AU's racing team is ready for the students' answer to Formula 1 in Switzerland
The AU Dolphins racing team is approaching the culmination of nearly three years of work. This summer, after a few bumps along the way, they will compete for the first time in the international Formula Student competition in Switzerland, often referred to as the students' version of Formula 1.
What is Formula Student?
Formula Student is an annual engineering and racing competition for students, where teams from all over the world compete against each other in a variety of disciplines. The competition is considered the students' answer to Formula 1. The most prestigious races are held in Germany and the UK with 50-80 teams participating each year.
The competition is divided into two parts: Static and dynamic events. The static events (also called concept classes) are three disciplines where the car is not supposed to be running. Here, the teams are judged on the company's performance, including design and financial management.
During dynamic events, the car must be able to move. The teams are judged on the car's acceleration, endurance, energy efficiency, autocross (the car's performance on a lap, ed.) and skid pad (the car's grip, ed.).
The teams basically decide for themselves how many disciplines they want to compete in. This means you can still participate in some races, even if your car doesn’t drive.
Sources: Formula Student Germany og Institution of Mechanical Engineers
When Omnibus drops by AU Dolphins, the university’s racing team is busy tightening the last bolts on the chassis. But rewind to autumn 2022, when it all began for the group of mechanical engineering students, and things looked very different. The mastermind behind the team, technical lead for AU Dolphins, Samuel Abrahamsen, describes the racing team's early days as follows:
“We were in a classroom, each on our own computer. We had nothing in front of us but our own individual dreams," he says.
Now the team is finally reaching the culmination of almost three years of work and can soon fulfil their dream of participating in their first Formula Student competition in Switzerland. The journey there, however, hasn't been all smooth sailing.
46 active members in 2025
When Omnibus first visited the team in 2023, the goal was to participate in the most prestigious Formula Student competition in Germany at the Hockenheimring in the summer of 2024. But as Samuel Abrahamsen briefly summarises it: “We didn’t make the cut,” and the payoff never came, after a tough entry quiz and a car that never made it onto the track. However, the team was offered to compete in five similar competitions in Europe with the "concept class".
At that time, they had 60 members on paper. Today, AU Dolphins today has 46 members, but that does not mean that less work is being done around the team - it’s actually quite the opposite.
“Now 46 of us are actively working on the car. Even though we’re technically fewer than in 2023, more of us actually show up every Wednesday,” Samuel Abrahamsen says, referring to the team’s weekly meetups in the prototype workshop at the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering.
Packed schedule, no pressure
There is a lot of work ahead if everything has to be in place before Switzerland calls this summer. This applies both on and off the racetrack.
The schedule includes "Dolphins Day" at AU on May 28 for those, who are interested. The car is planned to be displayed with a chassis on wheels, and several of the team's sponsors will be present. The next day, the team will go to Classic Race Viborg and exhibit the car again. After that, it's time for exams and the final preparations for the competition in Switzerland, which will take place from July 11-16.
AU Dolphins formula car:
Top speed: 100-120 km/h
Acceleration 0-100 km/h: About 3 seconds
Weight: 300 kg dry weight (without driver)
Horsepower: 110 hp (based on 80 kW engine)
The figures should be viewed with caution, as AU Dolphins won’t know the exact numbers until after they have test-driven the car. The figures are therefore based on similar cars from Formula Student.
“There is a lot to do,” AU Dolphins chairman Carl Johan Lausen says, referring to the workload in the coming months.
“If it’s not done, we wont go. And we want to go.” Both he and Samuel Abrahamsen say that they spend around 15-20 hours a week on the project.
They also expect their members to be willing to put in 5-10 hours a week in addition to their studies by participating in work weekends and generally showing up every Wednesday.
“Sometimes it can sound like we are pressuring our members a little,” Samuel Abrahamsen points out, much to the amusement of the other three members, and continues:
“People show up voluntarily, and we do a lot to make sure they think it's fun to come,” Samuel Abrahamsen says. And part of that is being able to participate in Formula Student competitions like the one that awaits the team in Switzerland.
Dolphins from Aarhus in the Swiss Alps
Even though AU Dolphins will soon find themselves in the Swiss Alps, reaching the team’s biggest milestone so far, they don’t expect to place near the top of the competition.
“In terms of engineering, we may be a little outmatched, given that it is our first time,” Carl Johan Lausen reports, pointing out that the team is happy to be part of the so-called “Junior cup”, where they will compete against four other teams on the car's design, cost efficiency and company presentation. In other words, no racing will take place this year.
But the racing team has no doubt about what they want to gain from the trip.
“We’re heading down to get a sense of what people think about our work and to see how the competition actually unfolds,” chairman Carl Johan Lausen says, elaborating:
“Then we can come back next year with a car that works and experience. And then we're going to have a lot fun," Carl Johan Lausen emphasises about the stay, where they’ll be staying at a campsite near the closed airbase in Geschinen, located in the Alps where the competition takes place.
This text is machine translated and post-edited by Cecillia Jensen.