Speed Racer

At a Texas racetrack in March 2018, Aurora Straus stood on top of the winner’s platform. She held up her trophy. The crowd cheered. At just 19 years old, she had won her first professional car race! 

Straus learned to drive at a racetrack near her New York hometown. Her dad wanted to teach her how to control a skidding car. Straus loved  the experience. 

“It was one of the most exciting moments in my life,” she says. She became a pro sports car driver in 2016. 

It was March 2018. Aurora Straus was at a racetrack in Texas. She stood on top of the winner’s platform. She held up her trophy. The crowd cheered. She was just 19 years old. But she had won her first professional car race!

Straus learned to drive at a racetrack near her New York hometown. Her dad wanted to teach her how to control a skidding car. Straus loved the experience.

“It was one of the most exciting moments in my life,” she says. She became a pro sports car driver in 2016.

“The scariest part of every race is before you turn the car on, when you’re sitting and waiting,” Straus says. But when the race begins, there’s no time to be scared! Straus presses the gas pedal and the car takes off down the track. 

“The scariest part of every race is before you turn the car on. It’s when you’re sitting and waiting,” Straus says. But there’s no time to be scared when the race begins! Straus presses the gas pedal. The car speeds down the track.

Race cars quickly gain speed. These vehicles have smooth shapes to reduce drag, the force of air pushing against them. They can reach more than 322 kilometers (200 miles) per hour—three times as fast as a car on a highway!

At each curve, Straus has to slow slightly and steer carefully so she doesn’t crash into the track wall—or other cars. The feat takes a lot of practice. It’s difficult to stop or change the direction of a heavy object that’s moving quickly like a speeding car. 

Race cars quickly gain speed. These vehicles have smooth shapes. The smoothness helps to reduce drag. Drag is the force of air that pushes against a car as it moves. Race cars can reach more than 322 kilometers (200 miles) per hour. That’s three times as fast as a car on a highway!

Straus has to slow slightly at each curve. She must steer carefully. She has to make sure she doesn’t crash into the track wall. She also has to avoid crashing into other cars. The feat takes a lot of practice. It’s difficult to stop a heavy object that’s moving quickly. It’s also hard to change the direction of a speeding car.

Back when Straus began racing, she was one of only a few women in the sport. In 2018, she founded an organization called Girls With Drive. The group connects girls with mentors who work in fields dominated by men.

Straus hopes to inspire girls to follow their dreams. “If you see someone who looks like you doing something, it gives you more confidence that you can do it,” she says.

Only a few women were involved in race car driving when Straus started. Straus founded an organization in 2018. The organization is called Girls With Drive. The group connects girls with mentors. The mentors work in fields dominated by men.

Straus hopes to inspire girls to follow their dreams. “If you see someone who looks like you doing something, it gives you more confidence that you can do it,” she says.

Make a table showing how far your race car traveled for each test. What was the farthest distance?

Make a table showing how far your race car traveled for each test. What was the farthest distance?

Did your design changes increase the distance your car moved? Explain why or why not.

Did your design changes increase the distance your car moved? Explain why or why not.