Isaac Courtright is a senior at Doherty high school who is 17 years old, and he has an interesting story. It all started during his freshman year when he took the Automotive Tech I class with Mr. Aker, the teacher at the time. This got him hooked on cars and working on them. Then he started sophomore year doing Auto II. “I liked Auto II more than Auto I because it was more hands on and we got to do a lot more things and I like Mr. Wheaton more.”

At the same time, he was working on cars, he was also running Track and Cross Country. He became very successful at running by running an 18:26 5k, which got him a spot on varsity for Cross Country. He was also really good at track, running a sub-5-minute mile. He made lots of new friends and really enjoyed it. As Isaac said, “I really like to run because I met a lot of new people and it helps me clear my mind.” During his freshman year he had not made his way onto varsity yet, but as he started to make friends, he started to get more motivated and worked even harder.

After he finished Auto II, he got invited into the Advanced Auto class by the teacher Mr. Wheaton. “To get into the class you have to complete both Auto I and II and you need to fill out an application from the teacher.” The class is not as easy as it seems though. It is a lot of work according to Isaac. “We don’t just get to go to class for three periods and work on cars. We have to take lots of tests to get certifications, and we have to prove to the district that we actually do stuff.”

Isaac is going to state for auto this year and he is very proud because it is not an easy thing to do. First, you have to qualify for Regionals where you compete against schools from Colorado Springs, and if you place in the top three in that, you make it to state. Isaac said, “There are six stations that you have to go to, and you have to do measurements and stuff like that on the parts, then you take a test and the judges tally up the score and if you get top three, you move up.”  He ended up placing 2nd in Regionals.

In the auto class they do a lot of fun things that is more than just working on cars. All of the 22 people that are in the class have grown really close, and they have group chats, and they hangout all the time and they are all really good friends. “In the class we all like to work on projects together. For example, we all got to build our own RC cars and Mr. Wheaton supports it because he can be laid back most of the time.” They also like to work on their own cars in class. Currently Isaac is putting a turbo on his 1999 Honda Accord, and he already has a cold air intake on his car.

From Cross Country to striving to become a mechanic for a dealership, Isaac is a very interesting person who has a lot going on for him. If he keeps it up, he will have a very successful career.