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 It's not the flashiest car in the world. Not even close. But the 1971 Volkswagen named Helios can do something most cars can't: nm on solar energy - energy from the sun's light and heat!

    Joshua Bechtold, 14, and the other students at the Riverside School in Lyndonville, Vermont, worked many months to get Helios ready for the 1999  American Tour de Sol ( "Sol" is the Latin word for "sun"). They named their car after Helios, the sun god in Greek mythology(神话).

    The 4-year-old Tour de Sol encourages the use of "green", or environmentally friendly, cars to help reduce pollution and save energy. It' s not a race. Cars are  judged on fuel efficiency(耗油量) rather than speed. In the week-long event, 44 cars took the 350-mile tour from Waterbury, Connecticut, to Lake George, New York. Of the 23 student cars, Helios was the only one built by middle school students.

    A teacher drove Helios, but the children talked with people wherever they stopped along the mad. "That was my favorite part," says Anna Browne, 15. "We explained how the car runs.”

    Due in part to old, inefficient batteries(电池), Helios finished fourth - out of four - in its kind, the sun-powered class. "We were there for the fun of it," Anna says. "We're proud of Helios," says Ariel Gleicher, 14. "It's a car that's good for the environment."