January 22, 2013 - UTI Grad Leads Racing Team to Break Guinness Speed Record

UTI graduate Matt Lundy poses with his Guinness World Record-winning Fastest Standing Mile-Street Car.

Over the years, the NASA Shuttle Landing Facility has been the setting for impressive displays of power and technology. But on Oct. 16, the 15,000-foot runway was the site of record-breaking speed as UTI-Orlando grad (’08) Matt Lundy and the West Palm Beach-based Performance Power Racing team zoomed past the Guinness World Record for “Fastest Standing Mile-Street Car.” As lead design technician, Matt built the street-legal Ford GT that team owner Johnny Bohmer raced to 283.232 mph.

“By maximizing the efficiency of each and every part, we were able to redesign this street car to perform like a racecar,” says Matt, whose name appears on the Guinness certificate with the title “crew chief.” “Right now, it’s the fastest car in the world. And the best part is, I get to drive it to dinner!”

The team set the standing mile record by racing the 1,700-horsepower car from a standstill to its top speed over the one-mile distance. Performance Power Racing also held the previous Guinness record, which it set in 2011 at 223 mph.

Matt has been with the high performance car shop, which is working with Pratt & Whitney to develop a line of auto parts made from Pandalloy Performance Aluminum^TM, an aerospace aluminum alloy, since 2008. In his leadership role with the team, he often has the opportunity to test new racing models for manufacturers such as Chevrolet’s Camaro, Audi and various NASCAR teams. Matt credits the training and experience he got at UTI for kindling his ongoing quest for knowledge about cars.

“I came to the UTI Standard Automotive Technology program as an experienced tech, so I thought I knew a lot. But throughout my courses, I learned so much from my instructors and our partners,” he says. “Now I never assume I know it all about any car on the road. There’s always something new to learn … along with new records to beat.”

For more information about UTI-Orlando, please visit: http://www.uti.edu/campus-locations/uti-orlando, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.