I'm really not certain as to what scope and magnitude CO2 drag racing really is on a global basis. I do know that national and regional competitions are held amongst, I believe, primarily school teams through out the United States and Canada. The vehicles are designed to compete within certain parameters and tolerances, and the fastest overall car is declared winner, at times by fractions to the thousands of a second. The mechanism operates by inserting a dispensable compressed carbon dioxide cartridge into the vehicle and lining the competing cars side-by-side at a start gate. A hole is then punctured on the canister when a launch mechanism, usually attached to the start gate, is operated. The rapidly-expelling gas provides the initial impulse which propels the vehicle forward, while the canister remains within the vehicle through out the duration of the run. A guide wire is attached to the vehicle via eyehooks for directional stability. These vehicles, albeit small, may clock up to a hundred miles an hour and more, given adequate design and launch conditions.

This particular vehicle was designed to the rubric outlined by my high school technical design teacher, and the rubric itself was not specifically compatible with the official competition guidelines. The vehicle met the minimum mass of 45 grams wheels inclusive, a minimum cartridge cavity wall thickness of 3mm all around, a certain minimum vehical length and widths, amongst other twenty-odd specifications. I'm not certain as to why a minimum mass was imposed, since the element of speed was the definitive objective thus the thrust-to-weight ratio a critical concern. I do know however, that the previous year I've designed a similar vehicle with an empty weight of 23 grams. That vehicle managed to disintegrate itself upon contact with the finish gate at a very high speed.

Fabrication of the vehicle was as follows. The body of the vehicle was made out of a single piece of high-density wood, which ensured optimal structural integrity. Separate inserts were made out of wood for the wheel supports, which were pre-drilled before attaching to the body and shaped to symmetric airfoil shapes after. Wood glue (~ white glue) and cyanoacrylate (~ super glue) were used through out, and additional structural and aerodynamic elements were accomplished with milliput two-part epoxy putty. The entire vehicle was finished by coating it with Mr. Gunze's Surfacer 500 and fine sanded to 1500 wet and dry.

Axles of the car were made of some sort of miscellaneous, self-lubricating plastic material. The axle sheath, embedded in the 'wings', were aluminum tubings polished smooth on the inside to minimize axle friction. No lubricant was used. The wheels were fabricated out of 1mm-thick styrene plastic. Since the vehicle was not wheel-driven, tire grip was not a concern, however weight and contact friction then became areas of importance. The wheels were thus bevelled slightly at the circumference to reduce contact friction with the ground, and no speed holes were opened for structural and aerodynamic considerations. The wheels were attached with cyanoacrylate to the axles. Styrene tabs were attached surrounding the axle-wheel joint to provide greater adhesion surfaces.

Exterior paint finish was accomplished with Tamiya acrylic paints: in order lemon yellow then gloss black all over a white basecoat. The tiger motif and lettering were hand applied with a 10/0 brush. The "II" denoted it as my second dragster vehicle (note above). Finishing was done with careful coats of Gunze acrylic clear gloss and future floor wax.

This vehicle took first place overall in the 2002 grade 11/12 tech class dragster competition. It also won a race-off with the first place vehicle of the following year.