Coke Gives $10,000 to Clean Snowmobile Challenge

The Coca-Cola Foundation has donated $10,000 on behalf of Coca-Cola of Hancock to support the SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge.

The SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge, set for March 15-20 at Michigan Technological University, is a collegiate design competition of the Society of Automotive Engineers. Engineering students from 19 participating schools are reengineering stock snowmobiles to reduce emissions and noise while maintaining or boosting performance.

Rob and Gary Scholie (pronounced sko-lee), owners of Coca-Cola of Hancock, have supported the Challenge for years though their donations of Coke products. The Challenge benefits the community, they said, which prompted them to go to the Coca-Cola Foundation for additional support.

“Everybody is looking to go green, including Coke, and that’s what the Clean Snowmobile Challenge is about,” said Rob. “It’s an honor for our region. Plus, we like to support local events, and the Challenge brings so many people here, which is good for everyone.”

The Challenge also supports one of the Copper Country’s main tourist attractions. “Snowmobiling is very big around here, and the trend is toward more environmentally friendly sleds,” said Gary. “We want to do whatever we can to support snowmobiling now and into the future.”

Jay Meldrum, codirector of the Clean Snowmobile Challenge, expressed his gratitude. “Coca-Cola of Hancock has been a great friend to the Challenge for years,” he said. “It’s always wonderful to receive a grant of this magnitude, but it’s especially gratifying when it comes from the community. Local contributors like Rob and Gary Scholie are essential for the Challenge’s success.”

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigan’s flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.