The love of racing and performance is something that for many is developed at an early age. In order to help fuel this passion, the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow program wants to expose kids to a unique opportunity to showcase workmanship and the awareness of complex mechanisms.

The second season of the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Junior Engine Challenge kicked off Feb. 24-25 at the Race and Performance Expo in Schaumburg, Illinois. The contest is simple: a team is comprised of two individuals, including one team member five to 18 years of age, must completely disassemble/reassemble a complete single cylinder OHV engine, utilizing only basic hand tools. Some of the goals of the premise behind this contest are to help individuals develop great communication skills and self-esteem. The contest also has a goal of helping youngsters develop great problem-solving skills and an understanding of an internal combustion engine.

Over the course of the two-day expo, challengers proceeded to have the engines ran through more than 72 times, with kids waiting for more than an hour to have a chance to develop and showcase their skills at tackling and perfecting the teams rebuilding skills on the small engine. The second annual program saw several returning youngsters from last year’s expo, where the first Junior Engine Challenge took place, with more than 20 individuals who built the engine multiple times throughout the two-day event. There were families who traveled from as far as Wisconsin and Southern Illinois to the expo just to learn and build the engine.

The next event will be featured as part of the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow at the Piston Power show taking place March 16-18 in Cleveland. Students will be able to demo and be trained on the single cylinder engine.

For more information, visit HotRoddersofTomorrow.com or connect with them on social media on their Facebook Page.