background:#99FF99;" ,

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, Borealis III , USA , 4 , - style="background:#99FF99;" , Univ. of Applied Sciences , Apollo Plus , Taiwan , 5 , - style="background:#99FF99;" ,

, Tokai Falcon , Japan , 6 , - style="background:#99FF99;" , Middle East Tech. Univ. , Ekinoks , Turkey , Did not Complete , - style="background:#99FF99;" , Principia College , Ra 6 , USA , Did not Complete , - style="background:#99FF99;" , KAMM Solar Car Team , KAMM , Germany , Did not Complete , - style="background:#99FF99;" , HelioDet Solar Car Team , Heliodet 6 , Germany , Did not Complete , - style="background:#99FF99;" , University of Tehran , Persian Gazelle , Iran , Did not Complete

External links

2006 World Solar Rally in Taiwan Official Site

Official results

2006 in Taiwan Solar car races ja:ソーラーカーレース#ワールド・ソーラー・ラリー・イン・台湾