Racing for a million buckarus...

When DARPA came up with the concept of offering a million bucks for a their grand challenge, little did they realize people would come in droves. They were expecting about 25 teams with really about 4 or 5 strong contenders. The deadline for regsitration passed and they had 120 teams listed as potential competitors. They had to go through a process by which to weed out some of the teams. And they did. They now have about 25 teams. The 25 teams that are currently accepted in, have to go through DARPA's inspection and then have to show up in March in California. The people who did not get accepted felt it was somehow unfair, so they decided to set up their own challenge. One rule: come with your vehicle on day one and race. No inspection, just show up. My team did not get selected, however, I am thinking about having a stronger team next year for either the official DARPA or the IRRF challenges. For those who don't know about it. The rule is simple, build an autonomous vehicle that can drive 300 miles in 10 hours.