Do you recognize the sketch above? Probably not. But if you’re on this site, you probably recognize the name of the guy who drew it: Mark Trostle.
For those of you who don’t: Trostle is the chief of design for SRT and Mopar. And he got started on that path by winning a Chrysler high school design competition in 1988, earning a $1,000 scholarship to the College for Creative Studies in Detroit f0r his efforts.
“It really raised the bar and helped set into play my whole career,” Trestle said of the experience.
Now, Trestle’s one of the people who will determine the winners in the newest version of the contest: the Detroit Autorama High School Design Competition 2015, sponsored by Chrysler Group Product Design and the CCS. Trostle and his fellow judges want U.S. public high school students (excluding freshmen) to show them how a 2025 Dodge vehicle will look, whether it’s a sports car, a SUV, a sedan, or something else entirely. “We really want to see what do they think of Dodge. What’s Dodge to them in the future and how will they put that on a piece of paper,” he said to the Chrysler Group blog, Objects in the Mirror…
The first-place winner will receive, among other things, a $60,000 scholarship (paid out over four years) to the CCS. There are also plenty of goodies for runners up, such as gizmos from Apple and passes to the Autorama in Detroit.
Dodge isn’t just looking for a great-looking concept art, though. It also wants a 500-word explanation from each entrant of what Dodge means to him or her. Submissions are due by Friday, Jan. 23, 2015. Hit the link below for the full list of requirements and prizes.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
