Lions Racing has been active as a Formula Student Team since 2002. It has been an early goal for the team to not only be successful on but also off the racetrack.

A lot of our alumni are now themselves judges and organizers for the international engineering competitions of the Formula Student. It speaks for itself, that we as the following generation want to represent ourself as best as possible.

Experience has taught us that the decisions made during the competitions are often very subjective. For a team to stand out to the judges between all the strong competitors it is not just about showing them a great car but to present yourself as a professional and confident team.

The team leaders in the past took that to heart and it was discussed how to make that impression. Fine feathers make fine birds but what else is there?

For that to work it is not only important to have a strong team event captain but to also help and control each other. A daily schedule, which is being discussed at the morning briefings, helps each team member fulfill his tasks.

To work professionally you have to remember three facts: appearance, team spirit and organization. The professional appearance of the team prohibits slackness, hectic running and arrogance. Especially in very stressful or critic situations it is important to stay calm and keep a professional appearance.

In a situation of technical or organizational difficulties it is no help to panic but to stay calm and give the person responsible a chance to solve the problem by sound thinking.

You have to dress properly to make a professional appearance. At all the events we have a dress code for the whole team.

To appear united as a team to everybody else we have team uniform. The uniform consists of a dress shirt or a polo shirt in team colours and a team jacket. Especially for the static competitions like the Cost Judging and the Engineering Design it is very important to us that everything from shoes to shirts fits together perfectly.

A perfect outfit does not only give you a professional appearance but also strengthens the team spirit and raises the acknowledgement by the other teams.

That means that you also have to respect and honor the achievements of your opponents.

The individual team spirit is raised by working hand in hand and giving everybody a responsible task. All decisions are discussed and made as a team.

Another thing that brings us closer together as a team is the social life at these events. We all eat together at one table which enables us to talk and discuss problems in a relaxed atmosphere.

You can't be a winner without proper organization.

During our preparations for an event we develop a box concept that enables us to work fast and efficient on our car during the competition. This concept includes a proper organization of our tools. Each module of the team has its own case which contains their tools and spare parts.

Another important part of organization is time. A good timetable makes it possible for all team members to be on time at the event and their required positions. Things like the briefings or the meals have to be included in that timetable.

A debriefing after each day gives every team member a chance to say what went well that day and what can be improved as a team. It also gives the team leader a chance to lay out the plan for the following days.

With last years award as the “Most Professionally Operated Team” we see that our efforts to improve our public perception have worked out. A tight organization, which other teams would call typically German, helped us to walk this winning route. Our attitude and our public appearance has raised our national and international prestige.

Author: Stefanie Köppe, Lutz Gutfreund

Translator: Philipp Schubert